PHOTO ANTHEMS BLOG: Fujifilm X-E2

Showing posts with label Fujifilm X-E2. Show all posts

11 July 2018

Five Older Cameras that are Still Worth a Look

I've been saying I was going to write about this for months. There are a few good cameras out there that have been UP-dated, but not quite OUT-dated. Know what I mean? Wanna find a good used camera but not sure on where to start? Or maybe you already have ONE good camera but need a good deal on a second body. Then again, you could be like me and already have TWO good bodies, but you keep running into situations where you need a good camera that you don't mind so much if it gets beat up or wet.

Canon 7D

The Canon 7D came out in the fall of 2009 and remained in production for 5 years. I can't recall exactly when I bought mine, but I'll speculate sometime around 2010, which sounds about right. This camera was built like a tank and like a tank, it was hard to kill, short of dropping it in the pool or actually running it over...both of which I've seen done.

The main reason you'll still enjoy this thing is that it takes a great picture with its 18mp APS-C sensor and could shoot at 8 frames per second. Even in 2018, this camera will still be more than most people will ever need in a camera. The shutter on this thing is rated at 150,000 actuations. You can do a shutter count on a perspective camera and you'll likely see you still have a long shutter life remaining.

Canon 60D

This camera has gotten a lot of use, so make sure you get it checked out or ensure it comes with some sort of certification/warranty with your purchase. Just about every 60D I have ever seen looks worn and used and that's why if you can find one and its working...get it. This camera hold up to a beating. This is an especially good camera if you're looking to video. It can do 1080p at 30fps or 720 at 60. The LCD rotates out to help you get your shot at low or high angles.

Sony a6000

Now this is the first mirrorless camera on this list and it came out mid-2014, so its 4 years old. Get this, though. Its STILL in production! Yes. Sony has upgraded this model twice and the 3rd model release is expected any month now. I'd say its the best bet on this entire list. Incredibly light-weight, with a 24mp cropped sensor and blasting at 11 frames per second. And the price is around $600 new. Find a used one for half that.

Nikon D7000

A close 2nd to the Canon 7D, the Nikon D7000 is a very capable system to work with. I love the dual memory card slots and the battery lasts forever, seems like. At 16mp, you can get some great astrophotography with an ISO as high as 6400. I don't recommend the expanded ISO modes so much though. It also has a built in Intervelometer which Nikon started adding in to several camera bodies at this point. It takes a picture just as good as the Canon 7D.

Nikon D3400

Now, the above recommended cameras are all what you might call, prosumer-level positioned for photo-enthusiasts. The D3400 was made inexpensively for photo beginners and is a consumer-level product. What sets this camera apart is the sensor. At this point in 2016, Nikon came out like mad with a well-made 24mp sensor. No one had ever delivered something with that kind or resolution on a consumer level product. New, this camera was about $600 with up to a $100 off around the holidays. You can find them for $200 used and the camera is only 2 years old.

Bonus: Fujifilm X-E2

The X-E2 is another mirrorless camera that made its debut late 2013. Its uses more dials than buttons and switches. There's a dial for shutter speed and the aperture dial is usually on the lens, depending on the lens. It is my most favorite camera on this entire list. Mine was submerged in the Pacific. THE PACIFIC!! And it still came back to life. You can't do that with a Canon 7D. Fuji uses a totally different sensor technology that most other manufacturers, so the overall look is different. It actually has more of a film personality and feel.

Its built like a Rangefinder style camera and the silver edition is terribly beautiful with a retro Leica kind of style. For a cropped 16mp sensor, I was stunned when I did a fashion shoot with it and compared some of my images to my 36mp Nikon D800E. Amazingly, I would have had zero added benefit had I done that shoot with the Nikon instead of the X-E2. I know. It makes no sense, but the results proved the worth of that Fuji to me.

28 August 2016

First Time Shooting the Leica M Monochrom

Up and Over
Art Model, Covenant ©2016 Terrell Neasley

For a long time, I've pined over the Leica system. I often describe it as magic. I know to a lot of people, it will never make sense to spend $8,000... just for a camera body. That does NOT include the lens. The lens is a whole'nother world of expense on its own. And language, I might add. I got to shoot with the 35mm f/2.0, which based on that speed, you call it a 35mm Summicron. If it was a f/1.4, you'd call it a Summilux. The difference? The Summicon will put you out $3K and the Summilux edition will push you to $5K. I prefer the Summilux, but that's me. Nobody makes glass like Leica. In fact, I'd like to play with a 35 Summilux on my Sony A7RII. But that's not this story.

Getting up in the morning
Art Model, Covenant ©2016 Terrell Neasley

This story is on my shot at the Leica M Monochrom Typ 246 and the 35mm Summicron for the weekend. So my girl and I headed up north to camp out and play in Utah for a bit. We pulled out the tent and loaded up the car and took off. I originally picked up the Fujifilm X-E2 a few years ago to help me prepare for this experience. At that time, I had a project that I thought was going to have me owning two Lecia bodies and 3 lenses. Tht didn't work out. I know the two cameras don't really compare, but the Fuji still has the rangefinder look. Or so I thought. Nothing about owning a Fuji could have prepared me for the Leica M-series.

The Fuji LOOKS like a rangefinder in style only. I should have known better. Don't get me wrong. I LOVED that Fuji. Highly, highly recommend it. But with respects to preparing me for a Leica...No. In particular, two things right off the bat should have told me that wouldn't be the case. The Fuji has an electronic viewfinder. If there is one and only one thing I could have used some prior experience with is Leica's split screen manual focus system. For that, I could have used a film rangefinder to help me. You are still looking from a vantage point of the lens in the Fuji. No so, with the Leica. You still have the potential for parallax in Leica cameras, as is the case when you have any camera system that has differentiated viewing systems...one for the lens which is separate from your's.

Hiking topfree,
Art Model, Covenant ©2016 Terrell Neasley

The second thing is that Fuji is waaaaay lighter (350g) than Leica cameras (700g) AND smaller. You can practically palm a Fuji with one hand and it goes no where. You had better maintain positive control with all fingers around that Leica with the camera strap around your neck, else you can easily waste, $11 grand. In fact, its MUCH more advantageous to invest in the body or thumb grip accessories on this thing. There is much more of a presence of mind with the Leica. You know where it is at all times. Its not like you phone or your keys, that you may not immediately recall where you sat it down. You know, in a moment's recall, where your Leica camera is.

I would have liked to have had more time with the camera. Compared to my Sony A7RII, I was much slower with the Leica. I was a lot more deliberate. I already shoot slow and usually come back with a third of the shots that most of my peers do. Over a weekend, I may come back with 300 shots normally. I didn't even clear 100 with the Leica. Chances are, that was a learning curve issue. I've shot with a Leica before, but this was my first time having it out to shoot as my sole camera. Granted, I got some initial night shots with the Sony when I first got to my camp site. All after, I was exclusively Leica.

I was most engaged on achieving and maintaining a sharp focus. Utilizing the split screen, especially in lower lighting conditions can be tough. Its been quite a while since I had to do that regularly. Actually, it was a first because my film Canon used a circular focus screen instead of the square one used in the Leica. There is no autofocus, so it was all on me to achieve tack-sharp focus. I was able to do this on practically every shot, but it took a minute for each one with much concentration. I chose not to rely on focus peaking to assist me. I waned the viewfinder experience. News and war correspondents made a living without focus peaking and were quick with the shot. I want to learn the same.

I was a little off on exposures as well. In any other camera system, I am pretty decent at determining my initial exposure quite easily. I always seemed to be underexposing a bit, as if my exposure value compensation was a minus 2. This was easily corrected and eventually, I began to apply a little "Kentucky Windage". I adjusted at least one stop brighter than whatever I thought it might be.

A break while I figure out something on the camera,
Art Model, Covenant ©2016 Terrell Neasley

Another thing that took me some time was the fact that the camera had already been used by several people. It would have been smart for me had I RESET everything on the camera prior to use, but I didn't notice each of the changes right off. And even afterwards, during post processing, I couldn't get any of my Plugins to read Leica's RAW files. I updated Adobe and tried a myriad of changes. It took me a whole day before I realized the camera was set to a grayscale color profile while I was shooting. A simple fix was to reset my Camera RAW converter to import all the files into Photoshop as AdobeRGB. That sped up my workflow.

I need more practice. I want to eventually own this camera as well as its color counterpart, The Leica M Typ 240. There is also an M-D version that has no LCD screen on the back, despite being a digital camera. I might consider it. Its purely for photo, so there's no video capabilities. Yeah, I have some other priorities first, but I plan to make the Leica system part of my family of cameras.

Checking under the rocks like a good model should,
Art Model, Covenant ©2016 Terrell Neasley

04 December 2014

Another New Paradigm - The Sony A7s

“Without deviation from the norm, progress is not possible.” ― Frank Zappa

Its happened. I've made another major change in my photographic evolution. For the first time in my photographic life, I'm DSLR-less. Or more commonly stated. I've gone Mirrorless. So this makes the third time I've made a metamorphosis like this. It first started when I chose to leave film and jump into the digital world in the fall of 2007. I was already a Canon user and felt no real reason to NOT be Canon just because I no longer used film and darkroom techniques to create my images. That was a hard switch, but I felt the Canon 40D did the job as about as good as I could get in film and stay within a budget. I think I paid about $1500 or so and got some speedlites and umbrellas to put on stands for my lighting gear. That's how I started. I used the Canon ST-E2 Infrared transmitters to trigger my 430EXII Speedlights. I quickly learned its limitations and rented the Canon 5DMarkII full frame system and fell in love with it. I paired it with a 7D and felt unstoppable. I eventually acquired a full line-up of Canon L-Series lenses, to include the 24mm Tilt-Shift (which made me money by simply having the lens ON my camera. It got attention and got me gigs), as well as my favorite the 85mm 1.2. The 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II was by far my sharpest and fastest lens to focus with, but the shallow depth of field of the 85mm 1.2 held my heart.

And so it came, as all things must, the end of my fellowship with Canon. My desire to travel quickly became a priority and my intention was to go medium format. And then Nikon came out with the D800/D800E. I was disappointed in the Canon 5DMarkIII. It just didn't have the resolution and detail I desired for my artwork. A friend of mine showed me what the D800E could do and I quickly noted that what I saw was exactly what went on in my head. Oddly enough I paired it with a Tamron 24-70mm f/2.8 image stabilized lens and it served me far better than Nikon's own 24-70. I took it to Guatemala and Belize in 2012 and got exactly what I wanted. Match made in Heaven, right. Well, kinda...

The D800E fit my hands well. The size and weight were great for what I do here in the US...but abroad? Not so much. I thought I could carry fewer lenses by packing the 28-300mm and the 50mm 1.4. The 50mm did work. The 28-300mm did as well, but not quite as well. I began to see extensive Chromatic Aberation problems with the lens when the lighting conditions were higher in contrast such as the bright sun coming through the trees. This meant that I could no longer cut corners and would have to bring out the good stuff and carry more and more costly lenses on my next trip. But this notion did not appeal to me. I backpack. I don't have roller bags when I travel. Carrying all that heavy gear in Guatemala, the D800E and the 2 lenses were already bothersome. I just couldn't imagine carrying even more gear.

So then I got the Fujifilm X-E2 for my next trip to Central America. Right before I left, I picked up the camera kit, which came with the metal barrel 18-55mm f/2.8-4 and aperture ring, along with the 35mm 1.4. Fuji has an excellent line-up of cameras and especially lenses. I came back after almost 3 months in Nicaragua with EXCELLENT work. I even took it on a pro gig in L.A. on my way back to Las Vegas. The Fujifilm X-E2 is the first mirrorless camera that I purchased, but I still worked with my D800E in and around Vegas.

But now, that's all changed since I'm doing more work with low-light, nighttime, and astronomy...particularly with shooting nudes in these settings. This is where Sony has solved this problem. There's not another camera on the planet that have these attributes better than the A7s. Its another learning curve to get used to, but frankly, I like it. As of last week, I made my 3rd evolution and ventured into the little-known world of Mirrorless Interchangeble Lens Cameras as my sole system of choice. I still have the APS-C sensor Fujifilm X-E2, but I no longer have my Nikon D800E. I am 100% Mirrorless. My needs have changed and I had no problem with making the adjustment...again. I needed lighter weight systems and I needed the ability to shoot better in lower light. Usually, all that's necessary is a tripod, a cable-release and some patience. But sometimes the elements in my composition would move, such as the clouds, and I needed much shorter shutter times. And then there are a few other reasons I won't get into at the moment, but suffice to say, I think this is special. The full-frame A7s simply gives me what I need in order to get what's in my head to in front of my eyes. I've had a few people speak negatively on my decisions in this regard, but I'll save that for another post.

For now, I'll have images edited before long and I'll continue to test and learn this new system. I still have another body, another lens, and a couple more things to get to prepare me for my next adventure. I think that'll be the new A7MarkII or a new Fujifilm system. I'm pretty sure, that'll be it. I picked up the 35mm 2.8 yesterday and still need the 55mm 1.8, along with at least 1 Rokinon lens, but maybe two. Over the past few months, you've seen me blog about what I thought were shortcomings in the lack of innovation of Canon and Nikon. Well, now I've put my money with my words and made that change.

02 June 2014

Fujifilm's X-E2, Better Results Than I Thought

I didn't have much expectations about my Fuji XE-2 in the beginning. I knew it took great pictures, but I was used to working with a huge and heavy 36MP Nikon camera. So no way the results would be similar. So my expectations were low comparatively. I'm telling you now, however that I was amazed with the results.

And now YOU can see too.

I've just now finished all the edits I think I'll do from that trip. I even did a professional shoot on my way back from Nicaragua. I stopped off in LA to help a friend who asked me about shooting for a business working at the Black College Expo. Some of that was doing convention capture, but then later that day it was fashion work for a clothing line. I got to work with about six models who were excellent. Since I don't like doing a pro gig with one camera, I also rented a Fujifilm X100s to give me some wide-angle aspects since all I had was the 35mm which looks like a 50mm due to Fuji's APS-C sensor (Crop factor of 1.5). The X100s has a fixed 23mm f/2 lens, which looks like a 35mm due to its APS-C sensor as well. I had it shipped ahead to the hotel where I was staying.

2014 Black College Expo, Los Angeles,
Even Actor/Comedian Michael Colyar dropped by

I got everything I needed and was able to deliver the goods. The file sizes were still around 33MB in RAW form, so I had plenty of information for editing. I still wish I had my 36MP D800E for fashion work, but this crop-sensor Fuji delivered for the purposes intended. And now that I've completed edits from all my shots in Nicaragua, I've still amassed about 80 edited images out of the 965 I came back with, which is closer than I expected to my normal rate as a 10%'er. Even back in my film days, I was still relatively and consistently editing 10% of all my shots.

Models Left to Right,
Nathan Rachinski, Kevante Wickliffe, Dina Shestacova, Matthew Rice Franklin, Elise Puritz, and Cadwell Samuels

Given all that, I will try my next excursion with the Fujifilm X-T1, which has added weather-sealing. I'm really loving this X-Trans II CMOS sensor. Coupled with the addition of the 23mm f/1.4 and the 56mm f/1.2 to go with my 35, I'll have everything I need. Well, I think I might just indulge myself a bit further. I'm also waiting on the Rokinon 10mm f/2.8 ED AS NCS CS Lens for the Fuji mount to be released. Rok makes some budget lenses but they've been really pulling out the stops on several new additions. So, if I'm gonna try it, its gonna be on one with expected distortion. I just wish I could hurry up and finalize all my travel plans and itinerary!

09 April 2014

The Fujifilm XE-2 in Nicaragua

Me, standing in Lake Nicaragua with one of the two
volcano mountains of Ometepe Island in the background

I'm all about trying new things. So when Fuji came out with the XE-2, I was hooked and bought one a week after the thing was released. I bought it, not just because I'm a gear-head, but because of solid conclusive reasoning. First, I REALLY didn't want to take me huge Nikon D800E on the road with the added weight of the lenses as well. Second, my goal for Nicaragua wasn't fine art, so I didn't need the 36MP full frame resolution. And third, I liked the rangefinder format of this system to hopefully better acquaint me with Leica gear that I want to be vested in very soon. Those are the 3 main reasons I got the camera. I bought the kit with the metal barrel 18-55mm f/2.8-4 lens along with a 35mm 1.4. This was a good combination because it was basically equivalent to the 24-70 f/2.8 and the 50mm 1.4 lenses I would have brought with me had I used the Nikon.

While being so lightweight, small, and manageable, I have yet to mention how beautiful the camera is. You can get one that's all black, but I got the XE-2 Silver edition where the top 3rd of the camera is silver. All black would have been less conspicuous, but the thing is small so its already less conspicuous and an all black one isn't really any less likely to be noticed anyway. So I went with aesthetics and got the one I liked best.

Local fare at the market in Rivas, Nicaragua

I can review the images I took with the camera. This is supposed to be the world's fastest autofocus system. Is it fast? Sure. Did I clock it at the .08 seconds the specs says it should do? Not so much. It uses phase detection in addition to conventional contrast detection and when its on point, it was on point. What I did notice was less accuracy in low light situations.

I still ran into another issue and that dealt with the RAW files taken by the Fuji. I'm surprised there wasn't more info on the web that could have aided me, but I finally figured out a solution. Adobe Bridge and Photoshop had a tendency to crash when working with Fuji Raw files with the .raf file extensions. Initially the problem was that my Adobe Creative Cloud programs just needed to be updated. I did this and was able to view some of the files. The big problem came when I tried to append my metadata template to the images. It would crash the system without fail. My solution was to convert the files to DNG and the problem was solved. But I don't think this is a fault, per se of Fuji. They use an entirely different sensor technology from most other camera manufactures. The X-Trans system doesn't utilize the standard Bayer filter array as most systems use. The X-Trans is evolutionary. I like it, but its literally in a class by itself. DXO Mark doesn't even rate it due to the fact that their techniques used to rate sensors can't fairly apply across the board to it. Converting to DNG is a good solution to use with Adobe.

Surf gear, Playa Hermosa (Beautiful Beach), near San Juan del Sur, Nicaragua

If this goes well, Fuji has a wide-angle 10-24mm lens I want! They also have a 56mm 1.2 that I drool over, but I might stay content with my 35mm 1.4. So I guess we'll see. Nonetheless, given the same options tomorrow, I'd still go with the Fuji.

22 November 2013

Mind Set: Why I'm Opting for Fuji Over Sony Right Now

“I must have a prodigious amount of mind; it takes me as much as a week, sometimes, to make it up!”

― Mark Twain

I already teach, mentor, and coach photography and sometimes its cool to let people into my thinking process on what decisions I might make concerning photo related matters. In light of my recent post on the break-out game-changers in the soon to be released Sony A7 and A7R, I have chosen (after a few agonizing weeks) to curb my excitement on that system for a bit. Am I waiting to see what bugs they might need to work out? Not at all. This Sony system is the first camera that I have been totally convinced, sight-unseen, that I want in my bag. I've been waiting on it since Sony introduced the RX-1 and also, I've seen enough sample images to know I don't need to "try it out" first. The price point for both cameras are definitely doable considering the A7R is a thousand dollars less than my 36MP D800E when it first retailed and Sony also makes the sensor for it.

But here's where I had to hold my horses for a bit. I'm particular in how I shoot and my style dictates a priority on wide-angle and wide-aperture. So for now, lenses are the main reason I'm holding off. Sony has 2 lenses that will debut with the cameras in December and another one in Feb '15. The 35mm 2.8, the 55mm 1.8, and the 24-70 f/4. While the focal lengths are right up my alley, none of them give me the 1.4 that I so crave. Depth of field has been a signature and fave of mine for quite some time. I've already had to lament the sale of my Canon 85 1.2 last year, which I am still trying to get over. Nikon gives me 1.4 glass and I've been happy with that. Dammit, I'm not going 1.8 for my fastest glass. I'm not giving up any more aperture real estate for anybody. I'm a 1.4-man and that's just my prerogative. You dig? I know 1.8 is close to a 1.4. We are still talking a 2/3rds stop less. Not even a whole stop, I know. But I ain't doing it. I'm not giving up any more depth of field. Just ain't happening. I like my 1.4 glass and that's that.

I'm wanting to go small for my next excursion which I'll get into later on. When I choose gear, I'm making my choices against traveling criterion. Love my D800E, but this is an experiment. My next trip will be more documentary in nature than just fine art, (which I think I'll still be able to accomplish without as much resolution). The Sony system would be perfect with the right glass. In their defense, I would be able to use my current Nikon glass with an adapter. They handle Canon lenses with an adapter a little better than Nikon lenses, but I'm not up for adapters so much. Well, I make that statement with one exception, and that's Leica glass. Give me a 50 Summilux and a 35 Summicron and I'd be good with that on a A7R. Sony will support just about any lens manufacturer's glass with the right adapter. But NAH...I'll wait. If the 24-70 was at least 2.8, I'd probably still jump. But nope. It ain't. So I'm gonna practice patience and wait for what I want...the right Full Frame E-Mount glass or Leica glass.

So what am I opting for instead? Fujifilm...(which I have no clue why they don't drop the "film" part and just go with FUJI!) just released a new system themselves. The X-E2 was released yesterday and is a slight step up from its predecessor the X-E1. I like the rangefinder feel, which is going to make me more comfortable with the Leica M when I finally get it. I like the faster Auto Focus and despite the DX sensor size, I'm excited about Fuji's new X-Trans Sensor upgrade. For what I'm looking for, this will suite me. I'm getting it as a kit with the 18-55. Yes...anybody who knows me believes I hate that format, but this is not true. That's a nice focal range, though I might prefer a 16-50mm zoom. What I hate is Canon's 18-55mm crap plastic lens. The Fuji is a metal barreled marvel with a max f/stop of 2.8 to 4 on the far end. I can deal with that quality and speed. On top of that, I'm getting the 35mm 1.4 and with that, I can breath. So initially, I had resolved to just go with my 24-70 Tamron and my Nikon 50mm 1.4. Well, these two Fuji lenses give me that same format for a DX sensor camera. And I'm cool with that. I get a much smaller package, less expense than risking my big stuff, same focal range and speed, in a bad ass camera system. What more could I ask?

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