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04-13-2017, 10:16 PM   #1
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Seriously looking at Fuji X options

Hi ,
currently evaluating Fuji X as a compact alternative to Pentax DSLR.
Regarding resolution, I'd rather consider 24Mpixel.
However, something is seriously holding me back: battery life.
I have a college having a XT series camera, according to him he can barely get 200 shots on a full charged battery, in low power mode (slow camera), for a couple of hours of use.
Browsing the web, I've also found that for EX series , some users report less than 100 shots from a full charged battery, draining into less than 2 hours.
I was thinking about adding a grip to the kit, but then, the size advantage is lost, so , what's the point?

Any one here can comment from their own experience?

04-13-2017, 10:57 PM   #2
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I have the Sony RX100 V, following recommendations from a photography blog by a professional photographer, who picked as his carry around camera.

Pictures are good and it has very good low light performance, which is good for me. I do find it a bit fiddly to operate because I do not have delicate fingers. Also, I find the menu system very confusing and often have trouble finding what I want. It is small and light. I have read of issues with battery life but, really, if I am going to spend a long time taking photos, I'll take the K3ii with a backup battery.
04-14-2017, 12:39 AM   #3
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QuoteOriginally posted by biz-engineer Quote
Hi ,
currently evaluating Fuji X as a compact alternative to Pentax DSLR.
Regarding resolution, I'd rather consider 24Mpixel.
However, something is seriously holding me back: battery life.
I have a college having a XT series camera, according to him he can barely get 200 shots on a full charged battery, in low power mode (slow camera), for a couple of hours of use.
Browsing the web, I've also found that for EX series , some users report less than 100 shots from a full charged battery, draining into less than 2 hours.
I was thinking about adding a grip to the kit, but then, the size advantage is lost, so , what's the point?

Any one here can comment from their own experience?
Go over to the Fuji forum....scroll to XE1,XE2 & XE2s.....there a thread saying 500+ shots from a charge.My Fuji is an XE1(16mp)...I don't think the 24mp models are rated too much different to 16mp,ie 350shots per chargeI haven't ever measured the numbers I get from mine but it seems similar to k50(109) definitely less than K01.The K1 battery runs out b4 my Fuji!.
04-14-2017, 01:38 AM   #4
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I have an X-M1 and I have no trouble with the battery life at all. I charge it occasionally but have never seen it go below 3/3 bars in the battery display, but I remember the guy I bought it from telling me that when it does start to show a depleted battery it goes dead fast. I have no complaints at all. I bought a third party spare but have never used it.

Mirrorless cameras in general have poorer battery life than DSLRs because they need a screen or EVF active to focus and compose, but different models vary wildly.

04-14-2017, 02:53 AM   #5
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By all means go over to Fuji... but remember, the small size advantage evaporates the minute you put anything but a wide or near-normal prime on the camera. If you want an MX-sized body with retro dials that can mount a DA21-sized lens, it's probably just the thing for you. If you like to shoot with long tele zooms, not so much.
04-14-2017, 03:32 AM   #6
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Since these are the Pentax forums, you will probably find more fans of Pentax than Fuji here
Fuji is attractive because it looks really cool and has some great primes. The downsides are the cost. Fuji is not actually super compact - I think something like K-S1 with some pancake primes gives you a lot of bang per buck. Compact, optical viewfinder,.. even a K-50 or KP is still pretty small.
And Fuji has some problems with some sensors, right? Those were the reasons I stuck to Pentax some years ago when I was looking at more "compact" systems. It just never added up for me. Right now, I'd go for a Pentax KP. Looks almost as cool as the Fuji cameras and has some really nice features.

Write down your priorities and see which system fits them better, at your budget. Sorry I can't help you with the battery life, but in general its a good idea to buy spares
04-14-2017, 04:22 AM - 1 Like   #7
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Just buy extra batteries- I normally shoot Pentax, my buddy Fuji XT2. I carry one spare, he carries a Baggie of extras ... Probably as many as a half dozen. It's really one of the easiest drawback work arounds.

04-14-2017, 04:41 AM   #8
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Fuji makes great cameras and has some impressive lenses. I sold off all my Pentax gear 3.5 years ago and did a system re-assessment, not tied to any brand. For me Fuji was very appealing. Nikon was as well. I was torn between compactness versus looking through the lens and fast AF. Ultimately I made a compromise with a K-5II and the HD DA 21/40/70 combination. The Limited's were the key.

I see you have a K-1. Why not consider a K-3II or a KP and Limited's? You'll also be able to utilize the pancakes on your K-1 although the 21 and 15 will need to use the APS-C crop mode. Stop down with the 35, 40 or 70. Perhaps you have a camera store nearby or a friend with a Pentax pancake to try on your K-1? Beware! The HD DA 15 has the power to take control of your mind!

Last edited by Saltwater Images; 04-14-2017 at 04:42 AM. Reason: Typo
04-14-2017, 06:04 AM - 1 Like   #9
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QuoteOriginally posted by biz-engineer Quote
Hi ,
currently evaluating Fuji X as a compact alternative to Pentax DSLR.
Regarding resolution, I'd rather consider 24Mpixel.
However, something is seriously holding me back: battery life.
I have a college having a XT series camera, according to him he can barely get 200 shots on a full charged battery, in low power mode (slow camera), for a couple of hours of use.
Browsing the web, I've also found that for EX series , some users report less than 100 shots from a full charged battery, draining into less than 2 hours.
I was thinking about adding a grip to the kit, but then, the size advantage is lost, so , what's the point?

Any one here can comment from their own experience?
I use an X-Pro 2 for my event work and for my bif hobby shooting. My experience is that you want one battery for every 2-3 hours you'll be shooting. If you are super careful and turn the camera off when you aren't using it, and use the OVF rather than the EVF, you can stretch that time out an additional 45-60 minutes.

In my experience the battery life only loosely correlates with the number of shots taken. Yesterday I took 309 raw+jpg shots at an event that lasted three hours. I used one battery to ~10% and about ~15% of a second. A few days ago I was shooting ducks at the local pond and I took 446 raw+jpg shots in an hour and 45 minutes and the battery was not in the red. Red happens at about 15%. I've taken over 900 shots on a single battery but that was in a 45 minute period shooting birds at 8fps.

There's quite a few guides floating around on which settings to turn off or avoid using to make the batteries last longer on Fuji cameras. In my experience, not using the LCD, turning off pre-focus, not riding the half-press shutter for constant AF, and turning off the camera if I'm not going to be using it in the next minute or so all contribute to increasing the battery life. Limiting the information shown in the EVF can also increase battery life.

All of my examples are from an X-Pro 2 in high performance mode. So if you use the normal or power saving modes you can get longer battery life.

My carry around camera is an X-E2s with the 27mm pancake. I take it with me everywhere and take at least a few pictures every day with it. I charge its battery once every few weeks and it has a 3rd party battery in it that has about ~75% of the capacity of the Fuji batteries.

The X-Pro 2 is barely pocketable with the 27mm on it, the X-E2s is a lot smaller.

Hope that helps!
04-14-2017, 06:47 AM   #10
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Fuji XT

QuoteOriginally posted by biz-engineer Quote
Hi ,
currently evaluating Fuji X as a compact alternative to Pentax DSLR.
Regarding resolution, I'd rather consider 24Mpixel.
However, something is seriously holding me back: battery life.
I have a college having a XT series camera, according to him he can barely get 200 shots on a full charged battery, in low power mode (slow camera), for a couple of hours of use.
Browsing the web, I've also found that for EX series , some users report less than 100 shots from a full charged battery, draining into less than 2 hours.
I was thinking about adding a grip to the kit, but then, the size advantage is lost, so , what's the point?

Any one here can comment from their own experience?
I own both a Fuji X-T2 and X-T1, and previously a X-100S. All three were easily capable of getting 300 images. The newer X-T2 can make 375 or so using the newer updated battery. I use both OEM and cheaply wasabi batteries and they all last about the same number of shots. I use the "eye sensor" mode on the eve almost exclusively. The image sharpness and film simulations are nothing short of fantastic imho, ymmv
04-14-2017, 09:51 AM   #11
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QuoteOriginally posted by Keith23 Quote
Sony RX100 V
I've already looked at it in the past. I should reevaluate.

QuoteOriginally posted by surfar Quote
The K1 battery runs out b4 my Fuji!.
Humm. I have a K1, I don't think this is possible. My K1 battery (Pentax battery, not a third party) last 6 hours, 1000+ shots.
The XT1 of my college does around 200 shots max / 2h on a fully charged battery.

QuoteOriginally posted by pathdoc Quote
By all means go over to Fuji... but remember, the small size advantage evaporates the minute you put anything but a wide or near-normal prime on the camera. If you want an MX-sized body with retro dials that can mount a DA21-sized lens, it's probably just the thing for you. If you like to shoot with long tele zooms, not so much.
Sure, I'm aware of this. I don't plan at all to get a mirrorless for more than being a compact yet high IQ camera. For the tele and uwa, I sure use the DSLR. The compact camera is there to mount a pancake lens on it and throw it in the bag for traveling light.

QuoteOriginally posted by Na Horuk Quote
Right now, I'd go for a Pentax KP.
humm, yep, I considered this idea. The trouble is , I sold all my ltd lenses. I considered getting a KP for compactness and use it on my DFA150450 with getting more reach (I used to have a K3), I could get aways with FPS, but its buffer isn't geat (8 raws) compared to using the K1 in crop mode. So, if I'd get a KP and a compact ltd lens, such as the DA21 or DA40, it wouldn't be cheaper than a fuji and a x prime and yet the KP wouldn't be as compact. + I owned the DA21 and it was neither fast nor sharp corner to corner. The KP is a solution but it isn't the best one for the money currently.

QuoteOriginally posted by Saltwater Images Quote
entax pancake to try on your K-1?
Yes, good idea, I thought about that one. A 40ltd on my K1. That's about equiv. to 27mm on the Fuji. The 40ltd is super compact, good IQ, would cost me less that a Fuji combo, and with the K1 I'd still get what I can't get with the Fuji 27mm: Sensor stab., 36Mp 24x36 snesor, pixel shift + long battery life... There are two reasons why I did not go this route: 1) K1 not so small 2) I already owned and used the 40ltd and after using it for a couple of years the quick shift mechanism got lose and it wouldn't focus well near / at infinity. So, what should I do?

QuoteOriginally posted by Homo_erectus Quote
I use an X-Pro 2 for my event work and for my bif hobby shooting. My experience is that you want one battery for every 2-3 hours you'll be shooting. If you are super careful and turn the camera off when you aren't using it, and use the OVF rather than the EVF, you can stretch that time out an additional 45-60 minutes.
Yes, well described, battery life on fuji is sensitive to the amount of time the camera is powered on. That's also what I've been told. Good to know...
QuoteOriginally posted by Homo_erectus Quote
The X-Pro 2 is barely pocketable with the 27mm on it, the X-E2s is a lot smaller. Hope that helps!
Yes, thank. I've seen and used a XT2. I have a hard time to realize how the XE2 is, I should try.
04-14-2017, 10:00 AM   #12
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Echoing the comments on the NP-W126s battery. You'll definitely get a bit more out of it. I have also found turning off AF-C, and IS where you don't need it to make a large difference.
I have an X-E1, and the energy management is OK, but not great. About 300 shots. Less in cold weather (Canada cold).
04-14-2017, 12:35 PM   #13
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QuoteOriginally posted by biz-engineer Quote
Hi ,
currently evaluating Fuji X as a compact alternative to Pentax DSLR.
Regarding resolution, I'd rather consider 24Mpixel.
However, something is seriously holding me back: battery life.
I have a college having a XT series camera, according to him he can barely get 200 shots on a full charged battery, in low power mode (slow camera), for a couple of hours of use.
Browsing the web, I've also found that for EX series , some users report less than 100 shots from a full charged battery, draining into less than 2 hours.
I was thinking about adding a grip to the kit, but then, the size advantage is lost, so , what's the point?

Any one here can comment from their own experience?
While I love having 500-600 shots an a battery, I don't find 200 to be that limiting. When you have been shooting 120 0r 220 and you are changing film every 15-30 shots, 200 shots on a single battery seems pretty nice to me. First world problems I guess.
04-14-2017, 01:03 PM - 2 Likes   #14
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What is the big deal regarding battery life? So you get 200 or 300 shots per battery. Is it that difficult to pop in a $10 dollar wasabi replacement?

I purchased a used Fuji X-T1 for $550 and a 27mm pancake lens for $275. After testing it against my NEW Pentax K-3 with FA 31mm I decided to sell ALL my Pentax gear and go 100% Fuji. Take that for what it's worth.
04-15-2017, 12:48 AM   #15
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QuoteOriginally posted by biz-engineer Quote
The compact camera is there to mount a pancake lens on it and throw it in the bag for traveling light.
That's exactly the reason why I have an X-M1 and 35/1.4 in addition to my K3 & many lenses, though these days I often take it simply because of the superb, sharp, fast lens - it's excellent for social photography. I've used the Fuji extensively with an adapter and Pentax M and DA limited lenses and it works extremely well like that too.

I can't think of a better camera to serve the purpose of being smaller and lighter than a DSLR.
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