Don’t argue, just get one. Period. Fuji X-H1’s THE best interchangeable-lens APS-C camera Fuji made. Ever. And there ain’t many left, coz production stopped end of last year. But some shops still got some X-H1’s costing less than a grand, new! Y’all never gonna get such a bargain ever again! And I ain’t just talkin’, I got 3 of ‘em, crazy huh? Yeah, but the internet’s saying the X-H1’s no good … nonsense, I tell ya. Total BS, all that what you’re reading online, please take a look to find out why!

Two of a kind, captured on X-H1 with XF 90mm F/2 R WR @F/5.6, 1/240, ISO 400, developed in Capture 1

Thing is, at the moment Fuji’s going down the wrong rabbit hole. Their new X-T4 may be a fantastic featured camera but that damn selfie/vlogger fold-out LCD screen don’t cut it for me. And their new “pure photography” X-Pro3? That one’s got 2 new, useless features in one go: A crippled OVF and a “hidden” LCD screen. Jeezus … Done. I’m just NOT interested. Don’t get me wrong, I’m definitively not in a position to tell Fuji what to do (and I ain’t got no illusions whatsoever that they’d listen to me anyway …) hell, for all I know they may have found out that their future success & prosperity lies in offering:

Selfie/vlogger style video-centric cameras to the masses, and
Leica-esque fashion editions to a niche hipster crowd, made financially viable by compromising more mundane features only important to real photographers …

No problem. Go for it Fuji, but then you’re gonna lose me as a loyal customer - not that they’d care about that anyway, mind you … but they’d probably also lose a whole bunch of honest, serious still photographers in the process and that could cause a dent in their business! It would be such a shame, though. Creating no-nonsense cameras for serious photographers, with focus on still imagery was always Fuji’s heritage (“DNA” in business-speak). For me they were until today the only brand left, which was creating real photography tools, combining modern digital imaging technology with a traditional ‘exposure triangle’ user interface (aperture, shutter, ISO) based on tangible mechanical dials with always visible settings (even if the camera’s turned off). All the others have turned to churning out “computers”, where key settings pertaining to creating the photographic image are buried in multi-layered menus. Sometimes it seems that for some modern cameras taking the picture is more of a kinda afterthought, like “and oh, by the way it does take a picture too, at least now and then …”

After only just having launched their latest 2 flagship cameras (X-Pro3 & X-T4), which IMO both have veered off from the traditional path by inconsistent featuring, it’s gonna be at least 2-3 years until they come up with the next gen. X-Pro4 or X-T5, or whatever. Then it’s gonna be anybody’s guess whether they’ll wake up & come to their collective senses in using that opportunity to reconnect to their heritage, or just hatch out another crazy un-photographic “innovation”. So, y’all now got enough time to cure yourselves of GAS (Gear Acquisition Syndrome) and just enjoy the good stuff Fuji’s blessed us with up to now (eg. X-Pro2, X-T3, X-H1 and X100V … ;-) and you don’t need to worry about your kit becoming obsolete any time soon!

All this seems kinda like a Déjà vu of my experience a long times ago with Nikon: I was running around in the 80’s as a journalist with 2 battered, fully mechanical Nikon F2’s and 4-5 primes. Man I loved that gear (weather resistant? Hell no, it was bomb-resistant! ;-) And then Nikon went along and launched the electronic F3. Oh man, was I pissed - in that era I sure didn’t trust no electronics (like many of my pro photographer buddies of the time, btw!) - they always seemed to run out of juice when you had no fresh button battery cells on you, forcing you to “limp” along with the 1/60 sec emergency mechanical shutter speed. For me Nikon just went downhill after the mighty F2 …

Façade in shadows, X-H1 with XF 90mm F/2 R WR @F/8, 1/600 sec, ISO 400, developed in Capture 1

Meanwhile, since the end of the last century the advent of mass produced highly integrated digital circuitry, including microprocessor based functions, has made electronic cameras extremely reliable (no moving parts, no wear & less production faults due to fully automated wafer fab’s). Way more reliable than their mechanical counterparts of yesteryear ever had been, in fact. You just gotta make sure you always got enough charged batteries on you (and that there’s somewhere an electrical outlet at hand to charge ‘em). An electronic camera w/o batteries = dead in the water! No juice, no pictures (and your fancy camera just became an expensive paperweight! ;-)

Back to the X-H1: For me it is simply the best interchangeable-lens APS-C camera in the market. Like my Nikon F2 was so long ago, the X-H1 seems to be the last of a golden age, with all that coming after her being under par in my opinion. Now, what is it specifically that puts the X-H1 above the others? For me it’s the balanced combination of 5 (not more, not less) key features:

Best visual interface: Fluid 0.75x mag. EVF with high eye-point & lightning fast tilt-able LCD
- ideal for flexible, fast subject viewing & composition, making image pre-visualization a joy!
Perfectly positioned ‘feather touch‘ shutter with zero time-lag & traditional exposure dials
- allowing me to capture the decisive moment instantaneously, discretely and intuitively!
Slightly increased body size (vs. other APS-C cameras), with a larger highly ergonomic grip
- perfectly fits my medium sized hands & the pronounced grip makes for totally safe holding!
IBIS (in-body-image-stabilization), allows 3-4 stops slower shutter speed than 1/focal length
- perfect for street & scenic twilight photography w/o tripod, when the light is most beautiful!
Super robust, weather resistant body (25% thicker chassis compared to eg. X-T3)
- tight, ‘bomb-proof’ perception, infusing confidence & liberating me to focus on my images!

Feels like I’ve been re-united with my legendary Nikon F2 (albeit with a modern heart!). See below image: I could capture the moment immediately when I saw it, framing it by quickly folding out the LCD screen (lifting the camera up to my eye would’ve ruined the spontaneity & lost the image), and having IBIS on board meant I could still capture a sharp image despite the bad lighting conditions!

Evening coffee, seen with X-H1 and XF 35mm F/1.4 R @F/2, 1/45 sec, ISO 800, developed in Capture 1

At first when I got my first X-H1 begin 2019 I thought it’s not really a pretty camera. But meanwhile I’ve come to appreciate its rugged, no-nonsense design & grown to love its intuitive & fast operation. And the sound of the mechanical shutter. Just gorgeous. It’s heaven! (Yeah, I know that don’t get you better images, but it sure makes the process of creating ‘em more enjoyable & satisfying!) In fact, I’ve grown so happy with my X-H1 that I now got 3 of ‘em (yes, three! The last 2 acquired recently for less than 800 bucks a pop - my favorite dealer seems to have built a secret stash of them somewhere when Fuji’d announced the phasing out of the X-H1 ;-)

OK OK, I hear some of youse out there sounding off about what kinda nutcase I must be buying ‘borderline obsolete’ cameras, where production’s already stopped … Let me me say this to that: I don’t give a rat’s ass! I don’t need the latest and the greatest, I need a photographer’s camera. A no-nonsense image taking tool w/o aspirational, fancy (video-centric) features that get in my way. That’s the X-H1 right there for me. You don’t like my advice? No problem, I’m not forcing you, it’s a free world after all. Do what you want, go somewhere else & be happy! Why having several of the same cameras? Think that’s an old habit from my analogue film days: I needed 2 cameras to allow me to use high & low sensitivity film in parallel to adjust to changing lighting conditions (and have a backup in case of some mechanical malfunction). In the digital age it’s more because I hate changing lenses to prevent dust entering the camera and ending up on the sensor. Those of youse know me know I’m kinda paranoid about that. The shrinks even got a name for it: “amathophobia”, derived from the greek words “amathos” = sand, and its diminutive form as dust & “phobos” = fear, i.e. “fear of dust” (and with me that psycho condition’s highly specialized: I just get it in relation to a camera sensor. Any other kind of dust, I couldn’t care … ;-)

So I keep 2 of my favorite primes, the XF 23mm F/1.4 and the XF 56mm F/1.2 like permanently glued to my X-H1’s. All fits in a compact Lowe Pro Inverse 200 AW belt pack weighing in at just about 3 kg (including spare batteries, cards, etc.). Not too bad!

Ok, I think that those of you patient enough to follow my ramblings up to here might fancy a small reward now! So, below I’ll share my preferred X-H1 function button allocations, optimized after many hours of trial & error playing around with the camera ;-). Note that the X-H1 has the highest number of customizable function buttons of all Fuji cameras (13), coz it’s got a D-Pad AND a touch screen LCD (both with 4 function slots)! This setup is also aligned with the setups of my X-Pro2’s and my X100V, allowing me to have an as much as possible standardized user interface across all my camera types (X-H. X-Pro, X100 and GFX):

See here the function button allocations more in detail:

Fn1: EXPOSURE COMPENSATION. toggles the exposure compensation via the front dial on/off
Fn2: FACE/EYE DETECTION SETTING. brings up face/eye detection menu (joystick to select)
Fn3: IS MODE. cycle IS (image stabilisation) mode from continuous to shooting only to off
Fn4: PLAYBACK. playback button on the right-hand side of the camera (like X-Pro2 & X100V)
Fn5: AF MODE. select AF-mode (SINGLE POINT > ZONE > WIDE/TRACKING > ALL)
Fn6: ELECTRONIC LEVEL. for quick check if camera’s level to prevent needing to crop in post
T-Fn1: SHUTTER TYPE. quick change of shutter type, eg. from electronic ES to mechanical MS
T-Fn2: ISO AUTO SETTING. quick change between 3 auto ISO settings (also via rear dial)
T-Fn3: D RANGE PRIORITY. don’t often need this but good to have
T-Fn4: NATURAL LIVE VIEW. I use ACROS-R film simulation, this is good to see the shadows
AE-L: AE LOCK ONLY. used to lock the auto exposure when needed
AF-ON: AF-ON. to activate back-button autofocus
R-DIAL: FOCUS CHECK. quick zoom in to check the focus

With these function button allocations I have an intuitive & fast user interface fully aligned with my way of making images. Please try it out & let me know if & how this works for you!

Summarizing, the X-H1 is IMO the best interchangeable lens APS-C camera Fuji ever made. It has no-nonsense ergonomics perfectly optimized for pro level still photography. The larger grip facilitates a cramp-free & safe holding even for longer photo sessions. The highly customisable intuitive user interface allows you to set the camera up so it gets outta your way when crafting your images. Last but not least its robust design will ensure you’ll always have a reliable photo companion with you for many years of photographic fun! Get one … If you still can, you won’t regret it!

Please be invited to join the discussion in the comments section below or leave me a PM on my about page, many thanks for visiting & supporting my blog. I hope y’all had an enjoyable read!

Take care & be safe!

Cheers

Hendrik

If you like you can support me by sending me a small donation via PayPal.me/hendriximages ! Helps me run this site & keeps the information coming, many thanks in advance!

“V”, as in X100V and by the way it’s the 3rd letter in the word “LoVe”! Now it ain’t my intention to try explain what love is here, so let’s just head over to Merriam Webster (dictionary). They got a fitting definition I’d like to share with y’all: Love is … “a strong affection for another arising out of kinship or personal ties”. Another? Ok, so in this case it ain’t a person, but it’s the X100V! Please check out my user review, tips & recommended settings below after nearly 4 weeks of extensive use:

Twin lamps’ shadows, captured on Fuji X100F with 23mm F/2 @F/8, 1/350 sec, 160 ISO

See the picture above? Somehow I never seem to find that kind of images (or should I say the image found me? ;-) when using my exchangeable lens cameras (X-Pro2, X-H1, GFX 50R, etc.) … Maybe it’s the increased creativity spawned by the X100V’s limitation to one lens only or its smallness & unobtrusiveness? Whatever. Look at the image below, another example. OK, I do concede this kinda images don’t qualify as artistic masterpieces by any measure, but they do elicit a strong emotion in me, which most of my other, documentary style photography don’t. It’s somehow got something to do with how the X100 series cameras influence my approach to photography: These little cameras make you want to try out new things. Their fixed focal length animates you to experiment with light & shadows, perspective & point of view, rather than fussing around with focal lengths. You start to intensely feel the world around you, rather than just taking pictures of it. The whole experience is similar to the impressionist painting style: Impressionists like Claude Monet, or Pierre-Auguste Renoir are known for their flurried brushstrokes, they paint the scene as if they had only glanced at it for a moment. It’s just a quick, spontaneous “impression”. That spontaneity is also the core attribute that justifies the X100 series’ value for me! Below another surreal motif which captured my fancy. It’s defined by the stark contrast of the puddle’s inky blackness vs. the bright white pillars - looks like the black puddle is “leaking” from those pillars:

Pillar puddle, seen by Fuji X100V with 23mm F/2 @F/8, 1/80 sec, 200 ISO, -1 EV

Fuji’s original X100 launched in Feb 2011. It went on to become a game changer in the world of photography, mainly due to its promise of “A compact take-everywhere-with-you camera with pro-level image quality output”. Despite its undeniable (retro) charm it did however have several quirks and bugs, many of which were subsequently solved by numerous firmware updates. Since then Fuji has also launched several camera upgrades, all of which have since accompanied me for parts of my photographic life, building the aforementioned “kinship” & “personal ties” in my opening “Love” statement: After the initial X100 came the X100S = “second”, X100T = “third”, X100F = “fourth” and now, after 9 years Fuji’s fifth iteration called X100V is here (the Roman numeral “V” indicating the “fifth”)

Below night image benefitted from using the X100V’s tilting rear LCD screen. I could unobtrusively frame the image properly and wait for the right moment before firing the shutter:

Nightly bistro rendezvous, observed by Fuji X100V with 23mm F/2 II @F/2.8, 1/40 sec, 6400 ISO

The X100V is the one, which in my opinion finally fulfils the original X100 model’s promise, due to following 5 major upgrades:

Weather Resistance (provided the lens is protected by a good UV filter attached to the AR-X100 adaptor ring): Finally this gives me the peace of mind to really always have the camera with me & take photos in all conditions (hey, usually that’s when you find the best images!)
Articulating LCD Screen: Finally the LCD screen can be tilted. In combination with the X100V’s fast autofocus this allows me to discreetly & unobtrusively snap quick pictures from the hip while remaining in full control of image composition & lighting (no more guesswork). The slightly lower point of view also results in a more pleasing perspective in people shots. Raise the camera to your eye? People notice immediately & gone is the spontaneity!
Significantly Improved version II Lens: Honestly I was never unhappy with the X100 series’ original 23mm F/2 lens: But it’s definitively no match for the improved 23mm F/2 version II on the X100V! At max. aperture it’s already sharp over the full frame! And there’s no more close focus softness nor weird lens flare patterns around bright highlights
More Intuitive ISO Dial (and user interface in general): This may be a small change technically but it completely transforms the usability, as you can now leave the ISO ring in the lifted (unlocked) position & fluidly change ISO w/o needing to take the camera from your eye!
Beautifully Designed & High Quality Sleek Housing: Ok, so this one don’t really influence your images but the latest iteration of this camera feels so solid & looks so beautiful, especially the silver version - you just can’t put it down anymore & constantly need to take photos … ;-)

There’s one more upgrade which is the slightly higher resolution BSI (Back Side Illuminated) X-Trans IV sensor with 26MP and 160 base ISO vs. the previous 24MP X-Trans III sensor with 200 base ISO. However I can’t really see a big difference here so for me this one don’t really qualify as a substantial upgrade … The new sensor even demonstrates slightly higher noise levels at higher ISO’s, but you really need to look very closely to see the difference, see below example taken at 1600 ISO - still perfectly OK if you ask me:

Grey vase found by Fuji X100V with 23mm F/2 @F/2.8, 1/40 sec, 1600 ISO

Unfortunately there are also 2 “downgrades” compared to the X100F which I’m not so happy about:

1. NO infinity target indicator box in the OVF (Optical ViewFinder) when using “Corrected AF Frame”:

This means you lose any indication of where your AF target box will be at distances larger than your current focal position, making AF focussing using the OVF less predictable: No way of knowing to where the AF target box will jump when refocussing from near to far. If you’re at a point A on a map and you don’t know how far away point B is, how’re you supposed to know when you’ve passed 1/3, 1/2 or 2/3 of the distance toward point B? On the X100F the always visible near & far target boxes make it more easier to judge!

2. Missing D-Pad: This is partly mitigated by the ability to use gesture swipes on the rear LCD touch panel

To be fair the X100V’s EVF has a higher resolution compared to the X100F (3.69 mln dots vs. 2.36 mln dots) & it offers a more smooth viewing experience than the EVF on the X100F. Below image was composed by using the EVF (I needed the precise limit of the frame on the right side to exclude a building crane from intruding into the image & I didn’t want to have to crop afterwards … ;-)

Early morning sun on town house façade, Fuji X100V with 23mm F/2 @F/8, 1/680, 320 ISO

OK, so I can live with those lesser downsides. Not to forget there are still 2 big benefits inherent to the X100 series compared to other mirrorless cameras: A super quiet leaf shutter allowing flash sync up to 1/4000 sec shutter speed and a built in (4 stop) ND filter

In overall I gotta say that the above mentioned improvements make the X100V the most significant upgrade of the whole X100 series ever (from my point of view). The X100V finally fulfils the brave promise of Fuji’s original X100: A compact, always with you everywhere camera delivering pro-level image quality. So, how about some images of brick walls to demonstrate that “pro-level image quality”? Sorry, I ain’t a brick wall photographer really. Y’all just gonna have to believe me on that one … the X100V’s new version II lens is phenomenal. Totally rad. Simply awesome! Don’t trust me? No problem, there’s like a million of brick wall photography specialists roaming the net - just head over to them & pixel peep to your heart’s content!

There are some reports on the web about the camera heating up and the manual focus ring making grating noises. While I’ve not experienced the former I did have to exchange my first camera to get one without the grating noise of the manual focus ring …

Summing up I can without any reservations highly recommend the X100V and rate it with ***** (five stars) … It’s ideal for all kinds of documentary & street photography and for social, family and wedding photography I’m sure y’all will have a wonderful & fruitful experience with the X100V. FYI for me the X100V is a “her” coz I got an emotional connection to her & absolutely love shooting with her (her name’s “Irene”, crazy huh? ;-)

So, before I close this post I’d like to share my preferred personal Fn (function) button allocation with youse (don’t worry, it’s totally for free, kinda like a “bonus”)

These Fn button settings give me a seamless adjustment experience while using the camera, minimising the interference on the image taking process (please excuse the less than perfect image quality of the X100V’s LCD screen off my iPhone, but it’s good enough to see the settings I think):

Fn1 ………… Shutter Type
Fn2 ….…….. Face / Eye Detection Setting On/Off
T-Fn1 ……… Photometry
T-Fn2 …….. ISO Auto Setting
T-Fn3 …….. AF Mode
T-Fn4 …….. Natural Live View On/Off
AELAFL …. AE Lock Only On/Off
R-Dial ……. Focus Check (press to Zoom in)
Selector … ND Filter (pull to the right & hold for 3 sec to activate)
Q …………… Quick Menu

If you have any questions and/or any comments / suggestions please leave me a note in the comments section below or on my “about” page (your email will not be disclosed), I’ll answer every one of your messages!

Many thanks for visiting & reading and hope you enjoyed it! Please take care & stay healthy,

Best regards,

Hendrik

If you like you can support me by sending me a small donation via PayPal.me/hendriximages ! Helps me run this site & keeps the information coming, many thanks in advance!

X-H1? Get One! ... If You Still Can

All You Need is LoVe ... for the X100V!

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