More New Fujifilm Firmware Autofocus Tests: From “My Nikon Z8 Can’t Manage This” to “Usable but Not Yet Perfect”

Thierry Gibralta

Thierry Gibralta shared a follow up autofocus test video which you can see above. I will provide a quick summary, but seeing with your own eyes is always the best option.

  • VIDEO AUTOFOCUS
  • previously constantly pulsing and hunting. Now much less pulsing. Overall for static talking had the X-H2S video AF can be used now
  • walking away and towards the camera, the AF overall sticks to the person. When walking away, it can lose focus for a second or two, but that’s not relevant for his work, because he does not need to film people who walk away from the camera. Focus is not really smooth, there are some steps in the focus, but it is still for sure usable footage. A client would not really notice those AF steps.
  • when running towards the camera, the AF steps are more visible
  • when moving around with frequent turns, with eye AF, as long as the distance does not change too much it is good. If distance changes a lot and if you move out of the frame and then back, the focus can have a hard time. But with face detection he did not have this issue, so if you shoot people dancing, better use face detection
  • in the past, when people passed by in the background, the AF would jump to the person passing by. With new firmware, eye/face detection did not get distracted by people passing by. He tested it with people passing behind and in front of the camera, and it would occasionally lose him, especially if he placed himself on the very side of the frame. If he stays in the center, the camera usually picked him up. But if you are on the side of the frame, it can jump to a person more in the center of the frame
  • camera on the table with objects on the table and camera moved to focus on one object or the other. Multi Mode without subject detection. This gives the biggest problems. The camera did not detect the objects close to it on the table. Multi without subject detection is the worst performing
  • STILLS AUTOFOCUS
  • tracking is working very well and most pictures are in focus (people walking around and on bycicles)
  • success rate is pretty good
  • not perfect. he had instances like tracking a person on a bicycle but then the AF jumped to 2 kids walking by nearby
  • CONCLUSION
  • Autofocus is drastically improved over previous firmware
  • It is not perfect
  • for his work (wedding etc) and what he does, now he can use it for his work
  • he’d like smoother focus transitions and eliminate the times it jumps to another person. Also Multi mode with no subject detection should be improved

Orsonneke1

Orsonneke1 says on dpreview:

I have been testing the latest firmware on the XH 2 wide open on my bordie.

My dog is a good and difficult subject to test focus performance.In the past quite some miss focus on the nostrils , black-white high contrast transition zones.

Even when eyes almost closed and the eyes being surrounded by black fur, the AF performance is now very good! Using the XF 50/1 wide open here with good results, is quite an achievement!

My Nikon Z8 cannot manage this!!

Andrea Cimini

Andrea Cimini was very critical about the mess with Fujifilm’s AF. Now he tested the new version, especially for stills photography tracking mountain-bikers jumping and racing around, side by side with an X-H2S with older firmware.

Conditions: 20fps, strong backlight, electronic shutter, biker racing.

  • with face detection
  • old firmware 93% hit rate (perfectly super sharp images)
  • new firwmare 98% hit rate (perfectly super sharp images)
  • with subject detection
  • old firmware 95% hit rate (the ones not in focus are totally out of focus, NOTHING was in focus at all)
  • new firwmare 99% to 100% hit rate (the totally out of focus does not happen anymore. It can focus on something else)
  • with car/bike detection
  • old firmware: 87% in focus
  • new firmware: 93% in focus
    NOTE: the new firwmare started tracking the subject from more far away compared to the new firmware
  • using wide tracking (not subject detection, but you put the focus box on anything and it will keep tracking it)
  • condition: biker suddenly appearing in the frame
  • old firmware: 85% in focus
  • new firmware:  96% in focus
  • Conclusions so far
  • it’s not at level of competition, but the autofocus is usable again
  • now he feels a bit safer and he can go shooting an assignement without fear
  • electronic shutter gives better results. With mechanical shutter the percentage drops by 10% (at 20fps)

To make it clear: while there was an improvement, for his type of (very challenging) sports shooting conditions (bikers racing inside forests), he thinks Fujifilm must improve even further. But it is workable again.

Fujifilm X-M5 Reviews: “Autofocus is Way Better than What YouTube Has Been Talking About”

Petapixel reviewed the Fujifilm X-M5. Regarding Autofocus they say:

  • comparing to Canon EOS R10, because that’s one of their favorite cameras as far as autofocus on APS-C goes at the same price
  • not quite the same hit rate of the Canon, but actually surprisingly close
  • in this price range there is nothing out there that gives you 10 bit, Log recording with 6.2K open gate
  • pre-production X-M5 had issue with focusing on the background. Production sample is much better but it can still be an issue
  • overheating: impressing performance for such a small camera body. And you can even use the Fan accessory for even better performance. Extremely impressive
  • probably the most capable video camera at that price

More reviews below.

AF Better than What YouTube is Talking About?

The first of Pav SZ looks actually very good in terms of Autofocus.

You can see the X-M5 keeps tracking the subject even when other people enter the frame. It had a few occasions in which the person turned around and it focused on the shoulder instead of the back of the head.

But as we reported and you can see here, also the Sony A1II (which costs $6,500) exhibits the same uncertainty every now and then. So if a $6,500 Sony camera can mistake a shoulder for an eye, then also the $800 X-M5 should be allowed to do that rarely.

Godwin Isaac (video below), was a bit worried about the X-M5 autofocus, given all the autofocus sh*tstorm YouTube is throwing on Fujifilm autofocus. But he says “autofocus is way better than what YouTube is talking about“.

So why is that? Why are so many people happy with the autofocus?

Pav SZ says that if you use it in real life shooting conditions, it will work just fine. But if you set it up for failure in rather tricky and unrealistic test conditions, it might struggle more than in real life use. So that’s his theory.

I Remain Utterly Disappointed ;)

My position remains unchanged: even in the most ridiculous never to happen absurd and unrealistic test conditions, I want Fujifilm cameras to never fail once. I will always be utterly disappointed if in a nonsense test Fujifilm cameras hunt for a fraction of a second. ;)

Of course I am exaggerating. But the truth is I believe there is still room for improvement, and Fujifilm has to work on it. And I am not kidding here: it’s paramount that they keep working on it. Clean up your code, get the algorithm right. And we have actually shared an article which shows in which areas Fujifilm needs to improve (and can improve, since they got it right with other cameras already):

Even more reviews below.

Video Reviews

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Fujifilm X-H2S (7.10) vs Sony A6700 Autofocus Video Comparison

Fujifilm has released the new firmware for X-H2S, X-H2 and GFX100II. We have covered it already in earlier articles:

And while they all agree it is workable again, FujiRumors has shared also two videos of Edvard, which show in which areas there are still improvements to be done. Especially his findings about the X-T3 should be taken into consideration by Fujifilm. But I refer you to this article.

Now we have, for the first time, a direct side by side comparison between Fujifilm X-H2S with firmware 7.10 vs the Sony A6700.

It has been made by Sony and Fujifilm shooter photorabz using the Sigma 16mmF1.4 APS-C lens as as well as the Brightin Star 50mm F1.4 (he owns both versions, one of E mount and one for X mount).

He also tested the X-H2S with the Viltrox 75mmF1.2 outside for a shoot (stills and video) in real world conditions, where the autofocus performed much better than with firmware 7.00.

Sony A6700 vs Fujifilm X-H2S head to head:

the results are surprisingly good for Fujifilm. I really loved how the autofocus on the Fuji worked during this comparison. Sony cameras have one of the best autofocus systems out there, but now the Fujifilm is not bad all. This comparison test made me more confident to take the Fujifilm again for professional work.

Take this as one more of the many feedbacks we got in these days.

My position remains the same: it’s true that it is workable again and you can go back to work confidently again with Fujfilm gear, but it is also true that the work is not yet finished and there is room for further improvements, which is why in my previous coverage I highlighted in the headline as well as in the intro the findings that Edvard made, which I think are valuable feedback for Fujifilm.

Fujinon XF500mmF5.6 Review by ePz: “Amazingly Light, Fast and Whisper Quiet Autofocus, Excellent Sharpness, Smooth Bokeh”

ePhotozine has published its Fujinon XF500mmF5.6 R LM OIS WR review.

It’s overall a fantastic lens with the only real negative being its high price. I will share the conclusions below and the full review can be read here.

It’s moderately compact, but amazingly light and easy to handle, reaching out to distant subjects with its 500mm (762mm-equivalent) pulling power. This brings all those small birds and mammals into range, although for some wildlife it may be a little too long for larger mammals and shorter ranges. This is the master of long range photography for Fuji X users, and the results are beautiful. Add one of the Teleconverters and the closest focusing point does not change, so the magnification increases and that long range power pulls even more into our repertoire. There is a price tag, but the results are great and there are few lenses with such a long focal length that can even approach the versatility and ease of use. Highly recommended.

Pros

  • Excellent sharpness
  • Extremely light for its length
  • Low CA
  • Lovely smooth bokeh
  • Weather resistant
  • Fast, accurate and whisper quiet AF
  • Close focusing
  • 5.5 stops OIS
  • Superb flare control

Cons

  • High price

Pre-Orders

[UPDATED] Fujifilm Autofocus Feedback: Mostly Positive and The Curious Case of the X-T3 (or the Root of All Autofocus Issues?)

Time for another autofocus test roundup (see part 1 here).

I will include several videos, including the one of Edvard, who shares interesting findings about the X-T3 which potentially shows where the AF issues with Fujifilm started.

Summing Up All Videos – tl;dr version

  • everybody agrees that now autofocus is workable again, even Edvard
  • some got better results than others, I guess based on use case, testing scenario and settings
  • Adan in “video 7” for example is very impressed and applauds Fujifilm for the improvement and says he is confident to use it now for his professional video work
  • others aknowledge the improvement, say it is something you can rely on for work, but highlight it is not yet at the level of top tier AF of other brands
  • Edvard is the most critical and I will share his findings below (with some interesting findings)
  • UPDATE: Edvard published a second video, which I share below with his main findings
  • there is still room for improvement (and looking at Edvard’s video some of the improvements could be achieved by using parts of the algorithm used on X-T3 firmware 3.00/3.30)
  • and finally… Thierry in Video 1 has simply one of the most beautiful settings and light to record a video (I know it’s unreleated, but I appreciate it when photographers try to give us also a great scenery ;))

My take:

Having a usable and workable autofocus is nice. This takes away stress for those, who rely on autofocus for work.

And that it is workable has been now confirmed by the very same people, who made very harsh videos against Fujfilm in the last few months. So there is no bias there.

My fear:

Most reviewers seem to be overall pleased and happy. But the error the Fujifilm engineers could do now, is to consider the autofocus chapter closed. There is still work to do, and maybe some feedback they get today from these videos can help them to improve further.

Read for it?

Below I will share a couple of videos. I could ignore the postiive feedback, but I think it has just as much reason to exist as negative feedback.

What FujiRumors can do is just to share it all to give you the most comprehensive overview possible.

My personal experience?

Well, none. Because I am still waiting for my X-T5 to get the update, but my X-T5 has so far shot 0 seconds of video in its entire life so I would not be able to compare it to how it was before.

What the April firmware broke, though, was the stills side of it. It did fail on me when shooting still standing people. But the June firmware fixed that, so now I have no issue in taking family pictures.

But don’t ask me for video… my X-T5 does not even know it has this option.

Video 1

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