X100T Flash - Annoying or What?

[andrew brown]

Recently attended a 40th wedding anniversary where the X-100T ISO 6400 setting excelled - whilst all those around were busy working out what flash to use.

 

I could plug the virtues of the X-100T over the many other cameras being used - but then you alrready know that because you have one and love it!

 

But towards the end of the night I thought "what the heck, let's give the flash a run out..."

 

Then I realised that the flash controls on the X-100T are clearly designed to encourage you to use hugh ISO, because trudging through a selection of menus to activate and use the flash is not my idea of simplicity or functionality.

Then, when I did find the sertgings in the menu, the important option to activate the flash was geyed out! Why? What setting had I customised that could possibly isolate the functionaliry of the flash facility?

 

I would say answers on a postcard please - but I'm one of those that learns by solving the problem, so I suppose my real issue in this thread is:

 

Why have Fuji made the flash system so hard to fiund and use?

 

Surely after Aprture, Shutter and ISO, flash should be the next most important setting (I exclude review and delete options as they fit into the same category as an on/off switch for me in digital)?

Not buried deep in some sub menu of a sub menu!

 

So, I've finally found something I dislike about the X-100T that I think should be sorted in the next versionof this model!

[Solo with others]

It's actually as simple as pressing "up" while in shoot mode on the D-Pad on the X100T(in stock configuration).  From there you are presented with the basic flash controls.  On my previous X100 this button was actually labeled for flash control but in the T all of the D-pad buttons can now be reassigned.  Once you get to know this it's very easy to turn the flash on and off.  I would say other than aperture it is the most common adjustment I make prior to shooting indoors or in the evening.

[Solo with others]

Here is a picture of the X100S (left) and X100T (right).  I think they just wanted to build in more flexibility and clean up the back by making these programmable

.http://goo.gl/sov1e8

[lichtundlaerm]

I don't use flash often, but for the few times I do, I put the flash options to the "Q" Menu. Just keep pushing the Q until the configuration menu pops up. You can put in the "flash mode" option and the "flash compensation" option.

 

Do you have your X100T set to electronic+mechanical shutter? This automatically deactivates the flash (which makes sense). You have to set it to mechanical only.

 

Hope this helps.

[Larry Bolch]

Upon buying the X100, I discovered that the flash alone was enough to justify the purchase. Fuji calls it "Super Intelligent" and that is not hype. The tube is as near the optical axis as is physically practical. When used as the primary light source, it is as ugly as light gets—having a light coming from the bridge of your nose. Used for fill, it is astonishingly good. Even in the harshest of sunlight, the flash opens up shadow detail and rarely is there a secondary shadow. Best at -1/3 or -2/3EV it delivers natural looking images with great consistency. If necessary, at ±0 it will balance a dark subject with a bright background, better than any leaf shutter camera I have ever used though the natural look is not quite as good. 

 

Above all, it will synch at any shutter speed and is so consistent that one can trust it totally. I assume that it works as well with the X100S and T.

 

Covering a party for the daughter of a friend, the X-Pro1 was doing a fine job with the ambient lighting early in the evening. Then a DJ began working, ambient light was lowered and powerful blue and red LED panels began to flash. Skin tones were destroyed. Switched to the X100, the disco lights still showed, but skin-tones were restored. The ambience of the lightscape was preserved, with LED light visible in highlights, but people looking fine. Very nice results!

 

I worked in sub-tropical latitudes for nearly two decades, dealing with harsh overhead light constantly each mid-day. I would have killed to have a camera that worked this well. Nice little camera in every way, but incredibly capable with fill-flash.

[Dis]

Why have Fuji made the flash system so hard to fiund and use?

Fuji makes flash system fool-proof. They protect us from using stupid things like Flash+continious drive / flash + electronic shutter etc. The problem is Fuji expect user to RTFM(!!!) and make no hints why the protection is active. Once you know it, the Fuji systems does much more rational things than others. Built in flash is always bad as main source. Thus you have to force it to shoot like that. If you use hot-shoe/ttl-cord flash you won't meet so much trouble. It powers on by itself. It has flash compensation button on the body.

On the other hand fill flash works great. Having dedicated commander option is great too.

[andrew brown]

I don't use flash often, but for the few times I do, I put the flash options to the "Q" Menu. Just keep pushing the Q until the configuration menu pops up. You can put in the "flash mode" option and the "flash compensation" option.

 

Do you have your X100T set to electronic+mechanical shutter? This automatically deactivates the flash (which makes sense). You have to set it to mechanical only.

 

Hope this helps.

That may be the cause of my problem - having it set to the wrong shutter setting.

 

Really need to get me a decent book explaining all aspects of this camera in depth. Makes the X-Pro 1 look simple by comparison...

[bholst]

Hi Adrew,

 

do you have the latest firmware on your X100T? My X100T can shoot with flash in MS+ES mode as long as it actually chooses the mechanical shutter. It came to us in firmware Ver.1.10, I think.

Best regards

 

Bastian

[andrew brown]

Firmware upgrade to be checked as well, thanks.

 

Regards reading the manual - let's be honest here - the beginners booklet isn't much cop - and I don't really enjoy having to spend an hour having a good read of some PDF before I want to use the camera just to be sure I know how to use the feature before I take the caemra out.

 

The X-Pro 1 came with a lovely paper based manual that I took every where when I was learning to use it - and the X-100T is clearly a far more powerful and sophisticated camera by comparison, so it would seem to me to be the wrong time to take away the carry around manual.

 

I fully accept I have a long way to go to master this camera, and need to undertake some reading and experimenting to do that, but just wish there was an option to activate the flash tht was as easy as adjusting the shutter or aperture :-(

[owlcavestudios]

I'll agree with a lot of statements made previously.  I also initially was dumbfounded when I came across some settings (not just flash related) that were grayed out with no explanation of why. Just took some monkeying around to figure things out.

 

I'll 2nd the idea of putting the flash settings in the Q menu.  I have both flash mode and compensation added there so they are only a couple button presses away at any time.  I tend to use the flash with a slight negative compensation most times, as I think that looks the most natural, even in un-natural lighting conditions.

 

I read an article (can't remember where at the moment) that talked about the sweet spot of the X100 series, and they recommended a great daylight portrait "mode" by setting the camera to 1/1000, f2, ISO auto, ND filter ON, and the flash ON.  I'll concur, when I'm out in bright daylight, this is a really fun way to take portraits or action shots.  The flash is natural and unobtrusive, but really makes the scene, along with the shallow DOF.

 

Most books I've read seem to leave the flash section for last, so they spend the least amount of time talking about it.  The info on the flash is usually limited to descriptions of the modes/settings and nothing more.  Rico's X-E2 book is probably the closest thing I've found to be useful, even though around half the Flash section doesn't apply due the X100 series leaf shutter.  Wish he would write a book on the X100 series (hint hint )!