lnbolch
Senior Member
My D700 with essential lenses is heavy and usually is carried with only a sub-set of its lenses. Its versatility is unmatched on a planned shoot and I can select the glass to match the needs of the shoot. However, after the working day is done, one wants to still have access to a high-quality camera without the need for a domestic Sherpa to lug it and its essential accessories.
The X100 has a fine Fujinon lens with a focal length I have found to be ideal in a carry-everywhere camera, over a customized APS-C sensor, thus capable of excellent quality when there is nothing specific to shoot. I have used Fujinons on 8×10 cameras and always liked them a lot. If Fuji does as well with this one, I will be very contented. I do not want to lug my D700 system with me when I walk to the drug-store or grocery store. I don't want to have a huge camera bag full of gear when just meeting friends for lunch. However, I do want the capability of shooting very high quality images.
At the moment the choice is lug the weight—or deal with the tiny sensor and small-sensor image-quality with a P&S. I frequently do carry my Fuji 3D stereo camera for this purpose and find that I am almost always shooting at the equivalent of 35mm. It produces decent quality in good light, but is barely usable when light levels drop. It only shoots .MPO files which become JPEGs when they are extracted—no RAW, which I sorely miss.
The key to great street photography is to be inconspicuous. Haul out the D700 and the world is aware there is a photographer here. This reduces the level of luck, as some mug for the camera and others duck. During film days, when not on a shoot, I and every other shooter I knew carried a compact rangefinder camera.
I started with a Retina, moved to a superb Konica S3 and eventually to a Nikon L35. All had lenses in the 35mm focal-length range. When shooting street with medium format, I carried a Plaubel Makina 67 with an 80mm f/2.8 Nikkor of incredible quality. That is equivalent to a 40mm lens. All were as small and light as practical. All were fully self-contained, no need for additional equipment, such as a light-meter.
Above all, none attracted attention, not even the Plaubel—which is small for a medium format camera, but still large for a camera. The X100 shares their stealth. All were capable of producing images of publication quality. All ensured that I and fellow shooters always had a quality camera with us at all times. Days might go by with never an exposure, but when an opportunity presented itself, a camera was at hand. Dozens of images from these small cameras were published, and one of my favorite images of all times was shot with the Konica, at night while just having left the restaurant on the streets of New York. I really could have used ISO6400.
The X100 shares the mitochondrial DNA with these small, high quality, self-contained cameras. It is simply what these cameras have evolved to in 2011. It is the camera that has been missing since I began shooting digitally a dozen years ago. On the street and when photographing friends, it will go largely unnoticed. At 445 g, it is heavy enough to hold steady, but light enough to barely be noticed in my belt pouch. I have done tens of thousands of exposures with optical finder cameras just like it, and it will be very comfortable from the moment I un-box it.
I will still use the D700 when a shoot is scheduled and I can take advantage of its quality and versatility. I will still use the Fuji stereo camera when I want stereo imaging. The rest of the time the X100 will live in my pouch and in my hands.
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larry!
http://www.larry-bolch.com/
