I post this review with some trepidation. As a longtime Fujifan (started with the X-T10 and X-Pro1) that currently owns the X-Pro2, X100V, X-T5 and GFX100S, I'd always prefer to be making super positive reviews about the company I love. However, this review is not going to be that positive
The full review with images can be found here. Below is an excerpt of the Introduction, Autofocus, Image Quality and Conclusion sections.
Introduction
When the Fujifilm X-T5 was announced, I was super excited, but skeptical. It ticked all the right boxes with improvements in the things I didn’t like on the X-T4. Gone was the annoying (but extremely useful for vloggers) flip-out rear screen; gone was the irritating design of the USB charging and microphone port door.
According to Fujifilm, gone also was the poor autofocus performance that had become an albatross around the previous camera’s neck. Sadly, I don’t put much credibility into Fujifilm’s promises regarding autofocus as we’ve all been burned with promises of class-leading performance, only to find the reality not stacking up.
When I picked up the camera on launch day, I told my salesperson that this is Fujifilm’s last chance to have a long-term place in my photography cabinet. If the autofocus performance is not up to modern standards, this will be the last Fujifilm APSC camera I buy.
Surprisingly, he noted that several customers had either already come to the same conclusion (and moved to Sony, Canon or less so, Nikon) or they had articulated the same thought that the X-T5 is Fujifilm’s last chance with them. If it doesn’t deliver, they’ll sell their system and move on with the competition.
Autofocus
Fujifilm’s single autofocus performance remains excellent. The ability to size the autofocus box to your needs is a very useful feature. I love using the smallest autofocus box to get pin-sharp focus on the area of the subject that I desire. The only downside to using the smaller box size is that it can sometimes take a bit more time to lock on focus, given the small area the camera has to work with.
Fujifilm’s subject detection has improved dramatically with humans, and has introduced subject detection for birds, dogs, cars, motorcycles and trains; this has resulted in a massive increase in the number of my keepers due to the automated subject detection. What used to take a few seconds to get the camera running, move the focus box around and then take the image, now can be reduced to less than a second. This has resulted in many more “in the moment” captures of my friends and dogs. This is a game changer for me.
However, in continuous autofocus, when I’m using subject tracking, there’s significant room for improvement for Fujifilm to match the best that Sony and Canon have on offer. The whole approach to continuous autofocus subject tracking feels like a beta product. It’s not clear what role the various focus frames have on subject tracking effectiveness and the camera’s ability to follow the subject is highly unpredictable. I lack confidence that what I’m seeing on the screen is actually being delivered in the final image.
In my testing, with an erratic moving subject like my dog, the X-T5, paired with a fast responding lens like the XF23 MK2 or XF33, can achieve ~70% focus hit rate. The A7R5 however achieves 100% hit rate, and that’s with 61MP across a larger sensor too. When using a slow responding lens like the XF56 WR, the hit rate drops to <50% at close distances and ~70% at longer distances.
It’s a disappointing performance, but still far better than the dismal results the X-T4 would achieve where subject tracking was only possible with humans or by using the wide-tracking mode which required the use of the rather large focus box.
Where the X-T5 needs to improve is its ability to track the subject while simultaneously capturing images. Somehow the lens, capturing pipeline or something else is not keeping up. In the tests, the green box was clearly tracking the dog’s eye and should have had a high hit rate, but for reasons unknown, several images ended up out of focus.
The green tracking box gives a false sense of security and is something Fujifilm needs to urgently look at. If the box is green and tracking the subject, it’s reasonable for the user to assume the captured images will be in focus. This is a poor user experience and greatly reduces confidence in the system.
When using the A7R5, I feel something magical happening. It feels like AI is not just a buzzword but something real. Fujifilm’s AI feels like marketing as I don’t see it doing anything that makes me believe it’s smarter than “if-this-then-that” logic in typical programming.
Image Quality
The 26MP APSC sensor in the X-T4 is a legendary sensor. It’s widely known that the wafer at a pixel level is similar to the one used in the Sony A7R4 and the GFX100 series. All of these cameras are renowned for their image quality, low noise and excellent dynamic range. All of this is to say the previous sensor was already excellent.
In comes the new 40MP sensor, utilizing the same back-side illuminated technology of the previous sensor. We normally expect more pixels across the same surface area to result in more noise, however Fujifilm seems to have limited the noise increase to a level that is not noticeable.
While a 54% increase in the number of pixels sounds like a lot, in reality, the linear increase is only 24%. To put this into perspective, if you were printing a super high resolution image at 300dpi of 21" x 14", the extra resolution would allow you to print 5” wider and 3.3” taller. It’s a nice increase, but not life changing. To make visualizing the difference in resolution easier, the below image is scaled so that the GFX100S is 100%, and all other cameras are relative to that.
One area that does appear to suffer however is not really image quality per se, but more the image capturing pipeline. I noticed more rolling shutter effect when in the higher resolution video modes. I haven’t been able to source sensor readout information so I can’t quantify the difference at this time.
In summary, Fujifilm has provided a useful increase in resolution, without any negatives in terms of image quality. There is however the impact on rolling shutter.
Conclusion
Expectations were high going into the X-T5 launch. Fujifilm talked up their new 40MP sensor and the improvements from the brand new AI autofocus system. I think they exceeded expectations with the new sensor but have come up short on the autofocus system.
The new sensor gives us more resolution without incurring any downsides like noise or speed impacts. Fujifilm continues to be a leader in their colour reproduction using their excellent film simulations. This, when paired with the new sensor, is a perfect pallet from which to capture your version of the world around us.
In 2022, all of the major camera manufacturers have figured out autofocus. Sony has been the leader for a long time and continues to lead; they keep going from strength to strength. Canon and Nikon have nearly caught up, especially Canon. Fujifilm does well with a static subject, but when moving, things quickly fall apart.
This is no longer acceptable and I think Fujifilm is going to start losing customers due to this. There are other differentiators that attract people to Fujifilm like the control dials, however other manufacturers have started to offer this too. Sony and Sigma now have aperture rings on their latest lenses. Shutter speed and ISO can easily be mapped to the two dials present on almost every camera. With that setup, you have all the manual controls that you could want, while having completely reliable autofocus performance.
For the past several years, when people asked me which camera they should buy, I often recommended the X-T line as the first choice and the Sony offerings if they were willing to spend more and/or were wed to the idea of a full frame sensor. Unfortunately, until Fujifilm can make some major improvements, I won’t be recommending the X-T5 to new users given the poor subject tracking autofocus performance.
It’s a shame that we’re at this point with Fujifilm. They have some of the most beautiful cameras on the market, with incredible sensors, and film simulations that make editing so easy. They have a set of jewel-like lenses with edge to edge sharpness and high image quality. They have the wonderful dials and a long history to call upon. All they need to do is to fix their autofocus performance.
If you’re an existing Fujifilm user and mostly taking images of static subjects, the X-T5 will be an excellent camera. If you’re a Fujifilm user that was hoping for a big step forward in subject tracking autofocus, you may want to consider switching to another camera brand. If you’re looking for your first camera, a Sony or Canon will certainly provide you with an easier photography experience.
For my purposes, Fujifilm didn’t deliver what I was hoping for. If there are no major improvements to the subject tracking autofocus performance via firmware updates in the near future, when it comes time to update my camera, I foresee my X-T5 being replaced with a Sony.
What I’d like to see in a future firmware update:
- Improved subject tracking autofocus performance that inspires confidence.
- An auto subject detection mode where the camera takes a best guess whether the subject is a human, animal, car, train or airplane. If that’s not possible, Fujifilm should combine the human modes with the new subject detection modes.
- An option to centre the focus point by clicking the focus lever (like how it’s implemented in the X-T4 and GFX 100S)
The above is an excerpt, the full review can be found here. Happy to answer any questions you may have.
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Travel and photography blog: fcracer.com
