deva

I just shot many hundreds of images with the 16-55. The autofocus is very fast and sure. The lens performed very well under a variety of challenging situations. The image quality is excellent too. When the light gets low, I switch to primes. 16, 23 and 56.

As Kimballistic said... the JPG's have the cartoonish filters applied. If there were a RAW file without the filter, I could still have used the images... which is sort of the point of having the RAW + JPG option. I wonder if this is a bug or intended behavior?

Thanks for that tip! I'll try that and see how it works.

From May 12th through the 15th I was up in Anacortes WA covering a conference/protest event called Break Free (from Fossil Fuels). It was the first time I have use my X-Pro2 in a busy, constant action situation. I was shooting all day long and in the night. It was a good variety of fast changing situations. Overall, the X-Pro2 did well. I was using the X-T1 as a second body and the X-Pro2 performed distinctly better than the X-T1 because of the faster EVF refresh rate and much shorter blackout times. The X-Pro2 also focused faster/more consistently when the light became low. I did have the 'turn the camera off and on' message for the first time. That is unnerving, but it only happened once and not at a critical moment. I do hope that is fixed/fixable in firmware. It is rather annoying to have an error like that in a high-end camera. I also had another thing happen that was a problem. I was in a crowd and often holding the camera overhead or down low or out at arms length to reach around people. I must have accidentally hit the drive button because the camera ended up in "advanced filter" mode. What that led me to discover is that in the advanced filter mode, the camera does not save RAW files. I had the X-Pro2 set to record RAW to card#1 and JPG to card#2. Once the camera accidentally ended up in "advanced filter" mode, it saved JPG's to both cards. That meant those images were useless. So I lost some important shots because of this. The ability to disable the advanced filter mode would be welcome. I will never ever use it (except by accident apparently) I also hit the drive button by mistake one other time and ended up in bracketing mode. That I realized after a few seconds and it was not a problem. When holding the camera in odd ways (reaching around a fence for example) it is easy to hit various buttons such as the Q button by mistake. Made me think I might like some fast way to just turn off all the buttons in situations like that. Of course more experience with the camera and my hands may find ways to avoid the inadvertent button pushing. There sure are a lot of them though when I end up hold the camera in a different way. I also had opportunity to shoot a bit of Video with the X-Pro2. I was using the 100-400 lens (on a tripod obviously) and I was very happy with the results. Overall, the camera performed well. With all the journalistic work I do, I missed the articulating screen. Shooting at night is great with the EVF. I do not miss how hard it was to see/compose/focus in the dark with my DSLR's. I take it for granted now. Most of my shooting was with the 16-55 and 50-140. Both lenses are fast and I never felt like focusing was slow or that I missed shots. A very high percentage of shots were sharp (easily 90+%). I also used the 10-24 and at night the 16 and 56 both wide open.

Besides the shorter blackout, faster turn on/off/waking, the X-Pro 2 also has a faster refresh rate for the EVF. Even though it is smaller than the X-T1, the faster refresh rate is noticeable with less lag when panning or zooming around. It makes a difference in keeping the camera unobtrusive as I focus on the subject and shooting. I find the X-Pro2 significantly better as far as overall speed and agile performance (I miss the tilt screen and big EVF). The X-Pro2 is what I have wished the X-T1 was in that regard. Based on the X-Pro2, I'll be buying the X-T2 the day it is available.

One can also look at it another way... The reason I invested in Fuji is not that it is cheaper than FF, but that it is smaller while still providing exceptional image quality and having a more 'analog' shooting experience. My X-T1 with say the 23/1.4 is a joy to hold and use. I like having the aperture ring and real dials. I like the size and weight. I can carry an X-T1 plus the 16, 23 and 56 around all day and hardly notice the weight or bulk. If the high end of the Fuji line of cameras all keep getting bigger and heavier, that will be more of a deterrent for me than a price increase. btw, the X-T2 will have more than 4k, 8MP and the joystick. It will also have faster AF and in general faster everything. The blackout time on the X-Pro2 is significantly shorter than the X-T1 (much closer to an SLR). Turning on is faster, waking from sleep is faster, etc. I'm expecting the X-T2 to equal or surpass the X-Pro2 in this regard. If it takes more cost to keep the camera small while increasing its overall speed and agility, so be it.

I like having 2 bodies and the 23 and 56 on them... switching cameras is much faster than switching lenses... I prefer the primes when I have time. On the other hand, I just purchased the 16-55. The 16-55 and 50-140 on 2 bodies covers a wide range of situations.

I wasn't implying that... Different times give different results. For example, today there is not much need to learn to manually focus fast by feel and eye. Before there was autofocus, your livelihood depended on it. Doesn't mean someone today who has not developed that skill is an idiot or incapable of doing so. They are just not forced to it by the circumstance. My X-T1 can shoot 8 frames per second. With a 35mm film camera and a 36 exposure roll of film, that is 4 1/2 seconds before needing to change the roll of film!

It's funny how the expectations have changed. I worked as a pro photographer for years doing commercial location shoots with mostly manual focus and sometimes no motor drive (35mm and MF). The wedding photographers I knew were using Hassleblad cameras which apparently also needed to 'catch up' to the Canikons of the world. I feel no stress about the batteries in my Fuji cameras. I keep some extra charged ones on hand and it takes 15 seconds to switch. It is a trivial non issue. Far less than changing film. Especially with the latest Fuji lenses, I find the autofocus fast enough for weddings and all but the most demanding of situations. But then I was trained in a time when it was the photographer who had to be paying attention, be fast enough and have a sense of the moment. Today's Fuji cameras are remarkably fast compared to cameras some decades ago. I would not have the slightest hesitation to shoot weddings with the current Fuji gear. You are free to make whatever choices suit you... I am simply offering a different perspective.

Not just in an image... Each person makes the choices they make. I prefer the real world. I dislike hyper-reality. It is everywhere in society these days, not just photography. I consider it an enemy of honesty and truth.

The 10-24 is an amazing lens. Great for cityscapes cause mostly you want to stop down a bit anyway so the f4 is no issue. Then the OIS is excellent. In lower light, I've managed 1/2 second exposures hand held. I never go somewhere without it.

What don't you like about the new EV dial?

I'm very happy with the Fuji lenses... If they say that IBIS will hurt IQ more than they want, I see no reason to doubt that it is true and since I find their lenses consistently excellent, I'm fine with trusting their choice/knowledge priorities.

Adobe is forcing me to leave Lightroom. I refuse to pay the subscription and the current purchased version is their last. Obviously I'm not interested in another software that is subscription... but I'll have to make a choice of something else at some point.

They are also a bit bigger diameter...

I hope that is the case... those extra large knobs look awful to me.

I already hate those big bulbous dials on top...

So far, focusing at night has been no problem with the X-Pro2. I have mostly used the 16/1.4 and the 50-140. I have used them both recently in 2 significantly darker places than a "slightly dimmed but generally well lit restaurant" with no trouble with AF speed. Low light means being a bit more attentive to having some contrast in the AF point. Any camera can hunt sometimes in the dark... my Nikons did and that is where I learned to be more attentive. I've only had the X-Pro2 for a couple weeks, so have shot much more at night with the X-T1. Still, I'm confident to say that the X-Pro2 has been better in the dark than my X-T1.

Unknown

It was 87°F here 2 days ago and I did some photography with the X-Pro2. I noticed that the camera became fairly warm and a bit warmer than I would like. By that I mean I am thinking about a 95-100 degree day in the sun and would it become a problem? Summer is coming so something over the next 3 months I should have that question answered.

I would like the firmware to correct the bluish cast to the EVF so it matches the LCD

Sure... An X-T1 + the 16 1.4 (wider than the Sigma), 23 1.4 and 35 1.4 weighs 2/3rds of a pound less than the D500 + Sigma 18-35 1.8 Which means you can have an X-T1 plus the 16, 23, 35 and add the 56 1.2 (4 great lenses and a far wider focal range) for slightly under the weight of the D500 and the single Sigma 18-35 zoom.

What sort of work do you do that has you shooting in the rain? I've only had the X-T1 out in the rain once. It got quite wet and was fine, but I have no idea how close it might have been to shutting down. The X-Pro2 feels better sealed to me than the X-T1. Since you have the D800, I don't understand why you need to add the D500?

Actually, it does not intrigue me at all... For a zoom, I would rather have the Fuji 50-140 2.8 with OIS than the Sigma 50-100 1.8 - I can shoot the 50-140 @ 1/30 and even 1/15 which makes it much better handheld in low light than the Sigma. The 50-140 OIS is remarkable, and it has more reach. The Sigma is a pretty narrow zoom range. With the Fuji 56 and 90 primes on 2 bodies I've basically equaled the zoom range and each feels so much lighter and more agile and comfortable to hold. The D500 + the Sigma 50-100 is over 5 Lbs. The Fuji X-T1 + the 90 is under 2 Lbs. That is a huge difference in handling. I could comfortably shoot the X-T1 + 90 one handed or on the run all day. And of course I'm simply expressing my interests and preferences and you are free to have your own :-)

A D500 + the Sigma 18-35 zoom is 1676 gms in weight. An X-T1 plus the 16 1.4 and 35 1.4 totals 1002 gms. Far less weight. In fact, 2 X-T1 bodies plus the 16 and 35 1.4 lenses (one on each body) still weighs less than the D500 plus the Sigma. The Sigma 50-100 1.8 is basically a stop faster than the 50-140 2.8 Fuji, but it is a smaller zoom range and does not have OIS (which is amazing on the 50-140) The Sigma also weighs over a pound more than the Fuji zoom. Comparing the Sigma to primes... the Sigma weighs 1490 gms and the Fuji 90/2 and 56/1.2 together weigh 945 gms. - More than a pound less. In fact, the Fuji primes, 16/1.4, 35/1.4, 56/1.2 and 90/2 together weigh only 17 gms more than the Sigma 50-100 by itself. A D500 plus the 2 Sigma zooms is 3161 gms (6.95 lbs) An X-T1 plus the 4 Fuji primes 16, 35, 56, 90 is 1947 gms (4.3 lbs) 2.65 Lbs less (even less still if swapping out the 18/2 and 35/2 which would be more comparable to the Sigmas) Hell, you could toss in the 10-24 and 60 Macro and still be about 1.5 Lbs lighter...