Friday, August 21, 2015

Felix Gets a New Camera and it's NOT a Sony!

Scroll down for product and sample images.

I have what some might call, an addiction. And while it might cost as much money as a coke habit, my addiction is certainly not as harmful, at least I don't think it is. My addiction is photography and/or cameras. Do I need more cameras than I already have in my vast inventory? Most definitely not. But cameras are cool, and I get a lot of joy from owning, collecting and shooting with my various cameras. That being said, I remain frugal, and almost always buy my cameras used, whenever possible and whenever those used cameras are in "like new" condition.

I have been looking at a few different cameras as of late, the Sony RX100 IV for example, for it's ability to shoot high definition, super slow motion video and it shoos in 4K video. But I have also been looking at the Fuji X20.

The Fuji X20 came out a couple years ago, so there are plenty of nice, used models available on eBay. Needless to say, I have been doing some browsing.

It's a little known fact, that when I made the switch from Nikon, my first camera was not a Sony but a Fuji! I don't remember the exact model number I had but it was something like a Fuji Finepix S1000 that came in around 10mp. Anyway, it shot outstanding photos and I really liked that camera. As a result of my pleasant first go around with a Fuji, I have great confidence in the brand.

I had already been tossing the idea around of picking up a used Fuji X20 for a couple weeks because I wanted a decent grab-n-go pocket camera. The Sony A6000 should have filled that requirement but unless I use the 16-50mm kit lens that comes with the A6000, it's not really a camera that will fit in your pocket. Usually, I throw on my Zeiss 16-70mm lens which is a really high quality bad ass lens, but then the camera won't fit in my pocket because the Zeiss lens is quite a big longer than the Sony kit lens. But I digress.

The Fuji design is retro-styled, which I really like and features a fixed, zoom lens. I've been watching a number of review videos and have been reading up on the various reviews on the web, all of which are quite positive. But what really closed the deal on my decision to buy one is the fact that my good shooting partner, Turner, spontaneously bought the higher-end Fujifilm X100T the other day when we were down in Seoul. So I was able to get some trigger time on his Fuji which is really similar to the X20.

What I like best about the Fujifilm X20 is the "film simulation" feature. Which, as the name implies, produce images with the look at feel of a variety of types of 35mm film including: Provia, Velvia, Astia, Pro Negative, Monochrome and Sepia. I really love the look of film pictures, but I don't always want to wait to for my film photos to be developed. I think the film simulation feature of the Fujifilm X20 will be a fun tool but in the back of my mind I'm wondering if it will cause me to use my actual film cameras less? It remains to be seen.

The Fujifilm X20 is 12mp on a 2/3 inch sensor and can shoot at 12fps, that's even faster than my A6000! The lens is a Fujinon 28-112 power zoom and also has 2x digital zoom. I'm excited to shoot with it.Turner and I will be producing a video comparing this Fujifilm X100T and my X20, so stay tuned.

The average price for a new Fujifilm X20 is around $475 USD. I paid $302 for my used model which includes a case, 2 extra batteries and lens filter. The buyer listed it in "mint condition".

For more information read this awesome review at the Photography Blog - http://www.photographyblog.com/reviews/fujifilm_x20_review/

Here is the official Fuji page - http://www.fujifilm.com/products/digital_cameras/x/fujifilm_x20/

Here are some photos of the actual camera that I purchased on eBay...





Here are some stock product images of the Fujifilm X20...












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