The Official Fuji X10/X20/X30/XF1/XQ1 Thread

A few from New York...


I do just love the colours from this camera - though I know they are not to everyone's taste.


I haven't managed to go through all the posts that I have missed recently, but there are some great images coming from this camera (which isn't just about the camera of course ;) )

Ali, I love this set, in many ways very 'un'-New York, certainly not what I would expect and a really smart look at the details of the city life. :clap:
 
Been a while since I posted an image, so here's a final few piccies from Scotland.
They are bound to be a bit marmite - that's OK with me :D

First two are a Fairy Glade. I've photographed here before and it is surprisingly tricky to get the image to tell the story. I like these two as they achieved the look I wanted; the X10 did me proud :)


This is the ancient trackway to Smirisary. There was only about 20 seconds sunlight the whole day, and I was lucky to be somewhere where I could make the most of it!
20130103-124957-DSCF0749-L.jpg


Duncan I can appreciate all your pictures from an aesthetic and technical viewpoint, but whilst the beach ones aren't my kind of thing on a personal level, the fairy glade pictures and in particular this trackway photo really do float my boat. As much as I hate it normally, I can even see a reason to add a smallest smidgeon of 'glow' to the fairy glade images, more for a little fun than any kind of photographic improvement :D
 
love the puddle shot! Nice balance and more subtle tones imho, haven't seen the sun here for a while, thanks for the reminder!

Thanks Peter - I have to say, the puddle is probably my favourite, it would be the one I printed and put on the wall if I had to chose. The puddle with sunset is a close second, again probably based on having water reflections, an addiction I can't get past ;)

Wow - they all look fantastic.
Sod the camera - it's a cracking set of shots.

I know the X20 looks tempting, but the results we are getting need some beating :D

Thanks Duncan - it is certainly true that this is one helluva of camera and the ability to wiggle the jpgs so much is quite amazing. :thumbs:
 
Now for some landscapes of a more urban nature. Thursday evening we went over to Salford Quays. They were still developing this area when I left for the big smoke, so took this opportunity to head over and having seen loads of pictures of it from other photographers, have a look at it for myself.

Now the exif is saying this was on 'Auto' exposure, but I am pretty certain it was on advanced low light - possibly flickr can't read that much info, or it just doesn't show :shrug:

I was having a problem with the camera over exposing so some EC dialed in too. The auto WB couldn't correct enough for the orange light pollution of the city beyond, so some more correction added in LR4 and a few levels tweaks again.

Imperial War Museum North

Salford Quays by Night by Yvonne White - WhiteGoldImages, on Flickr


The two are the same complex, part BBC and other media 'stuff'


Salford Quays by Night by Yvonne White - WhiteGoldImages, on Flickr


Salford Quays by Night by Yvonne White - WhiteGoldImages, on Flickr

So, totally different low light action to the previous evening, but again, cannot complain about the performance from the camera.
 
Yv said:
I was having a problem with the camera over exposing so some EC dialed in too. The auto WB couldn't correct enough for the orange light pollution of the city beyond, so some more correction added in LR4 and a few levels tweaks again.

Last week I started noticing the X10's auto white balance being quite off when I had to take some shots of specific colours for a course I'm doing. I've not noticed this before and I was just putting it down to user error so it's interesting that you've mentioned it as well. Has anyone else had any problems.

I took a load of images up at Warrick Castle yesterday. From the screen they were looking quite blue but I'm saving judgement till I get them on a proper monitor.
 
Duncan I can appreciate all your pictures from an aesthetic and technical viewpoint, but whilst the beach ones aren't my kind of thing on a personal level, the fairy glade pictures and in particular this trackway photo really do float my boat. As much as I hate it normally, I can even see a reason to add a smallest smidgeon of 'glow' to the fairy glade images, more for a little fun than any kind of photographic improvement :D
Thanks Yv - much appreciated !

Cheers!

Now for some landscapes of a more urban nature. Thursday evening we went over to Salford Quays. They were still developing this area when I left for the big smoke, so took this opportunity to head over and having seen loads of pictures of it from other photographers, have a look at it for myself.
Wooo - that last image is one of the best night time shots I think I've seen of Salford Quays.
Nice work :thumbs:

Last week I started noticing the X10's auto white balance being quite off when I had to take some shots of specific colours for a course I'm doing. I've not noticed this before and I was just putting it down to user error so it's interesting that you've mentioned it as well. Has anyone else had any problems.

I took a load of images up at Warrick Castle yesterday. From the screen they were looking quite blue but I'm saving judgement till I get them on a proper monitor.

I think I can help......

Firstly - you need some confidence in your screen.
I've posted this link before, but it bears re-posting.
http://outbackprint.outbackphoto.com/printinginsights/pi049/essay.html
Have a read about the subtleties in that test image and check you can see them when looked at with your monitor.

Second - a lesson in White Balance.
Here's how Auto White Balance works.
If it spots a lovely glowing sunset, it thinks 'Wooo - Tungsten' and dramatically changes the Orange/Red because it thinks it is a colour cast.
If it spots a summer woodland scene, it thinks 'Wooo - Flourescent' and dramatically changes the Green because it thinks it is a colour cast.
This sort of thing happens in any scene where there is a dominant colour; for example when filling the frame with a car.
In RAW you get the option to change White Balance back at home, so you can correct the occasional mistake made by AWB, but JPEG has to be got right at the time of taking as it can't be changed.

There's a strong argument that AWB should never be used and that you should set the closest matching white balance for the conditions.
For landscape images, that's not what I do. I set it to Sunny and leave it there. It makes shade look cold and dark and makes stormy skies look properly angry.
There is one exception where I recommend using AWB, and that is under artificial lighting. The human eye doesn't notice the big shifts in colour between different light sources and the camera is far better at picking an appropriate white balance.

Hope I understood your problem.
Please let us know if that helped.
 
Hello Linda,

Welcome to this the thread which made me realise that my PP wasn't up to much. If it's any help, I bought Lightroom 3 on ebay over the Christmas period, and invested in a book that seemed to be recommended on several websites:

Lightroom 3 - book for digital photographers by Scott Kelby.

I'm working through it right now, and overlooking the rather eccentric style in which it's written, I find it excellent. I needed a 'do this, do that' directness, and I got it! 17 quid from Amazon, but I notice it's just gone up by a tenner!

The other widely recommended volume with a similar title is written by one Martin Evening. It seems he has a less 'robust' style, but I haven't seen the book.

(By the way, I bought an X10 as a Christmas present for my son-in-law from the Dursley shop - can't believe they dragged you all that way just to compare cameras).

Pete


Thanks Pete - I will have a look - wonder why they are upping the price now? Thought it might be cheaper now the x20 has been announced. [And no, we couldn't believe driving all that way either. It was hard not to explode having heard the day before that my brother had had a serious accident at work and had part of his foot amputated in Australia.... we went to by a camera and christen is 'stubby' on his instructions!]
 
Thanks Pete - I will have a look - wonder why they are upping the price now? Thought it might be cheaper now the x20 has been announced. [And no, we couldn't believe driving all that way either. It was hard not to explode having heard the day before that my brother had had a serious accident at work and had part of his foot amputated in Australia.... we went to by a camera and christen is 'stubby' on his instructions!]

Welcome Linda, sorry, meant to add that whilst posting last night :lol: Its a bit mad round here but good fun :thumbs:
 
Firstly - you need some confidence in your screen.
I've posted this link before, but it bears re-posting.
http://outbackprint.outbackphoto.com/printinginsights/pi049/essay.html
Have a read about the subtleties in that test image and check you can see them when looked at with your monitor.

Second - a lesson in White Balance.
Here's how Auto White Balance works.
If it spots a lovely glowing sunset, it thinks 'Wooo - Tungsten' and dramatically changes the Orange/Red because it thinks it is a colour cast.
If it spots a summer woodland scene, it thinks 'Wooo - Flourescent' and dramatically changes the Green because it thinks it is a colour cast.
This sort of thing happens in any scene where there is a dominant colour; for example when filling the frame with a car.
In RAW you get the option to change White Balance back at home, so you can correct the occasional mistake made by AWB, but JPEG has to be got right at the time of taking as it can't be changed.

There's a strong argument that AWB should never be used and that you should set the closest matching white balance for the conditions.
For landscape images, that's not what I do. I set it to Sunny and leave it there. It makes shade look cold and dark and makes stormy skies look properly angry.
There is one exception where I recommend using AWB, and that is under artificial lighting. The human eye doesn't notice the big shifts in colour between different light sources and the camera is far better at picking an appropriate white balance.

Hope I understood your problem.
Please let us know if that helped.


I would add to what Duncan has explained, using AWB is absolute laziness on my part , a fact that is not helped by the fact that jpgs from the X10 have far more latitude on jpg post adjustment than you would normally get, even from much bigger, 'better' cameras. The 'experienced' user in me says DO use the correct WB setting for the scene, just don't panic if you haven't, you have got some room to move on it. It will NOT be perfect if you adjust later, but then, you will come across scenes where even using the correct setting will not get it perfect. A good example of this is sports halls - the heavy duty tungsten or sodium lighting used in the majority of them can be seen as orange even by the naked eye, so you can imagine how difficult it is for the camera, even using a custom WB on a DSLR - yep, still get orangey looking photos. However, such circumstances are rare, so best advice is to use the WB appropriate to the scene for the most accurate results.
 
One more from the sunset batch - this one has had a LOT of tweaking to pullout the light on the gate and the shadow areas whilst keeping the highlights in the sky to a proper level. I wasn't sure about it at first, my original edit just didn't look right, so scrapped it and started again and much happier now. Its the same spot in the field as the pond puddle, but closer to the gate so the gate is the foreground interest rather than the huge puddle. I think a good reason for posting this is that its a jpg that has been pulled into something it very definitely wasn't to begin with and more than anything, shows the extent to which you can manipulate if you need to. Will add the original in a few mins when I have resized it.


Sunset over Staffordshire by Yvonne White - WhiteGoldImages, on Flickr

original - dropping the exposure down to get the sky back to what I could see as it is somewhat over exposed, lost almost all the foreground detail, so then had to left that back up.


oopnorth001-12 by Yvonne White - WhiteGoldImages, on Flickr
 
Thanks for the info Duncan and Yv. I'll have a look through the link you posted but what you described was almost certainly what my problem was. I was taking a shot of a yellow grit box that completely filled the frame that was really showing up the problem.

Using AWB is certainly a laziness thing for me that I should get out if the habit of using all the time.
 
Shall i or shall i not keep my x10 !!?? Am so used to full frame shallow depth of field, i can't get used to lack of it compared to full frame :-(, i thought i'd be alright, but i must have been spoilt now, and nothing now compares :-(.
 
Shall i or shall i not keep my x10 !!?? Am so used to full frame shallow depth of field, i can't get used to lack of it compared to full frame :-(, i thought i'd be alright, but i must have been spoilt now, and nothing now compares :-(.

Only you can decide that, though if you feel you can only work with absolute shallow DoF, maybe you need to explore narrower apertures a little more :lol: Seriously though, I use only full frame on my working cameras and dont have a problem with the X10, its just different, makes you think things differently, which isn't a bad thing. Only you can choose if you want to do that :thumbs:
 
Shall i or shall i not keep my x10 !!?? Am so used to full frame shallow depth of field, i can't get used to lack of it compared to full frame :-(, i thought i'd be alright, but i must have been spoilt now, and nothing now compares :-(.

I don't blindly adore my X10 like some appear to do :D and am still having a love/hate relationship with it but I've just about learned to use it for its strengths, stuff that can benefit from a greater depth of field like landscapes and close ups. It's also great for low level shooting and carting around just in case.
 
I don't blindly adore my X10 like some appear to do :D and am still having a love/hate relationship with it but I've just about learned to use it for its strengths, stuff that can benefit from a greater depth of field like landscapes and close ups. It's also great for low level shooting and carting around just in case.

i'm still finding my feet with it also and it does take some getting used to after using my D300 all the time. the weather has been dreaful here also which means i can't get out to give it a real test.

this is a shot i got from a walk yestaerday afternoon . the light was very poor but i wa svery happy with the result. taken on M setting

road-mono.jpg
 
Excuse the language but I feel it's justified in this case!

Bloody hell, Yv! JPEG? Auto mode and Landscapes? You'll be driving a Pug soon!!!

As always, a great set of images, as are all those in this thread posted as examples of people's best/favourites. So far, mine have been to ilustrate points rather than represent what the camera's capable of in my hands. I'll wait for better light and warmer weather (not that the X-10 needs it - I do!) for my "artistic" efforts (I should be more familiar with the thing by then too).

Now for the big reveal...

Top pic was from the XF-1. Seems to be a pretty even split as to which people prefer. I prefer the top shot too, especially as a SOOC A4 print. For those who prefer slightly lighter images, like all files, it's easier to lift dark ones than retrieve lighter ones if wanted/needed.
 
Souldeep i love the colours in these shots, are they set in camera or in post?

Thanks Robert :)

Which shots are you referring to? You may be confusing me with someone else. My last set of shots, posted a few pages ago, were Black and White.

I use a combination of in camera settings and PP.
 
Good lord....
An image that makes me properly question scale and subject.
What a wonderful capture...

... and like so many excellent images in this thread, the X10 is almost irrelevant - but it sure can deliver the goods!!!!!

Peter - I second Duncan's comments. That is a stunning shot. On first glance I couldn't even work out what it was. Very very good :)
 
Now for the big reveal...

Top pic was from the XF-1. Seems to be a pretty even split as to which people prefer. I prefer the top shot too, especially as a SOOC A4 print. For those who prefer slightly lighter images, like all files, it's easier to lift dark ones than retrieve lighter ones if wanted/needed.

Nod - Do you think the extra detail in the XF-1 image may be because is more underexposed than the X10 shot. As you say - easier to pull detail back from under than over exposed shots.

The next question I'd then ask - was it possible that the exposure dial on the X10 was knocked positive. I understand you can't adjust the exposure manually on the XF-1 so might explain the differences you've witnessed between the two images.
 
:clap:

YV - loving your sunset shots. This one has definitely benefited from some good PP work. I loved the night shots in town as well. Thanks for posting and glad to see your still out there shooting away with the X10 :)

Thanks Martyn and yes still out there and shooting when I can.... I have been looking at your travel stuff with great interest, we are off to Morocco on Thursday, the kit will be the X10, plus a D700, 50mm f1.4 and and SB800 flash and thats it. So, hopefully not only will you get pictures from me on the X10, but perhaps I can finally persuade Jonathan to post some of his efforts too. :thumbs:
 
Only you can decide that, though if you feel you can only work with absolute shallow DoF, maybe you need to explore narrower apertures a little more :lol: Seriously though, I use only full frame on my working cameras and dont have a problem with the X10, its just different, makes you think things differently, which isn't a bad thing. Only you can choose if you want to do that :thumbs:

Thanks :D, I understand where your coming from, the x10 does have its place, just need to stick with it and learn its strengths !, I have got some great shots from it :thumbs:
 
This was taken a month ago, its St Peters Church in Petersfield on a sunny winters day, the blue sky and green grass just Ooz Fuji colours !... shame about the white vans though !


DSCF1437 by Leeboy22001, on Flickr
 
Thanks Martyn and yes still out there and shooting when I can.... I have been looking at your travel stuff with great interest, we are off to Morocco on Thursday, the kit will be the X10, plus a D700, 50mm f1.4 and and SB800 flash and thats it. So, hopefully not only will you get pictures from me on the X10, but perhaps I can finally persuade Jonathan to post some of his efforts too. :thumbs:

Cool... I really only use it as a backup site so I don’t really get many hits from the FLICKR community. I have just visited my FLICKR site and seen over 900 hits on the Korea set. This suggests you’ve sat through them all – wow - you are incredibly patient!

I have been lucky enough to revisit Morocco on five occasions now. I love the place. I did not revisit last year with the X10 but if you are interested you’ll find some sets taken on F30 with no PP on the following link http://www.flickr.com/photos/souldeep/sets/?&page=2. I didn’t use to take so many photos so it won’t be as painful as going through the Korea set. For Morocco check the following sets;

Marrakesh (Jun 2010)
Essaouira (Jun 2010)
Atlas Mountains (Nov 2009 )
Marrakesh (Nov 2009)
 
Nod - Do you think the extra detail in the XF-1 image may be because is more underexposed than the X10 shot. As you say - easier to pull detail back from under than over exposed shots.

The next question I'd then ask - was it possible that the exposure dial on the X10 was knocked positive. I understand you can't adjust the exposure manually on the XF-1 so might explain the differences you've witnessed between the two images.

Looking at the EXIF (I checked because that struck me too), there was no exposure compensation applied to either. The light did change between the 2 shots but was stable enough for both so it wasn't a case of the level changing between metering and exposure. Looking at the A4 prints, the XF shot isn't underexposed, if anything, the X-10 has overcooked the shot marginally. Details for the shots are.. X-10, f/2, 1/180th s, 7mm. XF-1, f/1.8, 1/280th s, 6mm. As you can see, it was the XF-1 that had the brighter light.
 
While I'm here and remember, has anyone used any of the angle wideners available to get more than 28mm wide angles out of their X-10? If so, which one and what were the results like? Would they recommend the combination? I don't mind some distortion, although the less the better (as always!).
 
While I'm here and remember, has anyone used any of the angle wideners available to get more than 28mm wide angles out of their X-10? If so, which one and what were the results like? Would they recommend the combination? I don't mind some distortion, although the less the better (as always!).

Ran into someone a few months ago. He had a Raynox (I believe 'twas a 0.5x) that fitted the 52mm (?) adapter he had screwed on. He was rather chuffed with that...
 
Last Raynox adaptor I bought went back to Amazon - I bought it for my HS30 and the back element of the adaptor would have made contact with the front of the lens. Tried an "empty" filter ring as a spacer but that caused vignetting. Will give it a try on the X-10 (the filter adaptor combined with the larger threaded Raynox should [hopefully!] work like I want it to...) and report back on the ultrawide X-10 (or not... :()
 
Cool... I really only use it as a backup site so I don’t really get many hits from the FLICKR community. I have just visited my FLICKR site and seen over 900 hits on the Korea set. This suggests you’ve sat through them all – wow - you are incredibly patient!

I have been lucky enough to revisit Morocco on five occasions now. I love the place. I did not revisit last year with the X10 but if you are interested you’ll find some sets taken on F30 with no PP on the following link http://www.flickr.com/photos/souldeep/sets/?&page=2. I didn’t use to take so many photos so it won’t be as painful as going through the Korea set. For Morocco check the following sets;

Marrakesh (Jun 2010)
Essaouira (Jun 2010)
Atlas Mountains (Nov 2009 )
Marrakesh (Nov 2009)

you know there are days when you need a gentle reminder about how naturally good your photos are - I haven't been near the blog [cant remember the link] or flickr yet, I just meant your pics posted in this thread! Any hits are all because of the pictures :D Mind you, about to increase your flickr views, on there now having a look at them all :thumbs: If you have any tips and advice about Morocco, do tell as well please.


oh just as an aside, a propos our conversations about studios, lights, models, etc - I did a shoot last week, totally out of my comfort zone, deliberately stuck to a single speed light with a beauty dish on it and concentrated on faces, as it was in colaboration with make-up artists - a few of the quickly edited results are on my flickr account [the rest will prob be after hols now] if you fancy a look. IF you like them, I think we need to get our heads together and work out how to do this with an X10? Really fancy having a go...??
 
:clap:

Feeling this Duncan - great eye and made the most of the light.

Wow how many posts this weekend!!! This thread is hot. Amazing how much there is to catch up on after just a few days away.

Thanks Souldeep!

Here's something the X10 did exceedingly well last night.
20130113-165245-DSCF0778-X3.jpg


Why's that image so special?

The guy with the Nikon D700 failed to take the same shot :D
Fuji X10 Pro Low Light mode wins again!

The face was very under exposed, so used local adjustments in LR4 to brighten, give a contrast boost and warm up the colour (it was very twilight purple coloured).
As Yv has been saying - these JPEGs will take a LOT of abuse in PP!!!!
 
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Now some 'proper' shots from the same trip; an evening stroll at Weston-super-Mud.

Dunno why - but I like this one. It's very minimalist! :)
20130113-161015-DSCF0760-X3.jpg


Ankle deep in the mud to take this one. The grey cold evening has made everything go twilight blue. This is the last I took in RAW, all the rest use Pro Low Light mode.
20130113-163701-DSCF0776-X3.jpg


Looks like CGI, but it isn't! I think it is because the pier is still looks new and the twilight colours make it look a bit surreal.
20130113-165618-DSCF0784-X3.jpg


Another image that looks a bit CGI. Very odd.
20130113-170312-DSCF0799-X3.jpg


The guy with the D700 was stood next to me and I could hear his shutter going clunk-clunk. Pro Low Light mode wins again :D
20130113-170738-DSCF0803-X3.jpg


Taking Pro Low Light mode to ridiculous extremes, and it still worked!
Absolutely amazing - this mode is far to useful to be called a gimmick.
20130113-172823-DSCF0821-X3.jpg
 
Another set that shows how flexible the camera is Duncan. I really love the 2nd 'CGI' pier shot, it does have a surreal feeling to it, sort of a subtle hdr look, can't really explain it but a great look for that kind of image. They are all well composed as always from you and all look bloody good :thumbs:
 
Another set that shows how flexible the camera is Duncan. I really love the 2nd 'CGI' pier shot, it does have a surreal feeling to it, sort of a subtle hdr look, can't really explain it but a great look for that kind of image. They are all well composed as always from you and all look bloody good :thumbs:

Wow - thanks Yv!
 
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