Fujifilm X30 Digital Camera - Black (12MP, 4x Optical Zoom)

I bought this camera as an upgrade from the phone camera I have been using, to try to actually understand and explore photography as a hobby. I have been taking reasonably nice pictures on my phone for years, but want just that bit more control over how my pictures end up. This review is targeted at those who are in that demographic. First, if you are considering this camera as an upgrade from a regular point-and-shoot or phone camera, ask yourself why. No camera automatically make your pictures better. However, a good camera can give you more control. If you are frustrated at how your old camera does not produce the pictures you were seeing in your head, then consider this camera. For instance, my phone camera would sometimes produce blueish or yellowish pictures for no reason. Sometimes I will try to focus on a close object (a macro shot), but the camera will produce a shot that has everything in focus. These are things I can remedy with more functions and controls, which this camera gives me. This camera also opens up is a whole world of opportunity with it's ability to shoot raw. On a regular camera, you press the shutter and the camera processes the information, decides how you wish to see the shot, and presents that image to you in a jpeg. Anything irrelevant (such as details in a dark patch of shadow) is removed. With raw, those details are never removed, which allows you to draw them out in editing. Why is it that photographers always have amazing shots? Half of it is because they are photographers and have the right skills, perseverance and gear. The other half (ok, maybe slightly less) is the post-processing. Of course, all that I said so far is just as true for the X30's far more expensive cousins, or its direct competitors. Why Fuji X30? Personally, a lot of it came down to value for money. For the kind of control I need (shooting raws, aperture, shutter speed, having a viewfinder etc), the Fuji X30 is probably the most affordable. Also, I am also the sort of person who can give up on a hobby if it is too much hassle from the onset. A Fuji X30 is small, portable and a joy to carry around. I saw the lack of inter-changeable lens as a bonus. I'm still learning the basics. I don't need to worry about lens selection and care at this stage. And certainly, at my level of photography, carrying a whole bagpack of camera gear the next time I go travelling does not appeal to me. I have also seen lots of reviews mentioning the picture quality of the X30. To be frank, yes, the quality will not rival those that are twice the price or have a far far larger sensor. However, for someone who just wishes to capture photographs and maybe print a few for our own collections, this is just fine! To sum up after all that - the Fuji X30 is an amazing camera for someone who is just venturing into 'proper' photography. It produces good pictures all round, but gives you the flexibility and options to go pretty far. And for regular usage (ie. not driving into the mountains at 4am to catch the early morning mist), I can't ask for a better balance between convenience and quality. Note: attached are pictures I took on a recent holiday. They have been enhanced on Lightroom afterwards, but only with very basic tools.

Only had this camera for a few days but already getting to like it. It is nice to handle, just the right size, and has a load of customisable controls. It's well made (with a few reservations) and well finished. The thing that keeps it in the "compact" league is the image quality - in jpg it only just matches my much smaller and cheaper Panasonic TX8! At higher ISO speeds it does a lot of "smearing" of fine detail in an attempt to obscure pixel noise - 1600 ISO looks "stippled"! Even at 400 ISO the "painting over the rough bits" effect is rather obvious! Admittedly I did set it to Medium size. "Film simulation modes" are thoughtful but fairly crude - the "Velvia" setting just looks a bit garish, although the black and white settings are handy. However, I also have a Nikon D5300 which is spectacularly good, and it isn't supposed to compete with this - it's just for (good) snapshots - the value of this X30 is in the controls, with a customisable control ring, manual zoom (with focal length equivalents on it as though you were using a 35mil film camera...), most useful manual exposure compensation dial and as I said, customisable function buttons, so now I can use the movie button for selecting white balance - I'd never use it for movies. Like any decent camera you can customise WB as well. Viewfinder is nice for bright sunlight although you might find yourself using the screen most of the time. The screen tilts, although its maybe a little "creaky" mechanically. The tiny flash is pathetic, you might be excused for thinking it wasn't working - obviously Fuji want you to buy the 160 quid accessory flash, although there is a cheaper Metz version, but I rarely use flash anyway. I have an old Metz slave flash if I do want it. You need the admittedly pricey lens hood/filter kit - Fuji aren't saying what size the filter thread is, but the filter and hood are well made and look as though they belong to the camera. Lastly, I rigged up the strap so it only attached to one lug - it gets in the way otherwise. You don't need a two-point strap for a camera this size. So, this is a camera for those who like to customise controls, who like a cool looking camera, and who know that you need a larger sensor for max quality!

I bought this camera twice and returned it twice. The sensor lets it down, otherwise it has everything you would require. It feels and looks like the perfect camera but it isn't. I was going to use the 2nd one I bought for bright days but the lens control wheel had a scraping feel to it and the autofocus was out. I now have the original Sony RX100 with 1" sensor and I can use it in very low light with excellent results. Doesn't have the specs or feel of the X30 but it is nice and small and is a bit of a mini marvel. The X30 could have been fantastic.

Bought this camera for times when I don't want to lug around my Canon 5D Mk II, but still want great image quality and control. The retro styling is great and I especially like the twist zoom rather than pressing a button as it gives me absolute control over the zoom range. Great inbuilt Fujifilm simulations, such as Velvia. EVF is great and is better than using the screen in bright sunlight. Wifi connectivity is easy and really useful to get photos off the camera within plugging it in to a computer, etc. Build quality is excellent as it's metal rather than plastic which adds to the retro feel. Not as heavy as some say, but then again I'm coming from lugging around 1.5 kg of DSLR + lens so it feels very light in comparison. Image quality is great, but of course it's not DSLR quality, but if you want that then buy a DSLR. However, for the price, size and features it can't be beaten which is probably why it won the TIPA European Camera award for Best Expert Compact Camera 2015. Highly recommended!

THIS IS NOT A REVIEW OF THE CAMERA, but a word of warning. My x-30 arrived this morning, supplied by Amazon UK. (Special offer "free" case arrived a day later.) There is no separate battery charger. You charge the battery in the camera, via a USB cable that connects into a computer or into the mains via an adapter/transformer. The adapter supplied is a two pin type, so you'll need a further three pin adapter to use this in the UK. Had to go out and buy a 2 to 3 pin adapter. The alternative would be charging in a shaver socket, but the supplied cable is not long enough for the camera to sit anywhere secure below the socket, and I don't want to be charging my camera in the bathroom anyway. If you charge via a computer, charging will cease if the computer goes into sleep mode. The manual states that the charging time is about 4.5 hours. This means that each time you want to charge the battery, the camera is out of commission for 4.5 hours. I would always carry a spare battery with me, but in the case of the x-30 you can't have a battery on charge while using the camera. So having spent £479 on the camera, you need to buy a charger. There are several offered on Amazon, including some that come complete with two batteries for just £12. Someone has reviewed these as 'junk'. It would have been nice if Fuji had simply supplied the camera with a charger. I've owned 4 or 5 digital cameras and this was the first to come with no external charger. Secondly if the item is being sold in the UK it ought to be supplied with a three pin plug. I suspect this camera was supplied for the Italian market as although it was packaged with an English manual sealed with the other documents, there was an Italian manual loose in the box. The disc supplied with the camera contains the basic function manual, but not in English. The "UK" pdf file turned out to be in Russian - presumably for disaffected Ukrainians. Obviously this is NOT a review of the camera (which looks and feels great) but is intended as a word of warning. At the very least you'll need a three pin adapter and be prepared to have your camera sidelined for 4.5 hours every day or so, at least until you've found a decent charger. (At the time of re-visiting this review I can report that my camera has been out of action for the last three hours while I wait for it to charge again. To my mind this is a very serious inconvenience. The camera should be supplied with a charger - no question!)

I had high hopes for this camera, and while the image quality is superb its viewfinder and low light AF performance let it down. I bought it as a replacement for a Nikon V1, but the V1's viewfinder is infinitely superior. Using the 2 cameras side by side the X30's finder stutters and flickers in anything other than bright light. Even a living room with a couple of overhead lights seemed too dark for it to function smoothly. The V1 on the other hand remains fluid until you get into candlelight territory. AF seems to struggle in these conditions as well whereas the V1 locks on quickly. Other minor niggles: The left d-pad button on mine was spongy compared to the rest of them and didn't have a satisfying click. The battery door doesn't fit properly and slides up and down against your hand as you grip the camera. No charger supplied. It's great that you can charge the camera via USB but if you want to charge a spare battery then you'll need to buy a separate charger as well. While it's charging via USB you can't seem to use any of the camera's functions either. The lens barrel and control dial on mine didn't operate smoothly. Both were quite stiff and had 'gritty' patches as they were rotated. I'm returning it and sticking with my V1. It's image quality isn't quite as good but it's decent enough and the user experience is much better. That matters to me more than specs.

I was admiring the x100 but couldn't justify the expense on a fixed focal length camera when I discovered this. It works as well as my DSLR but fits in to my coat pocket or a bag so goes everywhere with me. It has a solid feel, is easy to use and you can take charge of it like an SLR or allow it to do some magic with the scene setting or filters. The images are superb - sharp and clear, a few are a little under exposed but that is easily solved in processing and can be adjusted with the exposure dial. Too much has been said about the charger, you can charge the camera when you transfer images or plug it in to any USB plug although it comes with its own, the battery life seems very good so it hasn't limited me at all. Buy a screen protector if you are going to chuck it in a bag, all the other parts of the camera are robust and the lens is protected by a lens cap.

I was torn when purchasing this camera. I wanted a carry everywhere 'serious' compact to supplement my DSLRs. I wanted manual controls, a decent viewfinder, good build quality, a fast and good quality lens, and the ability to shoot raw. The X30 did fit the bill and at the (now standard) reduced price, was an absolute bargain for the specification. The only potential issue: would 12 megapixels be enough? I know that megapixels aren't everything and will not enter in that debate, but I didn't want anything that looked markedly inferior to images shot on my 16Mp DSLRs. I need not have been concerned. The images this thing produces are absolutely marvelous. The lens is fantastic, producing pin sharp images that I wouldn't have an issue printing out at large sizes. The X30 goes with me everywhere. Love it. I've attached a few images. A little noise reduction was performed in Lightroom. All were JPEGs and the monochrome was produced in camera using film simulation.

Dies ist meine erste Rezension hier, also bitte nicht gleich über mich herfallen. Die X30 habe ich mir zugelegt, weil ich eine Kamera wollte, mit der ich relativ einfach, ohne viele Einstellungen und ohne viel Gewicht mitzunehmen, schöne Bilder machen kann. Für besondere Aufnahmen besitze ich eine DSLR mit entsprechender Ausrüstung. Ich wollte aber eine "Immerdabei" haben, mit der ich aber ebenso anspruchsvolle Bilder fertigen kann. Es sollte eine kompakte Kamera werden, mit der ich sowohl im Nah-, als auch im Fernbereich fotografieren kann. Nach dem Lesen einiger Testergebnisse und der Erkenntnis, das in vielen Tests stets die gleichen Hersteller vorn sind, was von Magazin zu Magazin variiert, habe ich mich für die X30 entschieden. Sie kann mir dann von der Optik her am besten daher - das ist natürlich rein subjektiv. Als die Kamera ankam und ich sie auspackte, war ich mit der Verarbeitung der Kamera schon zufrieden. Sie fühlt sich griffig und wertig an, man hat (trotz Kompaktkamera) "was" in der Hand und sie lässt sich gut bedienen. Alle Funktionstasten sind gut erreichbar. Das die Kamera über einen Funktionsring ein- und ausgeschaltet wird, war mir neu - man gewöhnt sich schnell daran. Die Kamera ist sehr schnell betriebsbereit, was für spontane Schnappschüsse gelungen ist. Ebenfalls gelungen ist meiner Ansicht nach die Menuführung, mit der ich mich sehr schnell vertraut machen konnte. Besonders das Schnellmenu über die "Q"-Taste gefällt mir sehr gut. So kann man schnell wichtige Parameter einstellen, ohne sich durch das Menu hangeln zu müssen. Gleiches gilt für den Funktionsring, der sich verschieden belegen lässt und mit dem man eine Einstellung ändern kann, selbst während des Fotografierens - eine schöne Idee. Ebenso schön ist die Einstellung, mehrere Bilder mit verschiedenen Filmsimulationen gleichzeitig zu schießen. Was mich anfangs störte war die Bildqualität. Natürlich: Eine Kompaktkamera ist keine DSLR. Mir kamen die Bilder jedoch nicht scharf genug vor. Daran änderte auch zunächst nichts daran, wenn ich versuchte, über Blende, ISO oder ähnliches die Parameter zu ändern. Auch die Automatikfunktion konnte nicht weiterhelfen, bis ich dann schließlich auf die Idee kam, die Rauschunterdrückung abzumildern. Die Rauschunterdrückung scheint mir im voreingestellten Modus sehr stark einzugreifen. Senkt man diese ab, sehen die Bilder quasi schlagartig besser, weil schärfer aus. Insofern kann ich sagen: Die Bildqualität ist sehr gut. Das ist für mich ein wesentliches Kriterium. Das Objektiv bietet Brennweiten von 28-112mm (KB äquivalent) und eignet sich daher für fast alle Alltagssituationen. Das Klappdisplay sorgt dafür, dass man die Kamera auch ohne Verrenkungen aus ungewöhnlichen Positionen heraus arbeiten lassen kann. Der elektronische Sucher ist hell und aufgrund hoher Bildpunkteanzahl auch sehr scharf. Eine Dioptrinangleichung sorgt dafür, dass auch Brillenträger ohne weiteres damit zurecht kommen. Die Videofunktion ist ausreichend - für mich allerdings uninteressant, weshalb ich dafür keinen Stern abziehen möchte. Der Autofokus arbeitet schnell und "sitzt". Etwas umständlich für mich ist das ungewohnte RAW-Format von Fuji, sodass ich erst umwandeln muss, bevor ich mit Photoshop Elements arbeiten kann - aber das kann natürlich kein Minuspunkt für die Kamera darstellen. Fuji stellt einen eigenen Konverter zum kostenlosen Download zur Verfügung - damit ist dann quasi für die Bildbearbeitung alles im Lot, zumal auch in der Kamera selbst ein Konverter enthalten ist. Alles in allem eine schöne Kamera, die ihren Preis wert ist. Sie macht einfach Spaß - was beim Fotografieren sehr wichtig ist. Und dafür gibt es dann eben 5 Sterne.

Je suis agréablement surpris de la qualité des commentaires proposés ici par les utilisateurs de cet appareil. Celà nous change des sempiternelles contributions ne contribuant pas à grand chose, à part aligner 20 mots... L'essentiel a été dit, donc que rajouter de plus ? Parler photo, peut-être... Ou d'amour... Au risque de faire beaucoup de malheureux, il faut pourtant rappeler quelques vérités essentielles: - Non, le nombre de millions de pixels n'est pas un gage de la qualité des images. - Non, ce n'est pas l'appareil qui fait la photo, c'est celui qui le déclenche ... Le X30 n'a que 12 millions de pixels. Une misère dans un monde d'inflation, et on pourrait croire que Fuji s'est engagé dans la lutte pour une saine et écologique réduction de la consommation de pixels... Plaisanterie mise à part, Fuji tient un filon avec ces capteurs X-TRANS et ses optiques de très grande qualité. Eh oui, les 2 éléments indispensables pour un excellent appareil photo sont un capteur et un objectif. Certes l'électronique embarquée peut aider les 2 premiers à se compléter et se comprendre, mais c'est comme dans un couple, si tout le monde se fait la gueule, ça marche pas... Toute la série des X chez fuji, du compact XQ1 jusqu'au haut de gamme des XT et XE, exploite donc le couple star : - Un capteur beau comme un Apollon, nourri aux grains sans OGM (et sans matrice de Bayer, ça aide aussi...). - Des optiques de rêve, élevées aux lentilles et à la netteté aussi affûtée que le nez de Cléopatre. Comme tout ce petit monde s'entend très bien et passe sa vie collé l'un à l'autre, nous savons désormais pourquoi la bande fait du X... Inévitablement, dans ce genre de situation, arrive ce qui doit arriver. Les X vous pondent des photos à ne plus savoir où les caser tellement vous êtes le premier étonné de voir l'artiste qui sommeillait en vous ! Si vous aimez la photo, vous aimerez les X de chez Fuji. Si vous avez déjà un X10 ou un X20, faut il les abandonner lâchement dans la forêt avant les vacances ? honnêtement, c'est moche, mais surtout le capteur et l'objectif sont les mêmes que dans le X30. Pas sûr non plus que son look de pitbull soviétique déchaîne autant les passions que le raffinement de la "Leïca touch" affiché par les premiers du nom. Vous aimez vraiment la photo ? Il faut bien avoir conscience que vivre avec cet appareil, comme beaucoup d'autres chez Fuji, suppose la capacité de survivre à des menus qu'il est difficile de qualifier de digestes. N'achetez pas cet appareil pour simplement l'utiliser en AUTO, c'est gâcher, tellement l'engin regorge de possibilités de réglages et de modes créatifs. Soyez conscient que la patience et la pratique du yoga sont des atouts à ne pas négliger lorsque vous aborderez la lecture du manuel. Enfin et surtout, amusez vous, car cet appareil est un magnifique outil pour faire de la belle image quelque soit votre goût. De la macro d'improbables insectes vivant au ras du sol jusqu'au paysages des hauts sommets drapés dans les neiges éternelles, le X30 saura vous satisfaire sans pour autant vous peser dans la besace. La photo devient un fantastique moyen d'expression et de création, surtout quand on oublie la technique. La réussite d'une photo, c'est d'abord un regard, une sensation, un désir de l'instant et oublier le temps... l'amour aussi................. PS: J'ai eu le privilège de recevoir un sympathique message de la part d'un autre commentateur de ce magnifique engin. Je vous encourage vivement à lire sa contribution en cliquant sur "voir les commentaires". Non seulement il a survécu au calvaire des menus et autre notice dans son ascension du mont Fuji, mais il propose des réglages affinés simples à mettre en oeuvre pour améliorer l'ordinaire. En tant qu'expert, je valide l'essentiel des modifications suggérées car ce sont celles que j'utilise dans le X20. Grand merci à lui pour cette solidarité, et accessoirement, un Totem d'immunité pour le prochain conseil... Vous voyez, avec de l'amour, on peut faire beaucoup de choses....................

Nunca había tenido una cámara compacta de calidad, y ésta, aunque es una compacta grande y relativamente pesada, me parece perfecta. La calidad de imagen es maravillosa, incluso con poca luz hace fotos más que decentes, y la cantidad de filtros y opciones que tiene son estupendos para quien no quiere complicarse. El modo panorama 360, o el miniatura o el de los filtros de blanco y negro que resaltan objetos en diferentes colores son divertidos. La construcción es fantástica con un tacto de goma rugosa y de metal sólido. Y algo que me ha sorprendido y que ya habia leido en otros comentarios es que es una cámara con la que gusta hacer fotos, y es verdad. El tacto, el visor, el anillo de opciones, girar el zoom con la mano hacen que realmente sea un placer sacar fotografías como actividad en sí misma. Tiene ese aire vintage de las viejas cámaras y lo convierte en un objeto que en sí mismo da gusto usar. Nunca había tenido cámara (digital) con visor, y he de decir que lo prefiero mil veces a la pantalla para disparar, incluso en situaciones de poca luz. La pantalla no obstante es muy útil para revisar las fotografias, cambiar parámetros y sobre todo como es abatible 90 grados hacia arriba y 45 hacia abajo es perfecta para disparar sobre multitudes o hacer uso de la macro a ras de suelo. Por último me parece un momento fantástico para aprovechar la promo de 100€ de descuento que tiene Fuji hasta el 31 de Mayo si comprais esta cámara a través de Amazon (no de re-sellers ojo). Yo la he adquirido por 423€ - 100€ = 323€. Insuperable se mire como se mire. Ciao!

Acquistata da poco, per viaggiare leggero, senza compromettere troppo la qualità alla quale le reflex mi hanno abituato. Finora estremamente soddisfatto del comportamento, la sto provando in situazioni diverse e davvero non ho rimpianti. PRO: Ottima qualità d'immagine considerate le dimensioni del sensore, nitidezza e resa dei colori, molto buona la velocità di messa a fuoco, obiettivo luminoso, mirino elettronico pregevole, pulsanti programmabili, Quick menu, uso in manuale, trasferimento in WiFi all'iPhone e molte altre qualità che vado man mano scoprendo. COSÌ COSÌ : 1) la limitazione dei tempi d'otturazione ad 1/1.000 di secondo per uso della massima apertura quando si opera in modalità A (scelta dell'apertura) in luce piena e l'assenza di filtri neutri o lisce come in altre Fuji costringe ad agire sulla compensazione dell'esposizione o a montare filtri neutri sull'obiettivo. 2) occorre abituarsi al labirinto dei menu e ad alcune incompatibilità (l'uso della modalità silenziosa abolisce l'uso del flash ma ci vuole un po' di tempo per capirlo). Cose minime che probabilmente verranno corrette nei Software updates.

Sono rimasto sbalordito dalla qualità e dalla sensazione di solidità che restituisce questa compatta. Ho una Canon 5D mark 1 che ultimamente non portavo più in giro a causa del peso, delle dimensioni, delle ottiche... insomma la lasciavo a casa e sopperivo alla mancanza con lo smartphone. Io purtroppo non riesco a fotografare inquadrando dal display... è più forte di me: ho bisogno di un mirino per trovare la pace e la voglia di fotografare. Con la Fuji X30 ho ritrovato appunto lo stesso feeling di una reflex, senza rinunciare troppo alla qualità fotografica (che in diverse situazioni è addirittura superiore a quella di una reflex con obiettivo di qualità). Il punto di forza della macchina è sicuramente l'ottica luminosa e nitidissima anche a TA. Il corpo in metallo poi è un vero piacere da tenere in mano. I comandi sono forse un po' troppo piccoli e vicini ma sono ben disposti e raggiungibili senza staccare l'occhio dal mirino, come con una reflex. Il mirino elettronico mi ha sorpreso per la velocità, la qualità visiva la quantità di informazioni che può mostrare. Il sensore essendo parecchio più piccolo di un APS-C mostra i suoi limiti solo quando si superano i 400iso, al di sotto i file sono assolutamente indistinguibili da quelli a 12 Megapixel della mia 5D. 800iso sono secondo me il punto limite a cui spingerla senza troppi problemi... a 1600-3200iso il rumore diventa invece evidente ma comunque ben ridotto nei JPEG e facilmente gestibile in post produzione nei RAW. Il menu è davvero enorme e forse anche estremamente complesso e macchinoso... ci ho messo diversi giorni per capirne la logica. Unica pecca... i video: La qualità non è delle migliori e il fuoco continuo è lento ed impreciso. Nota positiva invece per i video in FHD a 60fps e per la possibilità di collegare microfoni esterni. In generale comunque una grande compatta!! Consigliata!!