Fujifilm X-T30 review

Specifically for static subjects? Yes, the GX9 will be much better. If you are using lenses with the same f-number on both the X-T30 and the GX9, the GX9 will be about 3 stops better, due to the IBIS.

And dont forget Fuji is actually a stop lower due to their own cheating ISO measurements (ISO1600 is really ISO800 etc) so Panasonic is an additional stop faster.

Nah, IBS is ok, but not necessary. The Fuji offers so much more than other brands and that’s why it gets the gold award.

It's not just IBIS. It's camera with a lot of nice features, and output which some will go for, maybe some won't. But to get a Gold you really ought to at least equal the opposition on nearly everything, and be a clear leader on significant features.

Take the G90/G95. It offers IBIS, weather sealing, better ergonomics, a better EVF, and a good 24-120 equivalent kit lens as opposed to a 27-83 kit lens. The X-T30 bests the G90/G95 on some features but loses out on significant ones. It's a Silver at most.

Agreed.

The weighting is very strange on this award. It seems almost entirely to be towards pure image quality, and substantially weighted towards video quality, especially.

As you say, the G95 will definitely only get a Silver Award, despite being significantly better than the X-T30 in a broad number of ways.

When it is Fuji or Sony, almost all negatives are neglected. If this was a Canon or Panasonic, it'd get a much lower point.

Sorry m4/3rds fans...I'll take the APS-C sensor any day over IBIS. It's only helpful for static low light shots where you can go slow on the shutter speed. Over-rated feature IMO and useless for me. Low light for means either people who tend to move, or nightscape or astro where you need a tripod.

That's a fairly narrow, reductive way to look at a feature with extremely broad applicability.

The ability to hike into the backcountry with no tripod and easily take a photo like this when the opportunity and the composition presents itself has value to me. Maybe not to you.

https://i.imgur.com/W7wu12k.jpg

This isn't low light, but is a shot where it is totally impossible to substitute a larger sensor for good stabilization. Just as IBIS doesn't help with low-light where you need fast shutter speeds, neither does a big sensor help with situations where you want slow shutter speeds intentionally.

...As an aside, we'll ignore the fact that APS-C sensors are only slightly bigger than M4/3. It's not like there's a major difference in low light performance in the real world...

@Androole - I like your shot, thanks for the link. I like to hike and take pics too. Once you are outdoors during the day, a zoom lens with OIS can do effectively the same thing. Fuji's 18-55 with built-in OIS is good for shots like that. It's still f/2.8 at 18mm.

This debate goes round and round...I'm just in the IBIS is "no big deal camp" but am biased by the type of photography I like and only into video very casually.

I would agree with your 3rd point and can understand the many photographers where the 4/3rd sensor works for them, it is a negative to many, however. I've been in the APS-C camp for a long time, its my comfort zone so I rate it fairly high, but that's only an opinion. It's why with talk about marking cameras down for not having IBIS, I would mark them down for a 4/3rd sensor, especially something very expensive like the OMD E-M1X.

I absolutely agree that IBIS should be standard. It's a wonderful feature that vastly extends the shooting envelope and allows you to get shots that are impossible to get without it (even with big sensors).

... But that still doesn't change the fact that your initial statement was unhelpful hyperbole.

You can buy a $5 monopod that would look better on video than IBIS. There's so much jello-ing that happens with IBIS. it doesn't make for good video. Yeah it helps if you're shooting on a shoulder rig or a monopod but you shouldn't be using IBIS just by itself. That's some super lazy filmmaking right there. Fuiji and Panasonic understand this, and leave it out of their MILC's geared towards video.

When it is Fujifilm, no issue is biggie. If it is Canon or Panasonic, all issues are exaggerated to sky high limits.

I thought the video sample reel, half of which is handheld using a stabilized lens, actually looked quite good without IBIS. Of course, a nonstabilized lens would look much worse, but the readout speed of this sensor is so fast that you get much less wobbly/jello effect than some other options at this price point.

Wetsleet it has nothing to do with digital, DSLR viewfinders had gotten crappier with the onset of autofocus, slow lenses and cost cutting. Generally DSLRs have viewfinders comparable to AF film cameras of the same class. D70's OVF isn't any worse than F75's. And it just got better from there.

Manual focus cameras are a completely different beast. If you mount a f/3.5-5.6 zoom on FE2, you wouldn't even see anything in the viewfinder.

I do agree though that a good viewfinder is among the most important features of a camera. I don't care if it has 4k or unacnny AF, if the camera isn't fun to use or I have problems distinguishing what I'm looking at, I'm not gonna use it. So of course I'd "send it back", why spend money on something you don't like?

@samfan "of course I'd "send it back", why spend money on something you don't like?" Exactly my point - if you don't like something *listed in the spec* then why spend money on it (only to send it back and trash the product in reviews)?

My beef is not with buying a product and finding it does not live up to its promises (then, yes, send it back). My beef is with those who send a product back for living up to a promise, one that they already (should have) knew they did not like.

Anyway, I did have an F100 (autofocus film SLR) between the FE2 and the D70, its viewfinder was big enough. The D70 was the shock with its tunnel effect view of the world. It was very much to do with the move to digital, because that ushered in smaller formats into SLRs, and the viewfinder optics did not seem to compensate for the reduced image size. At least that is my understanding.

The importance of the viewfinder experience (both optical and electronic) has consistently been underplayed in the consumer press for many years in my opinion. Unfortunately, this has contributed to the current situation, where in order to get a decent viewfinder, you have to pay top dollar for tons of features you don't need and just clutter up the picture taking interface (in my case that includes all things AF- and video- related).

Everything from Olympus, Pentax and Panasonic?

Though my bad, I thought Sony is putting IBIS into everything, guess not since 6400 doesn't have it. Weird.

may wait for another wave from sony aps-c with ibis. kind of a7iii mini.

Tell us why then.

No, the X-T3 was only better in wishful thinking at hype-time.

Which is funny, wasn't Fuji one of the pioneers of face detection in cameras?

Yes. Especially if, like me, they just bought into the Fujifilm system via the X-T3 and were considering a backup body. Every Canon enthusiast and professional body I've owned shoots tethered but that is not the case with Fuji.

Jp, only the high end Olympus mft do tethering, the rest don't. Canon m, m3, m5, m6, m10, m100 ďont tether. Not sure about Nikons. Fuji its only the single digit t series and I think the pro. The rest don't. So many companies dont offer it.

You are completely out of touch with the market segment this camera is aimed at.

@getochkn
Thanks! I've all but ignored the M-series so wasn't aware that Canon neglected to add tethering to its lower-tier mirrorless. Really strange considering even the Rebel/x00D line can do that. Same with most of Nikon low-tier.

Once Canon replace it (still partly crippled), it will RIP.
I feel RiP is better than cRaP.

Or just RP.

Actually, It looks more like a Russian camera, e.g. ZENIT 122, almost like a replica.

@Sergey Maybe I should have said a Communist camera. I do agree, it reminds me of a Zenit.

Yep, too high. All those cameras except for perhaps the Sony have better handling. So although the X-T30 scores on paper, for most people the others provide a better shooting experience.

Huh... better handling!? Fuji cameras have some of the best handling... for those of us that are fuji fans at least.

handling is superb if you put a lens mate thumb grip on it. No problems hitting the Q button anymore

??? I've bought a XT30 yesterday in a regular shop in Paris, France (not online but a physical shop with the 2 years waranty). The price was 839€ (20% VAT inlc). What kind of Sony FF can I get for "a little more" than this price ? And what kind of comparable DSLR can I get for "much less" money ? A D7500 is more expensive.

839€ was not a discount price, but the regular one.

BOOM

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1102008-REG/sony_ilce7m2_b_a7ii_mirrorless_digital_camera.html/?ap=y&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI7oKZkZTa4QIV7x6tBh25EQUcEAQYASABEgKvKPD_BwE&lsft=BI%3A514&smp=Y

BOOM MK2

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1366792-REG/nikon_13533_d7200_dual_zoom_lens.html

Nikon 7200... are you serious ? You meant MUCH less money, not just the same. To align, you had to bring the former generation (like a much cheaper XT20, not XT30). How many generations do you need to dig so as to get a MUCH lower price ?

And regarding FF... Sony 7M2 ? com'on ... it's more expensive, and how is it a better camera, except for weather sealing ?

Not a good example to really appreciate (or not) the X-Trans sensor : the picture was taken at F2, the DOF is not big enough so only the center of the image is sharp... Also, this 23mm is not very sharp on the edges. Even stopped down at F4.5 (image #31) or F5.6 (Image #30) we can see soft edges.

why do other brand owner seem so angst to be critical?

Xtrans is just a dirtpile of crap I could gladly live without, that is from someone who owns two Fuji cameras, does not want a Sony for its ergonomics and does not care to spend thousands on a full frame mirrorless. I will depart from xtrans as soon as there is a somewhat ergonomical and economical alternative. Well, it seems like that may take a while...

There are plenty of cameras out there without X-Trans. If you don't like X-Trans, you should get one of those.

So since you actually use the weather proof feature, what exactly does it mean? I drowned a D7000 in a very light drizzle? So can you shoot all day in a steady rain? Or is there a time limit? And what about really driving rain with big raindrops? Could you share how you judge when it’s safe and when it isn’t?

Weather sealing or not I'd still use a bag to cover my gear if shooting in the rain.

Fuji also has a great line of quality lenses, with some of their better lenses at better prices. As for IBIS, you are correct, that is the only fly in the ointment. The next generation of Fuji cameras, the X-H2, X-T4, etc will have so little weaknesses when IBIS becomes standard. That's when I will switch over.

For what? OSPDAF on a lower priced body? I'll grant you that's one area where Oly has dropped the ball entirely and Pana's DFD remains unconvincing... Fuji's lens lineup is definitely competitive, I'd even give them the slight edge on primes but M4/3 has a far wider variety of primes. There's a few things M4/3 still does better across both brands and people almost take for granted now.

IBIS is the most obvious even if it's situational... But Oly and Pana's face and eye detect implementations still look more refined based on this review, and both brands also have cheaper bodies than the X-T30 but with robust weather sealing... And 4K without a 10 minute limit. There's no wrong choice here tbh, but right now I dunno why anyone invested in either system would jump ship.

Totally no reason to switch systems for this. Fuji has its own strengths and weaknesses. Mft is just fine as well.

Fuji has small weather resistant primes, this is something m43 lacks.

This camera is heavy at .84lbs. It got gold rating. It could have fetched higher than $899.00 if it got that precious red dot.

It is joystick position, q-menu position, viewfinder, grip, shutter release button, pinky hanging around, hand gets cramped with heavier lenses and so on. Every camera is a compromise and at this camera size and price a lot of those compromises have to do with the quality of usage. It matters a lot to me but it may not for you. Specs and looks are surely great at this price point, but for sure it is no x-t3 (which has its own compromises).

Personally I think these small cameras (like E3 as well) work best with a compact prime as a snapshot camera.

Haven't used X-T30, but on previous models a thumb grip ($10 on e-bay) makes the world of difference on how ergonomic the camera is. It also lifts your thumb off the back of the camera, so you won't be accidentally pressing anything.

A part of the appeal of the XT30 is its smaller overall body and lens size. Sure you can get sometime like the 35mm F2.8 prime but the a7II will still be a bit bigger especially if you plan to eventually use faster glass.

The 10 minute time limit is a very, very surprising omission for an otherwise comprehensive review of the video features.

We hadn't encountered these issues, but will check them and update the review accordingly.

@Sir 7: For $1000€ you can get a camcorder with a 1/2.8" sensor. This sensor would be considered small even on a $500 smartphone. Much better 1"-type sensor camcorders are about $1500€. Even these camcorders cannot compete in image quality with mirrorless interchangeable lens cameras.

Small sensor P&S market is dead, and so is small sensor camcorder market.

That being said, camcorders don't have the limits being discussed. And neither do many of the competitors.

Then get a good more-expensive video camera if you want a professional video camera.

You can say anything you want to, but this is not a video camera. It's a camera. And a mid-level one at that.

I don't need a professional video camera. I don't need a professional ($5000€+) stills camera either. Would you advice people to buy one, if they want to take photography seriously? Maybe a second one as a backup?

My Panasonic G7 is excellent for my needs.

Have you noticed that Jordan uses GH5(s) for shooting DPReviewTV episodes? Have you heard how much he likes new Fuji's for video?

Oh, by the way, I forget that there is the Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera. It is in the same price range as X-T30. It's shaped as a digital stills camera.

P.S. I never said that X-T30 is a good video camera.

Sir 7 - I've disabled video on my camera. Cameras are compromised by fitting stills and video in the same machine. I think the argument originated due to wedding photographers wanting to shoot both stills and video. But the world isn't made up entirely of wedding photographers. If people want video they should get a video camera. It irritates me when stills cameras get slammed because they don't do 4K properly. Utterly ridiculous. End of rant.

@Oleg; We confirmed the 10 minute recording limit and are updating the review accordingly. Thanks for catching that!

@entoman:
Yeah, I've asked DPR to separate their reviews going forward into photo-only and video-only for each camera that does both. Nope, they ain't havin' it...

The 10 minute limit is mentioned in the review as 'The X-T30 captures beautiful 4K/30p footage using the full width of the sensor, though the maximum recording time is 10 minutes'

I shot the DPRTV episode using both the mic jack and USB-C for headphones. There must be some wider adapters out there that are giving people issues, but I can confirm that you can use both simultaneously.

I asked fuji about this today. I have overheating issues last night.Heres what they said.... slow memory cards cause this! So I got home put my 170MB sans disk in and shot 15 minutes solid with no overheating. Last night I was over heating at 5 minutes...

Yep, and let's get a pigeon to fly across the sky, preferably with some distracting trees behind it. That would test the ability to track a subject *across* the field of view, without jumping off onto the background.

Got any trained pigeons handy, Carey?

@entoman: I can't speak for Carey, but we have a lot more Canada Geese than pigeons. They're usually angry, so we might be able to have one attacking Dan from above.

Jeff - Just as long as the goose doesn't drop something on Dan!

Great suggestion, whumber.

No shade on the day-to-day usability of Panasonic's CDAF, but given that their last several cameras have gotten essentially a 100% hit rate on the bike test, it suggests that a more demanding test would really highlight the latest systems that are more adaptable to extreme subject matter.

The swingset in particular is a great idea, because it is extremely easy to replicate, but has constantly variable position in two axes (or even 3 axes if you took the photos from an oblique angle) AND variable acceleration, so it really tests the algorithms.

What we really need is a subject that moves erratically, both to and fro, and across the frame. Objects that move at a steady rate of acceleration are too easy to be of any real value in testing subject tracking. I'll leave you guys to figure out how to go about it though...

That's why the swingset test is so good, though. It's a person on a pendulum, so the position, velocity, and acceleration is all constantly varying according to a sine curve.

http://www.webassign.net/question_assets/ncsucalcphysmechl3/lab_7_1/images/figure3.png

I don't think any of the AF tracking systems could be tuned for such regular but still erratic motion.

whumber - Yes possibly being a llittle *too* ambitious to incorporate zooming.

But in absolute seriousness, I think your suggestion for a swing test is the single best suggestion that any commenter has ever made on these forums!

I went today to the park with my family, and put my baby on the swingset to test eye AF on the updated a7III ;) (Just for record: 100% hit rate, tasted with 85mm and 16-35mm at different apertures)