For Fujifilm, the fixed-lens retro-styled FinePix X100 camera [1] turned out to be a huge and rather unexpected success. It was only a matter of time to see the company to bank on its popularity and release an interchangeable lens system loosely based on this model. Yet this CSC is no rehash, as it features a new 16Mp sensor design that puts it in a class of its own.

The X-Pro1 retains the old school looks and rangefinder features of the X100 albeit in a rather bigger body. Yet despite the die-cast aluminium alloy casing, it weighs only 450g and feels surprisingly light in the hand. The general handling of this camera is great, with the rubberised texture adding safety to the comfortable, if not deep grip.

On the outside the changes from the X100 are not too striking. The front and the top plate of the two cameras are virtually identical, with the exception of a focus selector added to the front of the pro version and the viewfinder mode switch being downward oriented in the X-Pro1. The other difference worth mentioning is that the exposure compensation dial is now recessed, making it more difficult to move accidentally.

There are instead more considerable changes to the rear design. A straightforward four-way controller with large buttons now replaces the flimsy looking jog dial of the X100 whilst the size, feel and position of the other control buttons have also been altered for a neater and more ergonomic operation. The Raw button has completely vanished whereas a Quick Menu button has made a welcome appearance.

The overall operation and logic of the camera stays the same maintaining the either loved or loathed analogue control philosophy of the X100. The X-Pro1 has no mode dial as such. The only mode options available are Bulb, Time and Auto added to the shutter speed dial. The Auto mode works in a wonderfully simple way in conjunction with the lens.

Since the aperture in the X-Pro1 system is set on the lens and not the camera, the aperture lens rings all have an A setting. If you want the camera to work in full auto mode all you have to do is set A on both the shutter speed dial and the aperture ring on the lens. However, if you want to work in either aperture or shutter priority mode you will simply set the fixed setting to A and select the variable one on the lens or the camera according to what priority you need.

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Pure pleasure

There is no direct access to any other program or scene mode and even the video mode can only be accessed using the drive menu. This is a camera aimed at serious and enthusiast photographers who desire purity and analogue simplicity. There is one quirky feature though that might appeal to pros and certainly appeals to me. The X-Pro1 has a multiple exposure setting that usefully lets you preview the overlapping image before recording it.

Despite the lack of automation and user-friendly modes, the X-Pro1 is straightforward to operate and a sheer pleasure to use. Aside from the amazing 1.23m-dot resolution of its 3in RGBW LCD screen – that allows unprecedented level of detail at 100 per cent magnification – the hybrid optical/electronic viewfinder arrangement is a shooting experience that needs to be tried to be fully appreciated.

In short, it is like having the best of both: the brightness and high contrast of a EVF with all the quirks of an OVF such as seeing the extensive shooting information, the active AF point or the virtual horizon. What I like the best though is that, thanks to this combination, you can actually shoot through the EVF and review the shot taken in LiveView without having to take your eye off the viewfinder. It also helps that the electronic viewfinder is extremely fast so that the overall experience it is as close to DSLR shooting as possible.

That said, performance of the X-Pro1 is a bit of a mix-bag. Shutter lag and continuous shooting speed are good, if not excellent, but writing to media is sluggish – Raw files take close to ten seconds to be fully recorded on the card. The camera does not go into complete lock-up during writing-up but it does prevent you from taking a second shot for a very short period after starting the write process.

The autofocus system is also a rather complicated, unreliable and odd business. First of all there is no tracking AF, which makes this camera unsuitable for fast-paced scenes. But even the available continuous mode is not at all suited for moving subjects, as it is centre-based and really struggles to follow targets.

The AF-S is surprisingly better than AF-C at locking onto moving subjects although you would not think so at the start. When I first used the X-Pro1 I had so many misses that I began to think there was something wrong with the actual camera I had been given. After much struggling and experimenting though I realised that the AF-C is actually very precise in good light provided you fully depress the shutter to shoot instead of waiting for the camera to show you the focused image before fully depressing.

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Sample Shots

Prime lenses: 18mm, 35mm, 60mm (35mm equivalent: 27mm, 53mm, 90mm)

Monochrome

ISO Tests

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Sample Shots

Full-resolution crops of all the sample images can be downloaded here [3] (17MB).

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Animal instincts

When you attempt to half-depress the shutter to check the focus the camera seems to ponder endlessly and eventually produce out-of-focus shots. I may be missing a trick but it’s unclear why that is but if you can trust the camera to do its job, it really does deliver each time. Once I got to use to using the shutter without half-pressing I did not even experience any of the serious low-light AF delays widely reported on this camera.

To me, learning to use this temperamental autofocus system felt like taming a wild animal. It’ll never be as undemanding and docile as some competing AF systems but once you get used to it you can get it to perform virtually as reliably as other less moody systems. Indeed, the smooth bokeh effect, combined with the ultra-sharp focus this camera can achieve, is a feast for the eye.

The X-Pro1 also has a manual focus system, which works by turning the focus ring on the lens. Although this sounds good on paper the focus ring does not mechanically produce changes inside the lens. Sure it has the shape and feel of a manual ring, but it’s only an electronic control. In a DSLR lens you would turn the focus ring by small degrees either way and immediately achieve focus, yet with the X-Pro1 lenses you have to make it go quite a few turns to obtain focus. How much you have to turn the ring depends on the lens itself but you will experience a disorienting lag with all lenses, so I suggest manual focus to be used only for fine adjustments.

There are other not-so-good points to mention. A rather annoying, if low, constant lens clicking, which is the result of the camera’s opening and closing of the lens aperture blades to regulate light entry. The clicking never actually stops even when the aperture is fixed manually. Also the anti-dust ultrasonic vibrations system that should work well in an interchangeable lens camera was not up to the job and I ended up having dust specs quite often when changing lenses. Finally battery life is definitely poor.

At the heart of this otherwise seemingly old-fashioned camera lays a new sensor that is as cutting edge and technologically advanced as it comes. The 16Mp APS-C X-trans CMOS sensor uses a new colour filter array to solve issues of moiré. This approach avoids the need for a low-pass filter, which in conventional sensors results in unwanted softening of images. The upshot of it all is the XPro-1 delivers image quality levels that blow away the competition.

The layout of colour filter array is modelled on the 'natural' randomness of silver halide grains on film. While not a truly random pixel layout, the uses a 6 x 6 sensor grid to introduce a higher degree of randomness. This isn't the same as some film emulation creative filter, as there is much hype about the film simulation modes of this camera. The truth is that the filmic magic of the images captured by the Fujifilm FinePix X-Pro1 have more to do with the capabilities of its sensor design. The technology delivers impressive and almost unrealistic sharpness together with a soft, smooth recording of light’s subtleties that makes the final images life-like and pop out in the same way that film does.

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Personality test

The fine detail resolved in the X-Pro1’s images is remarkable for this class of camera and surpasses that of many DSLRs. Colours are beautifully rendered and low-light and high-ISO performance is impeccable and certainly in line with the best professional DSLRs. The only blemish is that the camera has a tendency to overexpose the highlights but the handy exposure compensation dial takes care of the problem, once you know.

I have tested the X-Pro1 with all three of the lenses available at launch and I’m looking forward to the further seven additions Fujifilm has promised for this system by 2013. The prime lenses available now – XF18mm f/2 R; XF 35mm f/1.4 R and XF 60mm f/2.4 Macro – are all fast, solidly built and high-performance prime optics. They also benefit from the X-Mount’s reduced flange back distance of 17.7mm, which makes the lens as close as possible to the sensor for even better resolution throughout the frame.

Interchangeable lens compact camera systems are, by definition, not aimed at professional photographers who normally rely on their DSLR systems. Those in need of a take-everywhere camera would also be more inclined to choose a high-end compact. Having said that, the X-Pro1 is the one system, of the many I have tried and reviewed, which I am considering buying for myself. In the time I used the camera I got to love it so much that when I had to return it I felt I wasn’t sure I could afford losing it.

Don’t get me wrong the X-Pro1 is not at all the flawless, perfect camera that people might expect at its selling price. Nevertheless it is a camera whose faults become integral part of its personality and in a weird way add to the allure of using it.

Verdict

Whether the X-Pro1 is worth the real money needed to buy it you will need to weigh up for yourself. If faster and better autofocus, more silent operation and speedy performance are important to you, save your cash and resist the charm of the X-Pro1’s cool retro looks, as you would be seriously disappointed. That said, if visual excellence is what you are really looking for, then I would just say that this is a unique and amazing camera that, in its class, can deliver unbeatable image quality that is worth every penny. ®

More Camera Reviews…
Nikon D4 [5]	Pentax K-01 [6]	Hasselblad H4D-200MS 200Mp camera [7]	Sigma SD1 Merill [8]	Canon PowerShot G1 X [9]

Links

1. http://www.reghardware.com/2011/04/29/review_fujifilm_finepix_x100_camera/
2. http://regmedia.co.uk/2012/08/13/reg_hardware_fujifilm_x-pro1_iso_tests.zip
3. http://regmedia.co.uk/2012/08/14/reg_hardware_fujifilm_x-pro1_full-resolution_image_crops.zip
4. http://www.catmonphotography.co.uk/
5. http://www.reghardware.com/2012/08/03/review_nikon_d4_dslr_camera/
6. http://www.reghardware.com/2012/07/20/review_pentax_k_01_compact_system_camera/
7. http://www.reghardware.com/2011/11/30/hasselblad_h4_d_200ms_medium_format_multishot_camera/
8. http://www.reghardware.com/2012/07/13/review_sigma_sd1_merrill_dslr_camera/
9. http://www.reghardware.com/2012/06/22/review_canon_powershot_g1_x_compact_camera/