Fujifilm X Half
I’m going to begin first that this was a stress buy. I was having a really bad month overall (primarily due to my work) and I needed an outlet and I needed some retail therapy without having to carry my ZFC around.
I’ve been trying to solve a problem for years - lightweight but with great picture quality. Don’t get me wrong, I started with my iPhone X with portraiture. But cel phone photography even with modern iPhone, Pixels and Galaxies, even with filters, custom apps, still have that cel phone “look.”
One of my solutions was the ZFC with Pancake lenses. My kit is super light, I carry the ZFC, 40mm 2.0, 24mm 1.7 and a Viltrox 57mm 1.4 and it fits into a tiny camera bag that is waterproof. The whole kit is 6 lbs. Where people carry entire rigs and entire camera collections on their back, I want to be able to jump into the “bowl” for my skate photography or cross a river without having to worry about it.
I almost bought one of those retro digital cameras - like a Campsnap, Flashback or a Paper Shoot, but those were too… low end? Yes, they definitely have a look to them and if - they can’t achieve the low light photography I am known for.
I also know the jury is still out on X Half’s build quality, but I needed something more rugged and durable than the above options. I need to be able to put it into my pocket, my fanny pack or my cross body and pull it out when I need it.
My friend and model @alixplainlater
2 Dials, a few settings.
What I didn’t expect is that Fujifilm cameras do their own post processing… in camera. It has a fancy sensor which is the same size as my ZFC’s sensor but is apparently the same sensor they put into their flagship cameras. I didn’t know this when I bought it.
It has a dial for exposure compensation which I’ve never used on the ZFC, and a dial for aperture and that’s it.
You can select a Film Simulation, which is sorta like a Filter, but it’s more like a Preset since it adapts itself to the light/color conditions of picture. I have the feeling that this camera takes pictures in RAW, plops down the simulation on top of it, then compresses it down to a JPG, which explains why its slow. The Film Simulations are tricky - I had a lot of videos to figure out how each one work, but its a part of the process of getting better with my equipment overall.
At the end of the day - it’s set to which Auto and adjust Exposure Compensation as needed is just plain weird since I never shoot that way.
Controversies… the vertical frame, social media, and the build.
I don’t really think about what other people think about the X Half.
Who is it for? Me.
Firstly I don’t shoot weddings, I sometimes do business portraiture, but I consider myself as a portrait and fine art photographer. I also shoot skate, fire, and event photography. My compositions come from my BFA in Applied Visual Design.
My game theory is that a photographer who also considers themselves to be an artist - should always be shooting as often as they can even if they’re not feeling it. Many of the people with cameras (and some photographers) I’ve met over the years only bring their cameras out like fine China - when they know they’re going to shoot something. Otherwise it’ll sit in their car, or at home, so they don’t have to worry about it or carry 10+ pounds of steel and glass with them at all times.
We need a camera that is small and light and does what I want to do. This camera does it for me.
Is it for you? Maybe.
The Rub:
Pros: Small, Light, fits in pocket. Great High ISO Lowlight. Great Dynamic Range. Analog viewfinder.
Cons for me: Cost, it wasn’t cheap. Also, unable to add own film recipes.