Fujifilm X-S1

Rating

RRP: $899

Rating (out of 10):

• Build: 9.0
• Ease of use: 8.5
• Autofocusing: 8.0
• Image quality: JPEG 8.0; RAW 8.3
• Video quality: 8.0
• OVERALL: 8.5

In Summary

With its large, SLR-like body, Fujifilm’s recently-released 12-megapixel X-S1 camera looks and feels like a serious camera. It also provides plenty of features to appeal to photo enthusiasts, including raw file capture, P/A/S/M shooting modes and an impressive Fujinon lens with a 26x zoom range. The ‘S’ in the product name indicates a ‘super-long zoom’, while the number ‘1’ is for the first in what promises to be a series.

Full Review

With its large, SLR-like body, Fujifilm’s recently-released 12-megapixel X-S1 camera looks and feels like a serious camera. It also provides plenty of features to appeal to photo enthusiasts, including raw file capture, P/A/S/M shooting modes and an impressive Fujinon lens with a 26x zoom range. The ‘S’ in the product name indicates a ‘super-long zoom’, while the number ‘1’ is for the first in what promises to be a series.

The ‘X’ in the camera’s name places it in the same product group as the X10  and X100, both of which we have reviewed. The up-coming X-Pro-1 is also included in this series, along with the three prime lenses that will be introduced with this camera.

For our international readers, the X-S1 has an RRP in the USA of $799.95. In the UK it’s priced at ø‚ £699. In Europe, the listed price is 699 Euros. Australian prices range from the RRP of $899 to $829 from several online retailers.

Build and Ergonomics
The X-S1carries a ‘Made in Japan’ label and, according to Fujifilm, it’s ‘the product of high precision engineering and the highest quality standards’. The camera body is made from polycarbonate (plastic) reinforced with glass fibres for extra strength. Build quality is well above average.

A rubber-like coating provides a secure and comfortable grip and there is sealing around the hatches covering the card slot, battery compartment and interface ports as well as around the lens to keep dust and moisture out. The mode and commend dials are made from solid metal and have firm click-stop adjustments. Also made from metal are the filter ring on the lens and the supplied petal-shaped lens hood. 

The design of the 26x zoom lens is based on Fujinon’s broadcast-quality TV lenses. Featuring a 12-group, 17-element lens configuration, it includes four glass-moulded aspherical lenses with high refractive index plus two ED lenses. Super EBC (Electron Beam Coating) multilayer coating reduces flare and ghosting.

A 45mm wide zoom ring is located towards the front end of the lens barrel. It has a deeply-ridged rubber grip covering most of its surface with focal length markings stamped in white on the leading edge. Focal lengths – in both actual and 35mm equivalents – are also stamped astride a line on the inner barrel and visible as the lens is extended.

The zoom range extends from 6.1mm to158.6mm, which is equivalent to 24mm in 35mm format at the widest angle of view and 624mm at full zoom extension. Maximum apertures range from f/2.8 at wide angle to f/5.6 at the telephoto limit. Close focusing is supported to 7 cm at 24mm with the macro mode setting or 1 cm with the super macro mode.

A narrower manual focusing ring is located between the zoom ring and the camera body. It also has a rubber grip with widely-spaced but shallower ribs. This ring rotates freely when the camera is in AF mode. In manual focus mode, turning it to the left focuses closer while turning it right focuses on more distant subjects. (A rotating button on the front panel of the camera is used to select focusing modes.)

The top panel carries the mode dial, which has 11 settings: P, S, A and M shooting modes plus three Custom memories in which clusters of settings selected in the P, S, A, M and EXR modes can be stored. The remaining four settings are fully or semi-automatic and include SP (Scene Position), Auto, Adv. (‘Advanced’ techniques automated) and EXR (containing settings to improve clarity, reduce noise and increase dynamic range). We’ve described these modes in previous reviews of Fujifilm cameras.

The Command dial is located near the rear right hand corner of the top panel. It’s used to change camera settings. In the P mode, aperture and shutter speed settings can be shifted in parallel with this dial, which works as a program shift). In M mode pressing the +/- button lets you toggle between shutter speed and aperture settings.

One of the two Function buttons (Fn1) is located in front of the two dials, with the exposure compensation and drive mode buttons further forward. The second, Fn2, button is the top arrow on the arrow pad. Either button can be programmed to operate one of the following settings: image size, image quality, dynamic range, film simulation, AF mode, face detection, face recognition, digital zoom or focus check.

The shutter button sits towards the front of the grip and is surrounded by a power on/off lever. The pop-up flash is located at the front of the housing for the electronic viewfinder (EVF).

A hot-shoe on top of the flash enables users to fit optional external flash guns, which can be used with the P, S, A and M modes and the H/R  and S/N settings in the EXR model. A button left of the housing raises the flash head and it’s lowered by pushing the head down. The flash  head slides slightly forwards to sit a couple of centimetres above the lens barrel in line with the axis of the lens. You can use it with subjects at least 30 cm from the camera.

The 0.47-inch EVF has the same resolution (1.44 million dots) as the finder in the X100, although it’s not a hybrid OVF/EVF unit. Its optical components include two glass elements and one aspheric element and it spans a viewing angle of 26 degrees. The image is reasonably bright for the technology, although its refresh rate is nothing to write home about.

Dioptre adjustments provided via a thumb screw on the left hand side of the EVF housing are quite generous. There’s also an eye sensor that switches the EVF on automatically when you raise the camera to your eye then switches the monitor when you take your eye away.

The rear panel of the X-S1 looks a lot like a regular DSLR, with a large LCD monitor flanked by a generous array of button controls. The screen’s resolution isn’t particularly high (460,000 dots) but its top tilts forward through about 30 degrees and its lower edge tilts up through a little more than 90 degrees to allow over-the-head and waist-level shooting. A special Monitor Sunlight Mode is available for use in bright ambient lighting.

Ranged down the left hand side of the monitor are buttons for accessing the playback, AE/Playback zoom in, AF/playback zoom out, ISO/info and White balance/delete controls. To the right are a relatively convention arrow pad with direction arrows for the macro, flash and self-timer settings plus the second function button (Fn2).

Below the arrow pad lie the Display/Back button and the Raw button, while above it is the AE/AF lock. Flanking the EVF housing above the monitor are buttons for manually switching between EVF and LCD and triggering movie recording.

The rechargeable battery slips into a compartment in the base of the camera, close to the metal-lined tripod socket (which is off the lens axis). The memory card slot is in the side panel towards the rear of the grip, while the left side panel carries an interface panel (A/V, HDMI, USB  and external microphone jack) covered by a close-fitting rubber flap.

Eyelets for the supplied neck strap are located on either side of the camera body, inset into the top panel. The lens cap comes with a tether that can also be attached to one of these loops.

Controls
The X-S1 controls are essentially the same as in the Fujifilm X10 and have been outlined in our review of that camera. (INSERT LINK) In the auto mode, the image processor will evaluate the scene and can calculate whether an image contains a person, features backlighting or has any subject movement. The relevant scene mode is then selected from a built-in ‘library’.
The camera offers a full range of conventional shooting functions (program/aperture-priority/shutter-priority/manual), each enabling users to fine tune colour, image sharpness and tone. In addition, there are four auto bracketing options plus eight Film Simulation and white balance functions.

You can capture a still image by pressing the shutter button while recording a movie, although not in the high-speed movie modes. The camera can be set to prioritise either the still image or the movie when recording movie clips. With the former, the camera interrupts filming while the shot is recorded, while the latter captures the shot without interrupting the movie recording.

For still image priority,  the image size defaults to M when larger sizes have been selected. When movie priority is selected, the image size is the same as the movie frame size. Still shots recorded with these modes are saved separately from the movie.

Sensor and Image Processing
The 8.8 x 6.6 mm EXR CMOS image sensor in the X-S1 appears to be the same as the sensor in the X10, which we reviewed in November, 2011. (INSERT LINK). With an effective resolution of 12 megapixels it is a back-illuminated chip with photosites rotated through 45 degrees  plus optimisation of the microlenses and colour filter mosaic so the photosites collect more light and to improve horizontal and vertical resolution. 

Coupled to the sensor is Fujifilm’s EXR Processor, which combines two CPU chips with an EXR Core. An additional reconfigurable processor has rewritable circuits that can dynamically adapt to perform complex corrections and processing tasks. The processor is completed with a vector graphic accelerator that ensures the high-speed processing needed to support Full HD video capture and  high-speed continuous shooting.

Although the X-S1supports sensitivity settings from ISO 100 to ISO 12,800, when the camera is set to record raw files, the sensitivity range tops out at ISO 3200. Higher sensitivities are available for JPEGs, although at smaller file sizes: M size for ISO 4000 to 6400 and S size for ISO 12,800.

Four aspect ratio settings are available: 4:3, 3:2, 16:9 and 1:1, with 4:3 being the native aspect ratio and the others achieved by cropping. The table below shows typical image and file sizes.

Aspect ratio	Size	Resolution	Fine	Normal
4:3	RAW	4000 x 3000	21.33MB
	RAW+JPEG	4000 x 3000	26.95MB
	L	4000 x 3000	5.12MB	3.22MB
	M	2816 x 2112	3.21MB	1.65MB
	S	2048 x 1536	1.74MB	0.94MB
3:2	L	4000 x 2664	4.53MB	2.88MB
	M	2816 x 1864	2.83MB	1.46MB
	S	2048 x 1360	1.55MB	0.83MB
16:9	L	4000 x 2248	3.85MB	2.44MB
	M	2816 x 1584	2.42MB	1.26MB
	S	1920 x 1080	1.17MB	0.92MB
1:1	L	2992 x 2992	3.85MB	2.44MB
	M	2112 x 2112	2.42MB	1.26MB
	S	1536 x 1536	1.17MB	0.92MB
Motion Panorama  360ø‚ °	Vertical	11520 x 1624	9.85MB
	Horizontal	11520 x 1080	6.65MB
Motion Panorama  180ø‚ °	Vertical	5760 x 1624	4.97MB
	Horizontal	5760 x 1080	3.35MB
Motion Panorama  120ø‚ °	Vertical	3840 x 1624	3.35MB
	Horizontal	3840 x 1080	2.27MB

Movie options are the same as in the X10. Three resolution settings are provided for normal movie recording, along with three ‘High Speed’ (HS) settings for recording slow-motion movies at up to 200 frames per second.

Individual clips recorded in the Full HD and HD modes are restricted to 29 minutes. VGA clips can’t exceed 115 minutes in length and the limit for the HS clips is 30 seconds. Black bands appear at the top and bottom of the frame in the 200 fps movie mode. Typical recording times are shown in the table below.

Movie mode	Aspect ratio	Frame size (pixels)	Frame rate	Recording time/8GB card
Full HD	16:9	1920 x 1080	30 frames/sec.	1 hour 16 minutes
HD		1280 x 720		1 hour 38 minutes
640	4:3	640 x 480		3 hours 52 minutes
HS 640×480			70 fps	1 hour 51 minutes
HS 320×240		320 x 240	120 fps	5 hours 45 minutes
HS 320×112		320 x 112	200 fps	2 hours 51 minutes

Focus, exposure and white balance are adjusted automatically while clips are recorded and focus will adjust with moving subjects and zooming is you’ve set the AF mode to AF-C (continuous AF). You can zoom in and out of scenes while recording video clips, although any associated camera noises may be recorded. If light levels are low, the AF-Assist light may switch on automatically. (You can turn this setting off in the setup menu.)

Playback and Software
Both are the same as the X10 and covered in our review of that camera.

Performance
Despite their different lenses, in many ways the test shots from the review camera resembled those we obtained from the Fujifilm X10 we reviewed last year. JPEG images straight out of the camera appeared sharp and most colours were accurately reproduced, although the camera tended to overdo the magenta in purplish-blues.

The review camera’s exposure system appeared to be better biased that we found in the X10, although blown-out highlights were occasionally found in bright, contrasty lighting in our JPEG shots. They were also very common in video clips recorded in normal lighting.

Blooming could be seen when the camera is pointed towards a bright light source. However, the lens showed little tendency to flare unless it was used without the supplied lens hood, which helped to retain contrast and sharpness for backlit subjects.
We had the same problems with converting raw files from the review camera as we experienced with the X10 since the only available converter was the supplied Silkypix-based application. Consequently, raw files converted into 16-bit TIFF format with this software provided only a slight advantage over JPEGs processed in the camera.

Many test shots appeared nicely sharp and ‘punchy’ and the anticipated loss of sharpness as sensitivity was increased was less than we expected. However, as with the X10, Imatest results from the review camera were below expectations for the sensor’s resolution.

The graph below only covers sensitivities that produce full-sized image files. Since ISO settings above 3200 are not supported for raw files and JPEGs are reduced in size to M-size (2816 pixels wide) at ISO 6400  and S-size (2048 pixels wide) at ISO 21800, values for these settings can’t be compared.

Little noise was visible in shots taken at ISO settings up to ISO 800 and shots taken at ISO 1600  were printable at snapshot size (15 x 10 cm). Image noise was evident in JPEG shots at ISO 3200 and obvious at higher ISO settings. Long exposures at ISO 12800 were visibly noise-affected and somewhat soft.

Flash exposures were evenly balanced across the camera’s entire sensitivity range and images were acceptably sharp right up to ISO 6400. There was a very noticeable decline in sharpness at ISO 12800, where the image size was reduced to 2048 x 1536 pixels.

We were limited in the range of focal lengths we could test with Imatest because of a lock of space in our testing set-up. At most focal lengths we tested, the highest resolution was recorded roughly three f-stops down from maximum aperture. Diffraction began to exert an influence from about f/5.6 on with a gradual slide downwards towards f/11 (the smallest aperture). The graph below shows the results of our Imatest tests.

Lateral chromatic aberration was mainly in the low band and we saw no signs of coloured fringing in test shots. In the graph below of our Imatest results, the red line marks the boundary between ‘negligible’ and ‘low’ CA, while the green line separates ‘low’ and ‘moderate’ CA.

Distortion and vignetting were also well controlled. Although slight barrel distortion could be seen at the widest angle of view, it was barely perceptible by around 20mm (equivalent to roughly 80mm in 35mm format).

Autofocusing was reasonably fast but only at shorter focal lengths. When the lens was zoomed right in, hunting was common and the camera often took a second or two to find focus.

Within the limits of their focusing ranges, the two macro modes proved capable of delivering worthwhile results. However, it was impossible to use the lens hood with the Super Macro setting (which focuses to 1 cm from the subject) because it blocks light from reaching the subject. The flash wasn’t usable for close-ups with the two macro modes.

Digital zoom shots were as good as we found with the X10, although the longer lens made it more difficult to keep the camera steady. The image stabilisation system appeared to be able to handle the 2x zoom setting – provided the AF system was able to find focus.
Auto white balance performance was similar to the X10. The review camera was unable to suppress the orange cast of incandescent lighting but produced close-to-neutral colours under fluorescent lighting. The presets also turned in close-to-neutral colours and manual measurement eliminated all colour casts. Plenty of in-camera fine-tuning is available.

Video quality was similar to the X10’s, although we didn’t see quite as much difference between the Full HD and HD clips as we did with the smaller camera. VGA clips were nothing like as sharp and punchy as the HD recordings and the high-speed modes, though interesting produced frame sizes that ranged from barely usable at 70 fps to almost too small to bother with at 200 fps. Audio quality was similar to the X10’s.

We carried out our timing tests with a 32GB  SanDisk Extreme Pro SDHC U1 memory card, one of the fastest available. The review camera took just over three seconds to power-up, which is slow when you consider that it doesn’t need to extend the lens.

We measured an average capture lag of 0.22 seconds, which reduced to less than 0.1 seconds with pre-focusing. It took 2.1 seconds, on average to process each JPEG file and 3.3 seconds for each RAF.RAW file and 4.0 seconds for each RAW+JPEG pair.

Shot-to shot times averaged 0.9 seconds without flash and 5.1 seconds with. In the high-speed continuous shooting mode, the camera recorded 10 frames at 2816 x 2112 pixels in 1.2 seconds. The medium-speed setting recorded 10 full-resolution images in 2.5 seconds. It took approximately  five seconds to process each burst.

The buffer memory has limited space for raw files so capture rates slowed after six frames and the burst speed was limited to approximately two frames/second. It took just under 10 seconds to process these bursts.

Buy this camera if:
– You’re looking for an SLR-style ‘bridge’ camera with manual shooting modes and raw file capture plus Full HD video recording with stereo soundtracks.
– You require a viewfinder and don’t mind an EVF. 
– You want to some depth-of-field control at longer focal lengths.
– You want to some depth-of-field control at longer focal lengths.
– You’d like to record high-speed video clips for motion analysis.
Don’t buy this camera if:
– You require high resolution with high-speed bursts.
– You make frequent use of ISO settings higher than 800.
IMATEST GRAPHS
JPEG files

RAF.RAW files converted with Silkypix Raw File Converter EX

SAMPLE IMAGES

Specifications

Image sensor: 2/3-inch (8.8 x 6.6 mm) EXR CMOS with 12 megapixels effective
Image processor:  EXR Processor 
Lens:  Fujinon 6.1-158.6mm f/2.8-5.6 zoom lens (24-624mm equivalent in 35mm format)
Zoom ratio: 26x optical, 2x digital zoom
Image formats: Stills – JPEG (Exif V 2.3), RAF.RAW, RAW + JPEG; Movies – MOV (H.264) with Stereo sound
Image Sizes: Stills – (4:3) 4000 x 3000, 2816 x 2112, 2048 x 1536; (3:2) 4000 x 2664, 2816 x 1864, 2048 x 1360; (16:9) 4000 x 2248, 2816 x 1584, 1920 x 1080; (1:1) 2992 x 2992, 2112 x 2112, 1536 x 1536; Motion Panorama – 360ø‚ ° Vertical 11520 x 1624 Horizontal 11520 x 1080, 180ø‚ ° Vertical 5760 x 1624 Horizontal 5760 x 1080, 120ø‚ ° Vertical 3840 x 1624 Horizontal 3840 x 1080; Video – 1920 x 1080, 1280 x 720, 640 x 480 pixels at 30 frames/sec. with stereo sound
Shutter speed range: 30 to 1/4000 sec. (1/4 second minimum in Auto mode)
Bracketing: AE Bracketing: ø‚ ±1/3EV, ø‚ ±2/3EV, ø‚ ±1EV; Film Simulation Bracketing: Provia / Standard, Velvia / Vivid, Astia / Soft; Dynamic Range Bracketing:  100%, 200%, 400%; ISO Sensitivity Bracketing: +/-1/3EV, +/-2/3EV, +/-1EV
Self-timer: 2 or 10 seconds delay
Image Stabilisation: Lens shift type
Exposure Compensation: +/-2.0 EV in 1/3 EV steps
Focus system/range: Contrast-based TTL autofocus with single, continuous modes and Manual focus (One-push AF mode included); range 30 cm to infinity; macro to 7 cm, super macro to 1 cm; AF-assist light available; Multi, Area & Tracking modes
Exposure metering/control: TTL 256-zones metering with Multi, Spot and Average settings
Shooting modes: EXR, AUTO, Adv., Scene Programs (Natural Light & Flash, Natural Light, Portrait, Portrait Enhancer, Dog, Cat, Landscape, Sport, Night, Night (Tripod), Fireworks, Sunset, Snow, Beach, Party, Flower, Text), C3, C2, C1, M, A, S, P
ISO range: Auto, ISO 100-3200 in 1/3 EV steps;  ISO 4000, 5000, 6400 available for M size or lower, ISO 12800 S size only
White balance: Automatic scene recognition plus Fine, Shade, Fluorescent light (Daylight), Fluorescent light (Warm White), Fluorescent light (Cool White), Incandescent light, Custom, Colour temperature selection (2,500K – 10,000K)
Flash: Auto flash (super intelligent flash); range approx. 30 cm – 8.0 m ISO 800 (auto); hot-shoe provided
Flash modes: Red-eye removal OFF : Auto, Forced Flash, Suppressed Flash, Slow Synchro. Red-eye removal ON : Red-eye Reduction Auto, Red-eye Reduction & Forced Flash, Suppressed Flash, Red-eye Reduction & Slow Synchro.
Sequence shooting:  Super High: approx. 10 fps (Size M, S); High: approx. 7 fps (Size L, M, S); Middle: approx. 5 fps (Size L, M, S); Low: approx. 3 fps (Size L, M, S); Max. 8 frames L, 16 frames M & S
Storage Media: 26 MB internal memory plus SD / SDHC / SDXC (UHS-I) expansion slot
Viewfinder: 0.47-inch, approx. 1440,000 dots, TFT colour LCD monitor; Approx. 100% coverage; Diopter adjustment : -5 to +3 dpt
LCD monitor: Tilting 3-inch TFT colour LCD monitor with, approx. 460,000 dots, approx. 100% coverage
Power supply: NP-95 Li-ion battery; CIPA rated for approx. 460 shots/charge with monitor; 500  shots/charge with EVF
Dimensions (wxhxd): 135 x 107 x 149 mm
Weight: Approx. 905 grams (without battery and card)

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