Who is still using the very first X-100 ?

Yes I'm still using the Finepix X100 but I prefer to use my X-E3. When I do use the X100 I use it just like a film rangefinder. I only use the OVF, I never review the photos until I pop the card out, and I take my time. Is it a perfect camera? Not even close. It can produce some nice jpgs but you really have to nail the exposure and have your setting dialed in because it can blow highlights pretty easily. Is it so slow that it's almost painful? Yes but as I said shooting like film helps. Is it a marvelous piece of equipment? Yes. Very nicely built, beautiful to look at, and yes nothing beats an OVF. Will I ever sell it? Honestly, I'm torn on this one. As I said I prefer to use my X-E3 but still break out the X100 pretty regularly when I want a throwback shooting experience. I think they've probably bottomed out on the price so if you want one now is the time to buy.

Batdude said:

jrk said:

Yes, I still have the original X100. I bought it new when they were first out on the market. I don't use it as much as I would like. This thing called work keeps getting in the way of the things I want to do...

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Can I have it?

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Thank you for your generous offer to relieve me of my X100 but I think I'll keep it! :-D

I just finished a deep dive of old photos in appreciation of the X100. I found that out of my modest collection of cameras it's been my go-to camera for personal moments, often just by the virtue of always being "the one I had with me". Thousands of memories with family and friends captured with the camera...maybe that's why I feel so subconsciously sentimental about it. Naturally those aren't the best choice for public consumption so here are some completely unrelated photos instead, of varying degrees of potential artistic merit. But hey, in photography everything is made up and the points don't matter, so firing away!




































I find the lens surprisingly competent for landscape detail.




Flying over Seoul at night.



























Ironically, if the X100 has taught me anything, it's that I really don't care for the 35mm focal range at all. It's flexible enough, but I find it exceedingly difficult to find interesting compositions with. I wish it had a 40mm lens instead...but I suppose working to adapt and overcome such challenges is how we develop as photographers.

It was after this gig that I decided to retire her. My X100 is good in, well, good light, but the high ISO is limited and the operations are just too slow. Still, I had fun.

A quick edit to taste.


24 November - The Lonely Hearts Jazz Bar in Melville, Johannesburg

AdamKeen said:

I had such a great time with the X-100 - the very first one. I subsequently sold it to buy X-100S, then sold that one to buy X-100T, got into T1, H1, T3...

But there was something about the old X-100

So a while back when I was in Japan, I saw the original X-100 in one of the camera shops. It was one of the latest runs (so no sticky aperture) and of course, I bought it. I still had the original leather brown case at home.

And yes, it is still a magical camera. And yes, it is still slow, but somehow not as slow as I remember (probably due to the updates) and I still love it to bits.

I could see selling my T3 (as it is lastly unused - I probably shouldn't have bought it - but I have too many lenses and just sold H1), but I am not going to part with the X100.

The X100 was truly a unique camera, that started the whole crazy retro thing and OVF comeback.

So what do you think? Anybody else still using the first x100 ?

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Just bought one second hand! It is a Black limited edition i mint condition for 300US dollars. They guy only took 80 photos and it's been on the shelf collecting dust since he likes his X-Pro 1 more. He in turn bought it first from a guy in Germany who wanted to use it for bird photos, which it was not so good at..So full package, without a single scratch, LCD protector from day one, leather case totally unused, also lens hood and filter. With 2 additional lens hoods from JJC, and 3 additional batteries.

I had the X100 at least 3-4 times, and this will never leave my hands!

mrgooch2008 said:

When I was still a youngster I read an article with photos showing how this photographer used an old Kodak box camera.

The photographs he produced were amazing. From that day forward I new what photography was about,The photographer !

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I have one of those in my closet! It will go on a shelf when we get the basement finished.

--
We all have wings
Some of us don't know why
-INXS-

Here's a shot taken at Radio City Music Hall 9 years ago with my X100. This is the finale of the Christmas Show.







--
We all have wings
Some of us don't know why
-INXS-

Not long after this post, someone offered me twice what it was worth and I sold my X100. I've kind of regretted it ever since. Maybe there's something special about a very limited camera that often missed focus after all.

Now the quandary, buy another old X100 or do I get one of the newer fancier models. I know people say the OVF is a gimmick but I used it almost exclusively and miss it. And I have to admit I think maybe there was something to the plain old bayer sensor original. Not that I don't like the results of my X-trans cameras but it's definitely different. Has anyone used the original X100 and a later X100 model and decided the original was the one for them, or is improved feature set of the later models too much of an advantage.

I have loaned my X100 to my daughter - note loaned she is not allowed to sell it! It made a big impact to my photography, it made me think more.

I laugh when I hear about slow auto-focusing, flat images, poor menu's etc. This camera couldn't be much simpler to use, and whilst it hasn't got cutting edge speed AF it's absolutely fine, we're talking 10th's of a second differences here. I always use the ovf if I can, that was literally its USP, and it's far more preferable to me than any EVF. As for the IQ, yes it does produce lovely images, and the raws have plenty of detail and dynamic range, and the jpegs can be fantastic. Mine does have a tendency to underexpose, but I'm aware of that and compensation isn't exactly difficult. The EC dial is prone to being moved but again, it's just good practice to keep any eye on it, and on the plus side it's easy to move using my thumb when I need to, I'd rather that than have to fight with the dial to move it, as is the case on some cameras.

I really have no complaints with mine, you can make large detailed prints from it no problem. I'm on my second, I regretted selling the first one and bought another and it's quite the thing in it's brown Fuji leather case. I don't think I'll ever sell this one. Here are a couple of shots I took the other day with it.




Little Trellwyn




The Wood Sprite

Trees move slowly compared to people or evenmore to kids

I love my original x100 but to be honest the autofocus on my previous camera, the first sony rx100, was so much quicker.

nerioche2 said:

Trees move slowly compared to people or evenmore to kids

I love my original x100 but to be honest the autofocus on my previous camera, the first sony rx100, was so much quicker.

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It's not hard to focus when everything is going to be in focus anyway, I've shot people using manual focus and film, so I'm really not struggling with any modern auto-focusing camera, including the X100.

nerioche2 said:

Trees move slowly compared to people or evenmore to kids

I love my original x100 but to be honest the autofocus on my previous camera, the first sony rx100, was so much quicker.

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Don't want to be negative but I disliked my RX100 - having to dive through menus to change settings whereas the X100 had nice physical basic controls.

I wish I had kept my original...I did what you did to the X100s, etc. There was something special about it and I got it about a month after the initial release. Great camera!

I loved my first X100 but sadly it doesn't work anymore .