Today we're gonna talk about this thing here,
the Fuji X-Pro 3, which may surprise some of you,
considering that I don't usually care about these throwback
rangefinder-style cameras, or really vintage aesthetic
in general, and also considering this
camera definitely places its primacy on photography.
But, after using it for a while, I recorded seven things about
this camera that impressed me that I wanted to tell you about.
Let's get Undone. [offbeat music]
♪ Gerald Undone ♪ ♪ He's crazy ♪
What's happening, everybody? I'm Gerald Undone,
and I fought the RAW, and the RAW won.
So it's autumn here in Canada, there's colourful leaves
everywhere, and I've got a camera loaded with
Fuji's terrific film emulations,
so let's go take some pictures and count down this list.
And in fact, let's make those film emulations
number one on the list, because I really like what
Fuji's done to expand upon their already-terrific processing,
and as someone who's a big fan of film emulation, I really
like seeing the extra steps that they've done to give you more
features in the menu, as well as adding the "CLASSIC Neg"
and "Mono CL" emulation. You also have the option
for "Color Chrome FX Blue," which you can adjust to either
"strong" or "weak," as well as now a clarity slider, which is
pretty great. So for all the images that we're shooting
today, we're gonna do straight out of camera JPEG so that you
can see some of the looks that you can get with this camera.
[serene music]
♪
And sticking with film emulation,
my number two thing that I think is cool about
the X-Pro3 is this little sub-monitor on the back.
It doesn't show you the regular things that an LCD screen would,
which I think encourages you to use the viewfinder more,
chip less, and get more into taking photos.
And what's great is that you can actually set it up,
like I have now, to show the sort of preview window of
the film stock that you're using, so it obviously kinda
looks like a film camera, and in there you can also
get your ISO setting and your white balance.
And I think this is just a really great feature overall
and sort of ties in with Fuji's film emulation.
But if you need it, there still is a full LCD hidden under
here that you can just fold down like that, which you can use
for multiple viewing angles, and it's one of the modern
Fuji high-resolution screens, it's touch-capable.
It's great, no issues with it whatsoever.
But I think this camera definitely does encourage you
to use the viewfinder, which is one of the best
in the business, and it's actually a combo viewfinder.
There's a hybrid optical viewfinder, which you can use
just like you would with a film camera, but then there's also
an electronic viewfinder in there. The optical viewfinder
is fun, but I still prefer the electronic viewfinder.
[whimsical music]
♪
Now, moving away from older concepts like
optical viewfinders and film stocks,
let's talk about something modern for number three,
which is Fuji's best autofocus system to date.
Not only can the X-Pro3 fire off 11 frames per second
with a mechanical shutter, but you'll get a high keeper
rate thanks to very fast AF, reliable face and eye detection,
and this new setting that allows you to set a range limit
to the autofocus in the menu of the camera instead
of that function being restricted to specific lenses.
And you still have familiar features, like the case
settings for autofocus, which you can fine-tune,
as well as linear focusing for manual focus,
so you don't have to worry about that focus-by-wire stuff.
It's not the fastest autofocusing system when
it comes to sports or intense action,
but it's very capable and more than enough for the
type of shooting this camera's made for.
[whimsical music]
♪
Speaking of drive speed, my number four item
is the menu screen for shutter type.
Fuji definitely wins the prize for the most useful
and informative shutter selection screen I've ever seen.
Not only does it explain what each setting means
and its ideal purpose, but it also lists the shutter
speed limitations of each mode and the crossover point
for the hybrid modes, so you'll know at which shutter speed
you switch from the mechanical shutter to the electronic one.
And in the case of the electronic front curtain,
it actually tells you that you'll get better image quality
when below 1/2000th of a second, so people can hopefully
stop being surprised and complaining in the forums
when they get worse results at fast speeds using those modes.
[whimsical music]
♪
Number five is the shutter button. Now, I've had some
issues with some of the Fuji cameras in the past, having
responsiveness of a shutter button that I don't really like.
Either they were way too sensitive, or the throw was
too long, and they gave squishy feedback.
But the shutter on the X-Pro3 is tuned very nicely,
and it has a lower release lag than the previous models.
♪
OK, so number six is the video functionality.
Now, make no mistake, this is definitely
a stills camera, but what I like about it is
that you're not exactly limited when it comes to video.
Now, I wouldn't recommend buying this camera if you need
a dedicated video camera because there are some
limitations, like a 15-minute record limit in 4K,
there's no HDMI port,
and there's no standard microphone or headphone jacks.
But if you're a photographer mainly who just would
occasionally like to record some high-quality video clips,
then you're not missing out by getting this camera because you
CAN record up to 15-minute clips in 4K, and you have access
to all the same film emulations, like ETERNA and even F-Log.
It has reliable eye and face detection in video,
focus peaking, a tally light, zebras, and even a dedicated
mode for video so you can separate your settings.
In fact, I'd even go as far as to say that it has better
video options than some of the hybrid cameras from competitors.
I hate that I have to say this, but it can record
24 fps in 1080p and 4K.
In 4K, the highest you can go is 30 fps, and 60 fps in 1080p,
but it does have a dedicated 120 fps in-camera slow-motion
mode for 1080p that you can record with autofocus,
and you can do all this at 200 megabits per second.
The only thing really holding it back is, like I said, the ports
and ergonomics and the 4K recording limit, but this
is great add-on capability for a mostly-still shooter.
[whimsical music]
♪
Lastly, number seven. I love the new finishes
and the new build materials. There's three trims
for the X-Pro3: you've got the standard black, and then
the Duratec black and Duratec silver, and all of them come
with the new titanium top and bottom plate instead of just
a regular magnesium body for added structural integrity
without increasing the weight. Now, the Duratec silver
and black do come at a price premium,
but they're scratch-resistant.
In fact, one of the first things that
I did was take a blade to it. I have the silver
Duratec version here, and it really is scratch-resistant.
I was digging the blade in pretty hard, and no matter how
hard I tried, the scuffs just wiped away with just my finger.
Pretty cool stuff.
[soft music]
♪
So those are the things that impressed me
the most about this camera. Now, I didn't give you
a spec rundown because you can easily just read that,
but I should mention that this camera now has an upgraded
sensor over the previous version using the X-Trans version 4,
which is gonna up your resolution to 26 megapixels,
and it's also going to improve your lower ISO range.
You can go down to ISO 160 now, natively, down from the ISO 200
on the previous models, and then up to ISO 12,800.
And the battery life is improved over the previous model as well,
with a rating of 370 shots over the X-Pro2's 280 shots,
but it's still using the same 126 battery,
which you can find in the X-T series and the E series.
That battery is a tough one for me, though.
I don't really like the Fuji batteries.
I wish that they were bigger and better.
I can kind of appreciate how keeping the battery congruent
with all the different cameras does make it easier
for camera upgrade path, and if you already own one
of the previous models, well, now you can carry your
batteries over, and that's great. But unfortunately,
that also means that the weakest link in these cameras--
like with the X-T3, for example is usually the battery.
That being said, though this camera, along with
the other recent Fuji releases, does allow for USB charging and
active powering via the USB-C port as long as it's
connected to a power delivery charger, which I appreciate.
Anyway, that's pretty much it. I think this camera offers
a lot for its price tag. It's coming in at $1,800,
or $2,000 depending on the finish that you choose,
and I think for a photographer looking for this style
of camera, that's a pretty good deal,
especially when you consider the price of the other
Leica M rangefinder-style cameras in this space.
I think the Fuji X-Pro 3 is offering you everything
that you could get elsewhere, but in a more durable body,
with more useful screens and features,
and richer video capabilities, and at a lower price.
So if this is the style of camera for you,
then this is the camera for you.
But that's gonna be it for me. I hope you found this video
entertaining, or at least helpful. And if you did,
make sure you leave it the old thumbs-up, and consider
subscribing if you haven't already. But if you did not find
this video helpful or entertaining,
well, then you must like scratches on your camera.
Alright... I'm done.
[gentle music]
♪