I've seen a few threads on the mirrorless systems and felt the need to write a personal review of the Fuji X-Pro1. Now, I must admit that I no longer own this camera but used it pretty extensively over a week at Disney. Why I returned it you ask, well in all honesty it was a bit of cold feet after a somewhat impulsive buy. When this camera was announced it sent shockwaves through the photo world and honestly it was just a sexy piece of engineering and design. But like with all releases I was a little skeptical and certainly not willing to shell out the full asking price. I waited and eventually once the reviews poured out there was a real sense of polarization amongst bloggers and reviewers. Some raved, some boo'd and eventually BH started dropping the price. Eventually the body and lenses came down and they also threw in a 4% of purchase kick back as a cherry on top. At that price I jumped two feet in.
Build Quality: For a camera of this cost, NOT impressed. Like most Japanese cameras there's a real sense of "plasticky" when it comes to describing the camera. The backside is loaded with buttons (again, par for the course) and overall I would not feel comfortable "tossing" this around. Now, not that we should be careless with our cameras but accidents do happen and this will not survive a drop. The lenses on the other hand are built very well, a decent weight but not a brick. Internally not so sure, there's a lot of lens chatter when focusing which was disappointing for a high end camera.
Ergonomics: Certainly no issues here, I'm neither small handed nor large handed so I felt no issue with the grip. I keep all my cameras strapped so I'm not handholding over long periods of time. Most of the dials are where you need them when you want them. I love that the aperture is set manually on the lens, that's nice.
Performance: Now! The meat and potatoes of this review. Fuji listens to their consumers and they released 2, maybe 3, firmware updates that all seemingly addressed the poor AF performance of this camera. This is where my main concerns fell on the rig over the week I used it. I'm not going to report focus issues at 8:30PM with low light because any seasoned photographer knows MOST cameras hunt in these conditions. Rather, I found backfocusing and hunting galore in the middle of the day... THE MIDDLE OF THE DAY, in perfect light. No matter how clean a file is it doesn't matter if you're missing the shot.
Who This Camera Is For: This camera is for the slow, drawn out photographer... not a Disney camera what so ever. If you're hiking and looking to keep a pack light with a small tripod this is your camera. If you're working planned shots this camera would work for you. Why it doesn't cater to Disney? Disney is the land of spontaneity and a clear abundance of stimuli with colors, music, cheerful CM's etc etc etc. You want a camera around your neck that if something comes up in a spontaneous fashion before you that will be able to quickly lock on and nail the shot. This camera MAY do that from time to time but otherwise it hunted, missed focus, and by the time the AF corrected itself the fleeting moment was gone.
Files: Boy oh boy, here is where Fuji shines. This new X-Trans sensor is plain ridiculous. Again, when the shot is nailed. A beautiful feature is the auto ISO ceiling, I kept the camera on MAX ISO 800 and it worked very well in the ever changing lighting conditions of WDW. I'll post images below to let the files speak for themselves.
Armand in France, this was one of those impromptu moments that actually worked for me... he came up behind me and I quickly snagged the XPro, composed, and the focus nailed indoors. ISO 800 at 1/50th... really, really sharp on his face and super clean. No post here, no sharpening... only converted to BW.
Pros:
1.) Very clean files when the camera performs the way it's supposed to.
2.) HIGH ISO performance, this is the type of camera that decimates the prospect of "going full frame" for the average consumer. Unless you're always shooting in low light, such as events, or printing HUGE then save your money.
3.) Appearance, they obviously know how to market cameras... it's beautiful compared to the same crap Nikon and Canon keep cranking out.
Cons:
1.) AF issues are terrible, even with firmware updates.
2.) This may not be a con, but if you're a photographer don't expect to be in any frames. This isn't the type of camera you can just hand to a friend and expect a sharp image. Toss CM's into that category as well.
3.) The EVF and OVF are strange, I could have gotten used to it eventually but if you're used to a traditional OVF or rangefinder this doesn't cut it.
Overall, I think we're headed in the right direction. I have to give Fuji credit for taking a risk and being different from the rest of the pack. I feel that in the future new models in the X line will address the performance issues. I'm not sold on any of the other fuji cameras that have slightly addressed the Af issue. This is a flagship model and I'd prefer to wait for the next generation.
If you're seriously considering a Mirrorless system then just sit back and wait for the next round of models to impress the market. The XPro2, not released yet or announced, will make waves. Fuji will take their time rather than rushing to market like they may have done with the XPro1.
Build Quality: For a camera of this cost, NOT impressed. Like most Japanese cameras there's a real sense of "plasticky" when it comes to describing the camera. The backside is loaded with buttons (again, par for the course) and overall I would not feel comfortable "tossing" this around. Now, not that we should be careless with our cameras but accidents do happen and this will not survive a drop. The lenses on the other hand are built very well, a decent weight but not a brick. Internally not so sure, there's a lot of lens chatter when focusing which was disappointing for a high end camera.
Ergonomics: Certainly no issues here, I'm neither small handed nor large handed so I felt no issue with the grip. I keep all my cameras strapped so I'm not handholding over long periods of time. Most of the dials are where you need them when you want them. I love that the aperture is set manually on the lens, that's nice.
Performance: Now! The meat and potatoes of this review. Fuji listens to their consumers and they released 2, maybe 3, firmware updates that all seemingly addressed the poor AF performance of this camera. This is where my main concerns fell on the rig over the week I used it. I'm not going to report focus issues at 8:30PM with low light because any seasoned photographer knows MOST cameras hunt in these conditions. Rather, I found backfocusing and hunting galore in the middle of the day... THE MIDDLE OF THE DAY, in perfect light. No matter how clean a file is it doesn't matter if you're missing the shot.
Who This Camera Is For: This camera is for the slow, drawn out photographer... not a Disney camera what so ever. If you're hiking and looking to keep a pack light with a small tripod this is your camera. If you're working planned shots this camera would work for you. Why it doesn't cater to Disney? Disney is the land of spontaneity and a clear abundance of stimuli with colors, music, cheerful CM's etc etc etc. You want a camera around your neck that if something comes up in a spontaneous fashion before you that will be able to quickly lock on and nail the shot. This camera MAY do that from time to time but otherwise it hunted, missed focus, and by the time the AF corrected itself the fleeting moment was gone.
Files: Boy oh boy, here is where Fuji shines. This new X-Trans sensor is plain ridiculous. Again, when the shot is nailed. A beautiful feature is the auto ISO ceiling, I kept the camera on MAX ISO 800 and it worked very well in the ever changing lighting conditions of WDW. I'll post images below to let the files speak for themselves.
Armand in France, this was one of those impromptu moments that actually worked for me... he came up behind me and I quickly snagged the XPro, composed, and the focus nailed indoors. ISO 800 at 1/50th... really, really sharp on his face and super clean. No post here, no sharpening... only converted to BW.
Pros:
1.) Very clean files when the camera performs the way it's supposed to.
2.) HIGH ISO performance, this is the type of camera that decimates the prospect of "going full frame" for the average consumer. Unless you're always shooting in low light, such as events, or printing HUGE then save your money.
3.) Appearance, they obviously know how to market cameras... it's beautiful compared to the same crap Nikon and Canon keep cranking out.
Cons:
1.) AF issues are terrible, even with firmware updates.
2.) This may not be a con, but if you're a photographer don't expect to be in any frames. This isn't the type of camera you can just hand to a friend and expect a sharp image. Toss CM's into that category as well.
3.) The EVF and OVF are strange, I could have gotten used to it eventually but if you're used to a traditional OVF or rangefinder this doesn't cut it.
Overall, I think we're headed in the right direction. I have to give Fuji credit for taking a risk and being different from the rest of the pack. I feel that in the future new models in the X line will address the performance issues. I'm not sold on any of the other fuji cameras that have slightly addressed the Af issue. This is a flagship model and I'd prefer to wait for the next generation.
If you're seriously considering a Mirrorless system then just sit back and wait for the next round of models to impress the market. The XPro2, not released yet or announced, will make waves. Fuji will take their time rather than rushing to market like they may have done with the XPro1.
