Review
Rally Car Pics
There is a Rally Race this weekend near my house and I grabbed a few snapshots of the cars lined up at the Meet the Driver time last night. Some nice looking cars for sure!!
Fujifilm X-Pro 1 w/ 18mm f/2 Lens @ f/8, 1/60sec, ISO 200, Handheld, Jpeg Fine
Fujifilm X-Pro 1 w/ 18mm f/2 Lens @ f/8, 1/60sec, ISO 200, Handheld, Jpeg Fine
Fujifilm X-Pro 1 w/ 18mm f/2 Lens @ f/7.1, 1/120sec, ISO 200, Handheld, Jpeg Fine
Fujifilm X-Pro 1 w/ 18mm f/2 Lens @ f/7.1, 1/120sec, ISO 200, Handheld, Jpeg Fine
Dinner the other night was Awesome!! Michele and I watched the Sandwich King the other night and the Burgers looked incredible so we did our best 
 The Lighting is pretty bad in this snapshot as natural light is coming in from camera left and the Tungsten light is above the Burger creating all sorts of white balance issues in the shadows and highlights.
Dinner – Fujifilm X-Pro 1 w/ 18mm f/2 Lens @ f/4, 1/4sec, ISO 400, Jpeg Fine, Resting on table
Fujifilm X-Pro 1 w/ 18mm f/2 Lens @ f/4, 1/4sec, ISO 400, Jpeg Fine, Resting on table
Conclusion
The Fujifilm X-Pro 1 is an extremely well built tank of a mirrorless camera!! It’s overall larger and heavier than the Sony Nex-7, but it still so lite compared to a DSLR that the weight difference isn’t that noticeable to me at all when actually using it with the XF F/2 18mm lens. The 18mm lens is very lite and was the only lens I used for this review. That is important as it pertains to the Autoficus, because it worked pretty dam good for me with that lens and you can see it for yourself in the video above. With the larger lenses, especially the 60mm Macro, the Autofocus is much slower and hunts around more. I’ve read this on other reviews and forums and in the comments below, but with the 18mm XF f/2 lens the Auto Focus works really good in almost all the situations I through at it. It did struggle a bit on the pool shots on the fence railing, but I simple moved the AF point and it locked right on.
The Image quality on the Fujifilm X-Pro 1 using the 18mm lens is excellent. The colors, dynamic range, noise, and sharpness are all on par with the Sony Nex Cameras with a good lens attached. The Jpeg files are a little better on the fujifilm in my opinion and appear more natural in the colors and sharpness . I am a Raw shooter though, so I’m used to seeing that type of file come of cameras so keep that in mind. As I mentioned in the beginning of this review, I could not process the Raw files off the Fujifilm X-pro 1 so I shot all jpeg default. I could have in hindsight used the built in raw converter and pumped out jpegs using different developing settings, but I did not have time to try this feature unfortunately.
The High ISO images are heavily noise reduced just like the Sony’s, and they retain most of the detail as far as usability in the real world goes. I wouldn’t be using images higher than ISO 6400 in the real world most likely, but the option to go higher is nice!
The Fujifilm X-Pro 1 costs ~$1700 US at the time of this review and to spend that kind of cash your going to be a Pro most likely or hardcore hobbyist looking for the best. Fuji was thinking the same thing I believe for a number of reasons. The manual settings for the shutter and aperture are catered to the professional, the menu system is deep and designed with a Pro in mind, and the lens line-up has top quality optics to complete the package. Another nice pro oriented feature of the X-Pro 1 is the built in Hot Shoe which makes using studio lights and pro-grade flash units very easy.
The Fujifilm X-Pro 1 makes for a great investment if you have the cash for it and know how to use a camera. I personally fall into the category of “It’s a bit to expensive for what you get”, but if I had the money I would consider it as the lens line-up is very strong. Image quality is in my opinion about the same as the Sony Nex-5n if you boil it all down. I honestly can’t give an edge one way or another as both cameras take phenomenal pictures. The Fujifilm X-pro 1 is so much more expensive though if you look at from an image quality stand point per buck. Just y opinion mind you
If your looking for the best bang for the buck image quality and features wise, I recommend checking out my Sony Nex-C3, Nex-5n, or Nex-7 Hands on Reviews!! The Sony products in my opinion are a better bang for the buck even though the E-mount Lens line-up is a bit weak at the moment to say the least.
Please feel free to ask questions if you have any, and I hope you all got something out of this Hands on Review of the Fuji X-Pro 1!! Stay Tuned for the New Sony Alpha 57 and Sony 24-70mm f/2.8 Lens, which is on its way to the “Lab” as I type this!! Should be a fun camera and lens combo to review I think.
Jay
Fuji X-Pro 1 Price: ~$1700 US @ BHPhotoVideo >> | Amazon >> | Adorama >> | Ebay Auctions >>
Firmware Update Ver 1.01
A new firmware is now available for the Fujifilm X-Pro 1 and can be downloaded (Click Here). IÂ already sent the camera back otherwise I would have updated and addressed the issue below.
The firmware update Ver.1.01 incorporates the following issues:
- 1.Reduction of chattering noise from iris of lenses in shooting mode.
- 2.Improvement of phenomenon that parallax compensation does not work under condition of manual focus with OVF bright frame mode.
- 3.Improvement of phenomenon that OVF quality as low visibility due to too bright OVF under the condition of power save mode during pressing the shutter button halfway.
- 4.Improvement of phenomenon that delete function does not work after viewing continues shooting mode images.
For activate above issues completely, firmware update for XF lens is also required.
Please update the firmware of XF lens.
Precaution
- 1.If firmware updating fails, the camera may no longer operate correctly in some cases.Carefully read the notes provided here.
- 2.Always use the fully-charged battery when updating the firmware as a basic manner. Never turn the camera off or attempt to use any of the camera controls while the firmware is being overwritten.
- 3.Firmware updating requires approximately 90 seconds.
- 4.Once the firmware has been updated, the previous version cannot be restored.
Fuji X-Pro 1 Price: ~$1700 US @ BHPhotoVideo >> | Amazon >> | Adorama >> | Ebay Auctions >>
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Thanks,
Jay
About the Author
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Look forward to the full review and comparisons. Couple of small nit picks, you have the price under the product overview at the top as $1300 instead of the $1700 you have in the rest of the article. Also the X-Pro1 has a APS-C sensor, not micro4/3.
Thanks Ray, I thought for sure this sensor was Micro 4/3rds. I have no clue how I screwed that up, thanks man!! I really appreciate your help/ feedback
Jay
I’m sitting here with both the Nex7 and Xpro1. Your comment regarding AF being way faster on the Xpro1 is untrue. Every person that has commented on this camera confirms AF is slow. It is very slow. I also confirm this. The Nex7 smokes the xpro1 when it comes to auto focusing. I can’t fault the superb image quality from the xpro, but please don’t tell me AF beats the Nex7!
WOW, that is odd. I have not read anything about it regarding the AF. I just started using it cold.
I would swear it’s faster at focusing than the Nex-7 or 5n. They both hunted to focus where the X-Pro 1 has yet to do that to me. Mind you I’m using an ultra wide angle 18mm lens, so pretty much anything will register and focus.
I’ll do som testing on some lower contrast stuff and see how she does
My Nex-7 is all apart in the “Lab” still. Now when I say Autofocus, I mean the time it takes for the confirmation beep, not taking the actual picture.
Also I’m comparing the flexible spot metering of the Sony Nex-7 and Nex-5n which from what I can tell so far is slower. The shutter Lag however, seems much faster on the Nex-7.
Does that make more sense Alan?
Jay
Really Jay? You’ve read anywhere about AF slowness issues with xpro1? Really Jay? Now that is amazing!! Try this, do a google search. Then get back to me.
Alan,
If you think I’m a Liar, then why are you here? I’m telling you my honest opinion. If you want me to do a Google search and then right what I find on Google for my review, what good would that do me you or anybody else? What incentive to I have to say the Fuji “appears” to be focus faster at AF so far for my limited experience using the 18mm wide angle.
Please, If your going to continue to call me a Liar, I’m going to have to ask you to stop posting here please. Again, I have no reason to lie so just go elsewhere as my reviews are clearly not for you.
I recently updated the About Us page if you want to get a better handle on my background etc..
Have a good Night,
Jay
I’m coming to this review a bit late but l feel the need to make a comment about AF. Certainly, this has become a talked about issue with the X-Pro 1 among those who are obsessed with “Tech Specs”. However, it seems it is not a big issue for – and here l upset a few people – real photographers. I haven’t used the X-Pro 1 yet but l do have an X100. It had similar criticisms from certain people but has never been a problem for me. I think anyone who is a good photographer with an appreciation of how cameras work will have no problems. (And there will be firmware updates.)
Hey Alan,
Thanks for taking the time to comment, and your absolutely correct. When you boil it down to the pulp, the Autofocus works great overall and will do the job for pretty much anything just like the Nex-7 and Nex-5n.
If you are a photographer, getting the shot will not be an issue as this camera is more than capable.
However, the argument of which camera is better will always go on. We as humans need a winner, so I can totally understand the fuss to a degree, especially when your spending this kind of cash for a camera!! I would still get the Nex-7 over this camera for a variety of reasons, but you cannot argue that the Fujifim X-Pro 1 takes a phenomenal picture and is built like a tank!!
Best,
Jay
Jay, thanks for pulling together a very good review and some sample photos for us to look through! It’s encouraging to hear about how fantastic the sensor is, and that Fuji’s new color filter array is getting the job done in lieu of an anti-aliasing filter. Your comment about the build quality being so good that it could be used to pound a nail into a tree had me cracking up.
While his delivery leaves a lot to be desired, poster Alan’s is essentially correct about many other reviewers mentioning problems with the AF speed. It might be because they were often testing with the 35mm or the 60mm. It makes sense that the pancake 18mm might be much quicker to focus if that’s the only lens you had for review. I also see on your extreme dynamic range test (the photo with the road and clouds), there is no chromatic aberration in the upper left of the photo around the wires. Good to know that this is not a universal problem with the 18mm lens.
I do have a question: A couple of my friends now have the camera, and they’ve commented about being annoyed with the “chatter” of the lens, saying that it’s constant and relatively noisy (as in while shooting a wedding inside a church). Again, I believe this might be the 35mm lens they’re talking about. Can you comment at all on this? Thanks!
Thanks for the comments and regards Ulysses
I’m working on producing the video I recorded for “Lab” Autofocus testing I just did. That will show you how it performs live with the 18mm lens on a few different subjects.
It is a bit chattery when it focus back and forth and you will here that in the video as it focuses if you listen close. It also makes a chatter type sound sometimes when just moving the camera around which seem to coincide with the exposure in the scene changing. I’m not sure what the exactly is making the noise when the exposure changes, but it does. Perhaps something is adjusting inside the camera or lens to correct for the LCD screen exposure? I was thinking it might me the aperture by I doubt that as it sounds like the focus.
What the chatter reminds me of is when you have the focus set to continuous and it is constantly creeping around. It’s not constant though. That is about the best way I can think to describe it. It’s by no means load though and compared the the Shutter Mechanism on a regular SLR it’s extremely quite. I would not worry about using at a wedding at all as far as noise.
Also, I should be getting the 60mm in about a week, so I’ll update anything in regards to the auto focus once I use that lens a bit.
Best,
Jay
Update on the Chatter:
It is the aperture iris hunting through different settings as the scene changes, or you move the camera around. Adjusting for the exposure automatically it looks like. I had the lens set to f/5.6 manually and it was still doing it.
I could clearly see it when I aimed the lens up while looking at the front of the camera outside.
Best,
Jay
I also tested the Fujifilm X-Pro 1 with the 3 prime lenses, I am impressed with the camera and agree with your review almost in full except for the fact that the focusing is irritatingly slow on my unit. I hope this is just unique to the camera I tried on.
Hello Sutjahjo,
Thanks for taking the time to comment and share your experience with the Fujifim X-Pro 1. It’s nice to hear you have all 3 lenses and I’m really curious if the AF is any better on the 18mm lens vs the other 2 lenses in your experience? I only have the 18mm unfortunately for my review, so any info you can share about the other 2 lenses would be appreciated. Also, is it the AF specifically that is slow or the “Lag time” after the focus achieved and the shot is taken?
Thanks again,
Jay
I can confirm that the recent firmware corrected the chatter. I no longer hear the “click click” of the lenses (the 35mm was a bit noisier than the 18 and now is really quiet). The really annoying thing about Fuji’s firmwares is that they wipe all of your customized settings, and this particular firmware consists of 4 files: one for the body and one for each lens (3x). So don’t bother entering all of your settings again until you update all of the lenses (and body).
Regarding, the AF I find it just fine in good lighting conditions, however it may struggle a little in low light, mostly the 60mm more so than the other 2 lenses. For moving and not-moving targets, I tried this “trick” with the 35 and 18 (as well as the X100) and it really works: http://picabroad.com/2012/04/10/fuji-x-pro-1-autofocus-trick/
I’ll give it a try with the 60mm when I have a chance. Anyway, it’s a great camera if somewhat challenging at times but if you take the time to learn and understand it it’s very rewarding and best of all, lots of fun!
Awesome!! Thank you so much for sharing your detailed experience and with the Fuji X-Pro 1 with us all
That link you provided is also excellent and I highly recommend checking it out if you own this camera!!
Thanks again LSA,
Jay
Hi X Pro 1 lovers & detractors, I read many comments in numerous comments and found the answer to the apparently slow AF. It’s not totally true. In fact I can nail focus with .5-1sec max. Just put on either S or C focus, press confidently and fully down in a single movement. Even though the initial display is out of focus, by the time the next display with shot /s taken, it usually 90%+ sharp for me. What about the other 10%-? very likely my abrupt press or light is way too dim. I am so impressed by the results that I dont see it slower than my D700.
I use the Ricoh GXR and Sony NEX 5 as well as the XP 1 with 35 lens. All have their strength and weaknesses. Right now, the XP1 is getting almost all my attention. So much so that I have essentially ignored my Nikon DSLRs and Leica Digilux 2. Best low light the XP1 n D700. And here it appears to be THE ONE that I have been looking for. The 35mm lens alone is worth the price of entry. No purple fringing, smearing and a great discrete street camera. Less stealth like than the NEX with it’s smallish 16mm lens and Ricoh GXR with it’s 50mm but very flexible with its Simulated Film bracketing which the other two doesn’t have. Best of all for one who hates post processing, I don’t miss having RAW files. Yet… Expensive? Not really when compared to a comparable (?) Leica system. And I can’t wait to use the M mount adapter. Of course the GXR has the wonderful dedicated M Mount. It has peripheral light and precise color adjustment that neither XP1 nor NEX has. It is not faster than the XP1. The NEX 7 controls may be more assessable than the 5 but the corner issues for wide lenses is putting me off it for now. The tradition
layout of the XP1 is simply so familiar. Plus it OVF is something no other camera has! The Oly EM 5 is getting all the attention now. Check out the shoot out at Khai’s video and you need little convincing that the XP1 still reigns supreme. The fast 35mm lens with it’s narrow DOF is unbeatable. Micro 4/3 lenses can now go super fast but it’s chip is still smaller. Like they say, the taste of the pudding is in its eating. And for now, the XP 1 is the most delicious dish. Especially for portraits and landscapes. Surely not for fast foodies. That I go to my D700 and D7000. Have fun!