Fuji X10 camera and mountain hiking

I did not like carrying my Canon Rebel when hiking, so I really wanted the Fuji X10 to prove a good addition to my backpack. A hike in Piatra Mare mountains with a  group of friends proved a good occasion to see how the Fuji X 10 works with landscapes, scorching sun and an 8 hour hike.

The question is: can a digital camera like the Fuji X10 work from forest shade to open spaces close enough to a DSLR? While the low weight of a digital compact camera seems like a great thing, maybe the disadvantages when comparing with a DSLR are too much.

Fuji X10 things I liked on the trip

• low weight (350g)
• good dynamic range which managed to capture both deep forest shade and noon blue sky
  when set in EXR DR400 mode, which offers 6MP with up to 3 more EV dynamic range
  see an explanation of my preffered settings for Fuji X10 
• good ISO performance for deep shade canyons
• small form factor
  allowed me to have the Fuji X10 ready to shoot and not packed in my backpack
• great macro mode
  though to get very close to a subject I have to set the lens in wide-angle mode

[pe2-gallery class=”alignleft” ] [pe2-image src=”http://lh3.ggpht.com/-gPHgBD93kZs/UB-lo5C4eiI/AAAAAAAAPb0/xvODNRD1mMI/s144-o/20120805-DSCF5567.jpg” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/118269665079131306201/2012PiatraMare#5773515369238526498″ caption=”” type=”image” alt=”Fuji X10 in Piatra Mare” ][pe2-image src=”http://lh5.ggpht.com/-cIvn1CJsh9c/UB-l9PrVDJI/AAAAAAAAPeU/zefelIWKZLQ/s144-o/20120805-DSCF5644.jpg” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/118269665079131306201/2012PiatraMare#5773515718911134866″ caption=”” type=”image” alt=”Fuji X10 in Piatra Mare” ][pe2-image src=”http://lh3.ggpht.com/-Lr5dZi9PLMI/UB-mb9X058I/AAAAAAAAPh4/OSfASBODo0o/s144-o/20120805-DSCF5741.jpg” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/118269665079131306201/2012PiatraMare#5773516246573443010″ caption=”” type=”image” alt=”Fuji X10 in Piatra Mare” ][pe2-image src=”http://lh5.ggpht.com/-ZHi7-mYTlx8/UB-mmCkV72I/AAAAAAAAPjI/-G4EAxYijOQ/s144-o/20120805-DSCF5779.jpg” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/118269665079131306201/2012PiatraMare#5773516419766808418″ caption=”” type=”image” alt=”Fuji X10 in Piatra Mare” ][/pe2-gallery]

what I missed on my Fuji X10 compared to my Digital Rebel

• Fuji’s LCD in direct sunlight makes squinting a fact of life
• optical viewfinder
  it helps when the LCD gets washed-out, but there is no focus confirmation
• small battery
  I had a spare battery with me but for a longer or multi-day hike a this can be a problem. Fortunately spare batteries are pretty cheap (third-party batteries are around $10 and I had no problems with them)
• the Fuji X10 has less cropping possibilities
  especially as I shoot a lot in 6MP DR400 mode (which offers the large dynamic range latitude)

As every camera is a set of compromises, I did not expect to find the Holy Grail of digital cameras with the Fuji X10. However, as I wrote in my Fuji X10 review, this little camera really has a lot of advantages. As a compact digital camera it cannot have the sheer potential of Canon DSLR RAW files but for a short mountain hike the Fuji X10 was more than enough. JPEG files that have good dynamic range, gorgeous Fuji colors and fast enough AF allowed me to have a very pleasant experience. Instead of carrying a bulky DSLR setup I could  concentrate more on the fun in taking pictures.

[pe2-image src=”http://lh3.ggpht.com/-fVgYHL_6gvw/UB-lcv3RztI/AAAAAAAAPak/KbvaXDV5Hxk/s144-o/20120805-DSCF5506.jpg” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/118269665079131306201/2012PiatraMare#5773515160615505618″ caption=”” type=”image” alt=”Fuji X10 – great little camera for mountain hiking” ] [pe2-image src=”http://lh6.ggpht.com/-KvA7Mh1qa2w/UB-lh2ZzjII/AAAAAAAAPbI/1DLJfCI7QBA/s144-o/20120805-DSCF5530.jpg” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/118269665079131306201/2012PiatraMare#5773515248270281858″ caption=”” type=”image” alt=”Fuji X10 – great little camera for mountain hiking” ] [pe2-image src=”http://lh6.ggpht.com/-hiJU0so6Upg/UB-lp8rzhyI/AAAAAAAAPcE/zxgFEVLG5QY/s144-o/20120805-DSCF5571.jpg” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/118269665079131306201/2012PiatraMare#5773515387395344162″ caption=”” type=”image” alt=”Fuji X10 – great little camera for mountain hiking” ] [pe2-image src=”http://lh4.ggpht.com/-t5oLe1YBUko/UB-lrQcDCxI/AAAAAAAAPcM/3iZhKEQKU-Y/s144-o/20120805-DSCF5582.jpg” 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src=”http://lh3.ggpht.com/-7CarqTU04uQ/UB-mPMVTYlI/AAAAAAAAPgY/vY3ZMMZW9Gk/s144-o/20120805-DSCF5704.jpg” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/118269665079131306201/2012PiatraMare#5773516027251090002″ caption=”” type=”image” alt=”Fuji X10 – great little camera for mountain hiking” ] [pe2-image src=”http://lh4.ggpht.com/-6vMqdurgE8s/UB-mWZg_P5I/AAAAAAAAPhQ/9py-1pLmgvM/s144-o/20120805-DSCF5729.jpg” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/118269665079131306201/2012PiatraMare#5773516151048847250″ caption=”” type=”image” alt=”Fuji X10 – great little camera for mountain hiking” ] [pe2-image src=”http://lh6.ggpht.com/-RAzmkDA_Je0/UB-mYvMsVqI/AAAAAAAAPhc/jZ-lozsR7yc/s144-o/20120805-DSCF5732.jpg” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/118269665079131306201/2012PiatraMare#5773516191229040290″ caption=”” type=”image” alt=”Fuji X10 – great little camera for mountain hiking” ] [pe2-image src=”http://lh4.ggpht.com/-4Q2wcMdsPC4/UB-mbMUwanI/AAAAAAAAPhw/9BwIkuS_KxU/s144-o/20120805-DSCF5739.jpg” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/118269665079131306201/2012PiatraMare#5773516233407228530″ caption=”” type=”image” alt=”Fuji X10 – great little camera for mountain hiking” ] [pe2-image src=”http://lh6.ggpht.com/-fpSwX7vGqpM/UB-md83_PPI/AAAAAAAAPiE/SAx-HDcZG4I/s144-o/20120805-DSCF5751.jpg” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/118269665079131306201/2012PiatraMare#5773516280799640818″ caption=”” type=”image” alt=”Fuji X10 – great little camera for mountain hiking” ] [pe2-image src=”http://lh4.ggpht.com/-jz_H2xF5D50/UB-me_kVuLI/AAAAAAAAPiM/br9SlL97wks/s144-o/20120805-DSCF5754.jpg” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/118269665079131306201/2012PiatraMare#5773516298702403762″ caption=”” type=”image” alt=”Fuji X10 – great little camera for mountain hiking” ] [pe2-image src=”http://lh6.ggpht.com/-Fnp3_wHBtFg/UB-milhAYcI/AAAAAAAAPis/ZovOHqbgZeE/s144-o/20120805-DSCF5770.jpg” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/118269665079131306201/2012PiatraMare#5773516360428577218″ caption=”” type=”image” alt=”Fuji X10 – great little camera for mountain hiking” ] [pe2-image src=”http://lh5.ggpht.com/-0t14jOzkIOY/UB-mrOMZohI/AAAAAAAAPjs/5iQc2T4ER68/s144-o/20120805-DSCF5797.jpg” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/118269665079131306201/2012PiatraMare#5773516508786958866″ caption=”” type=”image” alt=”Fuji X10 – great little camera for mountain hiking” ] [pe2-image src=”http://lh4.ggpht.com/-O4QGcGQ1vPY/UB-myna2WLI/AAAAAAAAPkY/TnJlpgqBExk/s144-o/20120805-DSCF5809.jpg” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/118269665079131306201/2012PiatraMare#5773516635817531570″ caption=”” type=”image” alt=”Fuji X10 – great little camera for mountain hiking” ]

I think the greatest challenge in landscape shooting, especially in midday sun, is the huge dynamic range. As I do not want to spend too much time creating HDR images – shooting bracketed exposures and combining them in Photoshop – the little Fuji X10 proved invaluable.

Was the Fuji X10 perfect? Obviously not – I am still struggling to find workarounds for focusing in direct sun. But it definitely replaced my DSLR in my backpack.

Fuji X10 in detail

• my Fuji X10 review
• Fuji X10 and concert photography

 

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