Fuji X-E1: One Week Later

Now that I've had the Fuji X-E1 for about a week now, I want to give you my first impressions of the camera. I was initially very excited to use the camera and have since been enjoying it very much, but it hasn't been a 100% positive experience. In this first impressions post, I won't be talking too much about the two lenses that I bought with the camera because I have a lot most to say about those. I will solely be discussing my thought on my new Fuji X-E1 camera body.

Fuji X-E1 Design and Build Quality

I think the design and build is one area where Fuji has done a really good job with the X Series cameras. Fuji has kept the styling very consistent with their X series camera, featuring a retro rangefinder style camera look. I personally love the "retro" look and feel of the X-E1, and even prefer the design over the larger Fuji X-Pro1.

Unlike the Fuji X-Pro 1, the X-E1 is not entirely made out of metal. The top and bottom of the camera are made out of magnesium alloy, but the back is now made of a high quality plastic. Regardless, the build feels very good in the hand. One thing I've noticed is that that finish isn't the best. I have a few marks on the camera where the paint has started to chip off slightly. It's not something I worry about as I don't see it having any effect on the cameras functionality, but I know that keeping your camera nice and clean is important to many.

Overall, I really enjoy the build and design of the Fuji X-E1. The small form factor and the retro design and operations are what drew me into the system, and they have definitely met my expectations. It is blast to handle and shoot with the X-E1, and it is small, desecrate and doesn't get in the way when you're out shooting.

Fuji X-E1 Image Quality

I don' t want to get too much into detail with the image quality right now but to sum it up, the image quality is superb. I've only been shooting in RAW since I bought the camera and have been editing the files on Adobe Lightroom 4.4 RC. The files are crazy sharp. This is the first camera I've used that doesn't have an AA filter and I cant see the difference it makes. You can see so much detail when you zoom in 100% into the photos. It's just.. wow! High ISO performance is also great. I have the X-E1 set to auto ISO up to 6400 and have had nothing but good results. I haven't gone above ISO 6400 yet because I haven't really encountered any situations where I've had to push it to that level but I'll have some samples ready for the final review.

I'll go more into the image quality in the full review.

Fuji X-E1 Autofocus

This is probably the only aspect of the camera that has let me down so far. I read tons and tons of reviews before buying the Fuji X-E1 and the consensus was that the AF system was not that great. In my mind, I thought that it couldn't be that bad, especially for someone that uses a Canon 5D Mark II. Oh boy, was I wrong! The AF... well, it just hasn't matched my expectations.

The Fuji X-E1 uses a contrast detect autofocus system in which the camera hunts until it finds an area of contrast. In the day time there isn't too much of a problem, but in dimmer situations when the contrast lessens, focusing gets a little bit harder. I did a few very unscientific tests between the Fuji X-E1 and my Canon 5D Mark II and the Canon performed better in most cases.

Fuji X-E1 Electronic Viewfinder (EVF)

Fuji had decided not to incorporate their innovative optical viewfinder on the Fuji X-E1 and, instead, implemented a very nice 2.36M dot OLED electronic viewfinder on the Fuji X-E1. Using the EVF has been a pleasant experience so far. I don't recall the last time I used an EVF before buying the Fuji X-E1 so using it was almost a new experience for me. I'm sure a lot of you have already used EVFs in the past but, for those of you that haven't, it's basically like watching a little monitor or TV screen. It's something that I had to get used to, but it feels pretty natural now. It definitely feels laking after moving from the 5D viewfinder, but it is very usable.

A lot of people have mentioned that the viewfinder of the Fuji X-E1 has some lag when you pan the camera around, but I don't think it's too much of a problem unless you're shooting something that is moving pretty fast. The viewfinder does get noisier and slower in very dim situations, but that's just where our EVF technology is today.

Button Layout and Menu

I find the that button layout of the Fuji X-E1 are, for the most part, very well thought through. I like the "Q" button on the thumb rest which lets you access all of the most important setting. and the function button beside the shutter button. The only button placement that bothers me is the AF point button. It is located on the bottom left of the camera making it hard to change on the go. Because of this, I end up using the center AF point more than 90% of the time.

Conclusion

Overall, I'm very happy with the Fuji X-E1 and the Fuji X System as a whole. The X-E1 isn't perfect, but I like where Fuji is headed. With the release of the Fuji X100s, we can assume that the next iterations of the Fuji X bodies will have phase detection autofocus. I'll be extremely happy when that happens and I'm already saving up for my next Fuji X Series camera body!

I'll have the full review of the Fuji X-E1 up after 1-2 more weeks of testing. Stay tuned!