Camera Research

Not really being to up to date with the latest and greatest camera’s my only option seemed to be the Ricoh GRII/III… However given their cult following (For good reason) the prices were higher than what I wanted to put into a small pocket camera.

Then I came across a guy using a XF10 on Instagram and immediately; I was intrigued.

So the research began…. And I have to be honest it didn’t take long for me to make my mind up on this. Being a user of Fujifilm camera’s for many years I knew the IQ would be great. One feature the the GR series have that I really wanted in a camera was the ‘Snap Focus’… And when I read that the XF10 had snap focus I was sold!

A few days later the XF10 was in my hands, and it literally hasn’t left my side!

First Thoughts

The camera is small! Its a little smaller than the Ricoh GR series but this was just what I wanted, small and inconspicuous.

It has a 24mp sensor is what you would expect from a Fuji… Mint! Its 28mm lens is pretty damn sharp too.

The snap focus modes are bang on what I was hoping they would be. It has x2 modes for snap focus:

- 5m at F5.6 - This is good for landscape kind of shooting, everything from around 2m to infinity is sharp.
- 2m at F8 - From around 1m to around 27m in focus (this is what my camera stays on)

The AF is on the slow side and noticeably slower in low light… For me, I never bought it for the AF and knew it wasn’t great… Not a deal breaker for me but it might be for you. If you shoot street then it really shouldn’t be a problem.

The image quality is superb like every Fujifilm camera I’ve used so you have no worry there.

Conclusion

Its a cracking little camera! So glad I decided to go with this over anything else.. Not to knock the Ricoh GRII/III or whatever else is on the market… But this camera rocks!

Would I recommend it to anyone else? YES! as long as you’re like me and aren’t bothered by the AF not being lightning fast!

Stay Safe and Take Care!

Cheers!

Its been a little over a year since I gave my initial thoughts on the Neewer/7Artisans 25mm lens. In that year, this lens has since non stop use.

My opinion of this lens since that first post, remains the same…. Well actually I love it even more!

I have used the 25mm to shoot all of my project work, project work for Visual Noise Collective, and I have used it to shoot weddings.

The first wedding, I shot it along side the Fujifilm 35mm F2, but since that I have only shot the 25mm. The first time I used it on its own at a wedding, I must admit that my nerves were up. Being manual focus in low light, I wasn’t sure how it would hold up… But I needn’t have worried, I nailed focus and the quality was still great, even when pushing the camera to iso 6400 for the majority of the day.

Images below are from the first wedding I shot using it along with the 35mm F2.

Value for money?

For the price I paid, I think I have most definitely had my money out of it… And some. I think I paid around £45 for this lens on Amazon, and its the best £45 I’ve spent! Yes it does have its issues regarding the focus distance scale on the lens being way way off (on my copy at least) But a little fine tuning and marking the lens, I now know distance etc for when I’m zone focusing.

Les flare… If you’re shooting direct in to the sun or just off, expect lens flare. This isn’t no £2000 lens… It flares, and sometimes quite a lot… But with that said, I personally like it. Its a characteristic of the lens that gives images its own look. I’m sure it will be a bit Marmite (You either love it, or hate it) but I really like it and suits my aesthetic.

Should you buy one?

In short and you have the money, yes!

If you have the cash, looking for a 35mm (equiv) lens but don’t want to shell out £400+ then I don’t think you can go wrong. Like I said above, you might love it…. You may hate it but I think you could well be surprised.

Now one thing I will state is when I buy a lens, I’m not buying it because of the specs, or what coating the glass has got. A lot of my work is far from sharp, far from perfect so do bare in mind that all of the above is my opinion on it and any other equipment for that matter. It has enabled me to shoot how I like and achieve an aesthetic that I love… So for me it was a win win buying one.

Final Thoughts

I’ll end this post buy saying its a great little quirky lens that can take a little to get used to… But… It really is special to me, I don’t think it has come off my XT1 in the last 9 months and I don’t think it will for a while longer.

Here are some images taken with it over the last year.

Leave a comment if you have any questions!

Cheers