Switching from Sony to Fuji? // Fuji X-T5 First Impressions

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[JackieDElia]

Autofocus is not a major issue for me since I shoot single point 99% of the time. I love Fujifilm X-T5 for the colors, dials and film simulations. 📸

[praetorian]

Fuji jpeg algorithm is the best in the industry! The color tonality is so natural and pleasant.

[jg_jgjg]

I switched from Sony to Fuji in 2021. I went from the a6600 to the Fuji xt5. I work as a commercial photographer. After a year I ended up switching to the Fuji xh2s for work, and the xe4 for my family camera. Love Fuji, and 26mpx seems to be my sweet spot at the moment. If at some point I feel like I need more, I may explore the GFX line.

[sarahinscotland]

How fun! I switched to Fuji a couple of years ago (from Canon) because I wanted something more lightweight but super high quality, something affordable and fun. I do a lot of video, so it had to be 4k. I got the Fuji XT4, and have been incredibly happy. I LOVE the external buttons/dials - I almost never have to open my menu in the camera. It's been a game changer for me. My everyday lens is the XF 18-55mm f/2.8-4 R LM "kit" lens, it's tiny and amazing quality. It almost never comes off the camera. It's definitely my favorite travel lens. For longer lens I love the 50-140mm f/2.8 WR (even though it's annoyingly heavy.) The quality is just incredible and it's stabilised. I buy most of my lenses used on MPB here so I've been able to try a bunch. I'm not a pro, so my choice to switch to Fuji was made for lifestyle/price of the whole system/convenience/quality.
(I know you didn't ask, but I got excited to geek out about Fuji for a min)

[MichaelFrederickPhoto]

What sold me on adding Fuji to my “rig” was the ability to play with the recipes on Fuji X Weekly that I can see the end result on the back of the camera in the moment. For my personal project/fun work I want to edit as little as possible. I have a portrait/headshot business, I save my editing time for when I am being paid for it. I have the X-H2 and a R6, I know what I am getting with each camera for the specific job. I got the fringer adapter and been having fun using the EF glass on the Fuji. My Sigma 105 1.4 and XH2, awesome headshot rig if you have the room. At the end of the day, I am very happy with the Fuji system, if I didn’t have a kid going off to college, I would have gotten into the GFX system.

[gilcarag]

Switched from Fuji to Sony more than 1 year ago. I’m not disappointed. The autofocus is far superior to my former XT2’s (not fair comparison). Being able to shoot FF with the same size is also nice.

[iSchneggs]

Terrific insight and analysis! There are many spec-savant reviewers who don’t take into account nuance, ergos, and experiential aspects of photography craft - but you’ve been able to capture such perspectives! I’ve gone through the same analysis, kept my XT-5, have outcompeted my son who solely shoots Sony FF but his pics look over-saturated and -processed all the while my pics look more natural and require much less editing (event and portraits). I’m a single-point shooter 98% of the time, so AF has not been an issue. Well done!

[JakeChambersOy]

As you are new to Fujifilm, I will spare you some headaches. When shooting with closed down aperture on wide angle lenses with AF-S, the camera might sometimes struggle to get the perfect focus, especially in the distance. It will go as far as trying to focus on the same object multiple times will vary in focus distance, with some shots noticeably missing the correct focus. If you have the distance scale displayed in the ui, you can see it varying from 3-5m, 10m and infinity. This is with AF-S!
The workaround is to set the camera to manual focus mode and use Backbutton focusing. This way the camera will aquire focus with the lens wide open, regardless of the set aperture.

This issus has been reported since multiple generations and I had it occur many times on my X-T2, 3 and 5. There are already 4 treads regarding this on Dpreview and you can find some YouTube videos.

[ChrisTurnerPhotographer]

Nice one man, I agree on all points. I miss the Sony focus a little but im a wedding photographer. Asides from a few quirks the Fujis are so good to work with and the raw files are amazing

[brunoberger]

I am absolutely with you. I also have a Sony A7 IV and a Fuji X-T5. Most of the time for casual stuff I use the Fuji with some beautiful primes just because it’s fun to use. But if I do portraits I use the Sony with the Tamron 35-150 mm f2-2.8 because it’s more fun with the perfect autofocus and one lens solution. So I will keep both because each system has it’s strengths.

[Haggettco]

I went from a full canon R5 kit to the fuji xh2s and i do website, sport and social media photography then videography for youtube - best decision i ever made PLUS i had money left over from the sale of the canon kit.

My main reason - travel.. my goodness the size is so nuch better the travel with 😭

[DonKramer-fv]

Thanks for the video. I switched to an XT-5 + kit 18-55mm last summer from my old entry level DSLR. I wanted something small & light compared to the full frame cameras & lenses out there. I too bought the same three f2 primes (also from KEH - great deal!) I’m enjoying it - I take sort of travel style - not really landscape or street but something in the middle from trips around the PNW. Enjoy!

[craigradix]

I'm a Sony shooter, but I've been considering Fuji for my everyday camera and I love the film look. I want something small and lightweight so I'm looking at the XS20 or XT-50. Will make a decision before the end of the year.

[paulasimson]

I really enjoyed your first take on the Fuji system. And, btw, I love your photography. I've been shooting with Fuji since 2018 and I'm really enjoying the experience. I got it because it's smaller and lighter and that suits my needs best. I don't need the latest/greatest in auto focus, but I do want nice looking files, that don't need much tweaking in post. I can tell you that my XT5 works fantastically well for landscape and wildlife, as well as street and travel. I've had no issues with the camera body out in rain, snow, dust, sea water spray, etc. It's built very well and I don't baby it. I just got back from a trip devoted to wildlife photography and my "hit" rate was as good as (or very near) my companions who were shooting with the Nikon Z8, Z6II and the Canon R5. We all came home with wonderful shots and I was never cursing the autofocus. But everyone's needs are individual and I think you're right to try it out for an extended period of time, before going all in. I did that when I switched from Canon to Fuji and used both systems for several months before I decided to sell off the Canon gear. Good luck, and have fun with your photography while you decide.

[bjornelenfors]

Thanks Brian, as a primarily Fujifilm shooter I appreciate the views. I tried a Sony A7C with a few primes a while back and while the autofokus was great and the pictures came out really REALLY great, something felt a bit ... technical ... about using the Sony. The Fuji (X-T5 in my case) is more fun. And as an amateur, I focus on fun. I have no paying clients so for me it's all about the fun. :)

[swissheartydogs]

XT50 & Voigtländer 23mm (35eq) f1.2 for street photography. No brainer.
XT5 & Fuji lenses for landscape & travels. No brainer.

[don]

Great video. I can relate 100% to what you are talking about. I was Sony for years. Then I tried a Fuji on a whim and absolutely loved the colours. So I switched tonFuji. But I found the greens and browns, in long focal length landscape shots seemed a bit muddied. And I like to crop. So, back to Sony FE I went. But after a bit, I really, REALLY missed the overall Fuji experience. So, I now own both. I prefer the Sony for the epic style landscape photos and the Fuji for more walkabout and product/still life photos. I use zooms, so just a couple lenses for each camera cover my needs. I am very happy with this combination and I find it enhances my creativity and overall experience having what I consider to be the right tool for each situation rather than feeling I am compromising in either.

I am new to your channel and really like your approach as well as your work. Thanks.

[BenjaminKanarek]

Thanks for your insights. I switched from FF Nikon to Fujifilm X and GFX cameras. I own 2 x XT3's, XT4's and HX2's as will as the little XT20 and 3 x GFX's and haven't looked back.

[matt]

It took me awhile to figure out how to set up custom film sims and save custom white balances and so on, but now that I have, I get it. It’s awesome to flip to one mode for for portraits, indoor/outdoor, wildlife, etc. With the profiles I selected for the photos linked to the raw, I can shoot RAW but also rip batches of JPEGS after a shoot in-camera with minimal further adjustments (basically hitting Q, Q twice and I’m done). The Fuji is a huge time saver with practice, and frankly if it wasn’t for the AI tools and additional features in LR or C1 (basics like straightening), I could seriously consider ending my subscription. As it is, the extra control and manipulation is an aid and does help me turn very good photos into great ones. Ya, I’d like a higher performance sensor at times, or better AF. But Fuji offers a ton of value that is hard to appreciate until you live with it for awhile and more importantly with other systems that may perform, but which clearly also chain you to RAW editors.

[pnwtim]

I have hopped around between systems and shot just about everything. I always come back to fuji. One bit of advice I would say, is if you find yourself missing full frame then buy some of Fuji's top quality glass like the 16mm 1.4, etc. Those lenses have a certain magic to them.