Camera
Can’t find a Fujifilm X100VI? What are the alternatives?
| Several retailers reported the Fujifilm X100VI was sold out on launch day. |
Editor’s note: This story was originally published in 2023. With the 2024 release of the Fujifilm X100VI, we have updated the story to include the new camera.
After TikTok virality made the X100V hard to find, with used prices reaching upwards of three times retail, Fujifilm said it had increased production of the X100VI to meet pent-up demand for its fixed lens retro-inspired cameras. But it seems the Fujifilm X100VI is already proving to be more popular than expected – the camera is selling out at many online retailers on its February 28 release date and retailers do not have an estimate on when restock will be available.
Buy Fujifilm X100VI now:
Instead of a shipping notice, some customers who had preordered the camera at B&H were greeted with an email informing them that “the response to this new camera launch has been tremendous and well in excess of Fujifilm’s projections.”
US retailer Best Buy told some customers to expect another wave of supply by the beginning of April.
Across the world, many vendors were doing the same, telling pre-order customers that day-of-launch demand had exceeded supply with no ability to provide an extended timeline from Fujifilm on when another batch of inventory would arrive at retailers.
If you’re in the market for a small large-sensor camera with a 35mm equiv (or similar) lens and don’t want to wait for restocks or would rather find an alternative, we have some options to consider.
The next-best option
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| With the arrival of the X100VI, used Fujifilm X100V may start to come down in the near future. |
The Fujifilm X100V is a lovely camera: the fifth in a series we’ve always liked and a recipient of our Gold award for the net effect of the improvements that have been made to the version. For the past several years the X100V has been nearly impossible to buy from retailers (without paying a substantial premium over the list price).
With the release of the X100VI, we may finally start to see used X100V cameras start to show up below their original $1399 MSRP. If that happens, and you’re okay with forgoing IBIS or the other features in the newer model, it could be a good value proposition that still gives you a small, hands-on street/travel camera with a 35mm equiv lens.
There aren’t as many differences between the V and the VI as you might expect, so it’s worth considering if the price is right.
Buy Fujifilm X100V used:
Mirrorless options
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We’ve looked at X100 substitutes before, trying to see whether there were any substitutes you could cobble together using a small prime lens on a mirrorless camera. At the time Canon’s 22mm F2 lens and the Olympus 17mm F1.8 (which was rebadged as the m.Zuiko digital 17mm F1.8 following OM Digital Solutions acquisition of the former Olympus imaging division) offered the best ways to gain the 35mm equivalent range.
However, with Canon discontinuing the EF-M line, that only leaves the Olympus as the best choice if compactness and matching the X100 field-of-view are your priorities. The Olympus also happens to be the nicer of the two lenses: faster to focus and with a snap-back focus clutch and styling that’s more in keeping with the Fujifilm.
It may be a challenge to find an appropriate camera for the Olympus. OM System does not currently sell the PEN range in the US, so used options are all that remain. European customers have the option of the E-P7, which offers a more hands-on interface and classic styling, so it is perhaps worth a look.
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| Ricoh’s GR IIIx is one possible alternative. It has an APS-C sensor, but a slightly tighter 40mm-equiv. F2.8 lens. It’s much smaller than the Fujifilm and lacks anything approaching its hybrid viewfinder. |
If you’re less size conscious, there are 23mm F1.4s from Viltrox, Tokina and now Sigma, available variously for E, L and X-mounts, or the Fujifilm 23mm F2, which still sticks out a bit if you can still find an X-E4. We think by the time you get to a Sony a6x00 body and a Viltrox 23mm F1.4, you’ve gotten so far from the small, enjoyable and desirable ethos of the X100 that you should start looking for landmarks and remind yourself of where you were trying to get to.
Fujifilm’s 27mm F2.8 offers a 40mm equiv. option but it’s slow (in most senses) and not especially cheap. We see a similar story for Nikon’s Z-mount 26mm F2.8: it’ll look nice on a Z fc, but the tighter view and slower aperture put us off. Panasonic’s 20mm F1.7 II has its charms but it’s pretty slow to focus and like the Olympus 17mm lens, it’s not obvious which body it should be mounted on.
Fixed-lens alternatives
There aren’t other current fixed-lens models offering a 35mm equiv. lens in front of a large sensor, but Ricoh’s GR IIIx comes close, with its APS-C sensor and 40mm-equiv F2.8 lens. It’s much smaller than the Fujifilm and lacks anything approaching its hybrid viewfinder, but it’s a lovely camera to shoot with and has its own devout following.
If a wider-angle view of the world is more your thing, the non-X Ricoh GR III comes into play, as does the fabulous (and fabulously expensive) Leica Q2 and Q3. They are all lovely cameras, though the Leicas are pretty substantial and both Ricohs benefit from a pocket of spare batteries.
Second-hand options
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| The X100F offers a lot of what the X100VI does. The second-hand prices of the ‘F’ had crept up, with the X100V model being in short supply, but the arrival of the X100VI may change things |
Widen your net to second-hand options and the choices become significantly broader, albeit with the added risk of the product not being as pristine as promised, not necessarily having any warranty and possibly not existing once your payment has cleared. Caveat emptor, and all that. Large second-hand dealers such as MPB and KEH give some peace of mind, but you may have to pay a little more with companies that know what the market rate is.
Buy Fujifilm X100F used:
Obviously, the best substitute for a lovely new X100VI is a ‘previously loved’ X100V, but if they still remain scarce, the X100F is the next best thing. It means a further step down in technology: you lose out on the slightly nicer new lens, the adjustable screen and the 26MP sensor, but the ‘F’s 24MP sensor is a pretty good substitute.
It becomes harder to recommend models much earlier than this. We don’t say this to outrage the still happy X100S or X100T owners, but the 16MP sensor shows the challenges of processing X-Trans in all but the most compliant software, you’ll lose the joystick, revert to a smaller battery and are buying a camera that’s got years of unknowable use behind it. As for the original 12MP X100, it was a groundbreaking camera in its day but that day was nearly a decade-and-a-half ago. Some DPReview editors owned and loved the first X100, and it holds many happy memories for them, but too much has improved since then to seriously recommend one today: retro styling is much more appealing than dated performance.
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| The Sony RX1R II uses a full-frame sensor but otherwise offers a configuration similar to the X100VI: a small body with a 35mm F2 lens. However, don’t forget to pack extra batteries. |
So what else is out there? You might find a Sony RX1, RX1R or RX1R II. These were full-frame compacts with 35mm F2 lenses and could deliver beautiful images. But the first two models were slow-to-focus, even for 2013, so we recommend steering clear now. The RX1R II improved things a little with phase-detection AF and even found room for a pop-up viewfinder. Sadly the battery life was atrocious so it’s worth being aware of what you’re letting yourself in for.
What would you recommend?
We have distinct reservations about all the available options. The Ricoh GR IIIx probably makes the best understudy for the X100VI: its lens is slower but it’s also smaller and less expensive and great fun to shoot with. Beyond that, it depends on what you can find second-hand.
Buy GR IIIx now:
Ultimately, though, while some of the options we’ve shared can offer the 35mm equiv. coverage of the X100VI, and some can match the hands-on, photographer-friendly experience, none have anything to match Fujifilm’s unique hybrid viewfinder and none combine all of these factors in such an attractive package. So, sadly, we’d conclude the best alternative to buying an X100VI today is to add your name to a list for when one becomes available, or perhaps wait for used Vs to come down in price.
| Photo: Tucker Bowe |
Leica has launched a new LUX app for iOS that’s ostensibly intended to reach longstanding fans of the brand and endear a new generation of shooters to the photographic aesthetic of the iconic German camera company – or at least a digital approximation of it.
The app’s proprietary image processing engine can apply film emulation presets to existing photos in a similar fashion to Fujifilm’s popular offerings. Eleven so-called “Leica Looks” are included in the app at launch, such as Leica Standard, Leica Classic, Leica Contemporary, and Leica Black and White. However, the company says that new looks will be added every month.
Though now available to a much broader potential set of consumers, Leica Look filters technically aren’t new for the brand. The feature initially appeared in the company’s Fotos app for owners of newer Leica digital cameras.
Like other fully-featured third-party camera apps such as Halide, iPhone photographers can also use the LUX app’s automatic mode, “Aperture Mode,” and manual control modes to capture photos.
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| Photo: Leica |
Aperture Mode is the most unique selling point of the new app. Seemingly like Apple’s own Portrait Mode on steroids, the feature leverages Leica’s image engine to emulate the bokeh and color of the brand’s iconic – and for many, unobtainable – premier lenses, such as the Leica Summilux-M 28mm F1.4 ASPH, Summilux-M 35mm F1.4 ASPH, and Noctilux-M 50mm F1.2 ASPH. iPhone 15 Pro (Max) users can also access an APO-Telyt-M 135mm F3.4 emulation thanks to the phone’s telephoto lens.
There’s also a pro manual mode, which allows advanced users to control settings, including exposure compensation, shutter speeds, ISO, white balance, manual focus, and Raw/ProRaw capture settings. You can also see a live histogram.
While we haven’t tested the app yet ourselves, at least some journalists, such as Antonia G. Di Benedetto at The Verge, who have had access to early beta versions, describe the app’s processing features as hit-or-miss and the color filters in some cases as heavy-handed, at least for now. Like the built-in portrait modes on many premium smartphones, Leica’s efforts to simulate bokeh and depth of field via software seem to struggle to produce realistic results under certain conditions.
A free version of Leica’s LUX App is available from the Apple App Store with limited features, including access to five looks. Paying a monthly subscription fee of $6.99 or an annual fee of $69.99 unlocks all of the app’s capabilities. Leica recommends using the app with an iPhone Pro 12 or newer.
| Image: Canon |
Canon has announced the RF 35mm F1.4 L VCM lens, the first release in what the company says will become a full series of fixed-focal-length RF lenses with a hybrid design for stills and video, which are intended to work with both EOS photo and Cinema EOS cameras.
The RF 35mm F1.4 L VCM becomes the widest prime lens in Canon’s L-series. Its optical formula consists of 14 elements in 11 groups, including two specialized aspherical lens elements and two ultra-low Dispersion glass elements.
The lens also benefits from Canon’s Super Spectra Coating, Air Sphere Coating, and fluorine coating. It has 11 aperture blades. Autofocus is driven by a voice coil motor (VCM), a type of linear motor, for quick, precise focusing.
Size-wise, the lens is 99.3mm (3.9″) long and has a diameter of 76.5mm (3.0″). It’s noticeably longer and slightly skinner than Canon’s EF 35mm F1.4L USM, and comes in slightly lighter at 555g (19.5 oz) compared to 580g (20.5 oz) for the EF version.
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| Image: Canon |
Like the RF 24-105mm F2.8 L IS USM Z announced last fall, Canon says it specifically designed the RF 35mm F1.4 L VCM to be a true hybrid stills/video lens in acknowledgment of the new multimedia production demands many professional creatives face today.
As such, the new 35mm prime also features a manual aperture ring, similar to the F 24-105mm F2.8 L, which allows for stepless control of the aperture/iris. Additionally, the lens is designed to minimize focus breathing. It’s also compatible with Canon’s newly announced, native RF-mouth EOS C400 cinema camera.
Pricing and availability
The Canon RF 35mm F1.4 L VCM is expected to be available in June at an estimated retail price of $1,499. It includes a case, lens cap, dust cap and lens hood.
Press release:
CANON ANNOUNCES FIRST LENS IN SERIES OF FIXED FOCAL LENGTH RF HYBRID LENSES – RF35MM F1.4L VCM
New Portable Speedlite with New Multi-Function Shoe Design Also Available
MELVILLE, N.Y., – June 5, 2024 — Canon U.S.A., Inc., a leader in digital imaging solutions,
today announced the RF35mm F1.4 L VCM lens and Speedlite EL-10 flash. The new RF35mm
lens is the first in a series of fixed focal length RF lenses with hybrid video and still design, and the Speedlite EL-10 integrates with Canon’s new multi-function shoe design, for users of recent Canon EOS cameras.
Answering the needs of many professional high-level photographers, the new RF35m F1.4 L
VCM lens can be looked upon as a standard lens for video and still users — for example, those who use the EOS R5 and EOS C70 cameras. This lens is the beginning of a new hybrid lens series and with its fixed focal length, fills a gap as there is not a fixed focal length lens wider than 50mm in the L-series — until now. Ideal for low-light, the RF35mm F1.4 L VCM lens features a manual iris (aperture) ring which helps provide better control when shooting movies.
The lens allows very little focus “breathing” as focus is moved, and it’s highlighted by two
Aspherical lens elements and two ultra-low Dispersion glass elements. Overall, this lens has the outstanding L-series optical design many professionals have grown accustomed to. In addition, the lens can be used with the newly announced Canon EOS C400 cinema camera, further reinforcing Canon’s full support of the video market.
“The new RF35mm F1.4 L VCM lens is the answer for high-level video in the mirrorless market
– while also providing still-imaging storytellers the durability and optical performance that is
synonymous with Canon lenses,” said Brian Mahar, senior vice president & general manager,
Canon U.S.A., Inc.
The Speedlite EL-10 flash is designed for the amateur photographer who is stepping into the
mirrorless world, and the veteran user who is looking to get reacquainted with flash photography.
The multi-function shoe helps the still imagery storyteller by providing immediate access to the flash control menu, and either an on-camera EL-10 or the optional super-compact Speedlite Transmitter ST-E10 assists with triggering from one through up to fifteen off-camera flashes2.
The Speedlite EL-10 is a radio-based wireless flash with 2nd-curtain sync capabilities, and
leverages four AA batteries instead of a separate battery that requires charging — making
operation more streamlined for some users. In addition, it features a Custom Flash Mode
function, allowing the end-user to register and store up to three sets of flash settings, and is
approximately the same size and weight as its predecessor the Speedlite 430EX-III RT — while also pushing out the same amount of power. Automatic balanced fill flash is a key benefit to using flash photography, whether during daytime or low-light with slow shutter speed, and the Speedlite EL-10 is an excellent gear bag addition to achieve that creative look in one’s photos.
“Flash photography is a simple yet versatile way to add drama to one’s photos and with Canon’s steadfast commitment to reliability, the Speedlite EL-10 provides a full-circle Canon shooting experience,” continued Brian Mahar, senior vice president & general manager, Canon U.S.A., Inc.
Price & Availability
RF35mm F1.4 L VCM lens is expected to be available in June for an estimated retail piece of
$1,499.00 and the Speedlite EL-10 is also expected to be available in June for an estimated retail price of $249.99*.
For more information, please visit usa.canon.com.
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The Pentax WG-8 “Adventure Proof” compact
Image: Ricoh |
Ricoh has announced two new Pentax WG waterproof compacts: the range-topping WG-8 and the entry-level WG-1000.
The WG-8 replaces the Pentax WG-6 (and the Ricoh-branded WG-6 that came before it) at the top of the lineup. It’s a 20MP camera with a Type 1/2.3 sensor (6.3×4.7mm) that’s waterproof to a depth of 20m (65.6ft) for two hours: the deepest yet offered by the range. Ricoh says this is equivalent to an IPX8 or JIS Class 8 rating.
It’s also shockproof from 2.1m (6.5ft), able to withstand 100kg force (220lb of force) and can withstand temperatures as low as -10°C (14°F). It has a 3.0″ 1.04M dot (720 x 480px) rear LCD.
The WG-8 has a 28-140mm equivalent zoom lens with an F3.5-5.5 maximum aperture and a six LED ringlight around the lens. It can shoot up to 4K/30 video and can act as a webcam. It includes GPS and compass.
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Pentax WG-1000
Image: Ricoh |
The less expensive WG-1000 has a 16MP sensor and a 27-108mm equiv zoom. This has a maximum aperture of F3.0-6.6. It makes do with a 2.7″ 230k dot (320 x 240px) rear display. It can only shoot video up to 1080/30.
Its durability specs are also lower, with waterproofing rated to 15m (49.2ft), shockproof from 2m (6.5ft). It also lacks its more expensive sibling’s GPS and compass features.
The WG-8 will be available in late July at a recommended price of $399.95. The WG-1000 will arrive in mid July, costing around $229.95.
Ricoh expands its lineup of waterproof digital compact cameras with the PENTAX WG-1000 and the PENTAX WG-8
New cameras offer consumers entry-level and top-of-the-line options in all-weather
adventure cameras from Ricoh
PARSIPPANY, New Jersey, June 5, 2024 — Ricoh Imaging Americas Corporation today announced it has expanded its lineup of waterproof, digital compact cameras with two new models: the entry-level PENTAX WG-1000 and top-of-the-line PENTAX WG-8. The newest additions to the WG series of all-weather adventure cameras both feature a rugged chassis, plus the waterproof, dustproof and shock-resistant features the series is known for.
| The PENTAX WG-1000 |
The WG-1000 is designed for casual underwater photography to a depth of 49.2 feet (15 meters) for up to one hour of continuous operation. Lightweight yet rugged, the new camera is also well suited for a range of land-based activities – it is dustproof against dirt and stains and shockproof against a fall from a height of 6.5 feet (2 meters). It comes equipped with a carabiner strap for carrying convenience and a protective jacket to shield the camera body from scratches.
The WG-1000 features a four-times optical zoom lens with a focal-length coverage from 4.9 mm to 19.6mm (equivalent to approximately 27mm to 108mm in the 35mm format). When coupled with its Digital Zoom function, the camera’s zoom range can be extended by approximately 24 times for high-magnification zoom photography. Its back-illuminated, 16.35-megapixel CMOS image sensor delivers sharp, clear, high-resolution images, even at a super-high sensitivity of ISO 3200.
Available in gray or olive, the WG-1000 offers seven image capture modes and a variety of color modes, enabling users to enhance their images based on their shooting environment and add their own personal aesthetic to the finished photos. The color modes include conventional Black and White and Sepia modes, as well as more creative options like Japan Style, which enhances bluish hues; Italian Style, which enhances greenish hues; and French Style, which enhances reddish hues.
|The PENTAX WG-8 |
Developed to be the toughest of the PENTAX WG series, the WG-8 boasts outstanding waterproof, shockproof and cold-resistant performance. This top-of-the-line model is waterproof to a depth of 65.6 feet (20 meters), shockproof against a fall from heights of 6.8 feet (2.1 meters), and able to operate in temperatures as low as 14°F (-10°C). Even in demanding conditions, it captures super-high-resolution still images of approximately 20 effective megapixels and high- quality 4K-resolution movie clips.
The WG-8 features a five-times optical zoom lens with focal-length coverage from 5mm to 25mm (equivalent to approximately 28mm to 140mm in the 35mm format). The lens’s minimum focusing distance of one centimeter allows the user to capture a wide range of images, from eye-catching close-ups to sweeping landscapes. Its Intelligent Zoom function extends the zoom range by approximately 40.5 times without compromising image quality.
The WG-8 has a host of advanced features and user-friendly functions, including a multi- application ring light, ideal for close-up macro photography, and web camera capability when connected to a computer for live-streaming of high-quality, high-resolution images. Its heavy-duty construction ensures that the WG-8 performs superbly and dependably in harsh, demanding outdoor conditions and on worksites.
Available in black or green, the WG-8 effectively replaces the current-model RICOH WG-6 camera as the premium offering in the product line
| Pricing and Availability |
The WG-1000 will be available mid-July at www.us.ricoh-imaging.com as well as at Ricoh Imaging-authorized retail outlets nationwide for a manufacturer’s suggested retail price of $229.95
The WG-8 will be available late July at www.us.ricoh-imaging.com as well as at Ricoh Imaging- authorized retail outlets nationwide for a manufacturer’s suggested retail price of $399.95
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