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Writer's pictureStuart Gibson

Fujifilm X100S review

Updated: Jan 14, 2018

I've been using the Fujifilm X100S for four years now, alongside my 5D MKII, and it still manages to amaze me...


It comes in a small, diminutive package that's light, easy to carry, inconspicuous and thanks to its leaf shutter, almost totally silent. Its retro, range-finder look with the control rings on top make it the best-looking camera in the Fuji line up too, IMO, and high ISO performance is at least on par with the full-frame 5D MKII as well. It comes with a fixed, 35mm equivalent f/2 lens in front of a 16 megapixel X-Trans II sensor. But it does have its annoyances.....


The autofocus is slow and clunky, the menu system isn't the most intuitive ever invented and the battery will slot in four ways, only one of which is the correct way. The battery power indicator is also unreliable.


But somehow those annoyances are eclipsed by the joy of using it. There's something about this camera that makes me want to pick it up and take it out shooting.


I was worried that I might feel constrained by going to a fixed lens camera (after all, I was coming from a full set of Canon zoom and prime lenses) but the reality was exactly the opposite: it was liberating.

Only having to worry about the one camera, the one lens, left me able to focus totally on taking pictures and I was coming home with much more imaginative compositions as a result. Not to mention the Fuji's uncanny ability to balance the light in any given scene.


The X100 series also comes with a unique hybrid viewfinder that can switch between an optical rangefinder and a more traditional EVF. I use the EVF all the time as I like to see how the image will look before I press the shutter and I miss it when I use my Canon DSLR.

I'm not quite ready to ditch my Canon gear and move over to the Fuji system yet however later this year I plan to get an interchangeable lens Fuji camera such as the X-Pro2 or X-T2 and see how it performs.


If you are thinking of investing in a Fuji camera there are cheaper options such as the X-T20 or X-E3 which offer much of the functionality of the higher end models for a fraction of the price, and which will deliver identical image quality.


Fujifilm X100S 1/200 second F/16.0 ISO 800 23 mm

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