(Part II) Another I moved to mirrorless post

In part I of this blog post I identified three key appeals of the Fujifilm system from my perspective:

• User experience

• Fuji’s commitment to ongoing improvements

• Soul

User experience I have already  discussed, so in this second and concluding post I want to concentrate on Fuji’s commitments to ongoing updates and that elusive element – soul.

First though, Fuji scores highly in my book for continually upgrading the capabilities of their cameras by releasing major firmware updates. Many of these updates add new features, not simply bug fixes so it can sometimes feel a little like getting a new(ish) camera.  With their X-series cameras therefore Fuji  keep releasing firmware update to make their more recent cameras better whilst still introducing new camera models with ever better specifications. Now, models don’t stay on this upgrade path forever however, but it is very pleasing to see new functionality trickling back to previous models where processing and physical capacity exists in the older kit.

West End, London. Fuji X100T

Now some will argue that releasing new firmware for the cameras, not just every few years but sometimes within months of the last, is an admission that the camera was not fully finished on launch. The other snipe I have heard is that they use a few new features to hide the fact that the update is simply to fix previous bugs that slipped through the net.  However, they have also introduced firmware updates that have improved the performance of their lenses and enabled them to fully access the newer features in newer camera models.

It’s possibly over-egging the pudding somewhat to say that each time Fuji releases a firmware they essentially give you a new camera, however it certainly does give me a really good feeling about the company. Bug fixing, shrewd marketing or good customer service? You chose which axe you wish to grind and you take your pick!

As always I will leave the technical stuff and a discussion of the cameras’ specifications to others. I’m an enthusiast photographer rather than a working pro and what matters most to me is that very nebulous quality of the user experience – or in the case of these cameras “soul” I like to think.

The words user experience were very easy to type in the first part but were very hard to define in detail and not least  because it will vary considerably from one person to another.  Soul is even harder to define – even with a dictionary to hand!  For me, a camera needs to feel “right” in my hand. I can’t write the exact feeling down but know it when I experience it.  I now have four Fuji camera bodies and each feels a little different, each has its own characteristics and each its own personality almost. Okay, a bit too poetical I suspect! But soul emanates from this user experience.

When out with one of these cameras I feel at ease, confident in the technology and my ability to create images with it.  These cameras just perform really well for me and with them I can produce images that I am happy with and do it without stressing too much over technicalities. They just work. But as the saying goes your mileage may vary so this will not be the same for everyone. I just try to keep an open mind when I use any camera and having used Nikon and Canon extensively as well as various other makes in the last forty-plus years I can confidently say none gave me the same buzz as using these Fujis. That might sound a little fan-boyish but is not intended as such. I genuinely think that there is no such thing as a bad camera these days – just that some cameras fit better with our individual ways of working than others.

So, my five penn’orth to add to an already overcrowded “I moved to mirrorless” oeuvre.

Panoramic woodland

Panoramas are often seen as a landscape photographers tool but they have many other uses and I like to use them in all sorts of settings, not least in woodland. Two or three vertical images stitched together can make for a very detailed 1×1 image for example and whilst the resultant image does not look like a panorama as we know it the methodology is exactly the same.

The image here though takes a more traditional approach and stitches multiple images to create a super wide panorama without the need to crop out a large chunk of the image top and bottom which would have been the case if we’d used a super wide lens to capture everything in one frame. Indeed, this particular image is a 180° panorama and even a fisheye would have been hard pressed in this instance!

For less ambitious stitched panoramas I will typically shoot 4 or 5 frames, overlapping each by around a third and using the camera handheld. Practice has helped me in this as the camera needs to pivot around the same point (on all axes) to avoid large alignment shifts which result in having to crop deeper into the stitched image. Given that I was looking at a 180° panorama for this image I shot my frames with the camera firmly mounted on a carefully levelled tripod. The initial image (below) was created using the merge function in Photoshop and is shown exactly as produced. Note the blank areas where no data was captured and how small they are; this means that the tripod was allmost levelled perfectly but not quite!

The panorama is made up of 13 individual files as can be seen here and Photoshop has applied masks to each so that the final image is comprised of a little of each individual frame. You can see the progression of the lens as it was moved between each shot.

Once I was happy that it was properly aligned I simply flattened the file to create just one layer with the raw panorama ready for processing in the ordinary way. As I set white balance, aperture, ISO, focus and shutter speed manually I tend to stitch the files first and post process afterwards.

Levelling the tripod is important as it means that you maximise the usable area of each frame. Overlapping each sequential image by between 35% and 50% gives the software the maximum material to work with and creates a better stitch. I always shoot an extra frame either side of my intended area – if my intended scene extends from B to E for example I’d shoot frames from A to F inclusive to ensure that my intended outer edges of the image are fully covered.

(yet) Another I moved to mirrorless post

How many “I moved to [INSERT BRAND]” blog posts or videos have you seen over the last couple of years? If you are like me it is dozens and if like me you’ve made or considered the switch then it’s likely to be multiple dozens. So, with no excuses for a lack of originality here is my five penn’orth.

Fuji X-E1 with 7Artisans 55mm

Unlike many I wasn’t drawn towards mirrorless because of size or weight. For me, at that time, size didn’t matter [pause for the sniggering to stop] and nor did weight. For me it all started with an unusual example of being a relatively early adopter (albeit unwittingly) when I bought the Fuji X100, a quirky mirroless, rangefinder style camera with many irritating shortcomings that drove me initially to distraction and ultimately to selling the camera. That should have been it really but it left behind an itch.

I should perhaps out at this point that I bailed out before the firmware update that addressed many of these issues. At that time I knew little about Fujifilm apart from Velvia and Provia film and was not aware of their business model which continues to support camera models even after people have bought them. As a Canonikon user for over thirty years the concept of firmware updates that provided new or improved functionality was alien to me.

Fast forward three years after abandoning the X100 and with the itch seemingly pushed to the background, I chanced upon a review of the Fuji X100s which was it’s replacement. It was a much improved successor it seemed although I was reading an old review because the X100t had hit the streets by then. Perversely, despite its irritations I still missed the experience of using the X100 and, long story short, in the way that things can escalate when browsing the interweb I ended up putting a used Fuji X100t in the shopping basket. That was May 2016 and the X100t has been a constant companion ever since.

Fuji X-T3, 50-140mm

The rest as they say is history as I slowly but surely become more deeply immersed in the world of mirrorless and more specifically the Fuji X-series camera system. My move from a long term SLR/DSLR user to a purely mirroless shooter has taken two months short of three years. As already mentioned I’ve been using X-series cameras however since 2011. There was no “Eureka!” moment however, just a gradual shift which culminated with the sale of my Nikon D800E in late March 2019. In the space of the last seven years I’ve moved from Canon, a brand I used for over thirty years, to Nikon DSLRs and now the Fuji X-series. I’ve spent more than I’d ever admit to myself let alone the wife! I’ve also lost a small fortune on part exchange, but financial considerations aside I have enjoyed actually using every piece of kit I’ve ever owned.

So why did I settle on the Fuji X-series? I think there are three key reasons, none of which are weight or size.

• User experience

• Fuji’s commitment to ongoing improvements

• Soul

 

Not really a techy, geeky list it? Let’s take experience first. For someone like myself who took up photography in the 1970s with a Zenith E, a Russian-built tank of a camera, Fujifilm’s retro styling appeals to me both visually and practically. Having physical dials and knobs harks back to simpler times and on a practical level I really appreciate being able to see my key settings without having to squint at an LCD screen especially in bright sunlight.

I am an enthusiast photographer so it is important to me that I enjoy using my kit. With less than perfect eyesight too, having the information on the camera body is a boon. For me, the Fujifilm system allows for a very tactile experience and the fact that when shooting I can set everything on my X-T3 without touching a menu or looking at an LCD screen really adds to that experience and thus to the enjoyment.

In part two I will look at Fujifilm’s firmware update approach and try to put into words that final nebulous bullet point – soul.

The Case of the disappearing Mojo

Loch Maree, Scotland

How to define “mojo”? Well, the dictionary on my desk says:

“… a magic charm, talisman or spell”

Which is all well and good and accurate etcetera but not quite how we tend to use it as we tend to define that peculiar lethargy that robs us of the inclination to create as “losing my mojo”. Clearly, for me that means photography but I think it can be interpreted much more loosely and be used to encompass not just creative activities but other less creative pursuits.

As an aside, mojo is also the name given to several spicy sauces originating in the Canary Islands. But I digress (and not for the first time).

I do try to stay creative and full of energy and my 365 Challenge has proved very effective in keeping my enthusiasm alive but even so there are the odd days when it is more of an effort. I wrote this piece on one such day as part of my daily fifteen minutes free-writing exercise. I was supposed to have been in Manchester indulging in some street photography but, long story short, I’m at home through no fault of my own. Perhaps the sudden removal of something I’ve been looking forward to all week has contributed to this lack of enthusiasm?

I’ve just taken the grandson to school, something I do most days, and slipped my Fuji X100t in my pocket intending to wander down to the canal for a walk and to take a few snaps. Instead, I went straight to my favourite local cafe and had breakfast before heading home. I did listen to a podcast on my phone whilst at the cafe so not all was lost – but still I avoided using the camera!

I’m not the first and won’t be the last to lose their mojo and in fact this wasn’t even my first such case of a disappearing mojo but nevertheless it is worrying whenever it happens. Sure, history shows that I will get over it … but what if?

The good news is that disappearing mojos have a knack of returning especially with a lit bit of gentle coaxing. The first thing I do is put the camera away and if practical take a walk (without a camera) or sit with a coffee and a (non-photography) book. Sometimes just forgetting about creating for a while can help to clear the negative log-jam that is holding your creative juices back.

Another thing that often works for me is tidying up my desk. Sounds odd but simply handling the photographic detritus on my desk and putting it back where it belongs can often reignite an interest in doing something. That fisheye lens buried under a pile of papers that hasn’t been used in a while … now I wonder … It’s a bit like buying new kit without the costs involved; new kit is a sure fire way for many of us to get out with a camera and regain that enthusiasm but it’s not always economically viable.

If that doesn’t work I take a look back through my archive and remind myself of the many “wins” in a bid to remove negative thoughts. Sometimes seeing an old image can rekindle an interest in a particular technique or subject leading me to have another try.

If there is one thing that my own experience has taught me however it’s that I shouldn’t panic. The “lost” mojo is not gone but merely stood out of sight for a while, it will return and sometimes stressing about it only makes things worse.

Feeling Right

This was originally posted on October 10 2018 a couple of weeks into my ownership of the Fuji X-T3. A further five months have since elapsed and just this week I took the big step and sold my full frame Nikon D800E. It’s taken around three years but to celebrate finally “going mirrorless” I’m republishing the original article and images which were all shot as JPEGs.  I am planning on producing an updated review over the next month or so but in the meantime come back five months with me and sense the excitement of being an early adopter.

“Fujifilm’s latest X-series camera was released a few weeks ago to much fanfare and insofar as I can see much critical acclaim.  And for once in my life I find myself in the vanguard, an early adopter of Fujifilm’s latest electronic marvel even before Adobe have caught up.

Do I like it? Well, I sold the Fuji X-T20 within 48 hours of taking delivery of the X-T3 so confident was I after just one play that the older model wouldn’t get a look in unless I left the X-T3 at home; and why would I do that?

As always I will leave the technical stuff and a discussion of the cameras’s specifications to others. I’m an enthusiast photographer rather than a working pro and what matters most to me is that very nebulous quality of the user experience. 

User experience: easy to type but very hard to define largely because it will vary considerably from one person to another. 

A camera needs to feel “right” in my hand. I can’t write the exact feeling down but know it when I experience it.  The X-T3 is a little bigger than my now-departed X-T20 (a camera I really enjoyed using) although it is a form factor I’m familiar with as I already own the X-T1 which is my infrared/full-spectrum camera these days. With one of my primes attached or the 18-55 “kit” lens the X-T1 feels great in the hand. Not perfect but still very, very good. I knew therefore before I placed the order for the X-T3 that I’d be purchasing the battery grip especially if I intended expanding my focal length opportunities by buying a telephoto lens at some point in the future (spoiler alert: that future is now the past).

All images: © Dave Whenham

The X-T3 body with my 35mm f1.4 prime does indeed feel great in the hand and I’ve been using this combination a lot recently. The 18-55 likewise balances well as do the two Samyang primes in my bag (12mm and the fisheye) although the Fuji 55-200 does feel a little front heavy although this was not unexpected. The battery grip though transforms the handling from good to great. It’s good also to have the choice of travelling very light with just body and a 23mm prime for example or putting on the grip for better handling with the bigger lenses and of course three times as much battery power. As an aside, I got 1,216 images (2,432 files as I shoot RAW+JPEG) from one charge using three batteries and the grip which is pretty much what is claimed by Fuji (1,170 from memory is the claim).

The auto-focus is not strictly something many would class as handling but it does contribute to the overall user experience as slow or poor AF can be very frustrating at best. On the X-T1  focusing with the Fujifilm 35mm f1.4 R can be slow and the lens often hunts especially in more challenging conditions. But keep in mind this lens is a venerable OAP in lens-terms having been first released for sale on January 9th 2012. I was therefore amazed and very surprised at the very nifty focusing achieved with the X-T3. It will never compete with more modern lenses in the speed stakes due to its older design and engineering but comparing it on the X-T3 versus the X-T1 does reveal a very welcome improvement in user experience.  Of course, this is my subjective view and I’ve not carried out any laboratory testing but at the end of the day it’s how the gear behaves in real life and not in a laboratory that really matter – at least to some of us!

What I’ve not yet had the opportunity to do is a “proper” day out complete with a tripod, numerous lens changes and the deployment of filters but that should be possible next week fingers crossed.

So, all first signs are positive. I never expected to be an early adopter but having got caught up in the excitement as a fellow photographer anticipated the release of the “T3” I found myself swept along and with an order in the basket just the day before the official UK launch. I never expected to get it within 48 hours either.  With the 18-55 attached I set off for a few days in Northumberland to celebrate my birthday not really expecting much in the way of photography but nevertheless knowing that I had a pretty capable camera should opportunities arise.

Oh, and that telephoto lens? Our journey from Elland to Northumberland took us pass the Metro Centre in Gateshead and of course the Boss decided that would be an ideal opportunity for a coffee and a break from driving (not that she drives!).  Long story short – Jessops – a few secondhand lenses – Fuji 50-140 f2.8.  I tried it on an X-T2 body (the shop hadn’t any X-T3 bodies) and knew that I was about to take another irrevocable step into the Fuji-X system. I barely took the lens off the X-T3 for the following three days.”

So, that was then. What do I think now? Well, the sale of my Nikon DSLR gives a clue … as does the fact that I’ve switched systems fully. That post is underway but it will be a month or two before it’s finished as I suspect there will be a further purchase in the next week or so.

Hello world!

Welcome to Dave’s Place where I shall soon start sharing my thoughts, on photography mainly, but be prepared for the occasional bout of senior rambling … I’m of that age!

This isn’t my first blog but I’ve decided to start from scratch simply so I can learn to use WordPress.org and the joys of managing my own hosting. Expect some up-cycled material however as I settle into the rhythm again, especially as my last blog post was November 2018.

Also expect  plenty of photographs – it’s my main passion after my family and you may also see the occasional gear review especially as I finally, after nearly three years, fully transitioned to a Fuji system just this month.

Mainly though it will be a potpourri of writings largely based around my wanderings with a camera.

Skye Landscape (AV)

The final slideshow produced whilst working through the Pictures to Exe tutorial files. Quietly pleased with this and feel confident that PTE and FCP both have a place in my future output. I like to put slide sequences into my video diaries and this will give me further options especially as I get more confident with the program.

Music: Procession of the King, Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/. and A Quiet Place licensed from beckhamdigital.com.au

June 2017 Video Diary

I’ve created a short video diary looking at some of what I did in May and sharing my thoughts about new ventures.  It includes some iPhone 7 footage which I shot expressly to try to determine how long it would take to create a daily VLOG. I shot the footage, edited it together and found some music and sound effects and proved to myself that it was do-able in an hour or so – but every day? Not for me.

I’ve created a “fancy(ish)” introductory sequence for this months offering. Now, a twenty second intro is far too much for a short video blog such as this but its use here serves to show what can be achieved in an hour or so with an internet connection, some YouTube videos and a willingness to try things out (and Google Earth too in this case). The final sequence used around 30 different elements all told and I also learnt some FCPX shortcuts in that process too.  I’ve spent a fair bit of time on such research in the last few months and its starting to show in quicker editing I think.

I was out and about quite a bit in May when of course I was shooting video footage alongside my usual stills. This monthly update is a bit of a lucky dip as I had no clear idea when I started as to what I would cover in my video diary and was not therefore shooting with this in mind.   There were days for example when I simply forgot to take any video footage to complement the stills, but that will improve with time I’m sure.

Music credits: Ascending the Vale, Open those Bright Eyes and Easy Lemon all Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com). Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

Gratuitous Bluebell Post

Bright sunlit area, Elland Woods. Nikon D750 Sigma 105mm

Mainly in shade. Fuji X-T1 55-200mm lens

Slight change of position. Fuji X-T1 55-200mm lens

Fuji X-T1 55-200mm lens

X100T Saves the Day

Since the arrival of the X-Pro1 I’ve rather neglected the X100T using the former for wandering about and the X-T10 for landscapes.  After breakfast on Tuesday morning we drove down to the Mumbles for a stroll and to give the wife a chance to play on the 2p machines at the arcade. I know – rock ‘n’ roll!   Upon leaving the car I grabbed the bag with the X-Pro1, a spare battery and a cleaning cloth. On an impulse I grabbed the X100T which was in the boot of the car and popped that in the bag too.

Mumbles panorama

Midway through the afternoon we found ourselves at Mumbles Pier. Whilst the wife gambled her pennies I wandered down onto the beach with the X-Pro1 and my favourite 35mm f1.4 lens. It was not the best choice though as I found myself wanting a wider view. Remembering the X100T with its fixed 23mm lens I swapped cameras – and never swapped back.

As I wandered on the beach looking for compositions a few clouds scudded into view giving some interest to what had been a bland, hazy sky all day up until then.  Whilst switching Drive modes I spotted the Sweep Panorama feature, something I hadn’t used previously. It’s fair to say I gave it plenty of use!  The panorama above is straight from camera .

Mumbles

The beauty of the X100T is how small it is. But I’d have to also say that the 23mm lens is extremely versatile for a landscaper like myself.

Two weeks ago I was confident that I’d try to upgrade to the XT2 early next year. Then I bought the X-Pro1 and “knew” that I’d prefer the X-Pro2 to the XT2. Now I’m confused – perhaps I will look at the X100F?  Who know!!