So I’ll spare y’all the trouble & cut right to the chase: After playing a bit with Fuji’s newest creation (borrowed from an early adopter photographer friend), I came up with 3 reasons why the new X-Pro Three is NOT for me:
The weird “hidden” LCD, in combination with
The “forgotten” D-pad, and last but not least
The “crippled” OVF (Optical View Finder)
If youse are interested in my uninfluenced & unbiased opinion, please read on! In case you’re intrigued by all the hype around the new X-Pro3 and contemplating getting one, I hope this will help you to decide for y’self before spending your hard earned cash on something you may regret … For starters see below an image taken with my trusted and beloved X-Pro2 (who’s real happy it ain’t gonna be replaced anytime soon ;-)
Bikes in contre jour, captured on X-Pro2, with XF 18mm F/2 @F/4, 1/2700 sec, ISO 200, -1EV
Now before I get “shot down” by the Fuji fan-boys out there who can’t handle anyone disagreeing with what “their” brand is doing and/or need to justify their own purchase decision, please hear this disclaimer: This is my website where I share my opinion, whether you like it or not. Why? Coz I can. I ain’t no “X-Photographer”, nor a “Fuji Influencer”, and also no “Brand Ambassador”, who all seem to feel obliged to follow their master’s voice: Repeating marketing mumbo jumbo ad nauseam in the hope of animating people to buy an in my opinion flawed concept … Having said that I do have to say I commend Fuji for having the guts to try something new in a somewhat saturated market and bringing out a highly controversial & polarising proposition. Refreshing. And not at all mainstream. No sir. But just a step too for far for my liking! Missing the for me most important attribute of a camera of getting outta the way of my creative photographic process. My X-Pro2, X-H1 and GFX50R all have that capability. The X-Pro3 don’t. Sorry. With their whole range Fuji up to now aspired to create serious photographic tools, but this one undoubtedly has been born outta a more ‘hipster’ kinda philosophy!
Let’s dive a bit more into the 3 initially mentioned reasons: Fujifilm’s first strike is the weird “hidden” LCD screen, where the usually visible LCD screen is replaced by a digitally simulated film box tab harking back to yesteryear’s analogue photography equipment. Maybe a fun feature for a couple minutes but then decidedly becoming an annoying gimmick. Annoying because if I want to review my image I gotta fumble with the camera to first fold out that LCD screen which then awkwardly sticks out exposed from the camera at a weird angle, getting me more worried about breaking it off. Hey, I’d prefer to have the main feature (image review on LCD) immediately accessible without having to fold anything out, rather than seeing this weird film tab / exposure settings display, which don’t really add any value to my photographic process
See, the main innovation of the digital age over the analogue era (which I grew up with) was the ability to instantly review your image (if needed), rather than sweating it out until your developed films came back from the lab a week later. This “immediate review” capability had a significant positive impact on accelerating my photographic learning process as I could improve the composition & exposure in real time & on location rather than trying to fix it in the darkroom afterwards, especially with fast changing subjects / lighting situations like in the below image with 4 walking girls backlit by the late afternoon sun:
Walk into the light, with XF 35mm F/2 on X-Pro2 @F/8, 1/320 sec, ISO 200
So Fujifilm wants to change the way we take photographs … all that talk about the X-Pro3’s “hidden” LCD on their website, making the photographer concentrate more on his image & somehow magically enabling a more “pure, raw photography” (whatever that’s supposed to mean … ?). For me this seems more like a case of “if you can’t fix it feature it”. Well, y’all can be sure I ain’t gonna let nobody prescribe to me if, when or how often I look at my display! Seriously, if you really think you need a hidden LCD to stop you checking and/or adjusting your image to become a better photographer and you think a traditional LCD’s the reason why you never liked your images, then I guess you you got a real problem & don’t really have a clue what you’re doin’ … One more small remark on the sideline: The X-Pro3’s ingenious hidden/folding LCD collides with my quick release plate when using a tripod, so I could only fold it out to 90° (nearly broke it too then) …
But then Fujifilm’s second strike is an even more strange design choice, completely incomprehensible in my view in conjunction with the “hidden” LCD: They went along and simply “forgot” the D-Pad. Gone. Missing. Deleted. WTF? Ok, so my GFX50R also ain’t got no D-Pad, but there I can at least use the touch screen LCD to access my 4 most used functions (Face/eye Detection Setting, AF-Mode, ISO and Photometry). But on the X-Pro3? Sorry. No joy … oh yeah, coz that one’s LCD is usually hidden! Great. Did you forget? Well, the fan boys & ambassadors got all the answers: “… at first I missed the D-Pad, but then I got used to it, coz it gives me a more ‘pure’ photography experience …”. Sure, you can use the menu button and the joystick to surf the menu’s in the electronic viewfinder, but that completely disrupts the photographic process IMO. I just needed 2 fluid motions on my X-Pro2’s D-Pad to change the AF-Mode for the image below:
Sun reflecting in contre jour façade, seen by X-Pro2, with XF 35mm F/2 @F/8, 1/950 sec, ISO 400, -1EV
Last but not least Fujifilm’s third strike is the X-Pro3’s “crippled” direct vision optical viewfinder (OVF). In my opinion this is a significant evolutionary step back from my X-Pro2. Crippled? Yeah, well it don’t change its magnification any more when using different focal lengths. Instead of the X-Pro2’s 0.36x and 0.6x magnifications which switch, depending on which lens you attach to the camera, the X-Pro3 compromizes on only one fixed 0.52x magnification, optimised for the 23mm focal length. This compromize means I couldn't really judge the framing in the OVF when using my beloved XF 18mm F/2 anymore (especially losing the ability of seeing what’s going on outside the frame - ideal for street photography). On the other hand the frames in the OVF became too small when using my XF 35mm F/1.4 or XF 56mm F/1.2 that I can’t really use them for careful portrait compositions anymore either. Although the X-Pro3’s viewfinder image is larger than the X-Pro2’s it don’t help if it can’t be used properly with certain focal lengths - those of youse who prefer shooting with 16 or 18mm wide angles using the OVF will probably be frustrated with the decision to limit the magnifications. Apart from that the infinity indicators are now also missing, meaning you lose any indication of where your AF point will be at distances larger than your current focal position - so, no way of predicting were the AF-frame will jump when refocussing from near to far. Even the X-Pro3’s electronic viewfinder (EVF) having a larger resolution & refresh rate, it’s limited OVF options make the the hybrid viewfinder lose some of its appeal. For the below image I needed to use the EVF to keep the sun just outside of the frame:
Bus stop in contre jour, discovered by X-H1 and XF 14mm F/2.8 @F/8, 1/120 sec, ISO 200
Well, I needed to get that out. Don’t get me wrong, I’m sure there will be many out there who will love the Fuji X-Pro3’s controversial design and I wish them all the best & lots of fun with it. Originally the X-Pro line was intended for wedding & professional photographers, however in my view there’s nothing professional about the above mentioned drawbacks & limitations. So I get the impression that here overhyped marketing and an army of “ambassadors”, maintaining that only the X-Pro3 enables the user to experience “raw, pure photography” are being used to influence people to purchase an in my opinion flawed concept. So I hope that presenting my differentiated view will help to counter a bit of the marketing hype around this camera
You don’t agree? No Problem, go out and be happy with your X-Pro3, I wish you all the best! You don’t know? Then I strongly advise you to try the camera out carefully before you hit the buy button, to see if you can live with its quirks. You agree? Then you are also one of those for whom the camera should get out of the way of your creative photographic process. Whatever, I’d love if you’d share your opinion in the comments section below. Looking forward to a lively discussion!
One final thought - I hope the guys over at Fuji are reading this: PLEASE Fuji don’t repeat the “hidden” LCD thing on the upcoming successor of the X100F (X100V)! Give us an updated 23mm F/2 lens, weather sealing and a normal tilting touch screen LCD, that would be THE street photographer’s dream! Hey, we then could even live without a D-Pad (it’s ok on my GFX50R too …)
Wish y’all good shooting & a very nice Sunday!
Best regards,
Hendrik
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