Fujifilm X-E1 Image Quality

Review Date: August 12, 2013

Category: Serious to Advanced Amateur

Photoxels Gold Award – Enthusiast Mirrorless Interchangeable Lens Camera

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IMAGE QUALITY

The Fujifilm X-E1 is targeted to serious and advanced amateur photographers and features 16.3MP resolution (on an APS-C 23.6mm x 15.6mm X-Trans CMOS image sensor), the Fujifilm X mount, interchangeable lenses and a retro-style operational design (Shutter Speed dial / Aperture Ring).

We find the overall image quality of the Fujifilm X-E1 to be excellent at ISO 200 with low noise and excellent image detail. Image quality is very good up to ISO 1600. Noise starts to be visible at ISO 1600 but is usable up to ISO 3200. At higher ISOs, images suffer from noise and loss of detail.

XF27mmF2.8	XF35mmF1.4 R
27mm [41mm equiv.]	35mm [53mm equiv.]

 

XF55-200mmF3.5-4.8 R LM OIS
55mm [84mm equiv.]	200mm [305mm equiv.]

The Fujifilm X-E1 has a Fujifilm X mount that accepts interchangeable lenses. The Focal length multiplier is approx. 1.52x. In the above picture, we show the coverage for the FUJINON XF27mmF2.8 [41mm equiv.], FUJINON XF35mmF1.4 R [53mm equiv.] and FUJINON XF55-200mmF3.5-4.8 R LM OIS [84-305mm equiv.]. The XF27mm and XF35mm are not image stabilized but, as the OIS label indicates, the XF55-200mm is.

The pictures that follow on this page have been shot with the XF27mmF2.8 unless otherwise specified.

Closest focusing distance for the XF27mmF2.8 R is 34cm (13 in.). To access this close-up feature, you need to set the camera mode to macro on the Selector.

AF is fast and works very well in good lighting. In low-light, the camera will lock focus in about 1 sec. with the help of the AF-assist illuminator. The EVF/LCD gains up very well in low light.

Auto White Balance Indoors
AWB	Custom WB

As the above two pictures show, the Auto White Balance (AWB) is not quite accurate indoors under artificial lighting [I have two energy-saving fluorescent light bulbs on the ceiling]. The Fujifilm X-E1 allows WB to be easily set manually and this brings out the real colors. AWB works very well in natural light.

ISO Comparisons
ISO 200
ISO 400	ISO 800
ISO 1600	ISO 3200
ISO 6400

Extended ISOs
ISO 100
ISO 12800	ISO 25600

You can set the ISO on the Fujifilm X-E1 from 200 to 6400, plus the ability to have extended output sensitivity equivalent to ISO 100, 12800 and 25600. You can set AUTO ISO mode to limit to AUTO (400) / AUTO (800) / AUTO (1600) / AUTO (3200) / AUTO (6400). What is missing is the ability to specify when (i.e. at which slow shutter speed) the camera should start using a higher ISO. The 100% crops above (area delimited by the white square) demonstrate that noise at ISO 200 is under control. Noise starts to be visible at ISO 1600 but is still very usable up to ISO 3200. At higher ISOs, the presence of noise is visible at full image size and with visible loss of detail.

CA is not a problem in everyday shots, even in high contrast shots. In the above photo, we would usually see some purple fringing at the top left area delimited by the red square. But, as you can see, even reproduced at 100% crop at bottom right, there is no purple fringing.

Long Exposure

Our Long Shutter Speed test is a torture test for digital cameras. Here we test whether (and how well) a camera can lock focus, provide accurate WB and obtain a correct exposure in extreme low light situations. The Fujifilm X-E1 with the XF27mmF2.8 passes this test very well.

The Fujifilm X-E1 allows the use of a long shutter speed of 30 sec. in M mode. This allows us to take some nice Night Shots. For this shot, it locks focus instantly with the help of the AF-assist Illuminator. I use trial and error to obtain correct exposure in Manual mode, eventually setting on 30 sec. at F6.4 as the best exposure. Overall, the Fujifilm X-E1 has excellent image quality with low noise and excellent sharpness.

We have a couple more low light shots in the Fujifilm X-E1 Photo Gallery [In the Photo Gallery, click on the picture of the camera to return here.]

Executive SummaryImage QualityPhoto GalleryHandling & FeelUser’s ExperienceQuickFact Sheet / BuyNext: Fujifilm X-E1 Handling & Feel

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Related Links:

• Fujifilm X-E1 Press Release
• Fujifilm X-E1 Technical Specs