My journey of "downgrading" from full frame to APS-C (Part 2)

X-Pro1 was my walk-around-camera for self leisure and behind-the-scene-camera during fashion editorial shoot (replacing the 7D) for the first two months after I bought it.

I also borrowed my brother's 35mm f1.4 (50mm full frame equivalent) and 14mm f2.8 (21mm full frame equivalent) few times to play around.

I really love the straight out of camera jpeg's skin tone and the accurate white balance. And the most beautiful thing about it was when I use the 35mm wide open at f1.4, the sharpness was amazing compared to my Canon system! Another thing I love about my X-Pro1 was the spread of its focus points in the viewfinder, not cramping in the center like DSLR does.

Then, I started to use it as my second camera, replacing my 5D Mark2 for wedding assignments. The firmware upgrade did improve a lot for the focusing speed but one thing for sure is that X-Pro1 is not built for fast pace shooting. The focus locking on target was not as good as my Canon, not even close. However, if it's lock on, you will be damn sure the target is in focus.

Being used to 5D Mark3's 100% viewfinder coverage, It took me a while to get used to the X-Pro1's OVF for composition. I never bother using the EVF for moving targets anyway. The frame rate was just too slow and I missed a lot of moments. The only time that I might use EVF is probably when I shoot still targets, easier to get correct composition. Low light performance? It hunts a lot with 35mm, slightly better when using the newer 18-55mm.

Despite having all these "inconveniences" by using X-Pro1, I never had the thought of get rid of it. The usage of X-Pro1 became more and more frequent in my workflow. I just love the image quality of it! Not to mention it's weight and feel in my hand. Somehow without my early realization, I became a slower shooter. I can hear my own breathing when I look into the viewfinder of X-Pro1. I can feel the moments and press the shutter when it is time.

The straight out of camera jpeg's dynamic range is also very nice. Details of the highlight and shadow are nicely rendered even in high ISO.

However, for critical moments such as wedding or any other events, I still relied on my Canon. Not to mention fast pace fashion shoot when the model keep on changing pose, X-Pro1's capability ends here I'm afraid.

People love to discuss about full frame vs APS-C high ISO performance. Indeed there is a huge gap between my 5D Mark3 and 7D in terms of noise level and details. Unless you zoom everything to 100% in the screen for pixels peeping, there were not much of a difference between Fujifilm APS-C and Canon full frame though my ISO usage were limited to 6400 only. Besides, I never make large print with high ISO images.

The biggest print I did was like 8"x10" at ISO1600 in photo album. The advantage of full frame sensor with cleaner and more details in high ISO no longer apply to me. I am pretty sure along the way when sensor technologies evolve, whether it's a APS-C, micro four third or any other smaller sensors, the performance will be beyond your imagination. But what about megapixel? This is also another topic that creates a lot of discussions. I will talk about it later. :)

Although X-Pro1 has the image quality and weight that I wanted, I was still waiting for Fujifilm to release the camera that will actually "Wow" me. At that time, X-E2 was already in the market but with only EVF that perform slightly better than X-Pro1, thus I don't see the need of it. Then came the launch of X-T1.

I have always fascinate Canon F1 from the old days but I never owned it. The fascination was triggered by a Japanese movie, "Love Collage" starring Ryoko Hirosue. X-T1's SLR form factor actually looks similar to Canon F1. That was the first thought when I first saw X-T1. So you can imagine I was a bit disappointed when i learned that X-T1 only comes with EVF but disappointment became excitement after I gone through extensive read up of X-T1 reviews.

The decision was finally made: a X-T1 together with XF 56mm f1.2 (85mm full frame equivalent) shall join me in my photography journey!

One of the biggest reasons that I decided to acquire X-T1 was the future lens road map promised by Fujifilm. Most focal lengths that I used, be it prime or zoom, are in the list and I am pretty sure the quality will be guaranteed.

Do stay tune for part 3, which will be the last part. :)

Further reading:
My journey of "downgrading" from full frame to APS-C (Part 1)

My journey of "downgrading" from full frame to APS-C (Part 3)