X-H2s versus X-H2 for event photography

I am a Fuji shooter with X-T4. I had owned and used xt-1/xt-2/xt-3 . Tried X-T5 briefly but was not happy with low light performance using 16-55. Pics were noisy.



looking for advise in choosing X-H2s or x-H2. If you shoot indoor events (weddings, graduations and other celebrations ) which one you would suggest as the better option? Greatly appreciate your inputs.

Also, what brand /size CFExpress card you are using?

The X-T5 and X-H2 are identical for photographs. Main differences are more robust body, better LCD & EVF, CF Card support, video, and controls.

If you found the X-T5 noisey, then I recommend the H2S.

Diytech said:

I am a Fuji shooter with X-T4. I had owned and used xt-1/xt-2/xt-3 . Tried X-T5 briefly but was not happy with low light performance using 16-55. Pics were noisy.

Click to expand...

Nice I have the XT4 too...the XT5 looks very nice though.

Diytech said:

looking for advise in choosing X-H2s or x-H2. If you shoot indoor events (weddings, graduations and other celebrations ) which one you would suggest as the better option? Greatly appreciate your inputs.

Click to expand...

I went with the XH2s as the AF especially tracking is much better imo & I don't need 40MP. As the other poster mentioned X-H2 & XT5 should be identical for low light.

Diytech said:

Also, what brand /size CFExpress card you are using?

Click to expand...

I'm using the Angelbird 512GB AV PRO CFexpress 2.0 Type B SE Memory Card. It's a bargain for 512GB & it's fast!

Check the compatibility list:

https://fujifilm-x.com/en-us/support/compatibility/cameras/list-of-supported-memory-cards/

Good luck!

Diytech said:

I am a Fuji shooter with X-T4. I had owned and used xt-1/xt-2/xt-3 . Tried X-T5 briefly but was not happy with low light performance using 16-55. Pics were noisy.

looking for advise in choosing X-H2s or x-H2. If you shoot indoor events (weddings, graduations and other celebrations ) which one you would suggest as the better option? Greatly appreciate your inputs.

Also, what brand /size CFExpress card you are using?

Click to expand...

I went with the X-H2S as it has the best autofocus in any Fujifilm camera and I certainly don't need the 40MP sensor but would rather have the best autofocus. The X-H2/X-H2S has the best grip as well if that matters to you.

I am using these 2 memory cards:

Sony TOUGH-G series SDXC UHS-II Card 128GB, V90, CL10, U3, Max R300MB/S, W299MB/S (SF-G128T/T1)

Sony 256GB TOUGH CFexpress Card Type B Ultra Speed Memory Card (Read: 1700MB/s Write: 1480MB/s) - CEB-G256/J SYM

Diytech said:

I am a Fuji shooter with X-T4. I had owned and used xt-1/xt-2/xt-3 . Tried X-T5 briefly but was not happy with low light performance using 16-55. Pics were noisy.

looking for advise in choosing X-H2s or x-H2. If you shoot indoor events (weddings, graduations and other celebrations ) which one you would suggest as the better option? Greatly appreciate your inputs.

Click to expand...

Like the others say, the T5 is identical to the H2.. So if you don't like that one, chance is low you are gonna like the other one...
That said, I think you made an early judgment against the 40mp sensor. Spending more time with it will likely give you a better idea.. I dont know.. But in reality the noise difference is less than 1 stop at 100% and at a normalized view I really cant tell a difference.

One difference between the new sensor and T3/4 that I find, is that with the 40 sensor shadow falloff is much less blotchy. which is a good thing, but at first glance that may look more noisy.

Diytech said:

Also, what brand /size CFExpress card you are using?

Click to expand...

I use a mix of Sony Tough and Angelbird cards. I can really only recommend the Angelbird SE cards, they are much less expensive and have no disadvantage to more expensive cards.

I own both. IF budget is not a concern, XH2s. Otherwise the XH2 will do perfectly the job.

The S allows to use ES all the time and has a much better AF in dim light. The rolling shutter effect is also minimized nearly absent. The XH2 unforgives bad settings, approximative exposure, AF, ... The S is more "forgiving"

Before you spend a lot of money on new kit it would be worth investigating using some advanced noise reduction in your processing. It can make a difference of up to 2 stops!

I do events for several organisations, sometimes in light so low that I need a head-torch to find my way around. You have several options without incurring a lot of expense.

Firstly download a free trial version of DXO Photolab PL6 (which has by far the best noise reduction S/W which it calls 'Deep Prime'. You’ll find that DxO Deep Prime works wonders in minimising, if not eliminating, noise while having almost no effect on sharpness, indeed some claim it brings out more detail. PL6 can be set up as a Lightroom plug-in which speeds up the processing.

If you’ve mastered using Deep Prime, the next step is to look at your lenses. I normally try to get away with the Fuji f2.8 zooms but sometimes I have to use the fast primes (f1.4) which give up to 2 extra stops (the 90mm up to one stop) advantage over the f2.8 lenses. Of course, faster apertures mean less DoF & more careful focussing.

You may need to use lowish shutter speeds so OIS and/or IBIS will minimise any camera shake which might creep in, eliminating that source of problems.

Finally, expose to the right to give you a better chance of pulling up the shadows without incurring too much noise.

This is how I use DxO Deep Prime with Lightroom:

Set DxO as a lightroom plugin and set all the L/R pre-sets to zero. Then import to L/R and then send the RAW image to PL6 before you do any other processing. Adjust the noise reduction to taste and export back to LR and process as usual. You’ll find that DxO Deep Prime works wonders in minimising, if not eliminating, noise while having almost no effect on sharpness, indeed some claim it brings out more detail! The final stage is to sharpen in Topaz Sharpen AI (again as a LR plug-in) which can produce an almost magical transformation in most images (but take care not to push it too far). You can adjust the noise reduction setting to make it optimal for each ISO. E.g. for ISO 800 I use up to a value of 10, going up to 40+ for ISO 6,400 and above, whereas DxO Pure Raw provides just the one standard setting.

T5 & H2 files are just a little noisier than the 26MP sensors but I'm sure careful use of Deep Prime will make a significant improvement. Worth a try at least!

Phil

Diytech said:

Also, what brand /size CFExpress card you are using?

Click to expand...

See on Fuji site the list of recommended cards The capacity of cards is related to your needs. In video take a 256 GB In photo a 64 GB might be sufficient. CF E type B cards are not cheap so adjkusting capacity to needs is also a budger concern ...

Diytech said:

. Pics were noisy.

Click to expand...

I had the same first experiences Then thx to experts in this forum I was advised to ETTR after the ideal histogram is set. Increasing the exposure by 2/3 to 1 EV solves most of the issue : what you get even at 3200 ISO is a RAF file with some limited very fine noise.

This applies for dim light In brilliant light and a good controlled exposure images are perfect.

This noise can be easily mastered by denoiser programs . My WF is :1/- demosaicing the RAF with IXT, denoising immediately with NeatImage in which some sharpening can be added with care then finish in ACR PS.

(Unfortunately my old but powerful PC (I7, 16Gb, Nvidia Geforce 4Gb) cannot run DXO at a reasonable speed, so my WF which works beautifully is a workaround. With a more recent machine I would probably run DXO Lab 6)

A sample : wanted to test at 300mm the 18-300mm in dim light at 3200 ISO in order to see the level antype of noise with 1/- perfect centered histogram 2/- then ETTR +1EV

below ooc jpeg, final jpeg after PP and link to RAF




OOC Jpeg



[ATTACH alt=""Final" = a quick trial from RAF "]3210834[/ATTACH]
"Final" = a quick trial from RAF



Link in the next post



--
Good judgment comes from experience
Experience comes from bad judgment

from OOCJpeg




from finalJpeg



--
Good judgment comes from experience
Experience comes from bad judgment

i have both, and if you are planning to use flash, the x-h2s let you to shoot with ES all the time, and I found it's a nice advantage

Agree that's great and with a HSS unit you cab shoot at incredible fast SS

Thank you for the advice. I have X-H2S on order. it’s shame if I have to return my X-T5.

AngelBird seems to be a good deal at $180 for 512GB. I saw another brand Exascend 5122GB with card reader at $190. Never heard of of their name before. Any experience with Exascend?

I am curious how you compared it with the older bodies? Did you scale the image to print size, or did you compare both at 100% magnification?

Finally I wold still stick to XH2s which is more forgiving to conditions, in particular light. XH2 needs more light to reach its high quality. Moreover the XH2s allows quasi permanent use of ES an asset in events due to no shutter noise.

sir_c said:

I am curious how you compared it with the older bodies? Did you scale the image to print size, or did you compare both at 100% magnification?

Click to expand...

I did not do pixel peeping. Pictures came out soft and felt out of focus. Since I had IBIS I expected it to function better even if the lens is wide open. One thing I had AF + MF setting on Not sure, whether That must have caused it.

yatesd said:

The X-T5 and X-H2 are identical for photographs. Main differences are more robust body, better LCD & EVF, CF Card support, video, and controls.

If you found the X-T5 noisey, then I recommend the H2S.

Click to expand...

Ordered X-H2S. Now I need to prepare myself for heavier camera

Flying Fijian said:

Diytech said:

I am a Fuji shooter with X-T4. I had owned and used xt-1/xt-2/xt-3 . Tried X-T5 briefly but was not happy with low light performance using 16-55. Pics were noisy.

Click to expand...

Nice I have the XT4 too...the XT5 looks very nice though.

Flying Fijian said:

looking for advise in choosing X-H2s or x-H2. If you shoot indoor events (weddings, graduations and other celebrations ) which one you would suggest as the better option? Greatly appreciate your inputs.

Click to expand...

I went with the XH2s as the AF especially tracking is much better imo & I don't need 40MP. As the other poster mentioned X-H2 & XT5 should be identical for low light.

Flying Fijian said:

Also, what brand /size CFExpress card you are using?

Click to expand...

I'm using the Angelbird 512GB AV PRO CFexpress 2.0 Type B SE Memory Card. It's a bargain for 512GB & it's fast!

Check the compatibility list:

https://fujifilm-x.com/en-us/support/compatibility/cameras/list-of-supported-memory-cards/

Good luck!

Click to expand...

Thank you for your insights. I have returned X-T5 and ordered X-H2s. Will look at AngelBird CFEXPRESS. Came across Exascend with reader around the same price with 3 year warranty same as Angrlbird.

superspartan said:

Diytech said:

I am a Fuji shooter with X-T4. I had owned and used xt-1/xt-2/xt-3 . Tried X-T5 briefly but was not happy with low light performance using 16-55. Pics were noisy.

looking for advise in choosing X-H2s or x-H2. If you shoot indoor events (weddings, graduations and other celebrations ) which one you would suggest as the better option? Greatly appreciate your inputs.

Also, what brand /size CFExpress card you are using?

Click to expand...

I went with the X-H2S as it has the best autofocus in any Fujifilm camera and I certainly don't need the 40MP sensor but would rather have the best autofocus. The X-H2/X-H2S has the best grip as well if that matters to you.

I am using these 2 memory cards:

Sony TOUGH-G series SDXC UHS-II Card 128GB, V90, CL10, U3, Max R300MB/S, W299MB/S (SF-G128T/T1)

Sony 256GB TOUGH CFexpress Card Type B Ultra Speed Memory Card (Read: 1700MB/s Write: 1480MB/s) - CEB-G256/J SYM

Click to expand...

Thank you, going with XH2s. May go with AngelBird. Have to see how it fares.

Rumle said:

Diytech said:

I am a Fuji shooter with X-T4. I had owned and used xt-1/xt-2/xt-3 . Tried X-T5 briefly but was not happy with low light performance using 16-55. Pics were noisy.

looking for advise in choosing X-H2s or x-H2. If you shoot indoor events (weddings, graduations and other celebrations ) which one you would suggest as the better option? Greatly appreciate your inputs.

Click to expand...

Like the others say, the T5 is identical to the H2.. So if you don't like that one, chance is low you are gonna like the other one...
That said, I think you made an early judgment against the 40mp sensor. Spending more time with it will likely give you a better idea.. I dont know.. But in reality the noise difference is less than 1 stop at 100% and at a normalized view I really cant tell a difference.
One difference between the new sensor and T3/4 that I find, is that with the 40 sensor shadow falloff is much less blotchy. which is a good thing, but at first glance that may look more noisy.

Rumle said:

Also, what brand /size CFExpress card you are using?

Click to expand...

I use a mix of Sony Tough and Angelbird cards. I can really only recommend the Angelbird SE cards, they are much less expensive and have no disadvantage to more expensive cards.

Click to expand...

Yes I might have been in haste. I have to see how it goes with XH2s. Hope weight is not going to be an issue. I mostly use single point focus in Aperture priority with ISO under 3200 ISO with exposure adjustments. I have to use how it’s going to be without dials.