Photography - Why I love my Fuji X-T2

A few years ago I was gear crazy.

Scratch that... I was out of control.

At my peak I had an Olympus OMD EM5, Fuji XT1, Nikon D800, Pentax K3, Pentax K5, and a Pentax Q. That doesn't include all the film Pentax cameras I was snatching up on the cheap. I sold most of them about 2.5 years ago. I kept my Nikon D800 and D810 kit and that was it.

The family and I went out one weekend to a street festival. Before I would always grab the Fuji (the last camera I sold), but since I didn't have it and really didn't feel like hauling around 2kg of Nikon full frame on a leisurely stroll I decided to take my Pentax LX film camera and a 31mm FA Limited lens. A beautiful little kit. I loaded a new roll of Fuji Vevlia 100 and we left for the day.

I felt like I got some really amazing shots throughout the day, was timing things very well and really felt good about what I was shooting. Then I looked down and it said I shot over 40 frames... something was wrong. Advancing the film had resistance...so I was confused. I decided to push the clutch and roll the film in.. I got one or two full spins and felt the film fully retract... the film was never advancing, but somehow still gave resistance like it was. I must have misloaded it because it has worked fine since. This roll of Veliva...that I felt was going to be full of amazing shots was blank.

I was mad, disappointed, and frustrated. I immediately got on Pentax forums and put up my Pentax Q kit for sale. I got almost $1000 for the little guy. I sold some guitar pedals and got enough to buy a used Fuji XT2 and a 35mm f2.0 lens. I came into a little extra cash and grabbed two other lenses for the system. I started shooting a lot more, taking my camera every where! Eventually I upgraded the f2.0 35mm and 50mm lenses to the 35mm f1.4 and 56mm f1.2, and added the 90mm f2.0 to my kit. I'll do individual articles on those guys in the future...

But I don't leave this at home if I can avoid it, and I cannot wait for festival season again! This camera is amazing.

First, it's a very capable camera.  I've used it for weddings, fashion shows, studio portraits. In fact, I rarely reach for my Nikon since I got it. The XT1 was a different story, it didn't have the resolution that I was used to with the Nikon D800/10 and so I'd rather have too much than too little. But 24 is a pretty good place to be.

Second, it forces me to think more. I am faster with my Nikon, but I also have a lot of wasted hard drive space on images I'll never use because it's so quick to change settings and...well spray and pray. Not saying I didn't still think about what I was doing, I'm just saying that the Fuji by design forces me to work slower because it feels like an old film camera. Which is odd to say, because the Fuji is actually a very quick camera.

It comes down to how versatile the controls are on this thing. I can use the old school shutter speed dial and adjust aperture on the lens like I do on my old film camera. This is how I use it most of the time for casual shooting and studio stuff. This makes me operate a bit slower as I feel I plan out my shot and exposure more based totally on how I am using the camera.

BUT, if I need speed, I can quickly switch over the shutter dial over to T and use the back control dial to adjust my shutter speed without fiddling with the dial. My hand is already on the lens so aperture changes become stupidly quick too. I may not be able to change my iso as quickly as I can on my Nikon, but I can still modify my exposure enough to keep up.

The big thing I loose out on (for now) is TTL control. I don't have any flashes that interface with the Fuji automatically. Everything I have is still Nikon. From my TTL trigger for my Profoto B1, to my SB series flashes. So I can use it all manually with my Fuji, but no auto for when I want to get a baseline. (I often will TTL my first shot outdoors with my flash, then switch to manual and fine tune). Once again, this makes me think a little more.

Overall, it just really helps me enjoy photography more. The Nikon feels more like a tool used to do the job and get it done with the highest quality possible. It's not fun to use on a whim. It's heavy, it's bulky, it's a pain in my lower back. Part of that has to do with the fact I have big heavy lenses and no compact slow lenses for the kit.. but that is why I got the Fuji, to accompany me where I want to go.

Now here is the dangerous thing... I haven't touched my Nikon in over 6 months. Do I sell it and start saving up for a Fuji GFX to fill that void? No...I shouldn't tempt fate.