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11 suggestions for Fuji, mostly firmware


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First of all: the following list might give someone the impression I'm disappointed with Fuji.

 

I'm not. Quite the opposite, I'm slowly making a full switch from a Sony A7r based setup, building up my lens collection.*

 

*Yes, the A7r is quite sharper, but you can see this only in VERY big prints. While it takes a lot less post processing to get the right colors with the Fuji, and this shows even in postage stamp sized prints...

 

I'm waiting to be able to try in person the X-T2 against the X-Pro2 before making a final decision on the camera body, but in the meantime even my X-T10 is giving me superb results.

 

But this doesn't mean that Fuji can't improve! So here we are, the list, in no particular order.

 

 

FIRMWARE IMPROVEMENTS

 

1) Long term request of every Fuji user I know: we need a bracketing on at the very least 3, but better 5 shots with a 2 stop intervals. The existing one of 3 shots at 1 stop is useless

 

2) We need the ability to move the magnified area when checking the focus without the need to zoom out and move the focus point. On other cameras you can, and especially in landscape shots when you're checking the focus on the entire scene is mighty useful and way faster to be able to do it this way

 

3) Do you shoot landscapes yourselves? If so you should know too well that having a self timer that gets canceled every time you turn the camera off to preserve power during long hikes is a major pain. Please, make the self timer sticky

 

4) I prefer the aperture ring on the lens, but all the same many users have other preferences so let us use the rear dial to set the aperture on the lenses (even the ones with their own aperture ring) if we so wish

 

5) This is major, and it would set you apart for every other camera brand: let us upload, in camera, our own Lightroom or Photoshop curves ON TOP of the existing film simulations (not in alternative). Or at the very least we need the ability to create a curve with multiple points of our liking in camera.This would cut my post processing time a lot because at that point I'd have to do mostly localized adjustment, and it would make easier to be sure to have nailed the shot already in the field

 

6) I only shoot in manual mode. But I'd very much like a new kind of A mode (or, better, an option in the menu) where I can specifically tell the camera NOT to blow any highlight regardless how insignificantly small (without me having to constantly check the histogram). Basically an automatic ETTR

 

7) Switching white balance or film simulations in the Q menu should give us a preview of the change, like it already does if you do this via the general menu

 

8) Why can't we use the flash in continuous shooting??? If the problem is that it would be unable to keep up, give us at least the choice to abilitate the flash so it will fire as long as it can; after all few of us use continuous shooting for more than a short 3 or 4 frame burst just to nail the moment

 

9) I find them perfect for my tastes, but it sure would be nice for users coming from other brands to be able to change the direction of the dials, much like you already permit with the focus ring

 

 

BODY IMPROVEMENTS

 

10) A proper eyepiece shielding the eye from extraneous light is a must for a camera, so please no more screw ups like the one on the X-T10; pick a standard, like the screw in ones of the pro Nikon bodies that you used on your medium format cameras, for example, and stick with it for all your models

 

11) It sure would be nice to have an Arca-Swiss compatible base (and left side...L bracket style) instead of a "plain" camera base

 

 

Here you have it, and I'd be happy to discuss it further if you just send me a complimentary X-T2 ;)

Edited by addicted2light
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I'LL JUST ADD MY COMMENTS TO THE ONES I AGREE AND HAVE ADDITIONAL THOUGHTS, OR POSSIBLY DISAGREE ON, AS WELL AS SOME THINGS I'D LIKE TO SEE.

 

1) Long term request of every Fuji user I know: we need a bracketing on at the very least 3, but better 5 shots with a 2 stop intervals. The existing one of 3 shots at 1 stop is useless

 

- AGREE, DON'T KNOW WHY FUJI HAS SUCH LIMITED BRACKETING OPTIONS? I DON'T USE IT MUCH, IT WOULD BE NICE TO HAVE EXPANDED OPTIONS. IF I'M NOT MISTAKEN, MY OLYMPUS OM-D EM-1 & EM-5 MKII HAD AT LEAST 5, MAYBE EVEN UP TO 7 SHOTS FOR BRACKETING.

 

2) We need the ability to move the magnified area when checking the focus without the need to zoom out and move the focus point. On other cameras you can, and especially in landscape shots when you're checking the focus on the entire scene is mighty useful and way faster to be able to do it this way

 

- YOU CAN'T? I SWEAR THE AF POINT IS STILL MOVABLE WHEN MAGNIFIED. MAYBE I'M REMEMBER INCORRECTLY. I WOULD LIKE A WAY TO EXIT MAGNIFIED VIEW WITH ANOTHER OPTION OTHER THAN TO PUSH THE SMALL REAR DIAL ON THE X-PRO2 (SPECIFICALLY SPEAKING).. IT'S RATHER RECESSED AND CAN BE TRICKY WHEN YOU WANT TO HOLD YOUR FOCUS AFTER FOCUS CHECK WITH SHUTTER HALF PRESS.. MY FINGER CAN EITHER LOSE THE PRESSURE OF THE HALF PRESS OR ACTUALLY TAKE THE SHOT. THIS IS WITH AF ONLY AS YOU CAN HIT THE SHUTTER BUTTON ONCE IN MF TO EXIT FOCUS CHECK AND YOU DO NOT LOSE YOUR FOCUS YOU JUST FINE TUNED WHEN YOU GO TO PRESS THE SHUTTER RELEASE.. IN AF, IF YOU RELEASE YOUR HOLD ON SHUTTER RELEASE AFTER YOU'VE FINE TUNE WITH FOCUS CHECK, THE CAMERA WILL ATTEMPT TO REFOCUS ONCE YOU HIT THE SHUTTER BUTTON AGAIN.. THE ONLY WAY AROUND IS TO PRESS THE AF-L BUTTON, BUT IT JUST SEEMS LIKE AN EXTRA UNNECESSARY STEP.

 

4) I prefer the aperture ring on the lens, but all the same many users have other preferences so let us use the rear dial to set the aperture on the lenses (even the ones with their own aperture ring) if we so wish

 

5) This is major, and it would set you apart for every other camera brand: let us upload, in camera, our own Lightroom or Photoshop curves ON TOP of the existing film simulations (not in alternative). Or at the very least we need the ability to create a curve with multiple points of our liking in camera.This would cut my post processing time a lot because at that point I'd have to do mostly localized adjustment, and it would make easier to be sure to have nailed the shot already in the field

 

- INTERESTING IDEA, WOULD BE CURIOUS TO SEE HOW THAT COULD BE IMPLEMENTED, IF POSSIBLE.

 

 

 

WHAT I'D LIKE TO SEE IN FUTURE FIRMWARE UPDATE, I'M SPEAKING AS X-PRO2 USER, BUT THESE COULD APPLY ACROSS ALL FUJI X CAMERAS:

 

1) IMPROVED FACE & EYE DETECT. - I HAVE TO SAY THE FACE & EYE DETECT AF OPTIONS ARE OK AT BEST. I'M NOT TOTALLY DISAPPOINTED, BUT THERE IS ROOM FOR IMPROVEMENT. SONY SEEMS TO BE THE BEST AT THIS, AND I FEEL MY OLYMPUS OM-D'S I WAS USING ALSO HAD MORE PRECISION AND LESS CHANCE OF GETTING LOST ON BACKGROUND OR OTHER OBJECTS OR SHAPES. IF MEMORY SERVES, I FEEL THE X100T HAS EVEN BETTER FACE & EYE DETECT. I FELT IT LOCKED ONTO THE FACE OR EYE WITH MUCH MORE CONFIDENCE.

 

2) I ALREADY MENTIONED I WISHED THERE WAS ANOTHER WAY TO EXIT FOCUS CHECK MAGNIFIED VIEW WHEN USING AF FOCUSING OTHER THAN THE SMALL FAIRLY RECESSED REAR DIAL. AS A SUGGESTION, LET'S MAKE THE AF-L AND AE-L BUTTON IN PARTICULAR WITH OPTION TO REASSIGN TO A FUNCTION BUTTON.. PERHAPS ADDING A FUNCTION TO EXIT MAGNIFICATION. THE AE-L STILL REALLY ISN'T IN IDEAL LOCATION, IT'S A BIT TOO FAR LEFT AND A LITTLE UP FOR MY THUMB TO REACH ACROSS, BUT I THINK IT IS ISOLATED AND PROTRUDES ENOUGH TO BE OF SOME USE OTHER THAN AE-L (OR AF-L IF SWAPPED).

 

THERE ARE MORE, BUT THESE 2 ARE THE MAIN ONES OFF THE TOP OF MY HEAD WHICH I'D LIKE TO HAVE ADDRESSED.

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6) I only shoot in manual mode. But I'd very much like a new kind of A mode (or, better, an option in the menu) where I can specifically tell the camera NOT to blow any highlight regardless how insignificantly small (without me having to constantly check the histogram). Basically an automatic ETTR

 

 

I've been wondering for years why camera makers don't implement this.  With Fuji it could be another option past DR200/DR400: underexpose or overexpose as much as you need to get highlights as far to the right of the RAW histogram as possible without clipping any colors.  Then push/pull the in-camera JPG until it is properly exposed, AND stick some data in the raw file so Lightroom and other raw processors can display the RAW file with the correct exposure, just like they do with DR200- and DR400-shot images.

 

We'd really have the best of both worlds here: maximum tonal data while protecting highlights with an easy-to-use raw file that "just works".  Of course I'm probably underestimating how hard this would be to pull off, but hey, we can dream, right?

Edited by kimballistic
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- AGREE, DON'T KNOW WHY FUJI HAS SUCH LIMITED BRACKETING OPTIONS? I DON'T USE IT MUCH, IT WOULD BE NICE TO HAVE EXPANDED OPTIONS. IF I'M NOT MISTAKEN, MY OLYMPUS OM-D EM-1 & EM-5 MKII HAD AT LEAST 5, MAYBE EVEN UP TO 7 SHOTS FOR BRACKETING.

 

[...]

 

- INTERESTING IDEA, WOULD BE CURIOUS TO SEE HOW THAT COULD BE IMPLEMENTED, IF POSSIBLE.

 

 

 

Yep, I've got an E-M10 (for the times I'm around on the bike, mostly because how small the lenses are) and you can select up to 7 shots for the HDR function.

 

And as for customizable curves, if memory serves me right once upon a time, when dinosaurs still roamed the Earth, there was a third party software for the Nikon D70 that let you do exactly this. Like I said, though, I'd even settle for the possibility to "design" a curve directly in camera, as long as we can input several points and modify the different color channels separately.

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I've been wondering for years why camera makers don't implement this.  With Fuji it could be another option past DR200/DR400: underexpose or overexpose as much as you need to get highlights as far to the right of the RAW histogram as possible without clipping any colors.  Then push/pull the in-camera JPG until it is properly exposed, AND stick some data in the raw file so Lightroom and other raw processors can display the RAW file with the correct exposure, just like they do with DR200- and DR400-shot images.

 

We'd really have the best of both worlds here: maximum tonal data while protecting highlights with an easy-to-use raw file that "just works".  Of course I'm probably underestimating how hard this would be to pull off, but hey, we can dream, right?

 

 

You're right, it would fit perfectly as another option past the DR ones. I'm not an engineer, so I might be sorely mistaken, but I don't think that should be hard to pull off. After all the camera always "knows" what values its pixels are registering, so it should be easy to just nudge the exposure in a way that avoids saturating them.

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What I need is:

1. +/- 5 shots bracketing (in total 11 shots) with step selectable in 1/3 EV up to 1EV.

2. Focus bracketing with selectable step size (at least one step size for macro and different step size for landscape) - up to 99 shots - something I have in Oly OM-D EM-1.

3. Wireless radio off-camera flash - actually I will have it from Nissin this fall (at least I have received such info directly from Nissin) - this is why I'm not going to buy the new Fuji flash.

4. Exposure program with light preservation - lights to the right, but no overexposure of any part of the frame - something I have in Nikon D810.

5. Unlimited intervalometer shooting, with in-camera film making out of taken shots - something I have in Nikon D810.

6. 150-180mm real macro (1:1) f/4 lens (yes, f/4 - in macro I need to close the lens to f/8 - f/22 anyway, so f/4 is enough).

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2. Focus bracketing with selectable step size (at least one step size for macro and different step size for landscape) - up to 99 shots - something I have in Oly OM-D EM-1.

 

 

I don't shoot that much macro, but this is something it would be absolutely indispensable on a full frame camera even for landscape shots. On the A7r is impossible to have everything in focus even at f/16 with an 18mm lens, and in the process you loose a ton of resolution due diffraction anyway.

 

This is one of the reasons I'm moving to Fuji, actually. You can't really see the difference between 36 and 24 - or even 16 - megapixels in reasonably sized prints (let's say under 60x90cm) unless you really stick your nose on the print itself or compare one made with an APS-c and one made with the A7r side by side. But you CAN see fairly easily that your foreground or background are blurry with the A7r shots, that is unless you - as I do - focus stack a lot.

 

And focus stacking is a MAJOR pain, much more prone to stitching/combining (what's the right term?) software errors than HDR, at least with natural subjects (grass, trees etc.) using Enfuse or Photoshop CS6.

Edited by addicted2light
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  • 4 weeks later...

I strongly agree with most of the suggestion, particularly Number 1.

 

I have sent email to Fujifilm Japan and the United Kingdom regarding the firmware improvement. They did reply me politely stating my suggestion was received.

 

Maybe Fujifilm has people reading forums, but I think, we consumers should actively and directly contact Fujifilm to express our concern and improvement suggestion, one step further than discussing here.

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Here is the screen capture of the email reply from Fujifilm UK

 

20160822203835

 

 

We can contact Fujifilm Japan and United Kingdom through these URL. The reason I am choosing the UK for feedback is that I believe it should be one of the big subsidaries.

 

Japan
 
United Kingdom
Edited by kyoleung
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I really hope everyone who likes Fujifilm X System and have any improvement suggestion like the above,  Please voice out your suggestion to them directly, like using the email system listed above.

 

I strongly believe if there is constantly a number of customers asking for certain type of improvement, it is hard for them to ignore.

 

Even if they don't release the improvement in the firmware, it is very likely the improvement will be implemented in the new models. Then it is still a good thing, as long as we are in the X system.

 

Fujifilm is doing a much better job comparing to other camera companies, as it constantly refines and add features to old models through firmware.

 

However, I still think generally, Japanese companies are poor at interacting and collecting feedback from the customers, unlike the Western counterparts.

 

If we want X System to improve, let's us all help Fujifilm and ourselves by telling them what we WANT directly~

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For me, I would like during manual focusing to preset a distance to a button.  I press the button and it just pops to 5ft and stays there until pressed again.

 

Even better, have the camera auto compute the HyperFocal point and place focus there by pressing a button. The camera knows the lens and the aperture setting, pretty simple to compute.

 

Street shooters would love this !!!

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I would like to have also:

 

16bit TIFF file saving in Camera RAW converter...  so not only to JPG

 

NR setting for each IS0

 

0,5 steps for Shadow & Highligh tone setting

 

0,5 steps for LCD & EVF brightnes setting

Edited by renes
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Thanks for the list. I'd like to echo your requests.

 

I would also like to add a user configurable joystick press option. Especially in playback, I want to press the joystick to zoom. 

 

There is also a very confusing procedure to select/change memory cards. I still can't seem to replicate the problem reliably, but sometimes it's just defies any attempt to make the selection.

 

I'd like to have the option of modifying the edge width on the focus peaking display. It would also be nice to have a high contrast option where a focus peaking edge on a dark object would appear light against a dark background and middle against a light background. In any event, I think the overall focus peaking display can be enhanced, there are times the edges just fade away.

 

Roger

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Lots of ideas!

 

I would echo the suggestion of kyoleung, though, and invite everyone to send an email directly to Fuji. They seem to listen to their user base (except for the HDR...) so let them know what we want.

 

The mail addresses for Fuji UK and Fuji Japan is here:

 

http://www.fuji-x-forum.com/topic/3547-11-suggestions-for-fuji-mostly-firmware/?p=32669

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