FUJIFILM X100VI: Unobtanium Obtained. Part 1 – The Arrival.

I alluded to this acquisition in a recent post.

Brand Agnostic Ramblings… Why Debate What Camera Is “Better”?

In that post, I went on for a bit about how I do not NEED an X100VI. Of course not.All of this is foolishness. But then I went on sto say…

Who am I kidding?

I still want the X100VI.

Before I go on to share my thoughts on why I chose it and how things have gone since it arrived, let me get some housekeeping out of the way.

The unobtanium thing.

The elephant in the room. It is fine to want one. But getting one is a completely different matter.

I do not get it.

The last time I remember such a supply chain kerfuffle was the release of the Nikon D850 years ago. To me that one made a little more sense. I believe it was the recipient of an exclusive and new 45.7MP sensor at the time. So I imagined that the sensor may have been the cause of the supply chain issues. But that is not the case with the X100VI’s 40MP sensor. It is shared with the X-T5, X-E5, …

So… The Fujifilm X-E5: Nice Camera, But… I Think You May Have Pulled A Reverse Sony.

…X-T50, and X-H2. Most of which are in stock as of the date of this post.

So… they have plenty of the sensors. Maybe the optical viewfinder is the supply issue? Best I can tell, that is the only major technical deviation. And one could argue that if you have or plan to acquire other Fujifilm X lenses, any of those other cameras would make more “sense”.

My acquisition at the retail price was a case of a convergence of serendipity, timing, and good fortune. Put plainly, kindness allied with dumb luck. Non-repeatable, and I cannot take credit for it. (Largely involved the my wonderful wife and local camera shop.) I would say I was surprised, but as my long-time best friend Devon has said to me, “The stuff that happens to you is not normal in a good way.” So I tend not to question any of it for fear that I might mess it up. I just roll with it… and write about it occasionally.

I also find it unfortunate that in the midst of supply issues, Fujifilm recently raised the price by $200. I am not sure how this works for those who preordered the camera, but it is not a good look.

For that reason, I will leave the lack of supply out of the rest of this post.

I will also set aside pixie dust.

For this ramble fest, I will try my best to set aside poetic prose and fan boy nonsense. Will try and avoid the subjective. For example, below you will not see mentions of the following:

Aesthetics.
Optical viewfinder.
Film simulations.

Along these lines I joked with my wife that now that I have it, according to the pics on the interwebs, evidently I need to get thumb and index finger rings, sleeves that go to my knuckles, a flat brimmed hat, and learn how to stare off into the distance while holding the camera and looking like I am ignoring it.

On the flip side, I will also try to avoid busting my neck to identify nits to pick, like I have seen others do.

Will try to keep it objective.

Moving on.

My goal will be to address unique technical and form factor elements that got me here via a list of categories that have been rolling around in my head. The first was a bit of a surprise to me.

Value.

What am I on about? I am glad I imagined you asked. Not sure why I had not thought of this before. But if given the following shopping list…

APS-C or larger sensor.
Camera and lens or combined point and shoot.
40MP or more.
Prime lens.

…the X100VI, even at the new price, is the least expensive option.

Feels odd to say that, but it is true.

Point and shoot side.

A party of four for fixed lens 40MP plus cameras.

Yes. The X100VI is the only non full frame option… but you see those prices, right? Neither full frame nor the additional MP justifies that price difference in my world. And it can be argued that the X100VI has advantages over these other options.

RX1RIII

2.83x more expensive.
Does not have IBIS.
Does not have an articulating screen.
Slower continuous shooting fps.
Lower max e-shutter speed.
No built in flash.
Lower video resolution.
Lower viewfinder resolution.
No ND filter.

So… The Sony RX1R III… I Am Genuinely Baffled.

Leica Q2

3.69x more expensive.
Lower resolution LCD screen.
Does not have an articulating screen.
No built in flash.
Lower max mechanical and e-shutter speeds.
No mic port.
No ND filter.
No eye tracking AF.

Leica Q3

3.74x more expensive.
No built in flash.
Lower max mechanical and e-shutter speeds.
No mic port.
No ND filter.
No eye tracking AF.

Sidebar: I could add the GFX100RF to this list also, but given it’s even greater sensor specs, reasonable size, and lower price, as compared to the full frame cameras above, it almost makes sense. But even with a lower MP count the X100VI prevailed here as well for me with it’s much lower price, smaller size, and IBIS.

To be clear, I am not saying no one should purchase these other cameras. They are all fine devices. Just pointing out some objective X100VI advantages.

The same goes for interchangeable lens cameras. Fujifilm options with that same sensor and options from other brands all cost more when a lens is added.

That right there is why I decided to acquire one. Not the hype. Not the looks. Not the features that one could argue are gimmicks.

After the arrival.

Day one, pictures were put on hold. I took time to acclimate myself with the camera. It has been quite a while since I had an X100S…

Vintage Digital: FUJIFILM X100S… A 2013 camera in 2021 ‘that’ll do’ addendum.

…so I took some time to actually read through the manual and set up the camera. This helped me realize something.

I had been considering the X100VI compared to other gear I have with the X100S in mind. Primarily, the Sony A7C. But this is quite a different beast from a camera released in 2013… or the X100V released in 2020 for that matter. Yes, the X100V had added an articulating screen, but the X100VI further added:

40MP sensor.
Greatly improved AF.
Animal and eye tracking AF.
IBIS.

That is a lot to add in one generation. With these, it took the X100VI from a choice of compromise to a legitimate smaller, fixed lens alternative to an A7C.

Nice.

And this was proven out today as it wore many hats and did everything I needed it to do.

I have a few more posts to go as I continue to collect my thoughts. Topics that come to mind.

First day out and about test pics.
Experience on the second day out at an event.
Possibly a done to death elsewhere, unnecessary post with obligatory product pics outlining features and handling.

I will wrap this one up with a few product pics and a couple of the sample images from the first day out and about with the camera.