Fujifilm: The Good and the Bad – DPRTV

DPRTV published a video about the Good and the Bad of Fujifilm.

The Good

  • many different styles and design of cameras that appeal to different type of photographers
  • whether you like more modern or vintage, Fujifilm has it
  • lots of price points using the same sensor
  • they keep innovating their APS-C sensor lineup, now they have high resolution 40MP and stacked 26MP
  • steadily improved video features
  • X-H2/S both video optimized models but for whatever your priority is: X-H2s for less rolling shutter and slightly better dynamic range or X-H2 for absolute detail. But many features are similar between the too
  • autofocus third party options

The Bad

  • Fujifilm is now focusing on higher end, but they can grow on affordable range
  • they hoped they make more affordable XC primes like the XC35mmF2, but that still their only XC prime
  • more affordable pocket sized cameras
  • tracking continuous autofocus. Fujifilm is getting stickier, but it still lagging a little bit behind and you get more false positive with Fujifilm than with other brands. Sometimes its the lenses that can’t keep up with the tracking
  • no tap to track in video mode
  • why no native leaf shutter lens option for the GFX system? Fujifilm made leaf shutter lenses in the past for Hasselblad in the past. You can adapt those H series Hasselblad lenses (Fujifilm H mount adapter G) but you don’t have autofocus. Fuji’s argument might be that sensor readout is getting faster and eventually there will be stacked sensor or global shutter, but that’s still a long way off for medium format

The Lastest and Greatest

Fujifilm Managers Interview: About Internal Camera Memory, X Pan Aspect Ratio, ISO Button Gate on X-H2/s and More – FujiCast

In the lastest Fujicast episode, Kevin and Neale have, among the others, a talk with Fujifilm UK manager Andreas Georghiades and they also go to the Fujifilm headquarter in Japan and talk to product planers.

Needless to say, the talk mostly gravitates around the Fujifilm X-T5. Down below is a summary as well as the podcast to listen.

** CLICK HERE to Read the Rest of the Article **

FR-Readers Wishlist Corner: Firmware Suggestions, Video-Less X-Pro4, Fujinon XF16-160mmF3.5-5.6 and More

Wishlist Corner

I am terribly sorry…. terribly sorry that many of you had to wait so long to be featured.

But no matter how hard I work, especially in a crazy 2022, with 3 higher end cameras coming out and 4 XF lenses coming out, I simply could not find time to collect all your wishes and share them.

So I’ll do it today… I grabbed a large beer, took a deep breath, and worked to organise the wishes I have received over the last few months in this article.

So… down below it is: the FR-readers wishlist roundup

** CLICK HERE to Read the Rest of the Article **

Understanding Fujinon XF30mm F2.8 R LM WR Macro

Fujifilm USA runs over the several 30ish-ranged Fujinon lenses, highlighting their differences and making a final recommendation.

Lots of choice in that range, but which one is best?

Fujifilm USA (video below) says the XF30mmF2.8 Macro is probably the best prime lens you should consider getting if you are new to the X system and you are looking to purchase your first prime lens.

Because it’s kind of the jack of all trades: it can do macro (the others can’t), it has extremely fast autofocus even at close distances (some of the other lenses have not that fast AF), it is very sharp, has low to no chromatic aberration, it’s ideal for high resolution X cameras (X-T5 and X-H2), and with $600 pricing it is still affordable for many people.

My take?

Well, I personally would still recommend the XF35mmF1.4 as first prime lens. It can’t do Macro, but it is still affordable and much faster with its 1.4 aperture. Plus it’s one of those character lenses that will give you magic results.

But certainly the XF30mm f/2.8 is also a wonderful and versatile option for a first prime lens.

You can watch the full video below.

** CLICK HERE to Read the Rest of the Article **

The Revenge of the Fujifilm X-T4: Declared Best Mirrorless Camera by Germany’s Most Prestigious Consumer Organisation (and X100V Best Compact)

Who is…

If I am looking for unbiased, objective and competent reviews about anything electronics related, I often look at recommendations of Stiftung Warentest, a “German consumer organisation and foundation involved in investigating and comparing goods and services in an unbiased way. It was founded on 4 December 1964 by the Federal Republic of Germany as an independent foundation under civil law*”

Stiftung Warentest even gets €3.5 million a year from the German state as “compensation for the fact that it does not carry any advertisements in its publications because this could compromise its independence*“.

In short: those guys are not been flown around the world by companies in order to possibly get favourable reviews ;).

And now let’s come to today’s story, which we start with the easy one, the X100V.

Fujifilm X100V

Stiftung Wartentest declared the Fujifilm X100V the best fixed lens compact camera. That’s an easy one, as there is simply nothing that comes near to the X100V in terms of price, features and performance in this segment.

Fujifilm X-T4

Out of all the mirrorless interchangeable lens cameras they tested, Stiftung Warentest declared the Fujifilm X-T4 their best allrounder camera, with a rating of 1.4 (max 1.0). You can read their test in German behind a paywall at their website here.

This is a nice “revenge” for the Fujifilm X-T4, a camera that has been a bit mocked by Fujifilm itself in their Fujifilm X-T5 launch promo ad.

Now, you know my take on this:

the Fujifilm X-T4 had to carry the flagship burden, hence it was forced to be exactly how it is (bigger, heavier, etc). But now that the X-H2/s finally came out, the Fujifilm X-T* line could go back to its roots again with the wonderful Fujifilm X-T5, hence it could become smaller, lighter, offer a 3 way tilt screen and overall just be more photography centric.

If it wasn’t for the selfie screen, I could have loved my Fujifilm X-T4 almost as much as I love my X-E3. But sadly even after years of use, I simply could not grow fond of it, even though I occasionally could appreciate the advantages of a fully articulating screen (even for photography only).

So I am happy to see the Fujifilm X-T4 getting this important recognition.

It is still a wonderful camera, and for some even preferable over the Fujifilm X-T5. And right now you can also get it with a discount.

Oh, and in the 12th position of this ranking we find the Fujifilm X-E4 ;).

* source – wikipedia

X-T5 USA Pre-Orders

Fujinon XF30mmF2.8 Macro Pre-Orderrs

  1. USA: BHphoto / AmazonUS / Adorama
  2. Worldwide: AmazonCA / Amazon of Your Country
  3. UK: AmazonUK / WexUK / ParkCameraUK
  4. EU: AmazonDE / AmazonIT / AmazonFR / AmazonES  / CalumetDE / FotoErhardt / Fotokoch / PCHstore

X-T5 Other Countries

Fujifilm Financial Results for Q2 FY2022: Instax Beats Nikon and Brisk Digital Camera Sales Push Imaging Division YOY Revenue (+23.7%)

Fujifilm has published the results for the second quarter of the 2022 fiscal year (July 1 to September 30, 2022).

The main digital camera launched in these months was the Fujifilm X-H2s, which Fujifilm says sold “strong”. The results for the high resolution Fujifilm X-H2 will be visible only in Q3 of FY2022, since it started shipping only in late September/early October.

Instax

Instax keeps rocking.

Instax alone made more revenue (¥119.1 billion) than Nikon’s Imaging Products Business (¥114.5 billion).

A special mention goes to the INSTAX mini Link 2 and the INSTAX SQUARE Link.

Digital Cameras

Good results also for Fuji’s professional imaging division with a revenue of ¥64.3 billion (+18.6% YoY).

Forecasts

Given the good numbers, Fujifilm changed their previous FY2022 forecasts (announced in August) for the imaging segment (numbers in billions of yen)

  • Revenue Forecast: from 360.0 to 390.0 (revenue for FY2021 was 333.4)
  • Operating Income Forecast: from 42.0 to 52.0 (operating income for FY2021 was 37.0)

And the best has yet to come for Fujifilm, with the sales of the Fujifilm X-T5, which will push the revenue of Q3 and Q4.

R&D

R&D expenses for the first half of the fiscal year were 4.8 billions of yen (was 4.1 in first half of FY2021). So a good sign also here, as Fujifilm seems to be gradually increasing the R&D resources for the imaging solution.

Summary

** CLICK HERE to Read the Rest of the Article **

I am Sorry Fujifilm, but You MUST fix This NOW (a Firmware Request and a Workaround)

Over all these years of covering Fujifilm I came to one conclusion:

there is a dedicated team inside Fujifilm that serves the sole purpose to figure out how to annoy customers by constantly changing camera controls.

Well, that team was very successful again.

Let me quickly explain.

** CLICK HERE to Read the Rest of the Article **

Top Fujifilm X Camera Wish for 2023 – Vote Now

Fujifilm has been incredibly productive in 2022 and gave us 3 higher end cameras and 4 XF lenses.

But this can that stop us from wanting more, right?

So here is a survey about which camera you guys would like to see in 2023.

It’s a pure wishlist, no rumors.

In fact, I will also include the Fujifilm X-T5s in this list, a 26MP stacked version of the current Fujifilm X-T5, even though our sources told us Fujifilm has no plans to make such a camera. But it’s about what we wish for here, not what will really come. So let’s include also the Fujifilm X-T5s.

And sorry guys, entry level is dead Fujifilm told us… so no entry level on the list.

Which Fujifilm X Series Camera Would You Like to get in 2023?

View Results

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X-T5 USA Pre-Orders

Fujinon XF30mmF2.8 Macro Pre-Orderrs

  1. USA: BHphoto / AmazonUS / Adorama
  2. Worldwide: AmazonCA / Amazon of Your Country
  3. UK: AmazonUK / WexUK / ParkCameraUK
  4. EU: AmazonDE / AmazonIT / AmazonFR / AmazonES  / CalumetDE / FotoErhardt / Fotokoch / PCHstore

X-T5 Other Countries

Fujinon XF30mmF2.8 1:1 Macro: A Smart Lens, a Stunning Performer and a Temptation vs XF80mmF2.8 1:1 Macro

Launched on the same day of the Fujifilm X-T5 and hence inevitabely overshadowed by it, the Fujinon XF30mm f/2.8 1:1 macro probably did not get the coverage it deserves here on FujiRumors.

Sure, we have covered everything there is on the internet about it in our launch live blog here. But we haven’t really spoken about it since then, except for the fact that the demand for it is quite high leading to possible shipping delays.

So what’s my take on this lens?

Well, I must say that the Fujinon XF30mm f/2.8 1:1 Macro is definitely a GAS trigger for me. So small, so portable, so capable. It has a minimum focus distance of 10cm from the sensor, which means you can focus as close as 1.2 cm from the front element of the lens.

And as Brandon Remler shows in the video below (starts at 2:37), the close focus capability of this lens opens up some possibilties such as shooting slides by popping them on a slide viewer light box, bring the lens close over it, it will fill the screen and you have a high resolution file of it. Sure, you can do this also with smartphones, but this way you simply get much more quality out of your old slides.

So will I get one?

It surely is a more portable solution over my stellar Fujinon XF80mm f/2.8 Macro.

But the XF80mm f/2.8 is so good, it would be hard for me to get rid of it in favor of the XF30mmF2.8. Although on the other hand I am sure the XF30mmF2.8 would definitely find its way more often in my camera bag as it is much smaller and lighter.

So I believe I might get the Fujinon XF30mm f/2.8 macro and also keep the Fujinon XF80mm f/2.8 Macro. Then, after a few months make a decision on which one to sell.

If you make Macro photography on a professional level or simply want the best tool possible for it, then I think the Fujinon XF80mm f/2.8 Macro is still the way to go.

But if you want a good allrounder lens with its smartly chosen 30mm focal length and the added benefit of its incredible close up performance, the the Fujinon XF 30mm f/2.8 1:1 Macro is the way to go.

Fujifilm Announces Possible Supply Delay for Fujinon XF30mmF2.8 R LM WR Macro due to High Demand

Notice regarding supply of Fujinon lens “XF30mmF2.8 R LM WR Macro”

Dear Customer,

Thank you for your continued patronage of Fujifilm products.
The following products, which will be released on November 25th (Friday), have received more reservations than expected, and it may take some time to deliver the products.

We will do our best to deliver it as soon as possible, so we appreciate your understanding.