Skip to main content

Fujifilm's X100T comes with the coolest viewfinder yet

Fujifilm's X100T comes with the coolest viewfinder yet

/

Graphite Silver X-T1 and more X-series lenses also announced

Share this story

The X100 kickstarted Fujifilm's renaissance as a purveyor of high-quality, photographer-friendly cameras with its classic control scheme, unique hybrid viewfinder, and compact rangefinder-style build. Fujifilm refined the formula and performance with the X100S almost two years ago, and now the company's back with the X100T, a further evolution of the design.

x100t viewfinder

The biggest change by far is the new viewfinder, which expands on the concept of the hybrid optical and electronic unit found in previous models. It can sometimes be hard to tell precisely what you're focused on when using the optical finder on the X100 and X100S, so Fujifilm is solving the problem by making its cameras work more like a traditional rangefinder than ever. An electronic overlay in the optical view can display a zoomed-in image of the focus point, and the X100T also adjusts for parallax in real time, both of which mean you should have a much better idea of what photo the camera will capture. There isn't really anything else like this on the market — assuming it performs as claimed, the viewfinder will offer the comfort and response of optical alongside the accuracy and versatility of electronic.

Other changes aren't quite as drastic. The X100T still features a 23mm f/2 lens paired to a 16-megapixel APS-C X-Trans II sensor, though the body has undergone a few tweaks: the aperture ring now covers 1/3 stops, the exposure compensation dial goes up to +3 and -3, there's Wi-Fi support for the first time on an X100, and the screen has been upgraded to a 3-inch 1.04-million-dot panel. The X100T also features the Classic Chrome film simulation mode that first appeared last month on the X30 compact camera. It'll be available in silver and black variants next month for $1299.95.

fuji xt1 silver (embargo 9/10/14)

Fujifilm is also announcing a new version of its excellent X-T1 flagship mirrorless camera today. The Graphite Silver edition is much the same as the regular model, offering a retro, metallic finish, but it comes with a few extra features as well. There's an electronic shutter with a maximum speed of 1/32000, a "natural live view" mode that's designed to emulate an optical viewfinder by disabling picture preview effects, and the Classic Chrome film simulation. Fujifilm hasn't said whether any of these features will make their way to the existing X-T1, but there is a major firmware update coming to both models in November that will allow for more usability and configuration options.

The Graphite Silver X-T1 will be out in late November for $1499.95 without a lens — that's a $200 premium on the standard X-T1 body, which is getting a new $1899.95 bundle with the weather-resistant 18-135mm f/3.5-5.6 lens. Fujifilm is also making some high-end additions to the X-series lens lineup: a $1599.95 weather-sealed 50-140mm f/2.8 zoom lens, and a new $1499.95 version of the 56mm f/1.2 portrait lens with a special apodizing filter designed to produce beautiful out-of-focus areas. Both will be available in December.