mjroe
pfm Member
Any fishes interested in the X-T3?
I went up to WEX in Bristol today to have a try of the X-T3 and see what all the fuss was about. It wasn't massively different than the X-T2, but a few things did stand out:
Is it worth upgrading to a X-T3 from an X-T2? It depends. The answer for me is yes.
A big improvement to my photography life since switching to Fujifilm is being able to process images in camera, transfer them to my phone and then either print them (to a Polaroid ZIP or Canon Selphy) or share them via email etc. This has given my photography an immediacy that I never had. The D3s and D800 did not have wireless so this kind of sharing was not possible. The pleasure shown on people's faces when you can give them a print that you have just taken makes it worthwhile. And the amazement of printing out a photo from a printer in your pocket definitely gets people talking! I shot a wedding last year and was able to give the bride a mini album as I left the venue - it's this kind of stuff that makes physical photography special. I love the Fuji colours and look, so for me the images are 90% of how I want them, and 99% of the time that is good enough.
So for me, it's a yes because I know I'll enjoy the B&W toning (even though it seems minor), I'd never say no to the improvement of an already amazing EVF, fast shooting without needing a grip is a bonus, and the X-T2 still misses action shots of the kids in my family, so faster AF will be good.
Mainly it was also a yes because of the £200 trade-in rebate Fuji are offering until the end of September. By trading in my X-T2, grip and X Pro1 it will cost me less £300 to upgrade. Had it been closer to £500 I may have reconsidered. So I'm guessing the cost-benefit analysis will vary from person to person. I'll need to get a new USB lead (it's now USB-C from USB2) and convert my trigger leads (the 2.5mm jack is gone, you now use the 3.5mm mic jack. The USB trigger is no longer their either, so I'll have to DIY convert my Captur lead), and I'll need to budget for the new grip somewhere down the line - if I decided I need one.
I'll keep you posted on how I get on, but whatever system you use I hope you're enjoying taking some photos!
I went up to WEX in Bristol today to have a try of the X-T3 and see what all the fuss was about. It wasn't massively different than the X-T2, but a few things did stand out:
- The EVF seemed a bit bigger somehow, not exactly sure why, but when I looked through the X-T2 afterwards it just seemed smaller;
- The autofocus is definitely quicker, in both AF-S and AF-C. The wide area tracking now really does track a moving object, and feels much more like the Nikon 3D tracking that I used to know and love. Even in AF-S when moving between far and near subjects the focus snaps much quicker, the X-T2 seems laggy in comparison;
- Having all the ports (mic, headphone, USB and HDMI) in the camera is nice;
- The battery grip is not really needed unless you want a vertical shooting grip, the camera is now faster with it connected;
- Because the battery grip is really now just optional (whereas before it was kind of mandatory if you wanted high frame rates or a headphone jack) Fuji have not really bothered to make it compact! The grip is huge! (in comparison) It will give lots more 'grip' for bigger hands and felt really good. Whereas with the X-T2 I would leave it gripped a lot, you'd really notice it on an X-T3. But as the Fuji rep pointed out, you use a X-T for compactness most of the time, so to have a 'full speed' camera out of the box is a real bonus;
- When doing an in camera B&W RAW conversion you can now choose to warm up or cool down an image. I really like this image toning feature and it will probably mean I could almost produce images straight out of the camera. Velvia is already how I see colour, and although I like Acros it wasn't quite 'there' for my tastes, but I think warming it up a little will get it closer to my liking.
Is it worth upgrading to a X-T3 from an X-T2? It depends. The answer for me is yes.
A big improvement to my photography life since switching to Fujifilm is being able to process images in camera, transfer them to my phone and then either print them (to a Polaroid ZIP or Canon Selphy) or share them via email etc. This has given my photography an immediacy that I never had. The D3s and D800 did not have wireless so this kind of sharing was not possible. The pleasure shown on people's faces when you can give them a print that you have just taken makes it worthwhile. And the amazement of printing out a photo from a printer in your pocket definitely gets people talking! I shot a wedding last year and was able to give the bride a mini album as I left the venue - it's this kind of stuff that makes physical photography special. I love the Fuji colours and look, so for me the images are 90% of how I want them, and 99% of the time that is good enough.
So for me, it's a yes because I know I'll enjoy the B&W toning (even though it seems minor), I'd never say no to the improvement of an already amazing EVF, fast shooting without needing a grip is a bonus, and the X-T2 still misses action shots of the kids in my family, so faster AF will be good.
Mainly it was also a yes because of the £200 trade-in rebate Fuji are offering until the end of September. By trading in my X-T2, grip and X Pro1 it will cost me less £300 to upgrade. Had it been closer to £500 I may have reconsidered. So I'm guessing the cost-benefit analysis will vary from person to person. I'll need to get a new USB lead (it's now USB-C from USB2) and convert my trigger leads (the 2.5mm jack is gone, you now use the 3.5mm mic jack. The USB trigger is no longer their either, so I'll have to DIY convert my Captur lead), and I'll need to budget for the new grip somewhere down the line - if I decided I need one.
I'll keep you posted on how I get on, but whatever system you use I hope you're enjoying taking some photos!
