X-T2: the game changer (english)

You might be asking why another Fujifilm X-T2 review if they all talk about the same things. Might be thinking why I wrote a different kind of review. I prefer to compare the new Fujifilm flagship to the other cameras that people usually make comparisons.

First of all, I need to talk a little bit about my experience with this camera.

I’ve been working and playing with Fujifilm cameras since the x100s.

I’ve shot, during these last years, with this model, and I’ve also shot with the X-E2, X-T10, X100T, X-T1, X70 and X-Pro2.

As a curious guy who gives classes and lectures about Mirrorless revolution all over Brazil, I’ve also tried on Olympus, Samsung and Sony gear together with so many good lenses for weddings and portraits.

I did this because, as an X-Photographer, I can’t just talk about Fujifilm without experiencing other brands.

I also have great experience with DSLR cameras, since I first used Canon cameras back in 2001, testing them very hard on many different models and L lenses.




That being said, let me start my considerations.

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About one month ago, I put my hands on the X-T2 with the grip booster. My first opinion was that I would never use this booster, I hate weight and big cameras, but as I was going to travel for 21 days, I would have time to experiment.

The first part of my trip was in Portugal. There, I attended a workshop group at “quinta” in Viseu, a wine farm.

I tried the camera in different situations, on hot days and situations of high contrast, softness and also good light. Some configurations of the camera were also used and also the advanced filters, the different jpeg simulation filters and the drive modes.

After being to Porto and Paris, where I shot in mixed lighting situations, such as: contrasting scenes, natural street light at night and others, some images were also made with third part lenses with manual focus and an adaptor.

Then I returned to Brazil and photographed two weddings. I also took my X-Pro2 along and shot them with both cameras, just to feel the differences. And I did feel it.

So, l will talk about this experience by making comparisons.

X-T2 versus X-T1

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The new camera wins by far when we talk about resolution. With more megapixels, you can crop more, and you can do this without any fear. I know that wedding photographers like that as much as I do.

The new LCD screen with vertical movement: When I first heard about it I thought that this wouldn’t be useful, but I challenged myself using it many and many times during my street photography, travel photography and during the wedding. This is really cool.

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The new ISO and Shutter Speed dials: To change, a little thing can make a huge difference. Fujifilm is always open to hear us and they make the proper changes most of the time. This dial took my workflow to a better level at weddings. Now all I do is just press the button in the dial to lock or unlock it, just that, so simple.

Dual card slot: This is another change from the X-T1 that made this gear more pro. Dual slot is essential for backup and to separate Raw from Jpeg.

Compensation dial: This was a negative change, in my opinion. The dial, to be moved now, takes 2 fingers instead of one like with the X-T1. I know Fujifilm engineers changed it by listening to the demands from photographers, but I prefer the old way.

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Continuous Autofocus: This is a huge improvement. Now the gap between Fujifilm and DSLRs is gone. Great improvement with 80% to 90% of precision. I also like that this camera has more focusing points, this helps a lot with this mode and with the face or eyes detection on single focus.

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Acros simulation film and more freedom to set the JPEG characteristic files.

Two good things that I loved were the inclusion of a joystick, which helps a lot for many uses and the continuous shot that was changed to a controlled one by your finger, so you can shoot even one image on the continuous if you want.

X-T2 versus X-Pro2

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Many photographers ask me this question every day: Which is one better: X-T2 or X-Pro2? Which one do I choose?

My answer is: They give you both the same final quality. It is the same sensor and the same processor, but mounted in different bodies, with different design and operational functions.

I always say that the X-Pro2 is a camera for rangefinder lovers, documentary or street photographers. In my opinion, it is prettier than the X-T2, but, according to complaints of most users, it lacks an articulated LCD and the ISO dial is also a negative aspect. I suggest Fujifilm to give photographers the option of setting the ISO to the front or back command dials. Regarding the LCD screen, I really think that is not the case for the X-Pro2.

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The X-T2 is a perfect camera for wedding, sports, outdoor and wildlifephotographers. It has a very ergonomic design, everything is reachable and it has a DSLR look, which many photographers still look for (I do not mind about it).

The technological advances are not a reason for you to choose between one and the other. Fujifilm takes care about it with constant firmware updates that give both cameras equivalent capacity.

Another important thing is the booster grip that is available for the X- T2. This grip works with two more batteries, so it raises to three the number of batteries; which, for me, is enough for my entire wedding.

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The commands in this new grip are very good situated and you also have the joystick.

This grip also increases the number of shots per second in the high-speed drive, and this is a very good thing for sports and wildlife photographers.

The negative aspects are the weight and size that are increased and you must turn it off when not using to avoid pressing the shutter button accidentally. This can be a mess if you are in the middle of a wedding.

X-T2 versus DSLRs

This is a difficult comparison to make, because we talk about different systems and, in this case, Full Frame, different sensors sizes.

But I think now it is the right time for me to compare.

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The lacks that many photographers used to talk about Fujifilm cameras were mainly related to the resolution (that was 16 megapixels), autofocus speed, sensor size, dual card slots and flash system.

I believe that, with the release of the X-T2, Fujifilm has reached to the change point.

This camera has 24 megapixels with a huge quality, increasing resolution and the size of its rich Raw files that sometimes reach up to 60 megabytes. This size is ideal for photographers who normally crop their images.

Concerning autofocus speed, it is notorious that Fujifilm worked really hard on it. Very good face and eyes detection, and now the surprising 5 different modes of continuous autofocus. I tested it under some situations – including weddings – and it worked very well.

In regards to the sensor size, everybody knows that, nowadays, technology has been advancing so fast and well that the latest APS-C sensors can now reach to beautiful results at high ISO levels and wide latitude. The Sony a6300, Nikon D500 and the Fujifilm latest generation sensors are very competitive.

With the unique engineering of the X-Trans sensor, the results reached by the X-Pro2 and the X-T2 are even better.

The adding of the dual card slot helped a lot for the wedding photographers who need instantly back up.

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Veredict

I always tell my photographers fellows that we pay too much attention to irrelevant details about photography gear.

Of course, Canon offers very good cameras and lenses, the same for Nikon, Pentax, Sony, and the others. But, the most important thing that made my mind when I switched to Fujifilm were the ergonomic bodies, light weight and very good prices. All of these items combined to a very fair price.

It was unthinkable that we could have such great and competitive system with this price and so many qualities some years ago. I don’t find reasons for not using it nowadays.

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In 5 years they have built a solid system with 22 lenses under such fast development. Fujinon is known by its superb quality glass in medical diagnosis and broadcasting lenses. All this huge experience is now being used on the X Series lenses. And the most important thing: with a very good price.

To sum this article up, I must emphasize that Fujifilm is a brand that listens to their clients very carefully, and that is the secret behind this huge success. You can list some cons about them, but they will be happy to listen, take notes and fix them, maybe even in a simple matter of firmware update.

Nowadays, people take decisions based on details. The competition on everything is tremendous. I think also, for choosing photography gear, we must also decide based on details. Fujifilm has paid attention to them and here is the beautiful result.

Above some X-T2 images that I made testing its quality and versatility:

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