Digital Home Thoughts: Fujifilm Finepix X100 Hands-on

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Friday, March 11, 2011

Fujifilm Finepix X100 Hands-on

Posted by Lee Yuan Sheng in "Digital Home Hardware & Accessories" @ 09:00 AM

Samples

I am sure most will be interested in some samples, but the show floor of a public exhibition is generally a poor place for samples. Still, here are a few crops at different ISOs. These were all shot at fine JPEG, using the camera's default image settings, and with no corrections other than cropping. I have the corresponding RAW files, however the lack of a proper RAW converter means I feel it is best to not post them up. Apologies for the out of focus ISO 1600 shot.

ISO 200 - Click on image for larger crop

ISO 400 - Click on image for larger crop

ISO 800 - Click on image for larger crop

ISO 1600 - Click on image for larger crop

ISO 3200 - Click on image for larger crop

ISO 6400 - Click on image for larger crop

Image Quality Impressions

Even with a handful of samples, the camera shows great promise. Noise appears well controlled till ISO 800, and ISO 3200 is not too bad. Noise at ISO 6400 is showing a "dithering" noise structure quite clearly though. Not totally unusable, and for less critical applications they are certainly usable. Resolution looks good, though again, I do caution on making a judgement based on a few samples. The same can be said for dynamic range and tonal range. Colours appear a bit too strong in the JPEGs at the default setting. One thing that did come up is the purple fringing in JPEGs. Surprising to see something like that in 2011.

The RAW files I have were converted using an experimental build of DCRaw, but I felt it still had some way to go. That said, the smoothness and detail present in the RAWs hint at greater things to come. One thing that was clear was that the RAWs have far less purple fringing than the JPEGs. I suspect that most owners will stick with shooting RAW, pending any unforeseen hiccups.

Overall Impressions

The Fujifilm Finepix X100 is a very promising camera, spoilt by a few interface decisions, but ultimately I believe it will not mar the camera in the eyes of most people. The consideration I feel rests solely on the price (it is not a cheap camera) and if one is willing to have a camera dedicated to one focal length (in this case, 35mm equivalent). Personally, 35mm is not a favourite focal length of mine, so I will be passing this on. A 28mm or 45/50mm version however would seriously tempt me. You hear that Fujifilm?

Feel free to leave your own thoughts on the Fujifilm X100 in the comments!

Lee Yuan Sheng has used plenty of old film cameras since he started messing about with his dad's cameras in the 1980s. There is something to be said about knobs and dials, but there is also something to be said (less favourably) about film not spooling, jammed film advance levers, and having ISO 400 as the top usable film speed. He is happy to use a modern interface as long as it is fast and easy.


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