The “only” improvement is the AF speed with XF55-200mmF3.5-4.8 R LM OIS.

XF 55-200 pre-order: USA:  Adorama / BHphoto / AmazonUS / DigitalRev / Uniquephoto / Pictureline / Europe: AmazonUK / AmazonDE / PCHstore Brussel

-FR-reader Olaf continues his coverage of the Fuji X100s. This time you’ll find a clear list of thoughts about the camera and the files it produces: “JPEGs straight from the camera continue to impress us. The prints from JPEGs are gorgeous (11×17) and from TIFFs they are even better. The fun factor, portability, is unlike anything on the market now.” Read the whole list here (and see his beautiful shots of Vancouver).

image courtesy: Olaf

- The most popular digital cameras or April according to digitalcamerareview? The top three are: 1) Nikon D7100 2) X100S 3) Canon PowerShot SX50 HS . Check the whole list here.

X20
Amazon, Adorama, DigitalRev, J&R, Canon USA, B&H, eBay

- amateurphotographer X20 preview here. “Although it handles almost identically to its predecessor, the X20 could be a significant leap forward due to its use of the X-Trans sensor. If this type of sensor has the same improvement in resolution that we saw when it was used in the X-Pro1, then it could push the X20 into the same bracket as the Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX100. The X20 has the potential to be a very exciting compact camera.”

- danbaileyphoto X20 sample shots and impressions can be checked out here. “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.”

 Zeiss Touit

- The riflessifotografici guys Max and Donato are two of those photographers chosen by Zeiss to test the two new X-mount lenses. Seems that they are already working on it, as they announced that the review is coming soon. Looking forward it.

- Zeiss touit hands on + photos at findingrange (Zeiss press event).

“I love the Fuji lenses but from the limited time that I was able to use the  Zeiss Touit lenses, I feel like there’s more life to the images. I really feel like images look less clinical than images shot with the Fuji lenses. The 32mm f1.8 will definitely be a hot little portrait lens because of the way it draws.  It’s a little slower than the XF 35mm F1.4 R lens but that’s perfectly ok by me.  The bokeh is ultra smooth and inviting. The 12mm f2.8 is priced at $1250, which might seem like a hard pill to swallow but think about it this way; the XF 14mm is already priced at $899. You’re already at the $1,000 range, so if it was me, I would just jump for the Zeiss.  You’re getting a better built lens with all glass, and again, the Zeiss look and image quality. Plus, don’t forget; you probably bought the Fuji (or the Sony) because of the image quality. If that’s the case, then it only makes sense to put top quality lenses on it.”

Zeiss Touit 32mm pre-order: USA: Adorama / BHphoto / Uniquephoto / Pictureline / Europe: AmazonDE / ebayUK / PCHstore Brussel
Zeiss Touit 12mm pre-order: USA: Adorama / BHphoto / Uniquephoto / Pictureline / Europe: AmazonDE / ebayUK / PCHstore Brussel

XF14mm
Amazon, Adorama, DigitalRev, J&R, Canon USA, B&H, eBay

- “A walk on the wide side, …or how I use ultra wides like the Fujinon 14mm.” Read the article at wideanglecafe.com. Here just an extract… and if you read it all, George will tell you the 4 golden rules for ultra wides.

“The obvious impulse is to go large and look for grand vistas. I find this is invariably a mistake. With a field of view of 21mm on the X-Pro1, the Fujinon 14mm is still a 14mm lens and its perspective reduces even the mightiest of mountains to hillocks in your images if you are not close enough. My wife took me up a mountain recently to show me the perilous route she took across the mountain on horseback. The image below was shot for fun with the X-Pro1 panorama feature and the 14mm lens. The mountains in the background are not that far away and they are over 1200m high. Where I am standing is at around 600m. The image is….well…rubbish really and gives no sense of the dramatic route that she took. A better way to take this shot would be to stitch multiple shots using a lens that is closer to the perspective of the human eye, say 50mm or so.”

image courtesy: wideanglecafe

I’ve passed a lot of time yesterday/today chatting and writing emails… and now I can give you an update about the mysterious non-X-Trans camera.

Trusted sources told me that the camera without X-Trans sensor will be very cheap and sold together with one or two new lenses (one of these lenses could be a 16-50 or 16-55 zoom lens)… could this be the camera that another new source told me would cost $550 body+lens? (trusted sources could not confirm the price of $550)

I’m sure you want to know what sensor it could have… I’ve no idea. But if I should place a bet, then I would agree with Per K, who in the comments to the previous rumor said it could be the APS-C sensor of the X100… but it’s only a supposition.

If the sources are right, with these new entry-level cameras (X-Trans and non-X-Trans), Fuji could soon offer to every customer the camera tailored to his needs, from high-end (X-PRO1 + great lenses) to entry-level (X-whatever + cheaper lenses). As I’ve read somewhere in the web (can’t remember where): “Fuji colours for everyone”.

stay tuned
Patrick

A new source from the land of the rising sun told me that Fuji will announce 2 different mirrorless interchangeable-lens cameras this summer, with two different sensors. One should be announced in the second half of June and the other one later. The price of one of these bodies should be of $700.

I’ve checked it and here is what I know from trusted sources:

Fuji could indeed announce two different mirrorless interchangeable-lens cameras with two different sensors, one with an APS-C X-Trans sensor and one without X-Trans sensor [there is an update to the non-X-Trans sensor camera here].

Trusted sources could not tell me which one will be announced earlier or if they will be announced together.

That’s it for now. As always, please read rumors carefully. I specify in every rumor if it comes from trusted sources, new sources, anonymous sources or if the rumor has been posted on other websites. Don’t throw everything together in the same pot. Rumors of new sources should be taken with a grain of salt, while trusted sources have proven to be right in the past (as with the X100S, X20, updated lens roadmap, 55-200 announcement on April 17 and more, just check the rumor section on FR). The network of sources is growing. Let’s see if this new source will become a trusted source.

So, how would you like camera 1 and camera 2 to be?

cheers
Patrick

This is Dave’s simple guide to better use of light with the X-Pro… well, it’s just half of the list. To read it all click here. You can participate to Dave Kai Piper’s workshops on the 27th and 28th of July. Click here if you want to know more about the “Lighting for Location” workshops.

1. Shoot on RAW (auto white Balance)
2. Balance your Natural Lighting elements first
3. Add in your created light to give high lights or balance the Images
4. Strobe lighting can be great for lighting other things than people.
5. Rear Sync your flash if your using long exposures
6. Shoot in Manual
7. In low light, a torch can help focusing. But I like to use manual
8. NEVER underestimate how useful a tripod can be
9. Always carry spare battery power ( lights, Camera & for your Pocketwizards)

image courtesy: Dave Kai Piper

image courtesy: Max Angeloni (photostream) XF55-200 F3.6 1/1000 ISO640

1) 21 beautiful sample shots taken with XF 55-200 by Max Angeloni can be seen here.

2) thephoblographer posted his first impressions of the Zeiss Touit 12mm lens here. From the conclusions:

“So far, we really can’t say much terrible about the Zeiss 12mm f2.8. It has excellent color rendition on the X Pro 1, is sharp, focuses silently and snappily, and is really small for what it is. Though we really wish that the lens’ exterior overall were metal, the plastic hasn’t proved to be much of a problem just yet.”

3) “Hi Patrick! I wrote some first impressions of the new Samyang 8 mm fisheye (specs&price) for the X-series. It is in English! Feel free to link it.”… and here is the link !

XF 55-200 pre-order: USA:  Adorama / BHphoto / AmazonUS / DigitalRev / Uniquephoto / Pictureline / Europe: AmazonUK / AmazonDE / PCHstore Brussel
Zeiss Touit 32mm pre-order: USA: Adorama / BHphoto / Uniquephoto / Pictureline / Europe: AmazonDE / ebayUK / PCHstore Brussel
Zeiss Touit 12mm pre-order: USA: Adorama / BHphoto / Uniquephoto / Pictureline / Europe: AmazonDE / ebayUK / PCHstore Brussel

image courtesy: Matti Sulanto (sulantoblog)

FR-reader Roger placed his order on May 7th, the first day that AmazonUS took pre-orders on the new Fuji lens. Now he received the notification, that his XF 55-200 will be shipped from June 14 to July 29.

[UPDATE:] AmazonUK estimated release is June 14 (click here)

have a nice weekend
Patrick

XF 55-200 pre-order: USA:  Adorama / BHphoto / AmazonUS / DigitalRev / Uniquephoto / Pictureline / Europe: AmazonUK / AmazonDE / PCHstore Brussel

- FR-reader Olaf worte me that “we continue our coverage of the Fuji X100s with our latest blog entry, which includes a photograph of 20 x 30 prints we made from the X-Trans sensor files. We are sending you a link in case your readers would be interested.” Read all here.

“There is plenty of discussion on the Internet about the quality of X-Trans sensor RAW files. There’s no question that some RAW processing programs do better than others and sometimes the files require a little different treatment than usual but in general the quality is superb (more about this in the next posts). We made a few 20 x 30 prints from the Fuji X-Pro1 (the same X-Trans sensor as X100s) and they look simply stunning.”

image courtesy: Olaf and Kasia

2) photofocus posted his X100S review here. From the conclusions:

“The camera’s competition is not the DSLR, it’s the other retro-style, compact cameras. On paper, the X100s does not stand up well to cameras like the Olympus PEN E-P5 (just announced and untested so I said “on-paper.”) But I doubt that will deter many potential buyers. Fuji has done a good job of marketing this camera and while it has its quirks, I am certain it’s the most fun camera I’ve owned in a long time. It’s worth waiting for.

Street and travel photographers will love this camera. It also has a place in landscape, event and automotive photographers’ cases. [...] If you can live with the fixed lens, you could conceivably use this as your only camera and do well.

You can find more versatile cameras and cheaper cameras but you’d be hard pressed to find a cooler camera that delivered perfect jpegs without the need for post-processing and stellar image quality.”

image courtesy: Scott Bourne (photofocus)

3) Stockografie posted his personal impressions of the X100S here. The image quality of the X100S according to stockografie? “In one word: Stunning, Awesome, Absolutely amazing. Sorry, one word isn’t enough… focus speed in low light conditions could be better”

image courtesy: stockografie

4) henrysmithscottage (click here): “Probably the most important upgrade for my style of shooting has  to do with the operation of the auto focus.  Finally there is an X-body where selection of the auto focus point can be done with one’s eye to the viewfinder.  This was accomplished by moving the  AF button to the top of the multidirectional control, where he can be easily accessed by your right thumb.  Once selected, you can then use to control to move the square throughout the frame.  This is a huge improvement for those of us who rely on  auto focus.”

image courtesy: henrysmithcottage

X20
Amazon, Adorama, DigitalRev, J&R, Canon USA, B&H, eBay

1) ePHOTOzine tested the X20, and highly recommends it! From the verdict: “The Fujifilm X20 delivers high image quality, unique handling and features, as well as an optical viewfinder, in a well built and stylish camera, with full manual controls, raw shooting and flash hot shoe. If these are features you’re looking for, and have the money to invest, then the Fujifilm X20 comes highly recommended.” Read the whole review here.

2) trustedreviews X20 review can be read here (score 8 out of ten). There is a lot to like, but also something to dislike, according to this review, as the exposure compensation dial that is easy to knock, an overly aggressive noise reduction and limited viewfinder. There is the whatdigitalcamera video review to see. The verdict:

“The Fujifilm X20 is clearly more than just a slight improvement on its X10 predecessor. Despite some issues with the viewfinder, noise reduction and exposure compensation dial, on the whole it offers an excellent level of performance. Standout features are an impressively fast AF system, all-round image quality and dependable build quality, and on the whole the X20 is an impressive addition to Fujifilm’s X range and one that’s sure to add to the competition in an admittedly crowded market.”

 X-E1
Amazon, Adorama, DigitalRev, J&R, Canon USA, B&H, eBay

1) soundimpageplus X-E1 vs Nikon D7100 ISO comparison here. Now, he owns 4 cameras, and which one is his favorite? It’s the X-E1, the only “non-Nikon”! Read his post “love is blind“.

2) camcrunch X-E1 review here. “Now that I’ve learned the strengths and limitations of the X-E1, I’m very happy with it. The X-E1 is just a joy to use. The Fujifilm X-E1 has gotten me more excited about photography than I have been in a very, very long time. Despite all of it shortcomings, the portability, ergonomics and image quality have made me fall in love with the Fuji X-E1“

image courtesy: luminous landscape

1) – luminous landscape (click here) posted the very first shots and impressions of the 55-200 (in hand, bokeh, stabilization).  Here is his what they say about the image posted above (bokeh):

“This shot surprised me. I normally don’t think too much about bokeh when it comes to long zooms. I’m not sure why; maybe because I’m often disappointed. But in this case when the lens is focused as close as possible and the background is at infinity, I was very pleased with the shape of the diaphragm blades as well as the smoothness of the OOF areas.”

2) – thephoblographer posted his 32mm first impressions here. Fantastic build quality, very sharp, superb bokeh! He also says that:

“This was the first ime that I ever used a lens made by Zeiss that had autofocus. It was decent. It works quickly in well-lit situations but in low light, it was lacking at times. The Zeiss 32mm f1.8 occasionally focus-hunted. When I used the focus assist light of the Fujifilm X Pro 1, it made things better. It was easier to focus the lens manually when in low light. When working with the Touit 32mm f1.8, outside on the terrace of our meeting space and on the High Line, the auto focus was fantastic and precise.”

-  diglloyd posted an portrait shot with the 32mm here and if you want to see the bokeh click here.

3) lifeispixels posted his SLR Magic Noktor 23mm (Adorama) f1.7 review here. For the complete specs click here. From the conclusions:

“I’m surprised to see how well it controls CA and flare. Do NOT expect the same resolving power at wide open like the Fujinon lenses. Wide open, it’s a soft, less contrasty lens. At f1.7, it’s only good for close to medium, while poor to resolve details at far to infinity range. [...] For the price at 399 USD including shipping, this is a viable option for any Fuji X user looking for a fast 35mm equivalent MF prime, since Fuji hasn’t released the 23mm f1.4 yet and I expect the price to be at least 2 times more than Noktor 23mm f1.7. There aren’t any alternative for a 23mm lens this fast for the Fuji X users at this point, as far as I know and that will require an adapter. Everyone would agree that the new Fujinon is going to be optically better and I’m eager to see how much better it can be. Until that time comes, I’m having fun with Noktor and will spend more time learning to squeeze the best out of this lens, despite some quirks paring with Fuji X-E1 camera.”

XF 55-200 pre-order: USA: BHphoto / Adorama / AmazonUS / DigitalRev / Uniquephoto / Pictureline / Europe: AmazonUK / AmazonDE / PCHstore Brussel

Zeiss Touit 32mm pre-order: USA: Adorama / BHphoto / Uniquephoto / Pictureline / Europe: AmazonDE / ebayUK / PCHstore Brussel

Zeiss Touit 12mm pre-order: USA: Adorama / BHphoto / Uniquephoto / Pictureline / Europe: AmazonDE / ebayUK / PCHstore Brussel

SLR Magic Noktor 23mm f1.7: Adorama

Talk to Rico (questions & feedback) – Rico’s Flickr photosteam

Releasing the shutter of your camera remotely can have several advantages. For once, not touching the camera reduces shake and vibrations, which is especially important at slow shutter speeds. Mounting the camera on a tripod is only half of the solution. Yes, you can use the camera’s self-timer function for hands-free operation, but it’s hard (if not impossible) to catch decisive moments with this method.

Other applications of remote shutter release devices are placing the camera at hard to reach locations or producing a series of well-timed shots for time-lapse or HDR photography. Advanced timing solutions incorporate wireless operation (infrared, radio-controlled, Bluetooth or WLAN), and they can be triggered by certain GPS coordinates or position changes (like taking a shot every 50 meters while moving in a car), by a person stepping in front of the camera (recognizing faces or movement) or by rather exotic stuff like changes in the magnetic field.

Sadly, Fujifilm doesn’t offer a common remote triggering interface in its X series: With the XF1, there’s no option to externally trigger the shutter at all, so all you can do is using the self-timer. The X10, X20, X100, X100S, X-Pro1 and X-E1 offer classic threads for manual screw-in cable releases. The X-S1 and X-E1 feature an option to electronically release the shutter through the so-called RR-80 port (which hides in the Mini-USB port of these cameras, using pins number 4 and 5), and in addition to that, the X-E1 allows the microphone input socket to moonlight as a remote trigger input that is compatible with a substantial range of camera makes and models, offering a large number of options of remote triggering devices that can be used in concert with this camera.

Classic Mechanical Cable Release

Cable releases can perform the same three basic functions as your camera’s shutter button:

• half-pressing the shutter to establish/lock focus and exposure
• fully depressing the shutter to take the shot
• keeping the shutter depressed (and locked) for an extended period of time to take long-time exposures (bulb mode)

Cable releases come in several forms and usually don’t cost much. There’s no need to get a fancy model (unless you like fancy stuff), just make sure it operates smoothly.

As mentioned earlier, cable releases are compatible with the X10, X20, X100, X100S, X-Pro1 and X-E1.

RR-80 Electronic Release

Just because its interface is electronic doesn’t mean that connecting an RR-80 based remote shutter release adds additional functionality beyond  a mechanical cable release. An electronic RR-80 trigger will merely perform the very same three functions:

• half-pressing the shutter to establish/lock focus and exposure
• fully depressing the shutter to take the shot
• keeping the shutter depressed (and locked) for an extended period of time to take long-time exposures (bulb mode)

Beyond that, there’s no communication going on between the camera and the remote: The remote isn’t aware of any camera settings, and the camera isn’t aware what’s set on the remote. Here’s an example of a simple electronic RR-80 trigger that’s available as an accessory from Fujifilm:

There are several RR-80 compatible “no-name” options available, with some of them offering wireless operation or sophisticated interval timers. Here’s an example of an intervalometer…

…and here’s a pretty basic but functional radio-controlled remote trigger:

While an intervalometer is useful for time-lapse photography, a radio trigger will allow you to place the camera at difficult-to-reach or dangerous locations, like on a car or on a pole.

RR-80 devices work with the Fujifilm X-S1 and X-E1. Since RR-80 is an analog hardware option using two Mini-USB ports (but is not transmitting any digital data to the camera processor via USB protocols), there’s no way the X10, X20, X100, X100S or X-Pro1 could become RR-80 compatible through a firmware update. This isn’t a software issue, those cameras are lacking RR-80 compatible wiring to electronically trigger the shutter from the outside.

Microphone Input Port Triggering

RR-80 is a pretty much Fujifilm-specific (and hence rather “exotic”) interface, but the internal microphone port trigger of the X-E1 is not. In fact, this port and its triggering protocol are compatible with a broad range of cameras, including the Canon Digital Rebel, Canon EOS 1000D, Canon EOS 100D, Canon EOS 1100D, Canon EOS 300D, Canon EOS 350D, Canon EOS 400D, Canon EOS 450D, Canon EOS 500D, Canon EOS 550D, Canon EOS 600D, Canon EOS 60D, Canon EOS 60Da, Canon EOS 650D, Canon EOS 700D, Canon Kiss Digital, Canon Kiss F Digital, Canon Kiss N, Canon Kiss X2, Canon Kiss X3, Canon Kiss X4, Canon Kiss X5, Canon Kiss X50, Canon Kiss X6, Canon PowerShot G1 X, Canon PowerShot G10, Canon PowerShot G11, Canon PowerShot G12, Canon PowerShot G15, Canon PowerShot SX50 HS, Canon Rebel SL1, Canon Rebel T1i, Canon Rebel T2i, Canon Rebel T3, Canon Rebel T3i, Canon Rebel T4i, Canon Rebel XS, Canon Rebel XSi, Canon Rebel XT, Canon Rebel XTi, Canon Revel T5i, Contax 645, Contax N, Contax N Digital, Contax N1, Contax NX, Hasselblad H, Hasselblad H3D, Hasselblad H4D-200MS, Hasselblad H4D-31, Hasselblad H4D-40, Hasselblad H4D-50, Hasselblad H4D-50MS, Hasselblad H4D-60, Pentax 645D, Pentax ist D, Pentax ist DL, Pentax ist DL2, Pentax ist DS, Pentax ist DS2, Pentax K-30, Pentax K-5, Pentax K-7, Pentax K-m,Pentax K10 Grand Prix, Pentax K100D, Pentax K100D Super, Pentax K10D, Pentax K110D, Pentax K200D, Pentax K20D, Pentax MZ-6, Pentax MZ-L, Pentax ZX-L, Samsung GX-1L, Samsung GX-1S, Samsung GX-20, Samsung NX-10, Samsung NX-100, Samsung NX-11, Samsung NX-5, Sigma SD1, Sigma SD1 Merrill and Sigma SD15. Whoa!

A triggering device that is compatible with any of these cameras is also supposed to trigger your X-E1, so you can choose from a large number of triggering options, one of them being the ingenious Triggertrap software for iOS and Android devices. In connection with a suitable hardware dongle and cable kit, it will trigger your X-E1 electronically via the camera’s external microphone input, which is located at the left side of the chassis.

This is how the Triggertrap dongle and cable look like:

If you already use an iPhone and are looking for a sophisticated and yet affordable triggering solution with a friendly user interface, you may want to consider Triggertrap. The app itself is free, so you can check-it out before buying the hardware interface. The following triggering modes and functions are available:

• Timelapse Mode
• TimeWarp™ Mode
• Sound sensor Mode
• Shock & Vibration sensor Mode
• Metal & magnetism sensor Mode
• Facial recognition Mode
• LE HDR Mode
• LE HDR Timelapse Mode
• DistanceLapse™ Mode
• Motion detection Mode
• Cable Release Mode
• Star trail Mode
• Bulb Ramping Timelapse
• Wi-Fi Slave Mode
• Wi-Fi Master Mode (trigger other devices running Triggertrap Mobile)
• Sunset & Sunrise Calculator
• Lag-o-Meter

If you want to know more about these modes and how they work, I recommend reading the help displays in the free Triggertrap app or having a look at the online PDF manual.

But make no mistake: As sophisticated as it looks, the interface between Triggertrap and the camera is as “dumb” and simple as any mechanical cable release or an RR-80 trigger. There’s no digital communication going on between the camera and Triggertrap, so Triggertrap doesn’t know about any camera settings (and can’t change them, either), and the camera doesn’t know about Triggertrap. This means Triggertrap can merely trigger the shutter with these three familiar functions:

• half-pressing the shutter to establish/lock focus and exposure
• fully depressing the shutter to take the shot
• keeping the shutter depressed (and locked) for an extended period of time to take long-time exposures (bulb mode)

However, Triggertrap offers plenty of options to control when, where, why and how often to release (and hold) the shutter, and it features wireless operation via a Bluetooth device or via a second iOS device (iPhone) and WLAN. The sheer number of options may be overkill for many users, but who says you have to use them all?

For your convenience, here’s a TOC with links to my previous X-PERT CORNER articles:

• Apple Camera RAW, X-Trans and EXR
• First Look: XF55-200mmF3.5-4.8 R LM OIS
• Studio X
• Using the X100S
• Using the X20
• X100S vs. X100
• X20 vs. X10
• RAW, JPEG, Silkypix and “Fuji Colors”
• Adapting Third-Party Lenses (updated with Speed Booster)
• RAW for JPEG Shooters…
• Tips for Updating your Firmware
• How to Clean the X-Trans Sensor
• Using the XF14mmF2.8 R
• Decoding XF18-55mmF2.8-4 R LM OIS
• Comparing RAW converters: JPEG vs. Lightroom, Capture One, Silkypix & RPP
• XF14mmF2.8 R appears to be almost distortion free
• How to Expand Dynamic Range
• How to Use Extended ISO
• EXR, anyone?
• Capture One – When the Going Gets Tough…
• Using Shooting Profiles and the Quick Menu

Rico Pfirstinger studied communications and has been working as journalist, publicist, and photographer since the mid-80s. He has written a number of books on topics as diverse as Adobe PageMaker and sled dogs, and produced a beautiful book of photographs titled Huskies in Action (German version). He has spent time working as the head of a department with the German Burda-Publishing Company and served as chief editor for a winter sports website. After eight years as a freelance film critic and entertainment writer in Los Angeles, Rico now lives in Germany and devotes his time to digital photography and compact camera systems. His book “Mastering the FUJIFILM X-Pro1” (Kindle Edition) (Apple iBook Store) (German version) is available on Amazon and offers a plethora of tips, secrets and background information on successfully using Fuji’s X-Pro1 and X-E1 system cameras, lenses and key accessories.