I was a Fuji x fan from the very first x100 announcement. I had such high hopes, I sold my M8 at the time to go all in on the new retro AF rangefinder. This was also the days that the cameras released at $999 and not the prices we see today for these things…. As you may expect, this first release was a little underwhelming due to the early AF, but i stayed optimistic, just never fully committed. Fast forward over 13 years since that original release, I still have not been able to commit to the x100 line more than a dabble, but somehow always, again, stay optimistic. I have managed to own for periods, the x100, x100t, x100f, and now the x100v. They just look so dang good, they always rope me back in just to always fall short in the same ways. Compared to my x pro 2, Q, M,s, the x100 has just always been a hair too small and not as robust feeling when using it. It could be the smaller dials or the electronic shutter noise with the leaf shutter instead of a solid clasp or whisp you get from the other cameras mentioned, but it just always felt lacking.

Now, let’s not confuse these complaints with image quality or style as this camera has always shined in this department. Fuji knew exactly what their plan was and have stuck to that formula in each release only making it better. One of the largest prints I have in my home was taken with an X100t and you would never know it. Over those 13 years, I have only edited the raw files a handful of times, otherwise 99% of anything from a Fuji camera for me has been a SOOC JPG. Color science and this way of shooting has been the base idea since the Fuji platform released the x line. They aren’t called Fuji “film” for nothing, so of course they nailed this digitally. These cameras are solely responsible for saving many photographers from burnout and re-sparking that magic they had when they began in the art form. For that alone, we owe so much to Fujifilm. Fuji also stuck to the travel worthy size in all of their designs and have pushed the market to also step it up in this department. At a time where every company kept going larger (besides Leica of course) Fuji stuck with the small compact size to encourage their users to be able to have that camera along and it not be a burden.

I have always carried the X100 series and used them how I used any other camera. Rangefinder to my eye, documenting through the viewfinder. It wasn’t until I got my Leica Q that I started to cave to using the back screen to compose photos (the original Qs viewfinder is hot garbage, Or maybes it’s just my copy??) either way, I started using the Q in ways I normally wouldn’t. I would keep it on my wrist and use the back screen for compositions shooting different angles than I would with the viewfinder up to my eye. Part of the purist in me always thought if I used the screen and live view, I may as well be using my iPhone since it’s basically the same. Wrong! It doesn’t flippin matter friends. Once you are viewing the photos after, you cannot tell the difference. Fast forward to this recent trip with the x100. I started finding myself using the camera how I would with my Q and I feel like I’ve unlocked a whole new level using this camera. What wasn’t inspiring to pick up or felt lacking, now, was like a super power. I found myself having fun using it and taking a ton more photos than I normally would have. I even started using the back screen as a waist level finder since it can pop out which brought me back to my MF cameras. Nonetheless, I am excited to use this camera more and not pass it up in the future. Again, thinking about the formula Fuji has created over the years, the point of this camera is a small, portable, easy to carry unit that packs a heavy punch with image quality. Once I stopped trying to make it something it wasn’t and fighting its nature, it allowed me to start having fun using it and not focusing on the other stuff.

Here is a collection of x100 shots over the years.