My thoughts on the XH2s after a day of shooting motorsport

Yesterday I had my first chance to take out the XH2s for a day at the track shooting for nearly 3 hours straight and taking over 2000 pictures. I used the same gear as I would with my X-T4 mainly the 50-140 f2.8 lens which is my go-to for almost all track days. I tried to match all of the settings between the X-T4 and XH2s except for those that were new features. I initially posted this to a fuji subreddit after asking what questions people had before I went shooting but figured many people here would also appreciate it.

Autofocus: Being primarily a motorsports photographer, vehicle subject detection was by far the most exciting new feature in the XH2s to me, and it didn't disappoint. Coming from someone who has never had subject detection before, it worked just as I expected it to. It picked up cars coming into frame incredibly quickly and accurately. It does flip between the whole car, front wheel, and driver's head quite often; however, this didn't seem to detract from my hit rate and prioritized the driver's head. Other than subject detection, I used the same af-c settings as I would on my X-T4: wide/tracking, maximum tracking and speed sensitivity, and zone switching auto. Before I even left the track, I could tell there was a much higher hit rate, especially when it came to cars quickly entering and exiting the frame.

Buffer and shot rate: This was the second biggest reason I bought this camera. Compared to the X-T4, the buffer is enormous and allows almost constant shooting at 15 fps. I was able to take nearly 500 photos in a row, and the only reason I stopped was that I was tired of holding the shutter release button. At 40 fps, I could take 180 photos before the camera slowed down. It clears the buffer extremely fast due to the CFexpress B card, another noticeable upgrade from previous cameras. There was essentially zero wait time between taking a burst of photos and viewing all of them.

Ergonomics: The feel of the XH2s is almost entirely different than the X-T4 I am used to. It reminds me much more of the DSLR I came from not long ago. While at home toying around with the camera, I wasn't a massive fan of the feel of it compared to the X-T4; however, while shooting at the track, I quickly grew into it and adjusted my habits. The deeper grip was excellent when coupled with my 50-140 lens, which was always a struggle to use comfortably with the X-T4. The new button layout took a little getting used to but was never an issue, and the joystick, while sensitive, is an improvement over the X-T4. The battery grip is also quite good if you don't mind the extra weight; however, the buttons are positioned slightly differently than on the main camera body, which can be a little confusing initially.

Dials: This was initially combined with ergonomics, but it was enough to warrant its category. While hotly debated with some, the dials or lack of dials is something I'm a fan of, especially in a fast-paced shooting environment. The old top dials are fun but can be slow and clunky in the field and can lead to accidental settings changes if not careful. The new layout is much faster and requires fewer shifting of the hands to change the shutter speed or ISO. I initially thought the lack of push-in function of the front and back dials would be an issue, but I almost immediately abandoned that thought after using the camera at all. This was also the first time I used a dial to adjust my aperture on a Fujifilm camera, and I must say it speeds up the shooting process a noticeable amount but isn't quite as fun.

Battery Life: I did no real technical test, so I hope this remains short. Battery life seems pretty good. After roughly 3 hours of shooting and 2100 shots with the electronic shutter, I killed one whole battery, but I expect its life was prolonged slightly due to the battery grip.

TLDR: Car subject detection is excellent, but I don't have much to compare it against. Higher hit rates, faster tracking, and detection now exist. The buffer and buffer clear speed is crazy thanks to the stacked sensor and the new card format; it's a massive improvement over the X-T4. Ergonomics are good, it feels much more professional, and operation is much faster with the lack of top dials. I don't mind the lack of ISO and SS dials, but I didn't buy into the fuji ecosystem because of the retro look; I believe it will come down to preference for most. Battery life is good, but I didn't conduct any accurate tests to compare it against the X-T4.

If you have any additional questions that I didn't answer here I will try my best to answer them.

I'm by no means a professional reviewer so please don't take this as fact.

Excellent review and great to know it worked well for you.

Morris

Great writeup and summary

As expected from the stacked sensor

Not sure if you've tried this or if you haven't please do next time you're out shooting

Shoot many FPS (>100) and while the buffer clears, try to switch to do video

This is a scenario I encounter all the time while shooting birds and my A9 won't allow to switch while the buffer clears , it's quite annoying for I usually like to take a few stills then switch to do video of a particular scene of interest

Maybe the buffer clears fast enough, this is a moot point?

How surprised were you at the speed of the AF system?

I’ll be posting photos in the next couple days hopefully when I get through all of them. There isn’t much of a difference in picture quality atleast after culling but there was definitely a higher focus hit rate.

FuzzyDice wrote:

How surprised were you at the speed of the AF system?

I was pretty surprised at how fast the subject detection caught a car coming into frame quickly, I didn't have to do my typical tracking before the corner like I would with the X-T4. It seemed much stickier than previous cameras and could switch subjects incredibly quickly.

shotbyvittorio wrote:

FuzzyDice wrote:

How surprised were you at the speed of the AF system?

I was pretty surprised at how fast the subject detection caught a car coming into frame quickly, I didn't have to do my typical tracking before the corner like I would with the X-T4. It seemed much stickier than previous cameras and could switch subjects incredibly quickly.

I was blown away by the speed it picked up the grandkids, they didn’t have a chance to even turn away before I had their picture taken.  😁

Thank you for this really informative and well-structured review !

I am not a pro-photographer nor did I take videos or shot sport/motor-competition…

But the ability of even more faster and precise  AF than that of the X-T4 plus a little bit better IBIS activates a little bit of desire.

Since I appreciate a lot the relatively small and handy X-T bodies I will not purchase either model of the XH-2 but I am looking foreward  to the X-T5.

Although the fantastic X-T4 already seems to give me still all I need for my personal profile of photography.

The XH-2 series shows in an very impressive way that Fujifilm is hard working to eliminate the very last cons of their cameras and lenses for special niches (XH-2 and xf150-600) and lives the spirit of KaiZen. All that assures us as Users of Fujifilm equipment that they will be more and more at the very top for hardware and already are for such unique and precious Software like their wonderful film simulations.

I came to Fujifilm already 10 years ago from Canon 5D III and never regretted that.

Well done Fujifilm!

And again thanks to the TO for your excellent report about the XH-2’s capability.

cheers

FuzzyDice wrote:

shotbyvittorio wrote:

FuzzyDice wrote:

How surprised were you at the speed of the AF system?

I was pretty surprised at how fast the subject detection caught a car coming into frame quickly, I didn't have to do my typical tracking before the corner like I would with the X-T4. It seemed much stickier than previous cameras and could switch subjects incredibly quickly.

I was blown away by the speed it picked up the grandkids, they didn’t have a chance to even turn away before I had their picture taken. 😁

Ya, if you are close to focus and it sees a face, bam sharp!  You can drop the shutter in preparation taking a short burst and catch the magic moments.

Morris

Morris0 wrote:

FuzzyDice wrote:

shotbyvittorio wrote:

FuzzyDice wrote:

How surprised were you at the speed of the AF system?

I was pretty surprised at how fast the subject detection caught a car coming into frame quickly, I didn't have to do my typical tracking before the corner like I would with the X-T4. It seemed much stickier than previous cameras and could switch subjects incredibly quickly.

I was blown away by the speed it picked up the grandkids, they didn’t have a chance to even turn away before I had their picture taken. 😁

Ya, if you are close to focus and it sees a face, bam sharp! You can drop the shutter in preparation taking a short burst and catch the magic moments.

Morris

Yeah but at one point my grand daughter was 150 to 200 feet away and it still picked her head up.

FuzzyDice wrote:

Morris0 wrote:

FuzzyDice wrote:

shotbyvittorio wrote:

FuzzyDice wrote:

How surprised were you at the speed of the AF system?

I was pretty surprised at how fast the subject detection caught a car coming into frame quickly, I didn't have to do my typical tracking before the corner like I would with the X-T4. It seemed much stickier than previous cameras and could switch subjects incredibly quickly.

I was blown away by the speed it picked up the grandkids, they didn’t have a chance to even turn away before I had their picture taken. 😁

Ya, if you are close to focus and it sees a face, bam sharp! You can drop the shutter in preparation taking a short burst and catch the magic moments.

Morris

Yeah but at one point my grand daughter was 150 to 200 feet away and it still picked her head up.

Tiny in the screen or a long lens?

Morris

Morris0 wrote:

FuzzyDice wrote:

Morris0 wrote:

FuzzyDice wrote:

shotbyvittorio wrote:

FuzzyDice wrote:

How surprised were you at the speed of the AF system?

I was pretty surprised at how fast the subject detection caught a car coming into frame quickly, I didn't have to do my typical tracking before the corner like I would with the X-T4. It seemed much stickier than previous cameras and could switch subjects incredibly quickly.

I was blown away by the speed it picked up the grandkids, they didn’t have a chance to even turn away before I had their picture taken. 😁

Ya, if you are close to focus and it sees a face, bam sharp! You can drop the shutter in preparation taking a short burst and catch the magic moments.

Morris

Yeah but at one point my grand daughter was 150 to 200 feet away and it still picked her head up.

Tiny in the screen or a long lens?

Morris

35mm F/1.4 she was fairly small in the screen at the time.

I had a Z6 that would lose the subject beyond 15 feet it could no longer see the eyes.  The X-T4 was a little bit further than that but both took a second to find the eye and sometimes lost the eye.  When the A7 3 launched I tested one and that was losing eyes when people turned their heads.

This is the best AF system I’ve ever used.

FuzzyDice wrote:

Morris0 wrote:

FuzzyDice wrote:

Morris0 wrote:

FuzzyDice wrote:

shotbyvittorio wrote:

FuzzyDice wrote:

How surprised were you at the speed of the AF system?

I was pretty surprised at how fast the subject detection caught a car coming into frame quickly, I didn't have to do my typical tracking before the corner like I would with the X-T4. It seemed much stickier than previous cameras and could switch subjects incredibly quickly.

I was blown away by the speed it picked up the grandkids, they didn’t have a chance to even turn away before I had their picture taken. 😁

Ya, if you are close to focus and it sees a face, bam sharp! You can drop the shutter in preparation taking a short burst and catch the magic moments.

Morris

Yeah but at one point my grand daughter was 150 to 200 feet away and it still picked her head up.

Tiny in the screen or a long lens?

Morris

35mm F/1.4 she was fairly small in the screen at the time.

I had a Z6 that would lose the subject beyond 15 feet it could no longer see the eyes. The X-T4 was a little bit further than that but both took a second to find the eye and sometimes lost the eye. When the A7 3 launched I tested one and that was losing eyes when people turned their heads.

This is the best AF system I’ve ever used.

That's great!  Sony A1 would not track a distance bird for me.  Nikon Z9 did.  It is great news that the X-H2s will do this, at least for humans.

Morris

elfroggio wrote:

Where's the beef?

At least show a couple of photos that would have been more difficult with the x-t4. A whole series showing the tracking would be even better.

I'm interested. This fall, I'm upgrading and have not decided which:

• canon r7
• fuji s-h2 or sh2s
• omd om-1

You should consider the entire package you will get.  Most important lenses as well as body.

Morris

Morris0 wrote:

FuzzyDice wrote:

Morris0 wrote:

FuzzyDice wrote:

Morris0 wrote:

FuzzyDice wrote:

shotbyvittorio wrote:

FuzzyDice wrote:

How surprised were you at the speed of the AF system?

I was pretty surprised at how fast the subject detection caught a car coming into frame quickly, I didn't have to do my typical tracking before the corner like I would with the X-T4. It seemed much stickier than previous cameras and could switch subjects incredibly quickly.

I was blown away by the speed it picked up the grandkids, they didn’t have a chance to even turn away before I had their picture taken. 😁

Ya, if you are close to focus and it sees a face, bam sharp! You can drop the shutter in preparation taking a short burst and catch the magic moments.

Morris

Yeah but at one point my grand daughter was 150 to 200 feet away and it still picked her head up.

Tiny in the screen or a long lens?

Morris

35mm F/1.4 she was fairly small in the screen at the time.

I had a Z6 that would lose the subject beyond 15 feet it could no longer see the eyes. The X-T4 was a little bit further than that but both took a second to find the eye and sometimes lost the eye. When the A7 3 launched I tested one and that was losing eyes when people turned their heads.

This is the best AF system I’ve ever used.

That's great! Sony A1 would not track a distance bird for me. Nikon Z9 did. It is great news that the X-H2s will do this, at least for humans.

Morris

This was aggressively cropped - part of a 50 image burst at 28fps (the 40fps setting with focus release priority). The conditions were good and a fairly plain background.

This was essentially point and shoot - the camera identified the bird and controlled the focussing.

This is the EXIF for one of the images that shows the camera identified both the body and head of the bird (and focussed on the head).

It started to lose it a bit towards the end of the burst but it seems to have done a good job of identification.

Greybeard2017 wrote:

Morris0 wrote:

FuzzyDice wrote:

Morris0 wrote:

FuzzyDice wrote:

Morris0 wrote:

FuzzyDice wrote:

shotbyvittorio wrote:

FuzzyDice wrote:

How surprised were you at the speed of the AF system?

I was pretty surprised at how fast the subject detection caught a car coming into frame quickly, I didn't have to do my typical tracking before the corner like I would with the X-T4. It seemed much stickier than previous cameras and could switch subjects incredibly quickly.

I was blown away by the speed it picked up the grandkids, they didn’t have a chance to even turn away before I had their picture taken. 😁

Ya, if you are close to focus and it sees a face, bam sharp! You can drop the shutter in preparation taking a short burst and catch the magic moments.

Morris

Yeah but at one point my grand daughter was 150 to 200 feet away and it still picked her head up.

Tiny in the screen or a long lens?

Morris

35mm F/1.4 she was fairly small in the screen at the time.

I had a Z6 that would lose the subject beyond 15 feet it could no longer see the eyes. The X-T4 was a little bit further than that but both took a second to find the eye and sometimes lost the eye. When the A7 3 launched I tested one and that was losing eyes when people turned their heads.

This is the best AF system I’ve ever used.

That's great! Sony A1 would not track a distance bird for me. Nikon Z9 did. It is great news that the X-H2s will do this, at least for humans.

Morris

This was aggressively cropped - part of a 50 image burst at 28fps (the 40fps setting with focus release priority). The conditions were good and a fairly plain background.

This was essentially point and shoot - the camera identified the bird and controlled the focussing.

This is the EXIF for one of the images that shows the camera identified both the body and head of the bird (and focussed on the head).

It started to lose it a bit towards the end of the burst but it seems to have done a good job of identification.

It's great that the camera is doing that.  Tomorrow I'll be posting two fledgling swallow tail images where the bird was about that size in the frame before cropping taken with my X-T3 and 500mm PF.

I'm real happy with the Canon 200mm f2.8 L II you took these with.  I think you are who pointed it out.

Morris

shotbyvittorio wrote:

Yesterday I had my first chance to take out the XH2s for a day at the track shooting for nearly 3 hours straight and taking over 2000 pictures. I used the same gear as I would with my X-T4 mainly the 50-140 f2.8 lens which is my go-to for almost all track days. I tried to match all of the settings between the X-T4 and XH2s except for those that were new features. I initially posted this to a fuji subreddit after asking what questions people had before I went shooting but figured many people here would also appreciate it.

Autofocus: Being primarily a motorsports photographer, vehicle subject detection was by far the most exciting new feature in the XH2s to me, and it didn't disappoint. Coming from someone who has never had subject detection before, it worked just as I expected it to. It picked up cars coming into frame incredibly quickly and accurately. It does flip between the whole car, front wheel, and driver's head quite often; however, this didn't seem to detract from my hit rate and prioritized the driver's head. Other than subject detection, I used the same af-c settings as I would on my X-T4: wide/tracking, maximum tracking and speed sensitivity, and zone switching auto. Before I even left the track, I could tell there was a much higher hit rate, especially when it came to cars quickly entering and exiting the frame.

Buffer and shot rate: This was the second biggest reason I bought this camera. Compared to the X-T4, the buffer is enormous and allows almost constant shooting at 15 fps. I was able to take nearly 500 photos in a row, and the only reason I stopped was that I was tired of holding the shutter release button. At 40 fps, I could take 180 photos before the camera slowed down. It clears the buffer extremely fast due to the CFexpress B card, another noticeable upgrade from previous cameras. There was essentially zero wait time between taking a burst of photos and viewing all of them.

Ergonomics: The feel of the XH2s is almost entirely different than the X-T4 I am used to. It reminds me much more of the DSLR I came from not long ago. While at home toying around with the camera, I wasn't a massive fan of the feel of it compared to the X-T4; however, while shooting at the track, I quickly grew into it and adjusted my habits. The deeper grip was excellent when coupled with my 50-140 lens, which was always a struggle to use comfortably with the X-T4. The new button layout took a little getting used to but was never an issue, and the joystick, while sensitive, is an improvement over the X-T4. The battery grip is also quite good if you don't mind the extra weight; however, the buttons are positioned slightly differently than on the main camera body, which can be a little confusing initially.

Dials: This was initially combined with ergonomics, but it was enough to warrant its category. While hotly debated with some, the dials or lack of dials is something I'm a fan of, especially in a fast-paced shooting environment. The old top dials are fun but can be slow and clunky in the field and can lead to accidental settings changes if not careful. The new layout is much faster and requires fewer shifting of the hands to change the shutter speed or ISO. I initially thought the lack of push-in function of the front and back dials would be an issue, but I almost immediately abandoned that thought after using the camera at all. This was also the first time I used a dial to adjust my aperture on a Fujifilm camera, and I must say it speeds up the shooting process a noticeable amount but isn't quite as fun.

Battery Life: I did no real technical test, so I hope this remains short. Battery life seems pretty good. After roughly 3 hours of shooting and 2100 shots with the electronic shutter, I killed one whole battery, but I expect its life was prolonged slightly due to the battery grip.

How many batteries did you have in the camera, I'm not too familiar with the XH2S does it take two or three batteries?

Thank you.

TLDR: Car subject detection is excellent, but I don't have much to compare it against. Higher hit rates, faster tracking, and detection now exist. The buffer and buffer clear speed is crazy thanks to the stacked sensor and the new card format; it's a massive improvement over the X-T4. Ergonomics are good, it feels much more professional, and operation is much faster with the lack of top dials. I don't mind the lack of ISO and SS dials, but I didn't buy into the fuji ecosystem because of the retro look; I believe it will come down to preference for most. Battery life is good, but I didn't conduct any accurate tests to compare it against the X-T4.

If you have any additional questions that I didn't answer here I will try my best to answer them.

I'm by no means a professional reviewer so please don't take this as fact.

shot at 40fps using the ES.