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FujiFilmFinePix X100

A Street CAmerA NAmed deSireOur brief encounter with a pre-

production X100 left us wanting

more and now we’ve been able to

test the finished product we’re even

more convinced it’s what so many

photographers have been waiting

for. report by Paul Burrows.

Only the ‘Fn’ button – which can be assigned a variety of functions – is the digital give-away on the top panel. Otherwise the control layout is pure 35mm rangefinder camera.

ucked away somewhere in Fujifilm’s product planning department is a rabid camera

enthusiast. We reckon he (or could it be a she?) has been there for a while because the FinePix X100 isn’t the first Fujifilm camera to come out of left field. Think about all those rollfilm rangefinder models, for example, and the GX680 6x8cm SLR system. And there have been the various collabo-rations with Hasselblad which have resulted in the XPan and the H1 being sold in Japan badged as Fujifilm. Then, more recently, there was the Klasse high-end 35mm compacts which, in many ways, are the forerunners of the X100.

So Fujifilm has plenty of form when it comes to creating cameras for the discerning photographer and the X100 certainly fits that bill. The Klasse models (were never sold in Australia) also provide some clues as to where Fujifilm might go with its X100 project... a black finish and a version with a wider-angle lens, for example. A black X100 Wide with, say, a 28mm-equivalent lens could be even more desirable, couldn’t it? But let’s not get carried away, the current camera ticks plenty of boxes for anybody looking for a compact digital camera with D-SLR levels of functionality and performance.

We don’t generally dwell on the packaging of cameras, but it’s definitely part of the whole X100 experience and the boxing arrangement is the equal of anything from Leica, except in black rather than white. The camera snuggles alone in a satin-lined box that’s a solid piece of work in itself

while everything else is packed into a second carton that’s similar in size and construction. Down the track, the ‘with boxes’ second-hand X100s are going to attract a premium because buyers really will want the whole package.

Of course, the boxes are just a taste of what’s to come with the X100 itself which has to be the classiest piece of digital camera design you’ll see this side of the Leica M9. Fujifilm has done a superb job with the styling which, while undoubtedly retro, doesn’t sink into clichés or banality. The X100 looks classically smart with obviously more than a slight nod to the legendary rangefinder camera designs of the 35mm film era. It’s smaller than a Leica M or a Voigtländer Bessa R, but not by much and the visual similarities are undeniable thanks to the much-lauded hybrid optical/digital viewfinder. Traditional dials – milled out of metal too – a large viewfinder window, chromed shutter release button and something that looks just like a self-timer lever or a brightline frame selector all contribute to the RF-like appearance, although this is only from the front. Around the back, the X100 is most definitely of the digital era with an LCD monitor screen, function buttons and multi-direction controller.

Not So Heavy MetalThe bodyshell is an all-metal construction, com-prising diecast magnesium alloy top and bottom plates which clothe an aluminium chassis and

are finished in a steely grey. This contrasts nicely with the black leather-look inserts, but there’s no question that an all-black finish would look sensational too.

While the construction emphasis is obviously on balancing strength with lightness, the X100 still tips the scales at 450 grams so it feels just like a classic RF camera too – an impression further enhanced by the overall quality of the fit and finish. In addition to the milled metal dials and control rings, this includes markings that are engraved and then painted-in rather than simply screen-printed, and even the slip-on lens cap is metal (so don’t lose it!). The shutter release button even sports a traditional cable release socket.

The accessory options include a metal lens hood and a wonderful leather camera case, both of which you’re definitely going to want. However, you’ll need the optional adapter ring if you want to fit screwthread filters to the X100’s lens.

The lens itself is a fixed prime which has been specifically designed to work optimally with the camera’s ‘APS-C’ size sensor. The focal length of 23mm is equivalent to 35mm in the 35mm format and the aperture range is f2.0 to f16, adjusted manually via a traditional collar-type control. The optical construction comprises eight elements in six groups, including one aspherical type created via glass-moulding techniques and designed to help minimise distortion.

Behind the lens is a CMOS-type sensor with an imaging area of 15.8x23.6 mm and an effective pixel count of 12.3 million, giving a maximum image size of 4288x2848 pixels. This is obviously at an aspect ratio of 3:2, but the X100 can also be switched to a 16:9 crop and two smaller image sizes are available for both. Importantly, given its target audience of professionals and advanced enthusiasts, there’s a RAW capture mode (12-bit processing, .RAF format) and the option of RAW+JPEG recording. Additionally, there’s the choice of sRGB or Adobe RGB colour space settings.

The sensor works in concert with a dedicated Fujifilm EXR processor which employs dual CPUs and this is where the X100 steps straight into 2011. The EXR processor employs new algorithms to optimise resolution, dynamic range, colour fidelity and noise reduction plus it has the speed to enable HD video recording and a maximum continuous shooting rate of 5.0 fps. Additionally, the processor drives functions such as the X100’s ‘Film Simulation Modes’ and ‘Expanded Dynamic Range’ settings. There are eight film modes, three of which replicate the look of the Fujichrome

transparency films Provia, Velvia and Astia which equate to ‘Standard’, ‘Vivid’ and ‘Soft’ respectively. The remaining five are for B&W capture with the options of adding yellow, red or green contrast control filters or a sepia toning. Additionally, the colour saturation, sharpness and highlight and/or shadow tone can be adjusted; these latter two being essentially a contrast tweak. Each adjustment has five settings, namely high, medium high, standard, medium low and low.

With dynamic range expansion processing now standard in D-SLRs and many higher-end compacts, it’s easy to forget that Fujifilm pioneered this idea in its later S-series D-SLRs. Of course, the X100 doesn’t have the ‘SR’

CCD sensor of the S3 and S5 with its dual sets of different size pixels, so it employs the conventional method of adjusting the exposure and the tone curve to help retain more information in both the highlights and the shadows. However, it still has the same way of labelling the manual settings – namely ‘100 percent’, ‘200 percent’ and ‘400 percent’ – with an ‘Auto’ control that varies the correction according to the brightness range in a scene. There isn’t an off setting, but then when is less dynamic range more desirable?

The X100 also has a multi-shot HDR function which is actually one component of a suite of four auto bracketing modes, each capturing a sequence of three frames. The HDR mode records them at 100, 200 and 400 percent, but it’s also possible to bracket for ISO (at up to +/-1.0 EV in one-third stop increments), exposure (also at up to +/-1.0 EV) and the colour ‘Film Simulation’ modes (Provia, Velvia and Astia so the looks can be directly compared).

The X100 records HD video at 720p and 24 fps, but you get the impression that this feature is included mainly because it has to be these days. It’s hard to see anybody wanting to buy this camera for its video capabilities which are comparatively limited, although the built-in microphone is a stereo pick-up. The ‘Film Simulation’ mode, white balance, exposure compensation and aperture can all be preset, alternatively the focusing, exposure and white balance can be left to the camera to adjust during recording. The maximum clip duration is ten minutes.

Pixel PowerWhile there has been some discussion about why Fujifilm didn’t opt for a higher resolution sen-sor in the X100, staying at ‘only’ 12.3 megapixels

T

If you think it looks good here, wait until you see the X100 in the flesh. It’s simply gorgeous.

Even the top panel logo echoes those of the classic European marques. Both the lens and processor are optimized for the X100’s lens.

Manual aperture selection is via a conventional control collar which is switched to ‘A’ for shutter-priority auto control. Likewise, the shutter speed is set to ‘A’ for aperture-priority control and A+A=P.

A combination of an input lever (top) and a combined control wheel and four-way keypad operate the majority of the X100’s digital functions including menu navigation.

“With the X100’s hybrid viewfinder you can have the best of both worlds – a large, bright and crisp optical viewfinder combined with electronic finder elements such as a level indicator, grid display and real-time histogram.”

Note the discreet built-in flash, posi-tioned so it looks like the rangefinder illuminator on a classic RF camera. On the X100 the brightline image frame is projected from an LCD panel.

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has arguably more important benefits in terms of the higher signal-to-noise ratio inherent in the bigger pixels. Most notable among these is an increased dynamic range to start with, so the X100’s expansion processing actually has some-thing to work with.

The sensor’s native sensitivity range is equivalent to ISO 200 to 6400 with a one-stop ‘push’ to ISO 12,800 and a one-stop ‘pull’ to ISO 100. There’s a choice of three exposure metering methods, starting with a 256-segment multi-zone measurement which provides reasonably good frame coverage. The alternatives are a two percent spot and a fully averaged measurement which, of course, takes you straight back to the early days of built-in camera meters.

The choice of exposure control modes is strictly ‘PASM’ so there aren’t any subject/scene modes to insult your intelligence. However, the choice of overrides is as would be expected on any D-SLR and comprises a program shift, an AE lock, up to +/-2.0 EV of compensation and the auto bracketing mentioned earlier. Exposure control itself is pure ‘classic camera’ – dials for the shutter speeds and exposure compensation settings, and a collar on the lens barrel for the apertures. The shutter speed dial is marked from 1/4000 second to ¼ second after which a ‘T’ setting provides access to the rest of the range from ½ second to 30 seconds and these speeds are selected via the command dial on the camera’s rear panel. The aperture range is f2.0 to f16, selectable only in full-stops with manual control in the aperture-priority auto mode. However, in the fully manual exposure mode, the command dial/wheel and command control on the X100’s rear panel will allow for 1/3 EV adjustments (up to +/- 2/3EV) of both the apertures and shutter speeds.

Because of the combination of a leaf-type shutter with an aperture diaphragm in the lens, the two fastest shutter speed settings are only available at between f8.0 and f16, otherwise the top speed is just 1/1000 second which means there’s a chance very bright conditions could be problematic when shooting at the wider apertures. Consequently, the X100 has a built-in neutral density (ND) filter which knocks out three stops of light. However, an advantage of the leaf shutter is flash sync at all speeds. The X100 has a built-in flash, but is also fitted with a hotshoe for coupling a more powerful external unit. The onboard flash modes include fill-in, red-eye reduction and slow speed synchro with exposure

based on what Fujifilm calls ‘Super Intelligent Flash’ which essentially performs scene analysis to accurately balance the flash output with the available light level. Given its small size, the built-in flash is primarily designed for fill-in work and, in this role, it works very well too.

Chasing FocusThe X100’s auto white balance is also based on scene recognition analysis and is backed by a selection of seven presets, provisions for creating a custom measurement, fine-tuning and manual colour temperature setting. The latter’s range is from 2500 to 10,000 degrees Kelvin while the fine-tuning is available over nine steps in the colour ranges of red-to-cyan and blue-to-yellow.

As with all digital compact cameras, autofocusing is achieved via contrast detection measurements from the imaging sensor so it’s slower than a D-SLR’s phase-different detection system. However, Fujifilm feels it can describe the X100’s AF as “high speed” due to the CMOS device’s faster signal read-out and the EXR processor’s number-crunching capabilities.

The system employs a total of 49 focusing points arranged in a 7x7 pattern and providing close to full coverage of the frame. There’s provision for either automatic or manual point selection and adjustment of the focusing frame’s size (three settings), additionally AF operation can be switched between single-shot and continuous. The minimum focusing distance is 80 centimetres, but this drops to ten centimetres in the camera’s macro mode.

Manual focusing is via a collar on the lens, but it isn’t a mechanical control rather an electronic ‘fly-by-wire’ type and you can feel it pulsing as it’s turned. Strangely, though, it seems to need a lot of turns to make even quite small adjustments so focusing manually with the X100 is by no means quick either. You’re guided by a distance scale with a sliding index mark and, very handily, a depth-of-field indicator which adjusts according to the subject distance and aperture. Additionally, pressing in the command control brings up a magnified image in both the LCD monitor screen and the X100’s electronic viewfinder (EVF).

Smart ViewThis brings us to one of the cleverest aspects of the FinePix X100, namely its hybrid viewfinder which supplements the camera’s conventional LCD monitor screen. The hybrid design enables the eyelevel viewfinder to operate as an optical

type or an electronic type or, most cleverly, as an optical type with superimposed electronic read-outs and displays (including the manual focusing distance and depth-of-field scale).

What this means is that you can have the best of both worlds – a large, bright and crisp optical viewfinder combined with electronic finder elements such as a level indicator, grid display and real-time histogram. It’s done by incorporating a small, high-resolution LCD panel in the optical viewfinder assembly along with a prism in which is set a half mirror. Finally, at the front of optical finder is a shutter. When this shutter is open, the LCD panel serves as the finder’s light source (replacing the conventional illuminating window) and the various displays are projected over the viewfinder image via the half-mirror. You can configure the displays to be as simple or as detailed as desired (a total of 14 items can be checked in the X100’s custom menu) so, if you just want a brightline frame and, say, the exposure settings, these are all you need to switch on. The frame provides automatic parallax correction too. Alternatively, you can have the full digital disaster, but still with the benefits of an optical image. You can configure the EVF/LCD display the same way too. When the optical viewfinder’s shutter is closed the LCD panel relays a live view image to the eyepiece and, although it has a resolution of 1.44 megapixels, the difference is like chalk and cheese, particularly in terms of the dynamic range. This merely confirms that even the best EVFs are a poor substitute for an optical finder so the X100’s LCD projection system adds the benefits of more detailed displays.

It doesn’t take long to become thoroughly addicted to this viewfinder arrangement, using the LCD monitor only for image evaluation. Proximity sensors in the eyepiece enable automatic switching between the eyelevel viewfinders and the LCD monitor screen according to how the camera is being held.

In The HandWith so many conventional controls, much of the X100’s operation is pretty logical, but the combination of the old and the new has created a few stumbles. This mostly happens when the settings within a function are split between, say, an external control and the menu system which can create a bit of confusion, at least initially. Ad-ditionally, the combination of four-way controller and command wheel is diabolic on the Olympus

The visual similarities with a traditional 35mm rangefinder camera are obvious when the X100 is seen alongside the Voigtländer R2M. It’s only marginally smaller too.

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E-P2 and it’s pretty well just as bad on the X100. If you don’t apply a very light touch to the wheel when turning it, you’ll end up accidentally access-ing one of the four functions assigned to the con-troller. We lost count of the times we ended up in the movie mode by mistake. It’s hidden away in the drive menu, but you can get there just a little too easily by pressing on the top of the command wheel just a little too hard and then pressing it again which is an instinctive escape action.

The menu system is pretty straightforward in its design and navigation and comprises three chapters for Shooting, Set Up and Playback, each with continuously scrolling pages rather than distinct sub-menus. This means that some items can take a while to find and set. Progressive right clicks access the sub-menus and settings while the ‘OK’ button in the centre of the four-way controller serves as the enter key. There’s a choice of colour schemes.

Control customisation is largely limited to a single ‘Fn’ button on the camera’s top panel which can be assigned one of 12 functions, including depth-of-field preview and engaging the ND filter. However, you’re likely to want it for something that’s likely to be needed more frequently such as the ISO settings... which otherwise have to be accessed via the Shooting menu and this takes time.

Three camera set-ups derived from the menu settings can be stored as custom configurations, but some important items can’t be included so

this feature is, in reality, of limited usefulness. The replay functions are mostly limited to the basics (thumbnail displays, zoom, rotate, etc), but there are provisions for searching via a number of criteria and in-camera RAW-to-JPEG conversion with a choice of 12 processing parameters, including dynamic range, ‘Film Simulation’ mode, white balance, WB shift, sharpness, noise reduction, highlight/shadow tone adjustment, colour space and colour saturation. However,

conversion is only to a JPEG and not a TIFF as is possible on some D-SLRs.

This may look like a load of gripes regarding the X100’s operation and the bottom line is that it is a bit clunky in places, but nothing here is a deal breaker and, over time, you’d certainly learn to live with the idiosyncrasies. It isn’t, for example, anywhere near as curse-inducing as Sigma’s DP-series compacts. Overall, the X100 works pretty efficiently and it’s easy to forgive the few control-related hassles in return for the hybrid viewfinder, the way the thing looks and feels, the big sensor with its big pixels, the superb prime lens... need we go on?

PerformanceAnother debate surrounding the X100 has related to Fujifilm’s adoption of a fixed lens design rather than going down the compact system camera route of interchangeability. In truth, the latter option would have resulted in a very different camera indeed and the fixed lens arrangement

The menu system is easy to navigate, but with continuously scrolling pages rather than distinct sub-menus.

The colour ‘Film Simulation’ modes mimic the colour saturation and contrast characteristics of Fujifilm’s popular E6 transparency films – Provia (i.e. standard), Velvia (vivid) and Astia (soft).

The control customisation options are limited to an ‘Fn’ button (located on the camera’s top deck) that can be assigned a variety of functions.

The image replay screens include the option of a brightness histogram.

The shooting display can be configured to show a variety of information, including an electronic level (seen here as the green centre line). Thanks to the X100’s hybrid viewfinder design this display can be seen in the camera’s LCD monitor screen, the EVF and superimposed over the optical finder.

Image quality is the icing on the X100 cake. The camera delivers excellent sharpness, colour fidelity and dynamic range. Noise levels are very low up to ISO 3200 and still minimal at ISO 6400… the visual manifestations of a bigger sensor using bigger pixels with a superior signal-to-noise ratio.

“While the construction emphasis is obviously on balancing strength with lightness, the X100 still tips the scales at 450 grams so it feels just like a classic rF camera too – an impression further enhanced by the overall quality of the fit and finish.”

The back panel is, not surprisingly, pure digital compact camera with a 7.1 cm LCD monitor screen. Of course, the X100 also has an optical viewfinder which can be cleverly switched to become an EVF.

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Type: Fixed prime lens digital compact camera with hybrid optical/electronic viewfinder.Lens: Fujinon Super EBC 23mm f2.0 (equivalent to 35mm). Focusing Type & Range: Contrast detection system, 49 points wide-area with auto/manual point selec-tion (25 points with the optical viewfinder) and centre-point mode. Focus frame adjustable for size. 80 cm to infinity, macro focusing down to 10 cm. Manual switching between single-shot and continu-ous modes. Low light/contrast assist provided by built-in lamp. Fully manual control available with magnified LCD monitor image for assistance.Shutter Type: Combined electronic and mechanical, leaf type.Shutter Speeds: 30-1/4000 second plus ‘B’.Metering: Multi-zone (256 segments), average and spot (2.0% of frame area).Exposure System: Program (with shift), aperture/shutter-priority auto and manual. Up to +/-2.0 EV exposure compensation, an AE lock and auto expo-sure bracketing. Built-in ND filter (equivalent to -3.0 EV).Sensitivity: ISO 200, 400, 800, 1600, 3200 and 6400. Extended to ISO 100 and 12,800.White Balance: Auto with seven presets, custom measurement and manual colour temperature set-tings (2500 to 10,000 degrees Kelvin). Fine-tuning in the red-to-cyan and blue-to-yellow colour ranges (plus/minus nine steps)Sensor: 15.8x23.6 mm CMOS, 12.9 million pixels total (12.3 MP effective). Image Size: At 3:2 aspect ratio – 4288x2848, 3072x2048 and 2176x1448 pixels. At 16:9 aspect ratio – 4288x2416, 3072x1728 and 1920x1080 pixels. JPEG, RAW (.RAF files) and JPEG+RAW capture modes.Video Recording: MOV (H.264) format at 1280x720 pixels, 24 fps and 16:9 aspect ratio with stereo sound. HD clips limited to 10 minutes in duration. 3.0x digital zoom available in video mode only.

Continuous Shooting: Up to 5.0 fps for a burst of up to 10 images with JPEG/large/fine capture and eight images with RAW capture. Up to 3.0 fps when the shutter speed is 1/100 second or slower.Formats: JPEG and MOV. DPOF and PictBridge compatible.Flash: Built-in with auto, red-eye reduction, fill-in and slow sync modes. External flash units sync via ISO standard hotshoe.Viewfinder: Hybrid optical/electronic eyelevel view-finder plus 7.1 cm LCD monitor (460,000 pixels). Optical viewfinder = 0.5x magnification and 90 per-cent frame coverage. EVF = 1.44 megapixels reso-lution and 100 percent frame coverage. Eyepiece strength adjustment built-in.Storage: SD/SDHC/SDXC memory cards plus 20 MB of internal memory. Interface: USB 2.0 and mini HDMI.Additional Features: Film simulation modes (Provia/Standard, Velvia/Vivid, Astia/Soft, Monochrome and Sepia), B&W contrast filters (yellow, red and green), expanded dynamic range settings (Auto, 100%, 200% and 400%), adjustable image parameters (colour saturation, sharpness, highlight tone and shadow tone), sRGB and Adobe RGB colour space settings, auto bracketing functions (for exposure, ISO, film mode and dynamic range) high ISO noise reduction, electronic level display, in-camera panora-ma mode (120 or 180 degrees sweep), dual-delay self-timer (two or ten seconds), real time histogram display, superimposed grids, selectable shutter sounds, silent mode (switches off shutter noise, flash, etc), nine and 100 image thumbnail displays, zoom playback, in-camera RAW-to-JPEG conversion, Power: Rechargeable lithium-ion battery.Dimensions (WxHxD): 126.5x74.4x53.9 mm.Weight: 405 grams (without battery or memory card).Price: $1299.Distributor: Fujifilm Australia, telephone or visit www.fujifilm.com.au

FujiFilm FinePix x100 $1299

works on many levels, especially given the quality of the all-glass Fujinon optics.

The 23mm prime is exceptionally sharp across its aperture range with minimal centre-to-corner fall-off and extremely uniform brightness too. Both distortion and chromatic aberration are well-controlled and, in practice, the 35mm-equivalent focal length is extremely versatile especially for street photography which is obviously a key application for this camera.

The AF operation is comparatively fast for a contrast-detection system, but still slow by D-SLR standards. As noted earlier, focusing manually isn’t especially quick either, but pre-focusing and using depth-of-field will work in many situations.

All Fujifilm’s decisions about the X100’s imaging ‘stream’ from lens to processor are vindicated when you see what the camera can do in terms of picture quality. The colour reproduction is exceptionally accurate in the ‘Provia’ mode and beautifully punchy in the ‘Velvia’ mode which is probably where fans of this legendary E6 film will leave their X100s. The level of sharpness and hence the definition of fine detailing is exceptional and arguably the best we’ve ever seen from a 12 MP sensor. Tonal gradations are wonderfully smooth and the dynamic range is good even at the lowest ‘100 percent’ expansion setting (which is the default).

The camera’s high ISO performance is also quite remarkable with very low noise levels all the way up to ISO 3200 and not much to talk about at ISO 6400. Even at the one-stop push to ISO 12,800 the colour saturation and definition remain very good indeed. Some graininess is evident in areas of uniform tonality, but it’s still only comparatively slight so the setting is definitely useable without sacrificing too much image quality. Again, we haven’t seen a 12 MP ‘APS-C’ size sensor perform so well in this area... a strong argument for not going for a higher pixel count.

In general, the best quality JPEGs looked sharper and contrastier than the X100’s RAW files, but obviously the latter can be dealt with more comprehensively post-camera.

The VerdictThe question here is whether the X100 lives up to all the hype? The simple answer is yes and this applies to the way it looks and feels, the build quality, the classical controls, the lens’s perfor-mance and the image quality. If you’re of a cer-tain vintage then the styling and handling is going to have more appeal, but given the currently popularity of retro designs the X100 is arguably at the height of fashion and, besides, there are good reasons why some things just work… like dials. Interestingly, it’s some of the digital controls that are this camera’s weakest link.

In many ways, the ‘real camera’ styling is just the icing on the cake because at the heart of the X100’s appeal is the fact that it’s a compact camera marrying a very high quality prime lens with a big sensor boasting big pixels (comparatively speaking, of course). The result is stunning image quality which provides the firm foundation on which all the X100’s other attributes are solidly grounded. Cameras this good simply don’t come along all that often.