I've been searching for a small(ish) camera for a while now. It didn’t have to be the newest, fastest and cheapest camera around. I have a Fuji X-E1 that I’ve upgraded with an X-T1 and keeping the X-E1 as a backup. So I was looking into getting a pancake lens for that. But with either the XF 18mm or the XF 27mm it still looked a bit large. Not really pocketable. I did like the JPG’s and different film simulations of Fuji. After also looking into the Sony RX100, Olympus XZ-1 / 2 and some others, I decided to go for a Fuji.
After some research (pretty quick actually) I came across the X10 and X20. I liked the idea of having an optical viewfinder. The X100 was a good option also, but the fixed focal length wasn’t versatile enough for me.
After some bids I got my hands on a X10 with 2 original fuji batteries and one third party battery, 2 Lexar Pro 8GB cards (1x400 speed / 1x 133 speed) and two wall-mount chargers all in original box for € 180,-
I just sold my X-E1 for € 190,-, so it felt like a good buy! A 'free' X10 :)
First day
I was meeting a friend the day I got the camera and I couldn’t leave without the X10 of course! The seller charged the batteries so I was good to go.
I took a few quick shots at home. The X10 feels really solid. Small, but hefty. I've read some reviews saying it isn't great for nice bokeh. You can get great bokeh, but it takes a little more work.
Below is my first shot with the X10 at 28mm f/2.0. With a little more effort you can get great background blur.
Fujifilm X10 - 28mm f/2.0 ISO 100
Took a walk to my friend to take some shots. All shot at 28mm ISO 400 f/2.8 (fist one at f/3.6)
I edited them in Lightroom. There isn't much room for highlight recovery in the RAW files.
Although the sensor is small (2/3") you can still get some nice out of focus blur. Below shots are at about 62mm equivalent f/2.5 ISO 800.
After a couple of beers and indecent shots ;) I went home. I am spoiled by the great lowlight capabilities of modern cameras, so ISO 3200 turned out to be a no-go for color shots for me. But I love high contrast gritty looking black and white images, so I converted those to b/w in Lightroom. Below shot (and converted b/w) is at 28mm f/2.0 ISO3200 1/5 second. The stabilization is doing a great job!
A few more shots converted to b/w in Lightroom.
The lens on the X10 is amazing! It looks like the sensor and image processor isn't good enough for it. The bokeh of below shot is amazing! Shot at ISO 3200.
I've been using the X10 only last night, but I already love it. The lens is amazing! The high ISO's aren't great, though. I'll be keeping this camera with me for a while. I'll keep you updated!