42 http://www.amateurphotographer.co.uk
THERE’S no shortage of accessories for the X100V. Some of the best
I’ve used and would recommend include NiSi’s Fuji lm X100 Series
Professional Filter kit (£53), which provides useful lters such as a
3-stop ND and a super-compact holder at a great price. I’ve also been
impressed by the Squarehood thumb grip (£34) and Mini soft shutter
button (£9). Fuji lm’s WCL-X100 and TCL-X100 conversion lenses are
great for converting the lens’s 35mm equivalent focal length
into 28mm and 50mm
respectively, however
they do make the
camera less
compact.
Accessories
Testbench IN THE FIELD
I started researching thumb
grip options to enhance thepurchase in my right hand. In the
end I chose Squarehood’s
offering that’s purposely designed
to t the X100V. It doesn’t
obstruct access to the top-plate
dials like some cheaper
alternatives and by combining it
with a mini soft shutter button, it
has turned the X100V into a
camera that’s as satisfying to
hold as it is to look at.
I was skeptical at rst of howthe absence of four-way buttons
at the rear might affect operation.
Coming from other X100 models
you’re immediately aware of how
you rely on using the joystick a lot
more. The touch functions that
let you swipe a nger across the
screen to perform a pre-assigned
function work well enough, but
they encourage you to operate
them with your left hand as it’s a
bit of a stretch with your right. If
you like to shoot single-handed
like I do, it feels a little odd not
having function buttons below
your thumb. This persuaded me
to edit the quick menu and take
full advantage of all 16 slots to
ensure I have the settings I most
regularly use a button press
away. I’m a fan of the change
Fuji lm has made to the Q Menu
button. Like the joystick, it’s a tad
small and could bene t from a
wider surface area, but by
positioning it that bit closer to the
side of the body you never nd
yourself pressing it with your
thumb by accident – something
that really infuriated me at times
in the past when I’ve been using
the X100F.Shooting from the hip
One of the reasons Fuji lm chose
to revise the layout of buttons at
the rear was due to a new tilting
screen taking up more real
estate and what a transformation
this has had. The xed screens
on older X100-series models
have always put me off and
though the X100V’s screen can’t
be tilted to assist with low- or
high-angle shooting in the portrait
format, it does let you glance
down and shoot inconspicuously
from the hip without anyone
noticing what you’re up to. This is
a huge bene t and I’ve seen
thousands of images taken by
other photographers on
Instagram who’ve also
started to reap the
reward of being able to
frame up and shoot this
way without drawing
attention to oneself. It’s the
thinnest screen Fuji lm has ever
made and though some would
have preferred the fabulousthree-way tilt design from the
X-T3, this is likely to have
increased body size or stood
proud at the rear rather than sit
perfectly ush. Based on how
well received the tilt screen has
been received on the X100V, it’ll
be interesting to see how Fuji lm
looks to develop it on the next
iteration. I’m sure I’m not alone
in saying I hope Fuji lm doesn’t
introduce a vari-angle
touchscreen like on the X-T4.^
I much prefer the idea of a slim
three-way tilt screen that tilts
discreetly behind the camera
than off to the side.
I’m not one for being too
enthusiastic when it comes to
touchscreen operation and like to
use physical controls to adjust
settings and operate the camera.
If truth be told I’ve found the
X100V’s touchscreen a
distraction and with limited value
(it can’t be used to navigate the
main menu and it fails to let you
scroll between images quickly inSquarehood’s thumb grip
is a great optional extra
The X100V has been the perfect jacket pocket camera for walks close
to home during daily exercise in lockdown Fujifilm X100V, 1/1000sec at f/2, ISO 160