App Store link (iPhone/iTouch): https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/fuji...645239105?mt=8

App Store link (iPad): https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/fuji...645239105?mt=8

Play Store link: https://play.google.com/store/apps/d...l4c3BvdGNvbSJd

Or search "FujiXspot" (one word) in the store on your mobile device.

We've switched developers, and the new developer is actively improving the app, so new and better functionality should come in the form of updates soon.

I already mentioned that Fuji has been working with Apple to provide good X-Trans support. As of today, Apple Camera Raw (4.05) is supporting the X-Pro1, X-E1, X100S and X20. My initial tests have shown outstanding results. Of course, this needs quite some further testing to reach a definitive conclusion.

The Fujifilm XF 55-200mm f/3.5-4.8 R LM OIS Lens is now available for pre-order at B&H:



Also, a quick notice on my part. Some of you have noticed I've been posting some B&H links and announcements lately here and on Amin's other forums. A few of you have asked if I'm affiliated with B&H, so I thought I'd let you know what's going on. I'm not directly affiliated with B&H, but Amin and the forums are. As part of this relationship, B&H often makes review copies of cameras available for loan - because I had been informally writing my reactions to various cameras over the past few years, Amin offered to include me in that loaner program so I could try out more gear and continue to write about it. As part of that arrangement, I also get all of B&H's announcements and emails and because I'm grateful to have the opportunity to try out new cameras, I offered to help Amin out by posting some of these if I get to them first or when he doesn't have the time. So, that's the connection. I do get review cameras from B&H because Amin offered to include me in that program and I sometimes post B&H notices. That's the extent of it...




-Ray Sachs

I've had a loaner Fuji X100s for a little over a week now and have shot with it in a variety of conditions. Since I owned an X100 and currently own an X-Pro, there was not a lot of adjustment or learning curve with this camera, so I feel I got a pretty good handle on it pretty quickly.

I've also been shooting with a Sony RX1 for about a month. I was initially planning to do a comparison between the two cameras (and may still do something like that on Serious Compacts) but I'm just going to focus on the X100s here. The Sony is a full frame camera with an amazing Zeiss lens that sells for over $3000 once you add a viewfinder. Its a premium camera that is perceived as the full frame deal of the century to some buyers and a horrible waste of money for relatively little gain to others. There's nothing I can write about either that will settle that potential argument because that's all about perspective, perception, and whether you can afford either or both. So, onto the X100s.

I'm finding myself with two conflicting feelings after spending some time with the X100s. First, it either matches or improves upon the original X100 in almost every way - the one potential exception is that some people don't like the look or workability of the raw files produced by the X-Trans sensor as much as the original 12mp Bayer sensor in the X100. Others, OTOH, find it an improvement. I'm in the camp that likes the X-Trans quite a lot, so I see no downside relative to the original X100 and many upsides.

On The Other Hand...

I'm also notably underwhelmed by the X100s, after having been mostly overwhelmingly pleased with the original X100. Which upon some reflection has less to do with the X100s than the crop of cameras that have sprung up around it since its introduction about two years ago. When the X100 was introduced, it was the first compact camera that a lot of DSLR shooters saw as a real alternative to shooting with a full-size DSLR. Micro four thirds was mostly still using the old 12mp Panasonic sensor that topped out at around 800-1600 ISO (the GH2 was out but there weren't many on the street yet), the Nex 7 and other advances in the Nex world (including lenses) were still on the horizon and the Nex 3 and Nex 5, while solid first steps, did not excite many enthusiasts except in terms of the potential they suggested. Neither Nikon or Canon had made any moves toward the mirrorless market yet. The Sigma DP series existed but were seen then, as now, as mostly specialty cameras for use in good light when shooting speed was of no importance. In short, the X100 came into that scene as a very solid APS camera with a sensor that could shoot well at ISO 3200 and workably at 6400, produced brilliant files, had a reasonably fast f2.0 fixed lens, a hybrid OVF/EVF viewfinder unlike anything else seen on any camera, and it caused a LOT of excitement. In fairness, a good deal of that excitement evaporated once the camera was in circulation as many DSLR users couldn't get used to the slow AF, the parallax issues, the slow operation of the camera, and some of its many early quirks (many since ironed out in firmware). But for other early adopters (of which I was enthusiastically counted), it was a really exciting step forward in IQ and, in some ways, usability among smaller cameras. There was nothing else like it or even really comparable.

Fast forward two years and the landscape is entirely different. Micro four thirds has advanced to the point that its a serious contender, with sensors in the newest Olympus cameras and in the Panasonic GH3 that rival the best APS sensors available (which many will debate, but two years ago it wasn't even debatable) and a boom in acceptance of the OMD-EM5 that brought many DSLR shooters into the mirrorless world. And the m43 lens lineup can only be described as fully mature and still getting better. Sony has made great strides into the enthusiast world with the Nex 7, Nex 5n, Nex 6, and others going forward. These cameras have notably better sensors and controls than the first generation Nex models. Sony has also come out with the previously mentioned full frame RX1 and is rumored to be working on a full frame ILC mirrorless system which seems to have a lot of promise. And they've even developed a few good lenses for the Nex line, which were a while in coming. Samsung has developed the NX line of mirrorless cameras that seem most similar to the Nex line. Nikon entered the mirrorless world with the smaller sensor J1 and V1 models and has recently released the pocket size Coolpix A with an APS sensor and fixed 28mm lens. Canon has made a bit of an entry into the mirrorless world. Sigma continues to develop the DP line. And, of course, Fuji has come to the fore with its own line of interchangeable lens cameras (X-Pro and... [Read More]

TalkNEX will have free apps for both Android and iOS. While neither is yet in the app stores, I have a sneak peek copy for Android users to check out.

In order to install this non-market app, you must have "Unknown sources" checked in your Android device settings. This can be found under the "Applications" or "Security" section depending on what version of Android you are running.

Here's the app (download on your device): RnVqaVhzcG9020130409120428.apk

I'm very pleased to announce that Fuji X-Pert Rico Pfirstinger has his own subforum now, here at FujiXspot.

For those of you who don't know Rico (aka flysurfer), he is the author of Mastering the Fuji X-Pro 1 as well as the excellent X-Pert Corner column over at Fuji Rumors.

I think we can all learn a lot from Rico and am excited about the new forum!

Huge (70%) price drop by Google-owned Nik Software for their software suite, now $150.

After applying our 15% coupon code "MU-43", the cost is $126.65!*

Direct link: Nik Collection



*Coupon code is from Mu-43.com, but the revenue from Mu-43.com helps pay for this site's server costs, so it's really a shared coupon code .


Update / important note: If you have already purchased any of the Nik Software programs within the past five years, you should have gotten an email with a link to download all of the applications for free. In many cases, this email has been going to people's junk/spam mail folder, so check that folder for an email titled "Thanks for your support: upgrade to the new Nik Collection by Google" which probably arrived on March 25th. If you didn't get the email, send an email to Nik Support.

There’s a distinguished looking ol’ fellow sitting at the bar. He has silver hair and laugh lines around his eyes. He’s well dressed. Well groomed. Well traveled. You can tell he’s seen a lot in his time. His classic Morgan is parked outside. There’s a pretty young girl on his arm listening to his stories of being a globe trotting documentary photographer. He sips his 50 year old Chivas Regal. His name is Leica. Yeah, he’s the world’s most interesting man.

In the corner we have Olympus, Panasonic, and Sony. They’re in a heated debate about Dungeons & Dragons or something...

READ ON at ZackArias.com (Really a great review)

With the release of the X100s, we're sure to see another epidemic of those new to the offset OVF getting confused by the way the OVF handles parallax and complaining about the camera primarily because they don't understand what's going on. To help new users understand what's going on with the focus point(s) as viewed through the OVF, Fuji added a menu item that allows the user to turn "corrected framelines" on. The original X100 didn't have this option until it was added via firmware sometime after the camera's release. It can be confusing for someone who's never used a rangefinder type OVF to figure it out with the corrected framelines - it was a whole lot more confusing before Fuji thought to include them. So, for those about to embark on an OVF journey of their own, here is how the OVF and this corrected frameline feature works.

The camera only has one one actual focus box, but it will show up at a different location within the OVF depending on how far away your subject is. The two initial boxes that show up define the range of where it could be depending on whether your subject is near or far. Once you half press to AF, the camera calculates the distance of the subject and then shows you the third green box, which is the actual box. The upper left box is where the OVF would naturally think the focus point is - remember that the OVF is a couple of inches above and to the left of the center of the lens and so the point it sees as the focus point is also a couple of inches above and to the left of the actual point the lens is focussing on. When you focus on a distant object, that couple of inches is meaningless and the focus point for the lens is indistinguishable from the focus point perceived by the OVF. So when you focus on something in the distance, the actual focus point that is drawn is more or less identical to that upper left box. Because at that distance, the lens and the OVF perceive the same center focus point.

As your focus point moves closer and closer to the camera, however, that couple of inches between the OVF and the lens starts to matter more and more in terms of the perceived focus box. So the lower right box in the OVF is what the lens is perceiving as the focus box for the closest subjects the camera can focus on before hitting the macro range. So, for a subject 15 feet away, the actual focus box is basically the same as the upper left box. For subjects 2-3 feet away, the actual focus box is basically the same as the lower right box and when you focus on something close, that's where the green box appears. And for subjects in that middle range, the actual focus box shows up at the appropriate spot between the two initial boxes.

So that third box is the real box. With some experience, it becomes second nature to know about where that actual box is going to appear based on the subjects distance from you. You learn quickly to anticipate where tha actual point is, and then the third green box just confirms your judgement. This is what parallax is. It's also why the camera forces you to use the EVF at macro distances because the OVF simply isn't precise enough at those close distances. It's why true rangefinders don't do close up work well at all.

So once you understand it and work with it a little while, it'll become second nature and you'll barely need the second box as a guide.

-Ray

The Fuji X20 is now in stock at B&H. They specify the black model - not sure about silver.