Love this video man. I just sold my X-H2s - just broken promises from Fuji. Now... it's a capable camera - as you have shown, especially if you want to work within its intricacies. But I still can't get over the fact that my new, non-stacked Nikon Zf with a cheap lens can lock focus and nail it every time on MOVING subjects without even messing around with settings. Same with Sony and Canon, which I've shot extensively in the last few years. I did a photo shoot the other day with the X-H2s and the 33 1.4 WR. The little girl, with these huge eyes was standing in ONE spot in the shade. I took a BUNCH of photos, but only a few were in "critical focus." A lot were "close enough" which means that the client would never know the difference... so I guess it's okay? However - I take out my friends non-stacked A7iv and EVERY single shot is in focus - just perfect focus on the eyes. It's infuriating sometimes!
It is quite fascinating to see that I can burst at 10-15fps and as I sift through the shots they can vary a fair bit within such a SHORT time span (for focus placement that is). How it can go from critical to soft and everything in-between within a second or less is pretty mental. I dunno what is worse, because I guess if it pulsed less I could have MORE shots in focus or MORE shots out of focus, I guess at least this way I usually can find a keeper somewhere amongst it all. But it does feel a little like ADHD AF 😆 Like I said, I don't mind it too much because my approach already is to spam a little because I am looking for peak moment captured, such as the violin bow in the right placement bla bla bla. But yeh, if stacked sensor technology wasn't so important to me then I think I would have started looking at other systems. If stacked sensor tech is a helpful feature then on FF it just costs an absolute bomb! So I'll prolly be rocking the XH2S's for quite a few years and make do.
Same here, using mechanical shutter but no burst. Thankfully I don't use my Fujis for work but it's still extremely frustrating to come back home and see that they 60-80% of the shots are soft where I'd like the focus to be, even with detection set up correctly. That's why I'm now looking at the Nikon Zf too as a low-light performer that gives a full-frame look and is able to handle challenging scenes.
This was exactly my experience shooting Fuji and Sony at a studio portrait shoot, in electronic shutter too. I could shoot the Sony in single shot mode and it was always in focus butI I did the same trick as you and had to switch the Fuji to burst mode (luckily it can manage 20fps) in order to ensure at least one shot that was in focus. It was a little frustrating as sometimes the best shot was one that missed focus, and meant a little more work sorting through the Fuji files at the end. Hopefully Fuji can lift their AF capabilities with a firmware update soon 🙏
@@anthonystonehouse Gonna post a video tomorrow about XH2S firmware 6.0 , I figured it out how those camera work and how bad are they in AF both for video or stills.
Had to double take to make sure I didn’t write this comment myself because this is my exact experience on both the xh2s and xt5, taking photos of my kids, often standing still like you mentioned. Dating back to December 2022 all the way up till now. I just shoot everything in burst because I know it’s a coin toss if focus is nailed or not. I think this new generation of fujis are better in difficult AFC scenarios than the old ones, but potentially actually worse at the basics. I wonder how many people are actually dedicated to the task of testing autofocus at Fuji. I assume not many at all, and that the testing they are doing is very limited. These are inexcusable issues to persist so long.
I recently left Fujifilm for Nikon due to focus issues. I had both the XH2 and XH2S, and they had very different personalities for AF. The biggest issue across both is false positive focus confirmation, which I think is what you are seeing, the camera reports it aquired focus, but its missed, and like you I was taking a lot of shots for a very low keeper rate. The XH2S was fine for me with AF-S , the XH2 was terrible with AF-S, but ok with AF-C - and this was for landscapes. I bought the xh2s for birding, but my keeper rate for birds in flight was 10-30% depending on the species, I bought the XH2 for landscape and it wasn't up to the task. Nikon has blown me away, my z8 can do both AF-C and AF-S and its bang on every time. My Bird in flight keepers are 99%, so much so that the hardest part is deciding which images to keep. I hope fuji figures out their AF. And before anybody suggests lenses, I saw this across the 1.4 primes, the red badge zooms, etc. I had their top tier APS-C kit.
Sounds 'bout right. Right now, I can only really recommend the XH2S as a decent camera (from Fujifilm). I'm NOT bashing other Fuji cameras, but the XH2S with its stacked sensor is actually sitting in a real unique sweet spot of affordability vs features. You either go 'down' to an Olympus for that tech or take a giant (twice the price) leap towards full frame models. I seriously entertained that switch earlier this year. It was a case of; "'do I continue shooting a camera that requires a lot of shots to ensure critical focus, or do I sell it all and fund just a SINGLE full frame camera that will get the focus done better?'" Because I do paid work its a harder choice, I really ought to have double everything in case of tech failure on the day. 2x XH2S is hitting a similar price to a single FF stacked sensor camera, and when considering glass and convenience.. shooting 2x XH2S with appropriate glass fitted feels like a sensible approach vs plunging all the cash into a single expensive FF camera (and deal with more lens swapping). I simply do not command a strong enough rate to justify the expense of 2x FF stacked sensor cameras, and even owing a single FF stacked sensor camera and a second non stacked sensor camera... well even that is beyond my budget and I have had enough of that experience (I used to shoot an XH2S and something like a XT4, XS20 or XT30II as the backup, its yucky). Enthusiasts usually have a better time, they can fund that single machine that they really like and it doesn't impact them massively if there is a problem on the day, the pressures are different.
@@SummersSnapsIn your situation, it makes total sense, and the XH2s is the best focusing of Fuji's lineup IMO. (I had the Xpro2, X100F, X100V, XT3, XH2s, XH2 over the years), to do what you need (ES, dead quiet) you're looking at a Z8 minimum and thats almost double the price of a single body! When I sold my entire fuji kit, (3 bodies, +X100V) and 12 lenses I was able to buy 1 Z8 Body and 4 lenses. Luckily I don't do events or "critical work", I license and sell prints so I can get by with a single body. The XH2 was the camera that broke me, and shattered my confidence, a lot of people told me "you're doing it wrong, etc". I think there is a lot of work to do on the 40MP sensor Fuji's, and for that alone makes cameras like the X100VI a no-go.
my old but still performing Nikon D 500 has an infinitely better AF for BIF or landscape compared to the very modern XT5 which naturally after some tests I threw away really frustrated by the results
Unfortunately, Fujifilm needs to work more on its autofocus to be close to other brands in terms of AF-C. I sold the X-H2s, then bought another one because I liked it so much, but ended up selling the second one again when I got the Nikon ZF. The AF-C on the ZF is excellent and it's also great for video. I still have the X-T5 because I love Fujifilm colours and other features, but I never use it in AF-C mode. If you put up with the Fujifilm quirks, you can get good results, but at some point, it gets tiring.
Yes. I can understand that sentiment. For me, AF is just one aspect of the camera. As I point out in this video, silent AF (ES mode) with zero banding under strong artificial light, at shutter speeds I need... stacked sensor technology has become critically important. After the XH2S, the next stacked sensor camera is twice the price! So then the question of VALUE comes to play. I get paid to work yes, but not enough to justify 2x fullframe stacked sensor cameras (and lenses, which on FF are often more expensive). Even owning 2x XH2S's is pushing it (I ran with a single XH2S and a cheaper non stacked sensor Fuji body for a couple of years but really it is painful to be limited to 1/50, 1/60 or at most 1/100 shutter speeds with these non stacked sensor cameras in these shooting conditions). If you don't need stacked sensor technology then I completely recommend looking elsewhere for cameras with better AF. But overall I still think the XH2S is a great all round camera with AF that gets me through the session albeit with a lot of frames and culling. I'm not sure I recommend Fuji but I kinda recommend the XH2S... IF the features and specs matter to you and you understand what it all means.
@@SummersSnaps The Nikon Z8 is only $1000 more, and with it, you can adapt and use Sony (including third-party) lenses while maintaining the same AF performance.
@@AndreiDimaReviews And this is where I think geography comes into play. Here in Australia, the cheapest price for a Z8 is a little over $6000AUD. The cheapest price for an XH2S is a little over $3000AUD. So the Z8 is like TWICE the price out here compared to the XH2S, hence you see the issue. As a working professional I genuinely need two bodies, not only for backup reasons but also for the ease of the shoot. The classic 24-70 (16-55) on one body and the 70-200 (50-140) ensures you're well covered and minimal lens swapping required. Two of the same body is also really welcome from an operational perspective as well as set up (copy settings from one body to another). So now price it all together, 2x Z8 bodies alone exceeds my entire Fuji 2x XH2S+lenses kit, and then also look at the market and how much you can get away with charging clients. I'm jealous that a Z8 for you costs only $1000 more, but it is never only $1000 more for an event pro, it's x2 of everything so now that $1000 more becomes $2000 more, and what are the equivalent lenses priced at? Their 70-200 is TWICE the price of the 50-140 and the same can be said for their 24-70. Believe me, I would LOVE to run with that set up, but it is simply BAD BUSINESS to make that kind of change or fund that initial investment. You'd be working a whole year to work off that debt... and for what? A bit better AF? You also lose some lovely Fuji colours (not a fan of Nikon portrait skin tones, landscape they do great though).
Well, it is REALLY interesting they think there is something to fix here, because it suggests that MS is more robust and not micro pulsing as much or something? I thought this was just #fujiAFlife and not much to be done about it tbh. You just get the additional perks with the XH2S of having AF faster, locking on quicker etc but still having a bit of a lottery to critical focus. I guess we'll have to wait and see, if my hit rate can be improved from my approach as outlined above I will be a happy chappy :)
vain hope unfortunately, I did all the possible firmware updates on my XT5 without any improvement, in the end I sold it and promised myself Fuji NEVER AGAIN
Spot. On. One of the main reasons I dumped Fujifilm, I was an X-H2 shooter, was because their autofocus is still second-rate at best, especially for wildlife.
I can make do with it, I typically find a shot with good focus in my sets, but it feels like this high volume approach is a necessity to success, which I can understand is not ideal for many.
Hello! I'm a xh2s owner and now with the firmware 6.0 it became even worse it can't focus at all, no matter what mode i'm in! Eather way it never gets to focus or it hunts non atop like crazy, and thats is with different lenses like 33 1.4 wr, Viltrox 13 mm or with fringer adapter and sigma 18 - 35, or tokina 11 - 20... it's a disaster!! They've completely broken the AUTOFOCUS of the camera, basically it's manual focus only... What should i do? Should we wait for other updates? Or give up on fuji...i'm very disappointed
Yes I have heard that is the case. Contact your local Fuji Customer Support, explain the issue, they'll either advise to wait (for a patch) or ask you to send the camera in so that they can roll the f/w back. The lesson here is never jump on f/w immediately, wait, watch and read for issues arising.
I have good experience using single shot af without face detection, it just tell the camera where you want to focus,instead of letting the camera decide.
This is about my experiences with most Fujifilm lenses, however, my last shoot with Fujifilm I used an X-T3 with the XF16-80mm, exclusively at F/4 and out of the 180+ shots I took (AF-C and eye detect), it only missed focus on 4 images, funnily enough though, at the 16mm end, not the 70mm. A great video, I hope people learn from it.
I’ve got an XH2S and it’s great for single point focus for street and landscape. However, Im finding it really challenging to track and nail focus for anything that moves, even slightly (birds and people) - this is with their glass too (16-55, 70-300, 150-600). The frustrating and discouraging part is that it looks like it’s in focus on the while shooting, but the truth comes out when in post (instead of eyes, it’s got the nose, or the background behind them) so I’ve resorted to spraying and manual focussing as a last resort. I’m a hobbyist and while I’ve got a long way to go technique-wise, I’m starting to consider whether I need another system for important events where I can’t afford to miss the moment.
Look, imo you probably do NOT NEED another system, you just need to exploit the camera to its fullest. I have had my XH2S for over a year now, I love it so much I have bought a second one. I do weddings, corporate events and orchestra events like you see. The secret to delivering critical focus images to clients is simply shooting a significant volume of shots (like I show here). I would recommend 10fps as a minimum requirement, LM glass for sure is better. My job is 100% about capturing the moment, you can do so easily with this camera, its just a mistake to try and shoot off single shots here and there, you have a strong deep buffer, USE IT, you have silent strong ES mode, USE IT, no one can hear you rattle off 20-40fps, if you cannot capture a moment with that kind of tech then the issue lies more with the user than the camera. More often than not I will have plenty of decently sharp images to work from the moment captured, this video here is just a very quick example from just one job. What this means in practice is you will have a more laborious time culling. I have shot over 10,000 images at a full day wedding but handing over around 900 high quality in focus shots to the client. This doesn't mean I have a 10% keeper rate in terms of focus, but that I capture the moment and every moment has 20 or so shots, so I find the one that has critical focus and within that 1-2 seconds not a huge lot has changed content wise, so this is the approach. It sounds awful, but really there are very specific workflow ways to approach the culling to minimize this from being a huge PIA. I once shot an event, 6000+ shots, culled, edited and delivered 160ish within a few hours. I guess one of the nice perks of Fuji is the files themselves, I don't find I really need to play too much with them for a happy client, so its more work for me on the cull side of things and less time needed on the actual edits. The other thing as well, if you know the benefits of stacked sensor tech then it is truly marvelous. To be able to operate truly silent under strong artificial light without banding is really awesome and I know my clients appreciate it, in fact its one of the reasons I get repeat business. It's not just orchestras, it can be public speaking, ceremony etc. Just have a look at the price of FF stacked sensor cameras and the XH2S all of a sudden appears very good value. Let's also see what the Kaizen addresses later this year...
Agreed! I'm prolly the wrong guy to test this, I practically live in ES mode due to the type of work I do, maybe some wildlifers can share their experiences. Speaking of 'wildlife', I have two cats and I have found cat eye detection to being really good actually, better than human eye detection, it seems to always be in focus and not so much around the outside of the eye. Haha, funny 😹
@@SummersSnaps yeah my findings are pretty much the same as yours. The eye detect works well these days, but it is the micro auto focus that seems to be the achilles heal. Hopefully it gets fixed in the firmware like you said. I am going to switch to mechanical focus for a bit personally to see if I get improved results
Jumped in when the xt-3 was new. Bought 4 Fuji lenses. Focus was hit and miss and especially noticeable with the 35 f1.4 wide open. Focus box on the eye (subject posing, still) and the image would have critical focus on the eyebrow, on the forehead, or nose... Huge costly mistake. I finally gave up and got rid of the whole system. Shooting Sony now with full confidence in results. I still look at Fuji from time to time. Colors and simulations are the attraction. None of it matters if I can't rely on the focus system. That is Fuji's critical flaw. Hype and all, I don't trust them, and will likely never invest in another of their cameras. "Sucks".
I did do a video about the improvements from XT4>XH2S (titled 'I Was Wrong'). I can't really comment on other Fujifilm cameras but I think you are well served with the XH2S overall if you know you will need and appreciate some of these features (such as affordable stacked sensor, fuji colours etc). I mean to share here that it is most definitely possible to walk away with good results but the approach might be unattractive for many. For me its a price worth paying (but I am shooting in a bit of a niche market).
Just a wild guess but my gut feeling is that the design of Fuji’s sensor as opposed to the simplicity of the Bayer means the algorithms have more work cut out and it needs more processing power. However Fuji seems to market on their uniqueness of that sensor with magical colours etc so doubtful if things will change soon. Most Fuji users are street photographers, hobbyist and some wedding photographers where this isn’t a serious issue.
I can't comment as to why it's like this, just that it is. I just wanted to show people real world coping mechanisms and what is possible with this camera. To say I don't get sharp critically focused shots would absolutely be untrue, I just have to work a little harder perhaps than on some other systems. What I do find less of a talking point (but probably more important) is the benefits of the stacked sensor. The fact I can shoot at shutter speeds I need, in ES mode, without drawing attention to myself, without banding, is something I put incredibly high on the appreciation list. I honestly don't think I can go back to non stacked sensor work for any of my weddings, public speaking, government conferences or orchestra shoots. So I will take that hit on slightly subpar AF for this affordable piece of tech, the only other alternatives are OM-1 (considered at one time..) or FF (very pricey!).
I used to be able to get sharp images easily with Sony's camera. Last year I started using Fujifilm's XH2 and I found the same problem as you, so I set my camera to shoot continuously at 7fps and pick out the sharp shots. Since I'm not a professional, I don't really care about this problem (but I need to buy a large capacity memory card for it, haha). I use Topaz AI to fix photos with slightly out of focus faces. ps.Most of the time I use an electronic shutter.
Do you not use back button focus? I disabled my shutter button focus and when shooting birds in flight continuously hold the button down in AFC so the camera is focusing all the time not just when I half press the shutter. It is not perfect but seems to be far more reliable that just using the shutter button. Like you I use burst shots in electronic shutter.
I do sometimes, it depends on the camera. There's pros and cons to it. One of the cons I don't like is you lose a button that otherwise could be used for something else. I don't mind the XH2S's shutter button, its pretty spongy so holding AF with a half press on this camera feels doable. Other cameras the shutter is so sensitive that the gentlest touch fires the shot and indeed you'd need BBF to get around that. What is interesting about the update to AF (that was forthcoming but perhaps is now here with 6.00), was that it was supposed to boost 'only' BBF processes, so I'm not sure exactly what it was doing poorly with ES+BFF and what it is claiming to have fixed, and whether the AF improvement is seen from someone with my approach that uses AF.C and ES but focuses via the shutter button). I have not heard good things with 6.00 so will wait awhile longer before updating (I'm currently on 5.03).
I'm surprised it doesn't bother you more considering it's work and it must take 5-10x the time to review and organize your photos. It must also be quite frustrating to have one photo where all the elements come together but it's the one that isn't sharp.
In reality this happens very seldom. Shooting at 10-20fps, usually there is a moment found and everything lines up, and even if the shot that is best is ever so slightly soft... for where the image ends up (website, instagram, social media etc), its not really a big deal. I'm not doing high end commercial advertising work for Nike here. In terms of organization, it was a little painful to begin with, but now I seem to have found a workflow approach that really ramps up the process. A recent job where I took 6000+ shots, I turned around 160 keepers to the client within 4hrs or so (edited and all). The pleasing thing about Fuji I guess is that once you have found your moments or keepers, then the edit itself is not taking too long, I rarely need to thrash the file, just gently nudge it. What IS bothering is using single non stacked sensors such as the XT4, XS20 or XT30II. Under these conditions I have a limit on shutter speeds that I can use before banding rears its ugly head. 1/50, 1/60 or 1/100 seems to be the limit here and that just really doesn't cut it for a lot of the moments captured on stage (ideally 1/250 minimum). I can use MS when off stage and the music is loud (but still that could be annoying to the paying patrons watching), but for rehearsals it is really not acceptable. The reason I keep getting repeat business is because I am a considerate ninja 🥷📷 So, to consider the stacked sensor perks of another system (that has better AF) and the price just goes bananas and to be frank I am simply not paid enough to justify such equipment. The XH2S hits a sweet spot of affordable tech with AF I can work with, yes its not ideal but then again in reality I would likely be taking a lot of shots anyway and so long as your workflow has some kind of logical filtering approach applied, finding the good shots doesn't take nearly as long as one might think. I don't even need to build 1:1 previews of the entire catalog on import, 1:1 is applied much later when 80% of the catalog has been discarded. Thanks for commenting!
Agreed, I can't imagine taking 20 photos of the same angle and subject and then having to cull them all, and then having that further compounded by bad autofocus. I shoot Canon, take 3 shots max, and if the shots aren't usable I'll have others, and I still end up delivering 200+ photos per show.
@@SummersSnaps Ok because I can see other autofocus problems wirh native lenses but with an adapter I would be eben more skeptical. Great to hear though that it works fine usually.
Hey cool shots! Interesting that you work completely different than me. For concerts I mostly use backbutton focussing. I get over 95% of the shots sharp that way. On my x-t3's Interesting idea though to also use bursts for concerts. Have not tried that. But could work for getting the ultimate moment :)
I come from the concept that modern cameras can be exploited. We're not caged with a 30 roll of film mentality, so why do we fret with shots fired? As long as the camera can sustain the bursting, clear buffers then the only real downside is culling in post (but as I said I actually find workarounds here to vastly speed up the process). But each to their own. Concerts I find a different kettle of fish, you can use mechanical shutter as you don't have to be considerate anymore, so this changes everything in terms of camera choice as stacked sensor tech (or even global shutter) is not so paramount to the process anymore.
Have you tried other editors like Capture One? I’m never satisfied with the sharpness from Lightroom with my X- H2S, particularly for dog pictures, which have a lot of fur, though I very much don’t like the workflow in the other programs.
I have albeit briefly. I actually have no problem with IQ with LR like others have. My video here has nothing to do with sharpness per se but rather where the actual FOCUS is landing. As I demonstrate here, within a second or two of bursting semi-static subjects, the focus can micro pulse resulting in a mixed bag of focus results (but typically a good critical focus hit is found somewhere amongst the bunch). In terms of workflow, once I have done the culling I tend to convert the .RAF files to DNG at the earliest convenience. Even before LR Denoise/Enhance there was Iridient X Transformer, there seems to be a strong connection with LR handling DNG files better than .RAF (and possibly any native camera RAW file, DNG is after all Adobe). I also shoot Pentax which have very robust files for LR with the advantage of natively being DNG (coincidence? I'm not so sure, I think Adobe LR just loves working with DNG's). So I don't at all mind batch converting the culled .RAF to DNG as a first editing step (and whilst at it clean up some noise), takes 10-15mins is all and it's done.
@@SummersSnaps Native DNG would be nice, for portability :-) Fuji Raw with the X-TRANS sensor is subject to the RAW converter's ability. Over the weekend I did some testing of the different converters. To me it looks like in the last few months Lightroom Raw conversion has improved a lot for Fuji. Before I could not get sharpness without a lot of artifacts in the detailed fur of dog photographs. You do make me curious about DNG though. I'm going to take the different converters, mainly Lightromm, DXO and Capture One and make DNG from each and compare the results. That should be interesting.
@@SummersSnaps If they shoot in the same way they will have more in focus shots to choose from... there is no denying that but I would never shoot the same way with a non stacked camera though because I would prematurely kill the MS. The Z8, Z9, R3 and A1 are the only bodies that can do this style of shooting but each of them are more than double the price if not more... So I guess the bigger question is: For the money... can we really complain? :))
It is frustrating at times, but overall I find it workable for majority of the time. I think if I did other work like studio or fashion, something where critical eye AF was crucial to the shot then I'd move to another system.
Oh, hi Eddy - here is Maciek Kozłowski from Flickr 😁 I've just find Your channel. Subscribed! Just wondering.. Why kicking with the horse? Everybody knows, that Fuji AF-C is crap (as for modern standards), so why bother? I just leave autofocus mode in my X-H2 for AF-S and have mental peace. I'm using it, same as I was using autofocus back in DSLR times. You get into Fuji system for color science (film Sims), for retro dials, for f/2 fujicrons, not for AF-C or some huge weight and size or even price savings 😅
Hi Maciek! Nice to see you, stay awhile! 😄 To answer your questions (they should mostly have been addressed in this video, sounds like you haven't watched it yet because it pretty much tells you these things). But in text form here goes; 1) I think my title perhaps gave people the wrong impression. I'm actually not that sad or annoyed about Fuji AF. I show here plenty of examples of critical focus obtained throughout a burst sequence (using face/eye AF), but also of course shots that lose focus (from slight to a lot). If you want to have a shot in focus, best to burst and not single shot at a time. That has been my experience (and the base of this video). And it just so happens that my particular job requires a lot of bursting as I am hunting for a nice moment where everything comes together (as illustrated in the video) so the two things go hand in hand and I am not at all that upset about it. Furthermore, where my images end up, huge posters outside the venue, A5 programs, website and social media, slightly soft AF on the eye isn't even a deal breaker in any of these instances. I am not a high end studio fashion shooter (where critical focus is often very important, to emphasize the girls eye lashes etc). Fuji for events is fine, not sure I can say the same for studio. 2) Stacked Sensor cameras matter (for me). For my work I have learned they are instrumental. I need absolute stealth, no mechanical shutter, has to be ES and I need to be able to shoot at shutter speeds not restricted due to banding issues from strong artificial light. I am very glad to having 2x XH2S's, I used to use a second (Fuji) body that was non stacked and it is a very unpleasant experience to try and get worthy shots under such constraints (nerfed to 1/50, 1/60 or 1/100). 3) Cost. The XH2S is sitting in an incredible high value sweet spot. You either go with an Olympus (cheaper but M43), or XH2S (a little more expensive but APS-C) or full frame systems at which the price doubles. 2x XH2S = 1x Canon R3, and to go this route is just bad business sense. I find the practicality of shooting events suits two bodies, either run with 2x zooms, 1x zoom & 1x prime or 2x primes. I can only charge what the market is willing to bare, so to plough my funds into a better AF FF stacked sensor camera like a Canon or Sony, I'd be hurting more during an event, being stuck with one body and one lens. If I add more bodies and lenses I blow my budget, its literally a bad business move. So when you price up a kit with this technology the XH2S becomes a really unique and high value compromise. Videographers know this too which is why the XH2S has done very well. I think people miss this element a lot, the business side of things. Earning from photography is extremely hard today, you also need to offer video services as well (again another plus for stacked sensor cameras). You can try and charge whatever you like, but if your pricing is too high you simply lose out to a lower quote. The money can be so poor at times that I often think I should just invest in one body (not even a FF stacked sensor but just a single XH2S), because simply put they are not paying me enough to make me want to protect their investment by having backups in place. But on jobs like weddings, even poorly paid weddings, I personally would just feel awful risking my clients to such approach. So I tend to always build a kit surrounding a dual camera body system, peace of mind for failures and breakage, versatility from lens combinations, but that also means I want stacked sensor cameras and thus my price bracket for buying 2x Canon R3 or something is just questionable for return. I think I can live with a little soft eye AF at times and save a substantially on kit costs. Owning 2x the same camera body is really awesome as well, not just from the practicality of button mapping but even set up time. I can configure one body and then sync those settings to the second, huge time saver. 4) Personally I do not see the point in single AF point in MILC. I rarely need to fall back onto a single af point, i hate pushing it around with the joystick. MILC brought us the benefit of AF tools like face/eye detection, I am happy enough for my camera to pick the right focus point in my composition and take the shot. It could be I reap a higher keeper rate from using AF.S though and mash the shutter button more throughout the sequence, it depends likely on the movement of the subject. AF.C is mostly useful for Z axis movement so I could see AF.S working still (maybe even better) on some fairly static seated musicians, definitely something to try. But I can't do a single AF point, it is far too slow, no more focus>recompose>shoot or compose>move AF point>shoot, both these methods are too slow and clunky now, especially when assisted tools exist that get you what you want easily enough. 5) Whilst I might use big lenses on paid work/jobs, I do enjoy smaller lighter lenses for hobby/personal work. I like my Touit 32 very much. I think this again is another perk of Fuji, that you can have a system that (with the right lens choice) becomes a very small and light travel set up, or you can put bigger glass on and get to work. Whereas FF systems you can only go so light and small. For sure there are small FF cameras, and my XH2S is not that small, my old XT30II was very compact and that thing was great for travel, so its about being in a system, knowing a menu system and pushing those systems well. Fuji are quite versatile in this regard offering a lot to their customers. Hope this helps.
Eddy, seems like Your decision regards buying X-H2s is well thought. That's good. Thankfully I don't do photography for living anymore, so now I'm free to shoot whatever I like, when I like and how I like. And this is just beautiful, to have full freedom for this hobby. Priceless 😅 I choose Fujifilm mainly for color science (especially skin tones), as I shoot mostly portraits. But I'm on fence now since I find cobalt-images with their film profiles to mimic specific sensor. If I will find out, that with these profiles I can have Fuji colors as a starting point for further editing in Raw file from any camera, then I'm sold, because in Fujifilm system there is only one lens that got my special attention - it's stellar Viltrox 27/1.2 (extremely unique and intriguing lens, highly recommend!) Every other FF camera system has better choice of lens selections, and many of lenses that are on my radar, are smaller that Fujis counterparts lol 😂 Not to mention about AF-C consistency. Imho aps-c is dead end, as for sensor size goes. Now, there is hardly very little (almost none) benefits from apsc vs FF if You think about it. But that is the topic for another disqussion. Meanwhile I'm using X-H2 with Viltrox 13/1.4, Viltrox 27/1.2 and old XF 56/1.2 but keeping my eye on cobalt-images. Wish that someone can confirm that You can have Fuji colors on RAW file from any sensor, heh.. I know that colors can be tweaked in post, but I don't have patience for this - because first, now when I'm not pro anymore I like to edit files in post with smile on my face without rush, not to constantly fix crappy colors and being angry over and over. Second I'm lacking of knowledge for such advanced editing. I wish improve for stuff like off camera flash for outdoor session, not to learn how to improve in fixing things what should be good from the beginning (I'm looking at You, Sony sensors skin tones 😂)
@@fotokozlowski I was afraid to change system for over 6 years because of the famous Fuji colors. I didn't want to loose them as I love taking pictures of my kids so skin tones were the most important. After changing to Canon R8 it turned out that it has better skin tones than Fuji. Its white balance is also better. With DxO Photolab and their Fuji color profiles I get basically identical results to Fuji. I apply Fuji film sim, tweak WB a little and have exactly the same color but I don't do it because most of the time I like Canon color better. New Sony A7C II, A7CR is also getting really close but again I find it to be true with Capture One and DxO Photolab and not Lightroom.
@@MrRafalEn fair enough, I also like Canon colors very much (I was shooting professionally with Canon FF DSLR for over about 10 years, so I'm pretty familiar how great Canon colors are), but problem with Canon RF mount is that there is no single lens which pick my attention. Canon RF f/1.2 primes renders way to clinical for my taste (they are also waaaaaay to expensive, big and heavy). Just not my cup of tea ;) Im big fan of vintage like, "organic" rendering and I find such look in older Fuji glass (mainly XF 16/1.4 R and XF 56/1.2 R). Nikon Z primes are also quite modern rendering, same goes for Sony and Panasonic. Although in Sony there are Carl Zeiss lenses, like Batis 40/2 or Carl Zeiss 55/1.8 which I find to have very pleasing rendering, but still.. Fujinon XF 16/1.4 R WR, Viltrox 27/1.2, Fujinon XF 56/1.2 R are almost perfect for my llikings, and there are no lenses in any system, where I can have substitute for all those three, when it comes to rendering, "vintage like" look. This is why I think I will stick with Fuji - at least for some time, because I learn how to live with AF-S and combination of Fuji color science + three lenses I mentioned is hard to beat ;) Anyway, thx for tip!
@@fotokozlowski I agree and I also don't like modern, clinical lenses but cheap RF primes like RF 35 and RF 50 f1.8 have rather this old more organic look to them. In Nikon you can adapt legendary 58mm f1.4 which is my favourite lens of all time. My second favourite is Fuji XF 35 f1.4. In Sony you can also adapt Techart AF adapter (AF is very ok, eye af is probably better than Fuji with that combo) with Voigtlander 40 f1.2 or something similar. Native it's basically only Fuji :)
According to the "reviewers" at Dpreview the X-H2S's AF is great: "Eye-detection isn't quite as 'sticky' as the best Canon and Sony cameras (or Nikon's Z9) and the hit-rate isn't always up with the best pro-level cameras, but with a bit of work and the right lens, it's a highly credible performer, especially if you're willing to drop the frame rate a little." Tells you all you need to know about Dpreview.
Haha yeh, well I can't really comment on that. I have watched some Canon videos and have seen some reviewers show (and comment) on how out of focus some of their eye detection shots can be too, so I dunno... maybe Fuji is a punching bag for the eye af community but really they are all not that dissimilar from one another? Or maybe Fuji is a little more frustrating, I dunno. I think it is positive that Fuji are at least specifically mentioning an e-shutter AF improvement with a forthcoming f/w update, it makes me believe they think it can be better and there is a problem (unlike other brands that perhaps refuse to admit anything is wrong). All I do know is that after a year of shooting within these realms I can fully appreciate the stacked sensor perks (next camera I upgrade to I will want a global shutter), and that the method I outline above I find necessary to securing a very sharp shots in perfect focus (you just have a little hunting to find them). I think I am a little lucky in this regard because I find better success with collecting more than one image from a moment of time unfolding so this bursting thing isn't really wholly about navigating the AF niggles. It might be a studio shooters using strobes can't go down this path as easily and will have a more frustrating time 🤷
Well... I have several lenses for this system and they do all perform different in terms of AF confidence. The XF50-140 for example is practically parfocal in it's performance. I can start a 'bride walking down the aisle' shot from f2.8 @ 140mm and continuous burst with Face/Eye detection in AF.C whilst simultaneously zooming out as she comes towards me (to keep similar framing), eventually ending up at f2.8 @ 50mm, and the lens does fairly well in this regard with a high keeper rate. Whereas the Fringer III adapter paired with the 50-100 Sigma Art hopelessly fails this task (as does the XF16-80/4 that I tested recently in store). Some lenses are definitely much better at certain AF tasks than others. It appears LM based lenses offer a significant advantage, but its not infallible. I have had moments with the 50-140 where the green box is clearly on the target but heavily out of focus. It can be frustrating at times.
@@SummersSnaps I'm gonna post a video in few hours , i put my hand nead my face, My XH2s shows green box on eye but fully focuses on my hand 3 inches in front of my face. If it does that Imagine how easly it focuses on the nose/eyebrows/hair etc.
Just for the record, I am not wholly unsatisfied with the AF performance (at least on f/w 5.03). The aim of my video here was to be truthful and transparent about my process and what I find a necessary approach to getting critically in focus shots. For sure I would like to see AF improved.
I completely appreciated your honesty in the video, I never questioned that. Unfortunately my experience with the XT5 was completely negative and since I have the utmost respect for the money honestly earned with work I will never waste it again on such expensive but also so UNRELIABLE products as Fuji cameras regarding AF
@@Al60ish Mine its been worse than yours for sure. AF issues in video everywhere. How th f**k Blurryfilm takes everything in focus BUT not the couple? I mean, couple out of focus and everything focused in the background. 6.01 is out; doesnt fix anything so for me is time to move, im done with Blurryfilm.
it is now clear that Fuji engineers are NOT capable of providing an autofocus on par with their renowned cameras; it's time to complain or turn to other brands
@@Al60ish You mean Blurryfilm? Jokes apart (although the biggest joke is the Blurryfilm focus), agree 100%. I've been complaining for weeks. They say there hasnt been complainings and AF is okey. But for sure, at least make them know there is something wrong because if not, they are not knowing there is an huge AF problem. So yes, for me, time to move on. Thats what happens when a brand doesnt focus (haha) on their issues. Thinking about fx30, a6700... or canon or lumix or i dont know. But enough for me. Losing money and time...
After a minor drowning accident and failed cpr (may the x-t3 and the poor little sammy 12 rest in peace) i hopped back to nikon. The af on the z7ii outright suck at times but its still better than any of the fujifilms ive had. The t3 could miss a face point blank in good light with native lenses but track small fast flying birds i poor light the next day. Somehow i thought they would have solved many of these issues with newer bodies and especially with the firmware that came with the x-s20 realease. 🫤
Actually they have. I did an extensive video about the difference between the XT4 and the XH2S, believe me it (XH2S) never fails to find faces now. I'm not entirely sure the audience and comments here are actually properly watching my video, I think the title makes it perhaps seem 'bashing'? I'm actually completely ok with the AF performance of the XH2S, I bought a second one last month, I'll likely be rocking these two cameras for a good few years to come. The stacked sensor has benefits at a price I find palatable and I can work around the AF issues. I hand over critically in focused shots all the time to my clients. I simply wanted the PROCESS to obtaining such shots as transparent as possible. Perhaps for many the method I outline in my video above is a deal breaker (and I can understand that), but for me its actually ok, and its interesting that Fuji are officially saying further improvements are forthcoming (which I take to being a good sign, they seem to think they can improve it or are aware it is not as ideal as the mechanical shutter experience). I'm just perplexed by a lot of comments. I have found plenty of Canon eye AF bashing videos too. Sometimes I wonder if Fuji is a punching bag?
Love this video man. I just sold my X-H2s - just broken promises from Fuji. Now... it's a capable camera - as you have shown, especially if you want to work within its intricacies. But I still can't get over the fact that my new, non-stacked Nikon Zf with a cheap lens can lock focus and nail it every time on MOVING subjects without even messing around with settings. Same with Sony and Canon, which I've shot extensively in the last few years. I did a photo shoot the other day with the X-H2s and the 33 1.4 WR. The little girl, with these huge eyes was standing in ONE spot in the shade. I took a BUNCH of photos, but only a few were in "critical focus." A lot were "close enough" which means that the client would never know the difference... so I guess it's okay? However - I take out my friends non-stacked A7iv and EVERY single shot is in focus - just perfect focus on the eyes. It's infuriating sometimes!
It is quite fascinating to see that I can burst at 10-15fps and as I sift through the shots they can vary a fair bit within such a SHORT time span (for focus placement that is). How it can go from critical to soft and everything in-between within a second or less is pretty mental. I dunno what is worse, because I guess if it pulsed less I could have MORE shots in focus or MORE shots out of focus, I guess at least this way I usually can find a keeper somewhere amongst it all. But it does feel a little like ADHD AF 😆
Like I said, I don't mind it too much because my approach already is to spam a little because I am looking for peak moment captured, such as the violin bow in the right placement bla bla bla.
But yeh, if stacked sensor technology wasn't so important to me then I think I would have started looking at other systems. If stacked sensor tech is a helpful feature then on FF it just costs an absolute bomb! So I'll prolly be rocking the XH2S's for quite a few years and make do.
Same here, using mechanical shutter but no burst. Thankfully I don't use my Fujis for work but it's still extremely frustrating to come back home and see that they 60-80% of the shots are soft where I'd like the focus to be, even with detection set up correctly. That's why I'm now looking at the Nikon Zf too as a low-light performer that gives a full-frame look and is able to handle challenging scenes.
This was exactly my experience shooting Fuji and Sony at a studio portrait shoot, in electronic shutter too. I could shoot the Sony in single shot mode and it was always in focus butI I did the same trick as you and had to switch the Fuji to burst mode (luckily it can manage 20fps) in order to ensure at least one shot that was in focus. It was a little frustrating as sometimes the best shot was one that missed focus, and meant a little more work sorting through the Fuji files at the end. Hopefully Fuji can lift their AF capabilities with a firmware update soon 🙏
@@anthonystonehouse Gonna post a video tomorrow about XH2S firmware 6.0 , I figured it out how those camera work and how bad are they in AF both for video or stills.
Had to double take to make sure I didn’t write this comment myself because this is my exact experience on both the xh2s and xt5, taking photos of my kids, often standing still like you mentioned. Dating back to December 2022 all the way up till now. I just shoot everything in burst because I know it’s a coin toss if focus is nailed or not. I think this new generation of fujis are better in difficult AFC scenarios than the old ones, but potentially actually worse at the basics.
I wonder how many people are actually dedicated to the task of testing autofocus at Fuji. I assume not many at all, and that the testing they are doing is very limited. These are inexcusable issues to persist so long.
I'm surprised at this! I would never have thought that the Fuji would struggle like that.
Yeh we are the Pentax of the mirrorless world 😆
I recently left Fujifilm for Nikon due to focus issues. I had both the XH2 and XH2S, and they had very different personalities for AF. The biggest issue across both is false positive focus confirmation, which I think is what you are seeing, the camera reports it aquired focus, but its missed, and like you I was taking a lot of shots for a very low keeper rate. The XH2S was fine for me with AF-S , the XH2 was terrible with AF-S, but ok with AF-C - and this was for landscapes. I bought the xh2s for birding, but my keeper rate for birds in flight was 10-30% depending on the species, I bought the XH2 for landscape and it wasn't up to the task. Nikon has blown me away, my z8 can do both AF-C and AF-S and its bang on every time. My Bird in flight keepers are 99%, so much so that the hardest part is deciding which images to keep. I hope fuji figures out their AF. And before anybody suggests lenses, I saw this across the 1.4 primes, the red badge zooms, etc. I had their top tier APS-C kit.
Sounds 'bout right.
Right now, I can only really recommend the XH2S as a decent camera (from Fujifilm). I'm NOT bashing other Fuji cameras, but the XH2S with its stacked sensor is actually sitting in a real unique sweet spot of affordability vs features. You either go 'down' to an Olympus for that tech or take a giant (twice the price) leap towards full frame models. I seriously entertained that switch earlier this year. It was a case of;
"'do I continue shooting a camera that requires a lot of shots to ensure critical focus, or do I sell it all and fund just a SINGLE full frame camera that will get the focus done better?'"
Because I do paid work its a harder choice, I really ought to have double everything in case of tech failure on the day. 2x XH2S is hitting a similar price to a single FF stacked sensor camera, and when considering glass and convenience.. shooting 2x XH2S with appropriate glass fitted feels like a sensible approach vs plunging all the cash into a single expensive FF camera (and deal with more lens swapping). I simply do not command a strong enough rate to justify the expense of 2x FF stacked sensor cameras, and even owing a single FF stacked sensor camera and a second non stacked sensor camera... well even that is beyond my budget and I have had enough of that experience (I used to shoot an XH2S and something like a XT4, XS20 or XT30II as the backup, its yucky).
Enthusiasts usually have a better time, they can fund that single machine that they really like and it doesn't impact them massively if there is a problem on the day, the pressures are different.
@@SummersSnapsIn your situation, it makes total sense, and the XH2s is the best focusing of Fuji's lineup IMO. (I had the Xpro2, X100F, X100V, XT3, XH2s, XH2 over the years), to do what you need (ES, dead quiet) you're looking at a Z8 minimum and thats almost double the price of a single body! When I sold my entire fuji kit, (3 bodies, +X100V) and 12 lenses I was able to buy 1 Z8 Body and 4 lenses. Luckily I don't do events or "critical work", I license and sell prints so I can get by with a single body. The XH2 was the camera that broke me, and shattered my confidence, a lot of people told me "you're doing it wrong, etc". I think there is a lot of work to do on the 40MP sensor Fuji's, and for that alone makes cameras like the X100VI a no-go.
my old but still performing Nikon D 500 has an infinitely better AF for BIF or landscape compared to the very modern XT5 which naturally after some tests I threw away really frustrated by the results
Unfortunately, Fujifilm needs to work more on its autofocus to be close to other brands in terms of AF-C. I sold the X-H2s, then bought another one because I liked it so much, but ended up selling the second one again when I got the Nikon ZF. The AF-C on the ZF is excellent and it's also great for video. I still have the X-T5 because I love Fujifilm colours and other features, but I never use it in AF-C mode. If you put up with the Fujifilm quirks, you can get good results, but at some point, it gets tiring.
Yes. I can understand that sentiment.
For me, AF is just one aspect of the camera. As I point out in this video, silent AF (ES mode) with zero banding under strong artificial light, at shutter speeds I need... stacked sensor technology has become critically important. After the XH2S, the next stacked sensor camera is twice the price! So then the question of VALUE comes to play.
I get paid to work yes, but not enough to justify 2x fullframe stacked sensor cameras (and lenses, which on FF are often more expensive). Even owning 2x XH2S's is pushing it (I ran with a single XH2S and a cheaper non stacked sensor Fuji body for a couple of years but really it is painful to be limited to 1/50, 1/60 or at most 1/100 shutter speeds with these non stacked sensor cameras in these shooting conditions).
If you don't need stacked sensor technology then I completely recommend looking elsewhere for cameras with better AF. But overall I still think the XH2S is a great all round camera with AF that gets me through the session albeit with a lot of frames and culling. I'm not sure I recommend Fuji but I kinda recommend the XH2S... IF the features and specs matter to you and you understand what it all means.
@@SummersSnaps The Nikon Z8 is only $1000 more, and with it, you can adapt and use Sony (including third-party) lenses while maintaining the same AF performance.
@@AndreiDimaReviews And this is where I think geography comes into play. Here in Australia, the cheapest price for a Z8 is a little over $6000AUD. The cheapest price for an XH2S is a little over $3000AUD. So the Z8 is like TWICE the price out here compared to the XH2S, hence you see the issue.
As a working professional I genuinely need two bodies, not only for backup reasons but also for the ease of the shoot. The classic 24-70 (16-55) on one body and the 70-200 (50-140) ensures you're well covered and minimal lens swapping required. Two of the same body is also really welcome from an operational perspective as well as set up (copy settings from one body to another).
So now price it all together, 2x Z8 bodies alone exceeds my entire Fuji 2x XH2S+lenses kit, and then also look at the market and how much you can get away with charging clients.
I'm jealous that a Z8 for you costs only $1000 more, but it is never only $1000 more for an event pro, it's x2 of everything so now that $1000 more becomes $2000 more, and what are the equivalent lenses priced at? Their 70-200 is TWICE the price of the 50-140 and the same can be said for their 24-70.
Believe me, I would LOVE to run with that set up, but it is simply BAD BUSINESS to make that kind of change or fund that initial investment. You'd be working a whole year to work off that debt... and for what? A bit better AF? You also lose some lovely Fuji colours (not a fan of Nikon portrait skin tones, landscape they do great though).
@@SummersSnaps Z6iii should have semi-stacked sensor which might give speed advantage at reasonable price
Very precious video, thank you Eddy
Thank you!
I hope this firmware update coming in spring will fix this issue, but I don't have much confidence lol.
That's sad😂
Well, it is REALLY interesting they think there is something to fix here, because it suggests that MS is more robust and not micro pulsing as much or something? I thought this was just #fujiAFlife and not much to be done about it tbh. You just get the additional perks with the XH2S of having AF faster, locking on quicker etc but still having a bit of a lottery to critical focus. I guess we'll have to wait and see, if my hit rate can be improved from my approach as outlined above I will be a happy chappy :)
@@dunn_jee 🤷
Well that Spring update sure helped! 😆
vain hope unfortunately, I did all the possible firmware updates on my XT5 without any improvement, in the end I sold it and promised myself Fuji NEVER AGAIN
Spot. On. One of the main reasons I dumped Fujifilm, I was an X-H2 shooter, was because their autofocus is still second-rate at best, especially for wildlife.
I can make do with it, I typically find a shot with good focus in my sets, but it feels like this high volume approach is a necessity to success, which I can understand is not ideal for many.
Hello! I'm a xh2s owner and now with the firmware 6.0 it became even worse it can't focus at all, no matter what mode i'm in! Eather way it never gets to focus or it hunts non atop like crazy, and thats is with different lenses like 33 1.4 wr, Viltrox 13 mm or with fringer adapter and sigma 18 - 35, or tokina 11 - 20... it's a disaster!! They've completely broken the AUTOFOCUS of the camera, basically it's manual focus only... What should i do? Should we wait for other updates? Or give up on fuji...i'm very disappointed
Yes I have heard that is the case. Contact your local Fuji Customer Support, explain the issue, they'll either advise to wait (for a patch) or ask you to send the camera in so that they can roll the f/w back.
The lesson here is never jump on f/w immediately, wait, watch and read for issues arising.
I have good experience using single shot af without face detection, it just tell the camera where you want to focus,instead of letting the camera decide.
Indeed, even AF.C and wide tracking without Face and Eye Detection is substantially more sticky and sturdy.
This is about my experiences with most Fujifilm lenses, however, my last shoot with Fujifilm I used an X-T3 with the XF16-80mm, exclusively at F/4 and out of the 180+ shots I took (AF-C and eye detect), it only missed focus on 4 images, funnily enough though, at the 16mm end, not the 70mm.
A great video, I hope people learn from it.
Thanks Mark!
Im sure you'll get better in time. I used to have misses my self, about half when i started. These days i don't really dwell on that aspect anymore.
This is not a skill issue lmao, the camera does not work as expected, Fujifilm autofocus is just not up to standard.
I’ve got an XH2S and it’s great for single point focus for street and landscape.
However, Im finding it really challenging to track and nail focus for anything that moves, even slightly (birds and people) - this is with their glass too (16-55, 70-300, 150-600). The frustrating and discouraging part is that it looks like it’s in focus on the while shooting, but the truth comes out when in post (instead of eyes, it’s got the nose, or the background behind them) so I’ve resorted to spraying and manual focussing as a last resort.
I’m a hobbyist and while I’ve got a long way to go technique-wise, I’m starting to consider whether I need another system for important events where I can’t afford to miss the moment.
Look, imo you probably do NOT NEED another system, you just need to exploit the camera to its fullest. I have had my XH2S for over a year now, I love it so much I have bought a second one. I do weddings, corporate events and orchestra events like you see. The secret to delivering critical focus images to clients is simply shooting a significant volume of shots (like I show here). I would recommend 10fps as a minimum requirement, LM glass for sure is better. My job is 100% about capturing the moment, you can do so easily with this camera, its just a mistake to try and shoot off single shots here and there, you have a strong deep buffer, USE IT, you have silent strong ES mode, USE IT, no one can hear you rattle off 20-40fps, if you cannot capture a moment with that kind of tech then the issue lies more with the user than the camera. More often than not I will have plenty of decently sharp images to work from the moment captured, this video here is just a very quick example from just one job.
What this means in practice is you will have a more laborious time culling. I have shot over 10,000 images at a full day wedding but handing over around 900 high quality in focus shots to the client. This doesn't mean I have a 10% keeper rate in terms of focus, but that I capture the moment and every moment has 20 or so shots, so I find the one that has critical focus and within that 1-2 seconds not a huge lot has changed content wise, so this is the approach.
It sounds awful, but really there are very specific workflow ways to approach the culling to minimize this from being a huge PIA. I once shot an event, 6000+ shots, culled, edited and delivered 160ish within a few hours. I guess one of the nice perks of Fuji is the files themselves, I don't find I really need to play too much with them for a happy client, so its more work for me on the cull side of things and less time needed on the actual edits.
The other thing as well, if you know the benefits of stacked sensor tech then it is truly marvelous. To be able to operate truly silent under strong artificial light without banding is really awesome and I know my clients appreciate it, in fact its one of the reasons I get repeat business. It's not just orchestras, it can be public speaking, ceremony etc. Just have a look at the price of FF stacked sensor cameras and the XH2S all of a sudden appears very good value.
Let's also see what the Kaizen addresses later this year...
Great video. Would love to see a comparison between the E & M shutter to see if there is a better hit rate between the two
Agreed! I'm prolly the wrong guy to test this, I practically live in ES mode due to the type of work I do, maybe some wildlifers can share their experiences. Speaking of 'wildlife', I have two cats and I have found cat eye detection to being really good actually, better than human eye detection, it seems to always be in focus and not so much around the outside of the eye. Haha, funny 😹
@@SummersSnaps yeah my findings are pretty much the same as yours. The eye detect works well these days, but it is the micro auto focus that seems to be the achilles heal. Hopefully it gets fixed in the firmware like you said. I am going to switch to mechanical focus for a bit personally to see if I get improved results
Jumped in when the xt-3 was new. Bought 4 Fuji lenses. Focus was hit and miss and especially noticeable with the 35 f1.4 wide open. Focus box on the eye (subject posing, still) and the image would have critical focus on the eyebrow, on the forehead, or nose... Huge costly mistake. I finally gave up and got rid of the whole system. Shooting Sony now with full confidence in results. I still look at Fuji from time to time. Colors and simulations are the attraction. None of it matters if I can't rely on the focus system. That is Fuji's critical flaw. Hype and all, I don't trust them, and will likely never invest in another of their cameras. "Sucks".
I did do a video about the improvements from XT4>XH2S (titled 'I Was Wrong'). I can't really comment on other Fujifilm cameras but I think you are well served with the XH2S overall if you know you will need and appreciate some of these features (such as affordable stacked sensor, fuji colours etc). I mean to share here that it is most definitely possible to walk away with good results but the approach might be unattractive for many. For me its a price worth paying (but I am shooting in a bit of a niche market).
Just a wild guess but my gut feeling is that the design of Fuji’s sensor as opposed to the simplicity of the Bayer means the algorithms have more work cut out and it needs more processing power. However Fuji seems to market on their uniqueness of that sensor with magical colours etc so doubtful if things will change soon. Most Fuji users are street photographers, hobbyist and some wedding photographers where this isn’t a serious issue.
I can't comment as to why it's like this, just that it is. I just wanted to show people real world coping mechanisms and what is possible with this camera. To say I don't get sharp critically focused shots would absolutely be untrue, I just have to work a little harder perhaps than on some other systems.
What I do find less of a talking point (but probably more important) is the benefits of the stacked sensor. The fact I can shoot at shutter speeds I need, in ES mode, without drawing attention to myself, without banding, is something I put incredibly high on the appreciation list. I honestly don't think I can go back to non stacked sensor work for any of my weddings, public speaking, government conferences or orchestra shoots. So I will take that hit on slightly subpar AF for this affordable piece of tech, the only other alternatives are OM-1 (considered at one time..) or FF (very pricey!).
I used to be able to get sharp images easily with Sony's camera. Last year I started using Fujifilm's XH2 and I found the same problem as you, so I set my camera to shoot continuously at 7fps and pick out the sharp shots. Since I'm not a professional, I don't really care about this problem (but I need to buy a large capacity memory card for it, haha). I use Topaz AI to fix photos with slightly out of focus faces.
ps.Most of the time I use an electronic shutter.
Do you not use back button focus? I disabled my shutter button focus and when shooting birds in flight continuously hold the button down in AFC so the camera is focusing all the time not just when I half press the shutter. It is not perfect but seems to be far more reliable that just using the shutter button. Like you I use burst shots in electronic shutter.
I do sometimes, it depends on the camera. There's pros and cons to it. One of the cons I don't like is you lose a button that otherwise could be used for something else. I don't mind the XH2S's shutter button, its pretty spongy so holding AF with a half press on this camera feels doable. Other cameras the shutter is so sensitive that the gentlest touch fires the shot and indeed you'd need BBF to get around that.
What is interesting about the update to AF (that was forthcoming but perhaps is now here with 6.00), was that it was supposed to boost 'only' BBF processes, so I'm not sure exactly what it was doing poorly with ES+BFF and what it is claiming to have fixed, and whether the AF improvement is seen from someone with my approach that uses AF.C and ES but focuses via the shutter button). I have not heard good things with 6.00 so will wait awhile longer before updating (I'm currently on 5.03).
I'm surprised it doesn't bother you more considering it's work and it must take 5-10x the time to review and organize your photos. It must also be quite frustrating to have one photo where all the elements come together but it's the one that isn't sharp.
In reality this happens very seldom. Shooting at 10-20fps, usually there is a moment found and everything lines up, and even if the shot that is best is ever so slightly soft... for where the image ends up (website, instagram, social media etc), its not really a big deal. I'm not doing high end commercial advertising work for Nike here.
In terms of organization, it was a little painful to begin with, but now I seem to have found a workflow approach that really ramps up the process. A recent job where I took 6000+ shots, I turned around 160 keepers to the client within 4hrs or so (edited and all). The pleasing thing about Fuji I guess is that once you have found your moments or keepers, then the edit itself is not taking too long, I rarely need to thrash the file, just gently nudge it.
What IS bothering is using single non stacked sensors such as the XT4, XS20 or XT30II. Under these conditions I have a limit on shutter speeds that I can use before banding rears its ugly head. 1/50, 1/60 or 1/100 seems to be the limit here and that just really doesn't cut it for a lot of the moments captured on stage (ideally 1/250 minimum). I can use MS when off stage and the music is loud (but still that could be annoying to the paying patrons watching), but for rehearsals it is really not acceptable. The reason I keep getting repeat business is because I am a considerate ninja 🥷📷
So, to consider the stacked sensor perks of another system (that has better AF) and the price just goes bananas and to be frank I am simply not paid enough to justify such equipment. The XH2S hits a sweet spot of affordable tech with AF I can work with, yes its not ideal but then again in reality I would likely be taking a lot of shots anyway and so long as your workflow has some kind of logical filtering approach applied, finding the good shots doesn't take nearly as long as one might think. I don't even need to build 1:1 previews of the entire catalog on import, 1:1 is applied much later when 80% of the catalog has been discarded.
Thanks for commenting!
Agreed, I can't imagine taking 20 photos of the same angle and subject and then having to cull them all, and then having that further compounded by bad autofocus. I shoot Canon, take 3 shots max, and if the shots aren't usable I'll have others, and I still end up delivering 200+ photos per show.
Wait a second…18-35…are you using an adapter from canon or something?
Yes Fringer III adapter for this lens combo. Works very well (better than some of my native Fuji glass).
@@SummersSnaps Ok because I can see other autofocus problems wirh native lenses but with an adapter I would be eben more skeptical. Great to hear though that it works fine usually.
Hey cool shots! Interesting that you work completely different than me. For concerts I mostly use backbutton focussing. I get over 95% of the shots sharp that way. On my x-t3's
Interesting idea though to also use bursts for concerts. Have not tried that. But could work for getting the ultimate moment :)
I come from the concept that modern cameras can be exploited. We're not caged with a 30 roll of film mentality, so why do we fret with shots fired? As long as the camera can sustain the bursting, clear buffers then the only real downside is culling in post (but as I said I actually find workarounds here to vastly speed up the process). But each to their own.
Concerts I find a different kettle of fish, you can use mechanical shutter as you don't have to be considerate anymore, so this changes everything in terms of camera choice as stacked sensor tech (or even global shutter) is not so paramount to the process anymore.
Have you tried other editors like Capture One? I’m never satisfied with the sharpness from Lightroom with my X- H2S, particularly for dog pictures, which have a lot of fur, though I very much don’t like the workflow in the other programs.
I have albeit briefly. I actually have no problem with IQ with LR like others have. My video here has nothing to do with sharpness per se but rather where the actual FOCUS is landing. As I demonstrate here, within a second or two of bursting semi-static subjects, the focus can micro pulse resulting in a mixed bag of focus results (but typically a good critical focus hit is found somewhere amongst the bunch).
In terms of workflow, once I have done the culling I tend to convert the .RAF files to DNG at the earliest convenience. Even before LR Denoise/Enhance there was Iridient X Transformer, there seems to be a strong connection with LR handling DNG files better than .RAF (and possibly any native camera RAW file, DNG is after all Adobe). I also shoot Pentax which have very robust files for LR with the advantage of natively being DNG (coincidence? I'm not so sure, I think Adobe LR just loves working with DNG's). So I don't at all mind batch converting the culled .RAF to DNG as a first editing step (and whilst at it clean up some noise), takes 10-15mins is all and it's done.
@@SummersSnaps Native DNG would be nice, for portability :-) Fuji Raw with the X-TRANS sensor is subject to the RAW converter's ability. Over the weekend I did some testing of the different converters. To me it looks like in the last few months Lightroom Raw conversion has improved a lot for Fuji. Before I could not get sharpness without a lot of artifacts in the detailed fur of dog photographs. You do make me curious about DNG though. I'm going to take the different converters, mainly Lightromm, DXO and Capture One and make DNG from each and compare the results. That should be interesting.
I though i was the only one shooting this way...
Me too! 🤗
I guess the real question is does results or approaches differ that much for those using Canikony systems in similar lines of work?
@@SummersSnaps If they shoot in the same way they will have more in focus shots to choose from... there is no denying that but I would never shoot the same way with a non stacked camera though because I would prematurely kill the MS.
The Z8, Z9, R3 and A1 are the only bodies that can do this style of shooting but each of them are more than double the price if not more...
So I guess the bigger question is:
For the money... can we really complain? :))
Im about to give up the fuji system becuz of the unreliable af
It is frustrating at times, but overall I find it workable for majority of the time. I think if I did other work like studio or fashion, something where critical eye AF was crucial to the shot then I'd move to another system.
Oh, hi Eddy - here is Maciek Kozłowski from Flickr 😁 I've just find Your channel. Subscribed! Just wondering.. Why kicking with the horse? Everybody knows, that Fuji AF-C is crap (as for modern standards), so why bother? I just leave autofocus mode in my X-H2 for AF-S and have mental peace. I'm using it, same as I was using autofocus back in DSLR times. You get into Fuji system for color science (film Sims), for retro dials, for f/2 fujicrons, not for AF-C or some huge weight and size or even price savings 😅
Hi Maciek! Nice to see you, stay awhile! 😄
To answer your questions (they should mostly have been addressed in this video, sounds like you haven't watched it yet because it pretty much tells you these things). But in text form here goes;
1) I think my title perhaps gave people the wrong impression. I'm actually not that sad or annoyed about Fuji AF. I show here plenty of examples of critical focus obtained throughout a burst sequence (using face/eye AF), but also of course shots that lose focus (from slight to a lot). If you want to have a shot in focus, best to burst and not single shot at a time. That has been my experience (and the base of this video). And it just so happens that my particular job requires a lot of bursting as I am hunting for a nice moment where everything comes together (as illustrated in the video) so the two things go hand in hand and I am not at all that upset about it. Furthermore, where my images end up, huge posters outside the venue, A5 programs, website and social media, slightly soft AF on the eye isn't even a deal breaker in any of these instances. I am not a high end studio fashion shooter (where critical focus is often very important, to emphasize the girls eye lashes etc). Fuji for events is fine, not sure I can say the same for studio.
2) Stacked Sensor cameras matter (for me). For my work I have learned they are instrumental. I need absolute stealth, no mechanical shutter, has to be ES and I need to be able to shoot at shutter speeds not restricted due to banding issues from strong artificial light. I am very glad to having 2x XH2S's, I used to use a second (Fuji) body that was non stacked and it is a very unpleasant experience to try and get worthy shots under such constraints (nerfed to 1/50, 1/60 or 1/100).
3) Cost. The XH2S is sitting in an incredible high value sweet spot. You either go with an Olympus (cheaper but M43), or XH2S (a little more expensive but APS-C) or full frame systems at which the price doubles. 2x XH2S = 1x Canon R3, and to go this route is just bad business sense. I find the practicality of shooting events suits two bodies, either run with 2x zooms, 1x zoom & 1x prime or 2x primes.
I can only charge what the market is willing to bare, so to plough my funds into a better AF FF stacked sensor camera like a Canon or Sony, I'd be hurting more during an event, being stuck with one body and one lens. If I add more bodies and lenses I blow my budget, its literally a bad business move. So when you price up a kit with this technology the XH2S becomes a really unique and high value compromise. Videographers know this too which is why the XH2S has done very well.
I think people miss this element a lot, the business side of things. Earning from photography is extremely hard today, you also need to offer video services as well (again another plus for stacked sensor cameras). You can try and charge whatever you like, but if your pricing is too high you simply lose out to a lower quote. The money can be so poor at times that I often think I should just invest in one body (not even a FF stacked sensor but just a single XH2S), because simply put they are not paying me enough to make me want to protect their investment by having backups in place. But on jobs like weddings, even poorly paid weddings, I personally would just feel awful risking my clients to such approach.
So I tend to always build a kit surrounding a dual camera body system, peace of mind for failures and breakage, versatility from lens combinations, but that also means I want stacked sensor cameras and thus my price bracket for buying 2x Canon R3 or something is just questionable for return. I think I can live with a little soft eye AF at times and save a substantially on kit costs.
Owning 2x the same camera body is really awesome as well, not just from the practicality of button mapping but even set up time. I can configure one body and then sync those settings to the second, huge time saver.
4) Personally I do not see the point in single AF point in MILC. I rarely need to fall back onto a single af point, i hate pushing it around with the joystick. MILC brought us the benefit of AF tools like face/eye detection, I am happy enough for my camera to pick the right focus point in my composition and take the shot. It could be I reap a higher keeper rate from using AF.S though and mash the shutter button more throughout the sequence, it depends likely on the movement of the subject. AF.C is mostly useful for Z axis movement so I could see AF.S working still (maybe even better) on some fairly static seated musicians, definitely something to try. But I can't do a single AF point, it is far too slow, no more focus>recompose>shoot or compose>move AF point>shoot, both these methods are too slow and clunky now, especially when assisted tools exist that get you what you want easily enough.
5) Whilst I might use big lenses on paid work/jobs, I do enjoy smaller lighter lenses for hobby/personal work. I like my Touit 32 very much. I think this again is another perk of Fuji, that you can have a system that (with the right lens choice) becomes a very small and light travel set up, or you can put bigger glass on and get to work. Whereas FF systems you can only go so light and small. For sure there are small FF cameras, and my XH2S is not that small, my old XT30II was very compact and that thing was great for travel, so its about being in a system, knowing a menu system and pushing those systems well. Fuji are quite versatile in this regard offering a lot to their customers.
Hope this helps.
Eddy, seems like Your decision regards buying X-H2s is well thought. That's good.
Thankfully I don't do photography for living anymore, so now I'm free to shoot whatever I like, when I like and how I like. And this is just beautiful, to have full freedom for this hobby. Priceless 😅
I choose Fujifilm mainly for color science (especially skin tones), as I shoot mostly portraits. But I'm on fence now since I find cobalt-images with their film profiles to mimic specific sensor. If I will find out, that with these profiles I can have Fuji colors as a starting point for further editing in Raw file from any camera, then I'm sold, because in Fujifilm system there is only one lens that got my special attention - it's stellar Viltrox 27/1.2 (extremely unique and intriguing lens, highly recommend!)
Every other FF camera system has better choice of lens selections, and many of lenses that are on my radar, are smaller that Fujis counterparts lol 😂
Not to mention about AF-C consistency.
Imho aps-c is dead end, as for sensor size goes. Now, there is hardly very little (almost none) benefits from apsc vs FF if You think about it.
But that is the topic for another disqussion.
Meanwhile I'm using X-H2 with Viltrox 13/1.4, Viltrox 27/1.2 and old XF 56/1.2 but keeping my eye on cobalt-images. Wish that someone can confirm that You can have Fuji colors on RAW file from any sensor, heh..
I know that colors can be tweaked in post, but I don't have patience for this - because first, now when I'm not pro anymore I like to edit files in post with smile on my face without rush, not to constantly fix crappy colors and being angry over and over. Second I'm lacking of knowledge for such advanced editing. I wish improve for stuff like off camera flash for outdoor session, not to learn how to improve in fixing things what should be good from the beginning (I'm looking at You, Sony sensors skin tones 😂)
@@fotokozlowski I was afraid to change system for over 6 years because of the famous Fuji colors. I didn't want to loose them as I love taking pictures of my kids so skin tones were the most important. After changing to Canon R8 it turned out that it has better skin tones than Fuji. Its white balance is also better. With DxO Photolab and their Fuji color profiles I get basically identical results to Fuji. I apply Fuji film sim, tweak WB a little and have exactly the same color but I don't do it because most of the time I like Canon color better. New Sony A7C II, A7CR is also getting really close but again I find it to be true with Capture One and DxO Photolab and not Lightroom.
@@MrRafalEn fair enough, I also like Canon colors very much (I was shooting professionally with Canon FF DSLR for over about 10 years, so I'm pretty familiar how great Canon colors are), but problem with Canon RF mount is that there is no single lens which pick my attention. Canon RF f/1.2 primes renders way to clinical for my taste (they are also waaaaaay to expensive, big and heavy). Just not my cup of tea ;) Im big fan of vintage like, "organic" rendering and I find such look in older Fuji glass (mainly XF 16/1.4 R and XF 56/1.2 R). Nikon Z primes are also quite modern rendering, same goes for Sony and Panasonic. Although in Sony there are Carl Zeiss lenses, like Batis 40/2 or Carl Zeiss 55/1.8 which I find to have very pleasing rendering, but still.. Fujinon XF 16/1.4 R WR, Viltrox 27/1.2, Fujinon XF 56/1.2 R are almost perfect for my llikings, and there are no lenses in any system, where I can have substitute for all those three, when it comes to rendering, "vintage like" look. This is why I think I will stick with Fuji - at least for some time, because I learn how to live with AF-S and combination of Fuji color science + three lenses I mentioned is hard to beat ;) Anyway, thx for tip!
@@fotokozlowski I agree and I also don't like modern, clinical lenses but cheap RF primes like RF 35 and RF 50 f1.8 have rather this old more organic look to them. In Nikon you can adapt legendary 58mm f1.4 which is my favourite lens of all time. My second favourite is Fuji XF 35 f1.4. In Sony you can also adapt Techart AF adapter (AF is very ok, eye af is probably better than Fuji with that combo) with Voigtlander 40 f1.2 or something similar. Native it's basically only Fuji :)
I find the Fuji autofocus frustrating !!
It can be at times.
This one aged fast.
Didn't it. I'm staying put on f/w 5.03 😁
According to the "reviewers" at Dpreview the X-H2S's AF is great: "Eye-detection isn't quite as 'sticky' as the best Canon and Sony cameras (or Nikon's Z9) and the hit-rate isn't always up with the best pro-level cameras, but with a bit of work and the right lens, it's a highly credible performer, especially if you're willing to drop the frame rate a little."
Tells you all you need to know about Dpreview.
Haha yeh, well I can't really comment on that. I have watched some Canon videos and have seen some reviewers show (and comment) on how out of focus some of their eye detection shots can be too, so I dunno... maybe Fuji is a punching bag for the eye af community but really they are all not that dissimilar from one another? Or maybe Fuji is a little more frustrating, I dunno. I think it is positive that Fuji are at least specifically mentioning an e-shutter AF improvement with a forthcoming f/w update, it makes me believe they think it can be better and there is a problem (unlike other brands that perhaps refuse to admit anything is wrong).
All I do know is that after a year of shooting within these realms I can fully appreciate the stacked sensor perks (next camera I upgrade to I will want a global shutter), and that the method I outline above I find necessary to securing a very sharp shots in perfect focus (you just have a little hunting to find them). I think I am a little lucky in this regard because I find better success with collecting more than one image from a moment of time unfolding so this bursting thing isn't really wholly about navigating the AF niggles. It might be a studio shooters using strobes can't go down this path as easily and will have a more frustrating time 🤷
@@SummersSnaps Thanks for the reply. Much appreciated.
6:26 it is not the lenses!
Well... I have several lenses for this system and they do all perform different in terms of AF confidence. The XF50-140 for example is practically parfocal in it's performance. I can start a 'bride walking down the aisle' shot from f2.8 @ 140mm and continuous burst with Face/Eye detection in AF.C whilst simultaneously zooming out as she comes towards me (to keep similar framing), eventually ending up at f2.8 @ 50mm, and the lens does fairly well in this regard with a high keeper rate. Whereas the Fringer III adapter paired with the 50-100 Sigma Art hopelessly fails this task (as does the XF16-80/4 that I tested recently in store). Some lenses are definitely much better at certain AF tasks than others. It appears LM based lenses offer a significant advantage, but its not infallible. I have had moments with the 50-140 where the green box is clearly on the target but heavily out of focus. It can be frustrating at times.
@@SummersSnaps I'm gonna post a video in few hours , i put my hand nead my face, My XH2s shows green box on eye but fully focuses on my hand 3 inches in front of my face. If it does that Imagine how easly it focuses on the nose/eyebrows/hair etc.
@@SummersSnaps So I am 100% a lens couldn't be blamed for this behaviour. Where I can find you to send a short example video ?
same problems with XT5 : Fuji cameras never again;
don't waste your money
Just for the record, I am not wholly unsatisfied with the AF performance (at least on f/w 5.03). The aim of my video here was to be truthful and transparent about my process and what I find a necessary approach to getting critically in focus shots. For sure I would like to see AF improved.
I completely appreciated your honesty in the video, I never questioned that. Unfortunately my experience with the XT5 was completely negative and since I have the utmost respect for the money honestly earned with work I will never waste it again on such expensive but also so UNRELIABLE products as Fuji cameras regarding AF
@@Al60ish Mine its been worse than yours for sure. AF issues in video everywhere. How th f**k Blurryfilm takes everything in focus BUT not the couple? I mean, couple out of focus and everything focused in the background. 6.01 is out; doesnt fix anything so for me is time to move, im done with Blurryfilm.
it is now clear that Fuji engineers are NOT capable of providing an autofocus on par with their renowned cameras; it's time to complain or turn to other brands
@@Al60ish You mean Blurryfilm? Jokes apart (although the biggest joke is the Blurryfilm focus), agree 100%. I've been complaining for weeks. They say there hasnt been complainings and AF is okey. But for sure, at least make them know there is something wrong because if not, they are not knowing there is an huge AF problem. So yes, for me, time to move on. Thats what happens when a brand doesnt focus (haha) on their issues. Thinking about fx30, a6700... or canon or lumix or i dont know. But enough for me. Losing money and time...
After a minor drowning accident and failed cpr (may the x-t3 and the poor little sammy 12 rest in peace) i hopped back to nikon. The af on the z7ii outright suck at times but its still better than any of the fujifilms ive had.
The t3 could miss a face point blank in good light with native lenses but track small fast flying birds i poor light the next day.
Somehow i thought they would have solved many of these issues with newer bodies and especially with the firmware that came with the x-s20 realease. 🫤
Actually they have. I did an extensive video about the difference between the XT4 and the XH2S, believe me it (XH2S) never fails to find faces now.
I'm not entirely sure the audience and comments here are actually properly watching my video, I think the title makes it perhaps seem 'bashing'? I'm actually completely ok with the AF performance of the XH2S, I bought a second one last month, I'll likely be rocking these two cameras for a good few years to come. The stacked sensor has benefits at a price I find palatable and I can work around the AF issues. I hand over critically in focused shots all the time to my clients. I simply wanted the PROCESS to obtaining such shots as transparent as possible. Perhaps for many the method I outline in my video above is a deal breaker (and I can understand that), but for me its actually ok, and its interesting that Fuji are officially saying further improvements are forthcoming (which I take to being a good sign, they seem to think they can improve it or are aware it is not as ideal as the mechanical shutter experience).
I'm just perplexed by a lot of comments. I have found plenty of Canon eye AF bashing videos too. Sometimes I wonder if Fuji is a punching bag?