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More Fujifilm X20 Image Examples

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I’ve had the Fujifilm X20 for a month now, which has given me time to do some rather extensive testing. In fact, nearly half of the images that I ran in my recent Alaska backcountry skiing trip report were shot with the X20. (I’d love to know if you can guess which ones they are!)

As I posted in my full X20 review, I’m totally enamored with this little camera, and am looking forward to taking it on vacation when I head to Europe later this month. Here are a few more images to show you it’s versatility.

Quality

Like any camera or film, image quality largely depends on what kind of light you’re dealing with, as well as focus and shutter speed – Basically technique. In great light, the X20 produces beautiful sharp images with very little noise. Sure, there’s some, especially when you go above ISO 800. At ISO 100, though, which is what I typically use outside, it’s pretty minimal.

Color

Back when I shot film, I used Fujifilm Velvia almost exclusively. Why? Because I loved the colors that it portrayed: Rich tones with deep, inky shadows that dropped to black instead of being rendered as dark muddiness. The built-in film simulations on the X20 bring me right back.

Compared to Other Cameras

How does the X20 stack up against the X100S? It doesn’t. They’re totally different cameras.

The X100S has a larger sensor, but it’s got a fixed 35mm lens, whereas the X20 has the 28-112mm f/2.0-2.8 zoom lens. Street photographers LOVE that fixed 35mm, but the variety of landscapes, action, portraits and other subject matter that I shoot, I’d feel somewhat limited by a “sort of wide angle” fixed lens.

The X20 will never beat the X100S on image quality, but in my mind, it comes down to overall skill and usability. X20 images still look awesome, and the zoom on the X20 offers wide creative flexibility.

How does it stack up against other compact cameras? Like I said in my review, there are a lot of cameras out there that offer varying levels of features and quality. Some have slightly better glass than the X20, some don’t. Some have slightly better image quality, some don’t. Some of them don’t even have viewfinders. In fact, many cameras excel in one area, but fall short in a number of other areas.

The X20 holds its own because OVERALL, it’s a great camera with solid quality, lots of usable features and a really cool design. Without at doubt, it’s one of the best compact cameras on the market today.

That said, if you’ve got the eye and the skill to grab light and moment, then it really doesn’t matter what camera you use. Since most of the current cameras that are available today offer acceptable image quality, it comes down to features, style, and which one you’re most likely to have with you when those moments unfold. I’ve found a great combination of these elements in the X10, and now the X20.

You’re not me, though, so I can’t tell you which camera you’ll like the best. Just pick something and go take pictures.

Also, check out my comparison of RAW vs. JPEG on the X20.

Note: The Fuij X30 has now replaced the X20, but it’s built on a very similar chassis and has all the features of the X20, plus a few more. The optical viewfinder has been replaced with a newly designed EVF, battery life has been improved, it has a tilt screen and WiFi that enables you to remotely shoot and share images from your smartphone or tablet.

10 Things I Love About the Fujifilm X20

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x20

Between the two models, I’ve been using the Fujifilm X10 and X20 for almost two years, which would normally be more than enough time for my infatuation to wear off. It hasn’t, though, which convinces me that I’m not dealing with some mere schoolgirl crush here, but true, unbridled love.

The X20 is packed with so many usable features and has such good image quality that I’ve come to believe that the guys at Fujifilm have created a true classic. It has such broad appeal to just about any type of photographer, and these days, I rarely leave the house without it, even when I head out the door with my D700.

My own seemingly blind obsession aside, here are 10 reasons why I think that the X10 is the best little compact cameras in its class.

NOTE: Of course, the brand new Fujifilm X20 is now out, and it’s even better than the X10 in every way. Read this post to see my first impressions of this camera. So, everything I say below applies to the X20 as well.

Note: The Fuij X30 has now replaced the X20, but it’s built on a very similar chassis and has all the features of the X20, plus a few more. The optical viewfinder has been replaced with a newly designed EVF, battery life has been improved, it has a tilt screen and WiFi that enables you to remotely shoot and share images from your smartphone or tablet.

1. It’s Not the X100

I keep reading about how much better the X100 is than the X10, but in my mind, those reviews miss the point. The X10 is clearly NOT the X100, nor is it meant to compete with that particular product.

The Fujifilm X100 costs $1,200 and has a fixed 35mm lens, and is targeted as an expensive camera for the pro user, or the luxury guy who sports a Visa Black credit card. Just kidding. The X100 is a fantastic camera, but the higher price is certainly harder to swallow for some photographers. By contrast, the X10 is an affordable, all around camera for the all around user. It has a zoom lens that offers more creative options, and at only $600, you don’t have try so hard to justify the price or be to paranoid about it getting dinged up.

2. It’s Good Enough for Pro Work

Even though the 12 MP 2/3″ X-Trans CMOS sensor on the X20 is not as big as some small camera sensors, the Fujifilm engineers have done some amazing things with the RGB pixel placement and alignment on the sensor that give the X20 outstanding image quality. They may not be as good as photos from an APS-C sensor camera, but shots out of the X20 are good enough for a wide variety of pro work, and certainly good enough for just about any kind of enthusiast photography.

The X20 allows me to go virtually unencumbered and still create pro quality work, even during those times when I don’t have my DSLR with me. I’ve taken the X10 hiking, skiing and traveling, and I love using it on my bike and in my airplane. I’ve already sent X10 and X20 photos to clients and I anticipate sending more in the future, and recently had an X10 image used as a 4 x 6 foot corporate display print. Turned out just fine!

3. It Triggers Remote Flashes

Both the X10 and X20 have an External Flash option that lets the camera trigger other optically controlled flashes and strobes. It doesn’t offer the full flexibility of the on-board flash on my Nikon D700, but it still offers some pretty cool off camera flash options. I’ve used the X20 to trigger SB-800s, SB-900s, older SB26s, and even my Photoflex TritonFlash battery powered strobe. If’ the flash has an optical sensor, the X20 will fire it. Way cool.

With the X20 and even just a single small speedlight, you can potentially to really fast with light and still have some good creative options. There’s even a dedicated flash for the X20- the Fuji EF-20 flash. Great little light. Add a Canon compatible sync cord and you can open up your off-camera flash options even more.

4. It Fires at 12 Frames Per Second

Today’s CMOS sensor technology allows for incredibly fast capture and write speeds. The X20 can fire at an staggeringly fast 12 fps at full 4,000 x 3,000 pixel resolution. Not only is this great for shooting sports, it’s awesome for capturing portraits and fleeting expressions. I used this feature when trying to take photos of my 3 year old niece during a recent family vacation. Have you seen how fast a 3 year old moves? Shooting regular sports is easier. Seriously. High speed capture really helps here.

5. It Does Full Manual

As good as the exposure, sensor and image processor on the X20 are, let’s face facts: There will be photographic situations where shooting on auto will simply not give you what you want. The X10 and X20 have three different exposure meters, full manual mode, even manual focus, and everything in between. Plus it shoots Full HD video. If you have skills, the X20 will allow you to use them.

6. It Has Metal Dials

I love the fact that the X20 has real dials. Milled aluminum dials with textured edges. Just like old cameras. (One for exposure mode and one for +/- EV compensation.) Not only are real dials cool, they allow you to change modes and exposure way more quickly than if you had to go in and scroll around some menu. Some cameras today require you to do everything inside the menu. For me, this is just not desirable or practical, let alone fast enough.

7. It Shoots RAW

Unlike some compact cameras, like the Nikon AW100, the Fujifilm X10 and X20 both shoot RAW. With a simple press of a button on the back of the camera, you can set it up to shoot in either RAW, or RAW+JPEG. It’s files are recognized in Adobe Lightroom, but with it’s on-board RAW converter, you can process and distill your RAW photos down to JPEG right in the camera.

That said, the X20’s dual CPU image processor is so good that I rarely find the need to shoot RAW with this camera. However, if I’m facing a tricky lighting situation, or if I want full control, the feature is there.

8. It Has Awesome Macro Capabilities

The X20 has super macro that focuses down to an unbelievable 1 cm. You can pretty much get as close as you want to a subject and still capture it in focus, as long as it isn’t touching the lens. I’ve played around with macro photography a bit in the past, but I’m totally blown away by how well the X20 allows you to shoot extreme closeups and details without having to resort to using closeup lenses, extension tubes or even a seperate macro lens.

9. It Has a Viewfinder

The X20 has an optical viewfinder that shows about 80% of the image. With the X20, they added shooting info inside the OVF, including shutter speed, aperture and focus zone. The reality is that most of the times I shoot using the LCD panel, but if I’m shooting in really bright sunlight, or if I want to conserver batteries, the zoomable viewfinder definitely comes in handy.

10. It’s Just So Damn Stylish

The X20 is a dream to handle. It’s such a great size, and the styling and ergonomics of the camera draw you right in. Plus, you can’t beat the cool retro design. Like I said above, it’s an instant classic; a fully capable “gentleman’s camera,” or “ladies’ camera,” if you will, that does it all.

The Fujifilm X10 Fujifilm X20 may not be the perfect compact camera, but I’d say it comes pretty darn close. There are some cameras out there that do a few things better than the X20, but with the impressive amount of features, technology and quality that the X20 carries, you’d be hard pressed to find a better overall camera in one self contained package at this price.

Even though the X20 is out now, the Fujifilm X10 is still a great little camera for the price. For more info, read my full review of the Fuji X20 here, check out more X20-related posts here on the site, or just pick one up and see for yourself.

Support This Site: If you do decide to pull the trigger on this one, or any other camera for that matter, please consider clicking through these links. It doesn’t cost you anything extra and it helps compensate me for the time and effort that it takes to run this site. Thanks! -Dan

Chugach Mountains, Shot with the Fuji X10

Technical DSLR Terminology For Regular People

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Modern digital camera technology is often hard to understand by “regular” people who are not scientists or photographers. For those laymen who aren’t completely self absorbed and obsessed by cameras 100% of the time, here’s a primer on what these terms actually mean.

Autofocus (AF)– The system on a DLSR camera that is guaranteed to fail when you absolutely need it the most. For example, when you’re shooting subjects like the Olympics, Bigfoot, UFOs and the Loch Ness monster.

Burst Mode – The feature on a DLSR that causes you to spend even more time at your computer editing images. Workflow is increased in direct proportion to how many frames per second your camera will fire. Note: If your camera does not have Burst Mode, then you cannot use it to shoot sports, including your kid’s soccer game.

Color Balance – The part of photography that gives you the most headaches when trying to output your images to an expensive printer.

Dynamic Range – The measure of how good your digital camera sensor is at recording the really bright and dark parts of your scene that no one will every be able to see anyway.

Exposure Bracketing – The feature on a DSLR that thankfully lets you forget everything that you ever learned about proper exposure, and that will ensure perfect pictures every time. When combined with Burst Mode (see above), you will automatically triple your workflow.

Face Detection – Special algorithms that have been secretly placed inside your camera by the Facebook software engineers so that pictures of people can automatically be tagged as soon as you take them.

Image Resolution– The measure by how sharp your pictures will be when you stand up close and view them from only an inch away, even though no one really looks at pictures from this distance. If you stand back, all pictures appear to have the same resolution.

ISO – With digital photography, “ISO” is now a completely irrelevant term that is only used on DSLR cameras to make us think that we’re still “serious photographers,” even though we don’t shoot film anymore.

Image Stabilization– Reviews will show that DSLR cameras may be difficult to hold steady for a long period of time by photographers who drink too much coffee and by amateurs who hold their cameras “wrong.” Image stabilization will help to minimize picture movement by digitally stabilizing the camera and picture for those times when you’re too lazy to use a tripod.

Live View – A feature that’s designed for younger photographers who were raised on small, viewfinder-less point and shoot cameras. Live View mode lets them feel like they’re really taking pictures without making them have to cram their face against the back of the camera like we all used to do.

MegaPixels – The all important benchmark in digital photography. The number of MegaPixels your camera has is what determines how expensive it is, and how fast you’ll fill up your hard drives.

Optical Zoom – Instead of making you actually have to get closer to your subject, the Digital SLR camera lens does the work for you by enlarging the field of view. Optical zoom is a better feature than Digital zoom because the word “Optical” implies light, whereas the word “Digital” just means numbers. We all know that “real” photography is not about numbers, it’s about light.

Scene Selection Modes – This is how you know if you have a “Pro DLSR” or a “Prosumer DSLR.” If your camera has person running mode, flower mode, mountain mode, crescent moon mode and person wearing a hat mode, then it’s a “Prosumer” model. If you don’t have any of these modes, you have a pro camera and should already know how to take photos of mountains and people wearing hats.

White Balance– This extremely useful feature on modern DSLR camera means that you don’t have to carry around a large bag of colored filters that only fit on the front of your “regular sized” 50mm lens anyway.

Fujifilm X10 – Full Review

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  Pick up the new Fujifilm X10 and you’ll feel like you have a real camera in your hands. Not a point and shoot. Not a digital camera. A camera. Maybe even a rangefinder, if you’re old enough to remember … Continue reading →

Comparing Nikon DSLRs: The D5100 vs. The D7000

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The Nikon D5100 has been out for a few months now, and its price range and list of features makes it an attractive DSLR for those photographers who are looking for a budget camera body. It’s certainly a capable offering, … Continue reading →

How to Become a Pro Photographer, Part 2- Getting The Equipment and Expertise

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Edit, November 2010: I am pleased to announce that I have condensed the content of my How to Become a Pro Photographer series into a concise, richly illustrated 27 page eBook that contains all the info, professional insight, links and resources … Continue reading →

Top Rated Outdoor Photography Equipment

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As a service to my fellow outdoor photographers, I’ve spent time researching some of the highest rated digital SLR and point and shoot cameras, camera bags, tripods and portable media drives on the market, which I’ve compiled onto a list … Continue reading →