For those who don't like the X100's...

Zaax wrote:

bastibe wrote:

...but do like compact cameras and the 35 mm (equivalent) viewpoint:

Then you are probably like me. Because I just didn't get along with the X100T. The OVF's parallax made me miss shots, the body is surprisingly chunky, but the lens too tiny to grab, and that close-up haze was a let-down. I wanted to like the camera, I really did, but it didn't work out between us.

You know that you can switch from the OVF to the EVF right?

Yes. Of course. But I feel that the OVF is one of the central selling points of the X100 (and X-Pro) series. There is something direct and real about window finders that gives a different feel to photography. I actually love it!

But I guess I wanted to have an OVF experience like in the analoge rangefinder I had for a while. In contrast to a rangefinder patch, however, the X100's focusing rectangle makes parallax errors. The green OVF focusing rectangle can be directly above a, say, head, but the camera is focused on the background behind the head, due to the parallax.

I know there are ways to work around that, by judging the focusing distance based on the focusing rectangle's positions, or using the cute little focusing mini-EVF. But with way, I found myself second-guessing the optical viewfinder a lot, switching back and forth between the unreliable-but-nice OVF and the reliable-but-boring EVF. This frustrated me, and is probably a large part of why I didn't gel with the camera.

Another thing that annoyed me in comparison to the rangefinder, was that the OVF takes a short time to "wake up" as you raise it to your face. One of the really cool things about a rangefinder is that it is always "on". You raise it to your face, adjust focus, and trip the shutter. The X100's OVF can of course be looked through as you raise it to your eye, but it takes about half a second or so for the eye sensor to detect my face, and draw the UI. It's even longer with the little mini-EVF, or the big EVF, as it has to snap the EVF shades into place first. The issue might be exacerbated by my wearing glasses.

The way I like to shoot is have the camera in my hand, and observe. Then, just for a short moment, I raise the camera to my face, and take the shot. Then lower the camera again. So you can imagine that any lag between raising the camera and actually being able to use it, is subtly frustrating to me. Perhaps that is part of why I like from-the-hip shooting. No viewfinder means no delay.

To its credit, the X100T works well for shooting blindly or from the back screen. But so does the X-T2, and the Ricoh GR. So after a while, I sold the X100T, because I found myself consistently choosing the X-T2 or GR over of the X100T.

No hard feelings, though. I bought it used, I had my fun, I sold it without loss. I took several memorable pictures with it. It is a great camera. Just, as I said, not for me.