Here are 3 reasons why I love making images on FujiFilm
I’ve been making photos with digital mirrorless cameras since 2017. I originally shot on a Sony a6000 and my first lens was a 50mm f1.8 I had no idea what the equivalent on a cropped APSC sensor meant back then so my 50mm was really a 75mm focal length. No wonder my photos always felt so tight and I always had to back up a lot when shooting my subjects, especially my food. Food was the main reason I got into photography in the first place. I use to love taking photos (and still do) on whatever mobile phone I had at the time. This is how I first got use to composing and framing images in the most basic way. I learned a little bit about lighting too from food photography since you had to use light and shadows to make a photo look good and interesting. So that love for food photography slowly turned into a love for portraits and taking images of people. In 2017, I was dancing a lot at a studio I use to own called House of Movement. It was through dance that I realize that dancers love having photos taken of them, both for fun and for professional reasons. So, in January of 2017 I started taking portraits of my friends with my Sony a6000. The images were amazing and I was already fond of how a portrait lens like the 50mm was making my subjects look pleasing to look at. I can’t remember how long it was after using Sony for a while but then I discovered the magic of FujiFilm. My cousin would shoot on his X-T2 and the moment I saw how the JPEGs were coming straight out of camera I was hooked. Here is a list of the 3 reasons why I love making photos on FujiFilm.
1. The retro designs of FujiFilm are incredible. I love how retro the design of these cameras are and they make me proud to wear around my arm when I’m out shooting. I can’t tell you the number of times people who see my camera think it’s an old film camera. If you love that old vintage-looking feel of a camera but want all the benefits of a digital camera then I highly recommend FujiFilm cameras. Pictured above is the classic X100S which features a range finger style camera body with a fixed 23mm (35mm full frame equivalent) lens. It is a beautiful retro design of a camera and it has all the dials and buttons on the exterior of the camera so most of your settings are within reach with out having to pop into a menu to change things. You can control settings like ISO, Shutter Speed, and Aperture right from the outside of the camera.
2. Film Simulations. Now speaking of FILM. FujiFilm has been doing Film color stock since the 1930s, longer than any of the other camera brands have been producing their photography equipment. FujiFilm knows it’s colors. This is a major reason why I decided to switch to FujiFilm from Sony. While Sony images do have a lot of data to work with in editing, FujiFilm JPEGs allow a photographer to capture beautiful film like simulations straight out of camera already applied to the images. This makes it not only more fun to shoot with in my opinion on Fuji but it also makes it much easier on the editing workflow if you don’t like to edit too much like me.
3. Cost. FujiFilm cameras are some of the more affordable bodies and cameras on the market. I used to shoot with Sony Full Frame cameras like the A7II and combined with the full-frame lenses, I was going broke fast shooting on Sony. FujiFilm focuses its camera system on the APSC sensor which is a cropped version of a full-frame camera. This just means that the files are slightly smaller images to work with. But I find that this means Fuji can produce smaller more affordable cameras/lenses. All the cameras I have owned for Fuji have been of the highest quality materials. Pictured here is a FujiFilm X-E2S which I got for $450 used from Adorama. The gray lens attached to it is a TTArtisan 27mm f2.8 lens which retails for just $150 NEW. And the lens in the foreground is the very fast and sharp Fujinon 35mm f2 lens which retails for around $400. Compare that to some Sony full-frame cameras and the difference is very clear. Fujifilm Cameras are also lighter and smaller to carry around than other cameras I’ve tried. The best camera is the one you have on you, so might as well find the best reason to have these cameras around you with the smaller form factors.
Fujifilm digital cameras have always been the more FUN camera for me to shoot with for the above reasons. When it comes to the use of the camera, the images it produces and the accessibility of the equipment - all of these elements combined are why I love shooting on FujiFilm!
