I’m not sure the world needs another X-Pro2 review, but as this is my blog the world can sod off, I’m doing one anyway! I’ve had the camera 6 weeks and shot as wide a variety of stuff as I possibly could. I’ve shot a wedding, several model/fashion shoots, wildlife, football, family life, landscapes and a music gig. I’m over 7000 shots in now on this camera so I think this is a fair time to write a review. Overall the camera just feels great, fast , powerful, no sluggishness whatsoever, it performs more like a DSLR than any Fuji yet in terms of speed ( although totally different in form factor ), but still retains the mirrorless fun factor.
Ergonomics and build quality:
The ergonomics are almost perfect..I used an X-T1 extensively for 2 years and I wasn’t sure I was going to bond with this camera, as I’m by no means a rangefinder fanatic ( although I have had an X100s and now x100T for the past 2 years and really love it ). I haven’t really noticed the smaller EVF compared to the X-T1, and I do like the OVF a lot. This is a camera that gets out of your way when you are shooting. I found this with the X-T1 as well, and that’s a good thing. The only miss is that ISO dial..it drove me nuts initially as it’s awkward to use quickly and it’s too hard to turn without messing with the shutter dial. I have found that I’m getting better with it and it may be that six months down the line I love it. Luckily I normally use ISO 200 in the studio and spot metering with auto ISO when outside. I’ve also gotten a lot better at slowing down slightly and taking my time when changing ISO and it’s ok..not as nice the X-T1 solution but ok. Everything else is amazing, the camera feels much better built than the X-T1, I’ve already dropped it on concrete once thanks to the crappy strap Fuji give you, and it was fine. I’ve used it in all sorts of weather, no problem. I’ve not noticed the over heating issue and I’ve only had about 3 instances of the reset camera issue in 7000 shots..I hope they fix that but it’s not a big issue for me.
Autofocus:
The AF is as fast as you will ever need in decent light, and very very good in bad light, especially with the newer lenses. It feels like a step up from the X-T1, the new processor just makes it a bit faster and more sure footed. I’ve captured moments I think I might have missed on my X-T1 if I was relying solely on autofocus. One thing that has really surprised me is how good the tracking/zone focussing is now. I’ve shot two games of kids football and my keeper rate shot up compared to the X-T1.
Battery Life:
I’ve seen a bunch of people saying they are getting terrible battery life with this camera ( less than 200 shots ). I’ve not had that experience, but it does depend on which lens I’m using. On a studio shoot I was typically hitting around 550 shots, but that includes using the 50-140 which I’d expect to drain more battery. At the wedding I shot, it was more like 600 shots, using mostly fast primes and chimping quite a lot. I do use high performance mode, but I also switch the camera off when not using it. I also heard of people wearing it round their neck and leaving it on, which might trigger the eye sensor. One further thing that may be happening is people not charging the battery fully..the battery charger shows green while charging and the light goes out when fully charged I think, which is very confusing, as it also shows an amber light when you first put the battery in. Anyway, to sum it up, the battery life for me is no worse than the X-T1 and its faster to switch on and use so I have no issues switching it to off when not in use. When using the 100-400 the battery level drops a LOT faster..not surprising when using a lens like that I guess.
Image Quality:
The images are great out of this camera, its nice having 24 mp but I was happy enough with 16 for the past few years so it’s not a big deal for me. I’ve been messing around with the noise reduction, at -4 I find it too noisy at high iso but then I’ve never been much good at applying noise reduction in post processing. I’ve heard from people who prefer it that way and get great results. I’ve generally gone for -2 on NR. I’ve found the camera great at high ISO, I’d say about half a stop better than the X-T1 but the real bonus is being able to shoot in raw at 12800. Depending on the quality of the light, you can get some fantastic images all the way up to 12800.
Film Simulations:
I find I’m using these more with dual card slots, as the jpeg just gets written to the secondary card slot. Velvia is has been improved and I’m using it more now than I did on the X-T1 ( I used it for the colour football shots above ). Acros is very nice as many have reported. Overall they are still great. Dual card slots and weather sealing are both a big deal for me, and just add to the value of this camera. I’ve tested the weather sealing pretty thoroughly and all seems well so far. Time for more images!
Conclusion:
The X-Pro2 is not the most capable camera I’ve ever used, that would be the Nikon D750, which is just a great all rounder. However, the X-Pro2 is waaay more fun to shoot with and I don’t need the full capabilities of the a D750. It gives me 95% of the capabilities of a top end DSLR with 100% more fun and I’ll take that! It’s definitely my favourite camera so far I’ve used, it just begs to be picked up and used and as a result, I make better images than I would with a more powerful camera ( I’m not saying this is not a powerful camera, it is, it’s amazing ). Now excuse me, I need to go shoot stuff, the X-Pro2 is calling me again.