I almost wish I had not impulse-bought from Craigslist an old, used X-Pro1. I almost wish I had stuck with my X-T1 and X70 combo. They did the job. Competently. The X-Pro1 has intruded on my current Fuji setup because I am finding I like it almost too much and I am now reconsidering my gear choices and what I enjoy most about photography.
![Image taken with a Fujifilm X-Pro1]( "Image taken with a Fujifilm X-Pro1")
So what is it about this older Fuji camera that I find so appealing?
Something. Something intangible. While I may occasionally wish the AF was a bit faster, or the LCD could articulate, and I really don't have a strong opinion about the versatility or benefits of the OVF/EVF hybrid viewfinder, there is something special about the feel of this camera in my hand, how it operates, and the images it captures.
At 50 years old I am an oldish guy, having been introduced to photography in college with 1980's manual Pentax cameras. The Fujifilm design aesthetic hearkens back to those days with more deliberate, tactile controls. This old X-Pro1 works not only on a image quality level, put appeals to the more romantic and nostalgic aspects of photography. The X-Pro1 is simply a very cool and very capable camera, and the very feel of it in my hand puts me into a photographic mindset that encourages me to slow down, and see, and explore. Even though we are in the year 2017 and the X-Pro1 is coming up on 5 years old, it has a timeless quality to it.
During the past month I've experimented and tweaked the X-Pro1's in-camera settings, more so than I have ever done with my X-T1 and X70, so I can produce jpgs with minimal to no post processing. I am trying to recapture that minimalist purity I had back in my Pentax film days when I had to consider every image because film, developing, and printing was expensive, and I had no money so every image counted. I recognize there is still amazing technical wizardry going on behind the scenes, but my workflow of combining in-camera settings accompanied with a few tweaks in Snapseed shifts the emphasis back to seeking, composing, and capturing the images and away from the digital/computer/post processing work afterwards.
Here are some examples from the past month:
![Image taken with a Fujifilm X-Pro1]( "Image taken with a Fujifilm X-Pro1")
![Image taken with a Fujifilm X-Pro1]( "Image taken with a Fujifilm X-Pro1")
![Image taken with a Fujifilm X-Pro1]( "Image taken with a Fujifilm X-Pro1")
![Image taken with a Fujifilm X-Pro1]( "Image taken with a Fujifilm X-Pro1")
![Image taken with a Fujifilm X-Pro1]( "Image taken with a Fujifilm X-Pro1")
![Image taken with a Fujifilm X-Pro1]( "Image taken with a Fujifilm X-Pro1")
![Image taken with a Fujifilm X-Pro1]( "Image taken with a Fujifilm X-Pro1")
![Image taken with a Fujifilm X-Pro1]( "Image taken with a Fujifilm X-Pro1")
![Image taken with a Fujifilm X-Pro1]( "Image taken with a Fujifilm X-Pro1")
![Image taken with a Fujifilm X-Pro1]( "Image taken with a Fujifilm X-Pro1")
![Image taken with a Fujifilm X-Pro1]( "Image taken with a Fujifilm X-Pro1")
![Image taken with a Fujifilm X-Pro1]( "Image taken with a Fujifilm X-Pro1")
![Image taken with a Fujifilm X-Pro1]( "Image taken with a Fujifilm X-Pro1")
![Image taken with a Fujifilm X-Pro1]( "Image taken with a Fujifilm X-Pro1")
![Image taken with a Fujifilm X-Pro1]( "Image taken with a Fujifilm X-Pro1")
![Image taken with a Fujifilm X-Pro1]( "Image taken with a Fujifilm X-Pro1")
![Image taken with a Fujifilm X-Pro1]( "Image taken with a Fujifilm X-Pro1")
![Image taken with a Fujifilm X-Pro1]( "Image taken with a Fujifilm X-Pro1")
![Image taken with a Fujifilm X-Pro1]( "Image taken with a Fujifilm X-Pro1")
![Image taken with a Fujifilm X-Pro1]( "Image taken with a Fujifilm X-Pro1")
![]()
![]( "Image taken with a Fujifilm X-Pro1")
I started this post saying that the X-Pro1 has me reconsidering my gear and photography. Part of me wants to upgrade and consolidate around the X-Pro2. Part of me wants to get my hands on anything in the X100 series and try to simplify further. I accept that I really don't need so many camera bodies and lenses and perhaps another "Great Camera Purge" is in order. I've been though a Pentax Purge, Nikon Purge, and a Micro Four Thirds Purge. Perhaps a Fuji Purge is on the horizon, but not to switch systems, but to simplify.
So what is it about this older Fuji camera that I find so appealing?
Something. Something intangible. While I may occasionally wish the AF was a bit faster, or the LCD could articulate, and I really don't have a strong opinion about the versatility or benefits of the OVF/EVF hybrid viewfinder, there is something special about the feel of this camera in my hand, how it operates, and the images it captures.
At 50 years old I am an oldish guy, having been introduced to photography in college with 1980's manual Pentax cameras. The Fujifilm design aesthetic hearkens back to those days with more deliberate, tactile controls. This old X-Pro1 works not only on a image quality level, put appeals to the more romantic and nostalgic aspects of photography. The X-Pro1 is simply a very cool and very capable camera, and the very feel of it in my hand puts me into a photographic mindset that encourages me to slow down, and see, and explore. Even though we are in the year 2017 and the X-Pro1 is coming up on 5 years old, it has a timeless quality to it.
During the past month I've experimented and tweaked the X-Pro1's in-camera settings, more so than I have ever done with my X-T1 and X70, so I can produce jpgs with minimal to no post processing. I am trying to recapture that minimalist purity I had back in my Pentax film days when I had to consider every image because film, developing, and printing was expensive, and I had no money so every image counted. I recognize there is still amazing technical wizardry going on behind the scenes, but my workflow of combining in-camera settings accompanied with a few tweaks in Snapseed shifts the emphasis back to seeking, composing, and capturing the images and away from the digital/computer/post processing work afterwards.
Here are some examples from the past month:
X-Pro1 with 14mm f/2.8
X-Pro1 with 60mm f/2.4 Macro
X-Pro1 with 35mm f/1.4
X-Pro1 with 18-55mm f/2.8-4.0
I started this post saying that the X-Pro1 has me reconsidering my gear and photography. Part of me wants to upgrade and consolidate around the X-Pro2. Part of me wants to get my hands on anything in the X100 series and try to simplify further. I accept that I really don't need so many camera bodies and lenses and perhaps another "Great Camera Purge" is in order. I've been though a Pentax Purge, Nikon Purge, and a Micro Four Thirds Purge. Perhaps a Fuji Purge is on the horizon, but not to switch systems, but to simplify.