I just moved into a new house. My office is full of unopened boxes with vague labels like Office and Books. I did manage to get the computer unpacked last night, so hopefully I can keep up with Fuji X Weekly while also unpacking the office and the rest of the house, too. Thankfully we’re still in the same neighborhood, so the kids aren’t losing any of their friends. I want to apologize for any delays responding to your comments and emails—I’ll do my best to catch up on everything over the coming week or so.
Did you know that the Fujifilm X half isn’t the first to feature a tall-oriented sensor? I didn’t. I researched it when the camera was released, and didn’t find anything. Still, I’m glad that I typed the phrase “as far as I know” when stating that the X half was the first with a vertical sensor, because there’s one that predates it: Sony C200X, a digicam from 2003. Never heard of the C200X? That’s because it was specifically intended for passport and ID photos, and not sold to the general public. It’s a surprisingly massive camera for only having a 1/1.8″ 4mp sensor. It also has a 36-95mm (full-frame equivalent) f/2.8-4.8 zoom lens. Anyway, if you are looking for something to do this weekend, check out a video about the Sony C200X on the snappiness YouTube channel.
PetaPixel published These Are the Worst Designed Cameras We’ve Ever Used, and I was surprised to see that the Fujifilm X-Pro3 made the list. Essentially, Chris and Jordon are not big fans of the hybrid OVF/EVF, they think the X-Pro series is too big and bulky, and in particular they don’t like the backwards-mounted rear LCD, which is prone to break due to a faulty cable. I agree that the cable itself was a poor design choice (something more robust was needed), and the rear screen is unusual and thus polarizing (some love it, some hate it). But the X-Pro3 is beloved by a lot of photographers. I know several who use it daily and you couldn’t pry it out of their hands. The X-Pro series, which includes the X-Pro3, is one of the most beautiful series in all of digital photography—it’s iconic. By including the X-Pro3, I have to wonder about their other selections. Perhaps none of them “stink” (as they put it). Maybe they’re all great cameras with a quirk that some people love and some just don’t get. That’s ok, because no camera is perfect, and we’re all different anyway.
My two photowalks next month in Copenhagen are already sold out, but you can still attend the Fujikina event on May 9th and 10th. I’ll be hanging around both days, and even doing a short talk on Film Simulations and Fujifilm Recipes in Studio 4 at 11:30 AM on May 9th and 11:00 AM on May 10th. Stop by and say hi! I would love to meet you and chat cameras, Recipes, or whatever you’d like. Also, Fujifilm just announced Fujikina Warsaw on June 12th and 13th. I won’t be able to make that one, but if you live in or near Poland, I’m certain that it will be well worthwhile to attend.
That’s all I have for now. Because of the move, it might take me a little while to catch up, but hopefully by the end of next week things will be back to normal. I appreciate your patience. I hope you all have an excellent Easter weekend!
I really like my X-Pro3! It just feels good to me.
It’s an excellent camera, and odd that PetaPixel included it in their list.
Love my X-Pro3.
The screen might not be everyone’s cup of tea, but I enjoy it. Mine hasn’t given me issues, knock on wood. Viewfinder is a big plus for me. Sometimes I just don’t want to look into a screen, and this is a lot smaller and slimmer than any DSLR.
Not only that, I just a half hour ago ran into someone in the woods with exactly the same camera, same Dura Silver colorway. Granted, that was pretty unlikely, but hey. It happened.
That’s awesome! For a long time I never ran into anyone with a Fujifilm camera, but it is quite frequent now. Obviously two Dura Silver X-Pro3’s is even less likely, but so cool that it happened.
I bought the last X-Pro3 that LensRentals had in their inventory after renting it for a couple of weeks. I never “got” the rangefinder thing. Maybe now I get it a little bit better.
It’s a favorite walk-about camera for me, particularly with one of the f/2 primes attached. I put mine on a Clever leather strap and am learning to use the hybrid finder. I like the frame lines and there is enough information in the finder to operate the camera.
I’m one who doesn’t use the back screen much. I gave up chimping a number years ago. I grew up with film so waiting until I’m home is a short wait compared to waiting for the roll to be processed (or processing it myself).
I don’t see how the X-Pro3 could be considered a stinker. It might not be everyone’s cup of tea, but it is a solid rangefinder-type camera that produces excellent images. It also fits into the street-photographer’s vibe, particularly with the small primes. I have yet to spend much time with a manual-focus lens on mine, but just ordered a Voigtlander 35mm f/1.2 to play with. (I might have to set Clarity to 0 for this lens!) I expect there to be a learning curve when using manual focus lenses with the X-Pro3.
Cheers!
I don’t get how anyone could claim it to be a stinker, either. It’s a great camera that simply has a couple of unusual design choices that allows (or even encourages) you to have a different (yet rewarding) experience. Thanks for the comment!
I like the look of the strap on the Pro3 pictured. Is it identifiable?
Cheers, Nick
I’m pretty sure Tom made it himself by braiding some shoelaces.
Thanks Ritchie, what a good idea.
Nick
Haha: nice article (the one about worst cameras) 😀
Truth is that XPro-3 was in the list among other much more weird cameras. Like even the Hasselblad’s shamely rebranded Sony NEX. This might seem unfair and I would not like to spot my beloved camera there but to be honest guys picked something from (almost) every brand. And definitely did not talk about Xpro3 as badly as about Pentax K-01… I loved/used Pentax in my film days but hey, they unfortunately missed all trends including mirrorless.
And yeah, Chris always used o be harsh (for a reason) but funny too. Sometimes take articles like this with a grain of salt 🙂
If I were picking from Fujifilm, the X-Pro3 would be towards the bottom of my list, and not towards the top. Why not the XF1? Evo Cinema? The X Half being picked over it would be completely understandable. So, of course, it is important to have a grain of salt. The inclusion of a camera that so obviously shouldn’t be on the list makes me have to take the whole thing with a bag of salt, and not just a single grain. I don’t own an X-Pro3 (I have an X-Pro1), so it’s not my beloved camera, but it was pretty absurd to include it. I think the article would have made more sense if it had been released one day prior, and maybe that was the intention.