XA1 arriving soon..............

Veducci wrote:

Mirfak wrote:

Joachim Gerstl wrote:

I don't think it makes sense to replace the kit lens with the little faster kit lens. It's far better to add a 1.4/35 for low light and shallow DOF.

I couldn't agree more. Some folks just have too much disposable income. I'm been a photo enthusiast for over 20 years and don't make money from photography these days. I haven't bought a new camera for a few years - not because I couldn't afford one...it's just that I didn't want to spend money on compromises that I thought would go away in the next model At $399 Canadian + tax, the X-A1 is a no brainer. Even so, I read a lot of X-A1 and X-M1 reviews before making my decision to purchase the X-A1. The 18-55mm is $699 Canadian + tax at Henrys (where I purchased the X-A1 kit). If I could afford that, I might as well have gotten the X-E2 kit for $1399 Canadian + tax (which comes with the 18-55mm lens). I've read enough reviews from pros who consider the 16-50mm to be just fine (a fact that I've confirmed to my utmost delight!).

I looked at a alternatives to the X-A1 in about the same price range (all currently being at least $100 more), and I don't think that any were overall better than the X-A1. At $399 Canadian, this is the best deal I've ever seen for a current production ILC. It's the same price that I paid for my Canon G7 several years ago (on sale at the time!).

I think that the X-A1 is the most overlooked and underappreciated ILC on the planet. This statement coming from someone who's used nothing but Canon gear until now.

Next I need to look at the 50-230mm tele that's gotten very good reviews. At $399, it's $300 less than the 18-55mm. Not the same quality obviously, but the 18-55mm is not a telephoto lens. That's an extra $300 that I could put towards the 35/f1.4 ($599 Canadian).

Ive had the XA1 in my hand for an hour now (after battery charge) and after viewing about 50 test shots , all I can say is WOW! Im blown away.

I have very few negatives to say about my (sold off) Canon M and its very good 18-55 kit lens but this XA1 with the 16-50 is a significant step up , super sharp it is , snaps into focus quickly , and has great contrast. I dont think I`m going to have any interest at all in the slightly faster Fuji 18-55 after seeing with my own eyes what the 16-50 can do , plus the 24mmm wide end is a BIG plus (a bonus) .

The low light noise free images look super good on my computer screen too, the best it`s seen yet..

Im also loving the quick and accurate AF. I dont miss Canon`s touch screen at all.

What a bargain this is at $399 ! This is all the camera I`m gonna need for a long time.

Do you prefer the X-A1 over the M now that you've used both? Is the AF that much better vs the touch screen focus and shoot on the M? I've played around with the Fuji and it's nice, but I can get the M with both lenses and flash for about $60 less than what the Fuji kit will cost me and the 22mm f2 seems really appealing. Unfortunately, I cannot handle the M in person before purchase so I don't know how slow the AF really is. I'm not tied to either system.