With the holiday season almost behind us and the bills starting to chase us, we can get back to normal once again.
I had an opportunity to play, and I mean play, and have fun with another camera these past few weeks. As always I don’t necessarily know, or get to choose what type of camera I get, but none the less it’s always interesting.
The camera in question was the Fujifilm X-20.
First, the entire feel was solid as a brick — a gold brick, I might add. The more we played with this little darling, the more we liked it. It’s a solid die cast magnesium alloy design, and aluminium alloy machined rings, and it’s quite the little gem to hold and use.
To call it a point and shoot would not do this camera justice. It’s loaded with all sorts features and then some. You can use the built-in artistic filters and much more. It has 1080p video, a hybrid view finder that displays important stuff like ISO, Shutter, etc., 12 megapixels, and 4X optical zoom and on and on.
In terms of ease of use, well when we played with this baby all we did was look and push buttons and turn things on, and then saw what results we got from that. And let me tell you, I’m sure anyone can grab this little gem and start taking pictures from the get go.
One of the beefs I have had on some similar cameras of this type is the lack of full manual control, but that is not the case with this unit. Manual mode is manual mode, and you have full control. It will do what you set it to do.
It comes equipped with a built-in flash and hot shoe no less, has a cable release ability, and it will do macro shots and more. Now I know some will want more techy info, but that’s something you can find easily on line.
Price:
I thought the price was a little high for my liking, at almost $600 normally, (you save a $100 on a sale), one can purchase an entry level DSLR that will be upgradeable as you get better, for the same price range.
Ease of use:
Certainly one of the easier and better cameras in its class that I have seen in a while. It won't leave you frustrated trying figure it out, and it's fully manual capable, with good low light ability.
This is one of those cameras that feels good to hold and handle, it’s not cumbersome even in small hands, it has that old retro look to it, and does not in any way look like a toy camera.
Suggested users:
Not sure I would want to try to shoot a wedding or such with this camera, but I would certainly take it to a wedding instead of my regular gear if I were a guest.
It’s an awesome camera for travel and just putting in your brief case or hand bag or jacket pocket. It will almost fit anywhere, and that’s a bonus, because it will take good pictures.
So if you are not looking for a DSLR, but would like a camera that’s capable of doing as it is required by you, this might be the one for you. You certainly will have fun using the many features and filters it comes equipped with.
I think one will be quite pleased with the overall performance. It’s perhaps suited for someone who is a little savvier than a beginner, but has enough know how to cash in on all the features this particular kind of camera has to offer.
One might say it could be the photographer’s version of a point and shoot. In any case, you will certainly have loads of fun with this one, and you can get all sorts of added stuff for this camera, like an old-style leather case, lens hoods, shoe mount flash, and a stereo microphone no less.
It's crazy what you can do with this little gem.
So check it out if you have a chance, you won’t be sorry.
Chuck Swinden is a professional photographer and photography instructor at Rodenas Photography. For more information, visit www.rodenasphotography.com.
