Mastering the Fuji X100 provides the ambitious photographer with everything they need to know to operate this camera that has become an instant classic. Readers will learn about the features and capabilities of the X100 and will discover numerous tips and tricks for how to maximize its potential. Learn how to influence dynamic range, how to optimize focus, which film simulation is best, and much more.
The Fuji X100 is a premium digital viewfinder camera that combines compact size with sophisticated technical features and uncompromising optical quality. This unique camera already enjoys cult status and is used by many photographers as the ideal travel and snapshot camera. Nonetheless, the X100 is much more than an automatic snapshot camera—it is a sophisticated photographic tool.
In a layout suitable to the camera’s attractive design, this manual presents convincing imagery that attests to the fun you will have as you begin to push the envelope of your Fuji X100.
Mastering the Fuji X100
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About the Author
Michael Diechtierow is a photographer by passion and a biologist by training, having recently earned his PhD in this field. As a photographer, he is equally interested in traditional photography and cutting edge experimental techniques.
Working with the Fuji X100 got Michael so excited that he spontaneously decided to sit down and collect his insights and experience for this book. Michael is also a coauthor of The Wild Side of Photography, published by Rocky Nook.
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38 of 38 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
I'll begin this review by stating upfront that this is a great camera manual. It's well written, thoughtfully laid out and has just the right amount of graphics to make its points. Even better, Mastering doesn't pander to beginning photogs; it assumes that anyone shelling out $1,300 for a camera knows his or her way around shutter speeds and apertures. It doesn't spend wasted time explaining photography basics. For me, that's a huge plus.
Before I go into detail, let me mention my own experiences. I've been taking photographs since the mid 1960s when I was very young. In time I graduated from a Pentax K100 to an old Contax, then to rangefinders: a Leica IIIC, then a couple IIIFs, then proudly to the pricier IIIG. I graduated from the pre-1950s Leicas in time to Leica Ms (four or five M3s, and later an M6), as well as a couple Nikons, two Canon DLSRs and a Hasselblad, all with the usual variety of lens. I did the darkroom route early on, owned my own darkroom equipment and actively printed large-scale photos. I've been in shows, galleries and have pieces in museums and private collections in both the US and Europe. About 10 years ago I shifted abruptly into digital photography and began learning Photoshop and a half dozen plug-ins. So I've taken a few photos, and generally know my way around a camera. Last, as a disclaimer, I don't know Diechtierow, and have no affiliation with Fuji or the publisher.
Now, back to Mastering the Fuji X100... Diechtierow, the author, owns and shoots an X100. He's clearly an enthusiast, and writes with passion. He sprinkles the book with tips that he learned the hard way, and doesn't hesitate to be critical when the camera's functions don't meet his expectations. In other words, although he loves the camera, he's not a Fuji apologist. That too wins points from me. I don't need a manual from a fan boy.
Mastering starts off with basic setup tips, then moves into a section-by-section discussion about the LCD monitor and the hybrid viewfinder; exposures; focusing with the X100; ISO, sensitivity and noise; IQ; white balance; correct jpeg settings; dynamic range; series, bracketing, panoramas, movies; macro photography; flash and use of the ND filter, fn button and quick start mode. The book concludes with a very brief discussion about accessories.
Part of my enthusiasm about Mastering is that it intelligently deals with both the X100's basics as well as the not-so-easily discovered nuances. The book shines, particularly in comparison to Fuji's owner's manual, which is astonishingly basic. In comparison, Mastering is clear as a bell, thoughtfully organized and the useful reference it claims to be. To my great surprise as an X100 owner, I learned a few tricks. Nice! By the time I was halfway through the book, I'd concluded the short money I'd spent was already a great investment.
Some of the better sections? Diechtierow provides definitive Shooting and Setup Menus. What a pleasure after trying to dig through Fuji's version. Diechtierow discusses the use of histograms and Fuji's exposure dial and what to watch for. His discussion of Fuji's less than impressive manual focus option is one of the best I've seen. There's a useful section on focusing in the dark. Diechtierow is particularly adept at comparing the pros and cons of RAW versus JPEG shooting. He even provides, somewhat to my amusement, a "profile for a RAW shooter"--settings to maximize IQ for those shooting RAW, something I hadn't considered. I quickly changed my shooting profile, as this was a persuasive section (and I exclusively shot RAW with the X100).
There's an excellent section on dynamic range (DR). He's careful in this lengthy chapter to differentiate RAW from JPEGs, ISO speed and "exposing to the right" using histograms. Of particular use are his comparative photographs at DR100, DR200 and DR400. The photos pop out the differences in dark and light areas when different DRs are dialed in. There's a thorough discussion of the pros and cons for each of these settings. I found myself nodding in approval.
As noted, Diechtierow also describes proper techniques for macro photography. There's also a thorough discussion of flash, which includes automatic, forced, suppressed and slow syncro flash. There are comparative photos of various subjects taken with and without flash. He also discusses Fuji's EF-20 and EF-42 flashes; I own the latter, and had to agree that the EF-42 is a beast that quickly unbalances the X100 if not used carefully.
I'll skim over many of the details in the book--he provides more than enough. Suffice it to say that I found nothing missing, and that the information provided is logically organized--exactly what I'd expect for a reference book.
Regardless of my general praise, I encountered a few irritations. The index is woefully inadequate. I'm an index guy--it's the first place I turn when I want to know what page to find something. As thorough as the overall book is, the index works as its opposite--a hurriedly put together section that could be tremendously improved. I suspect an editor and not Diechtierow put the index together. As the author of several books, I know that the index is always compiled only after a book is formatted for printing. Nevertheless, Diechtierow should have raised hell over this issue.
I also found many of the photos poorly printed. In some sections Diechtierow provides three side-by-side photos, intending to show differences in, for instance, noise or DR. Unfortunately, in many instances, the three photos print almost identically. To Diechtierow's credit though he provides a webpage that has a far better example of many of these photographs. Does that work? Sure, but the book quality should have covered that, and I should not be forced to close the book and go on-line for better illustrations.
But these are minor quibbles. Overall I'm pleased to add this to my photographic library. It works as a good resource; the price is great; and the information thorough and varied enough to satisfy photographers from neophytes to those who are highly experienced.
Before I go into detail, let me mention my own experiences. I've been taking photographs since the mid 1960s when I was very young. In time I graduated from a Pentax K100 to an old Contax, then to rangefinders: a Leica IIIC, then a couple IIIFs, then proudly to the pricier IIIG. I graduated from the pre-1950s Leicas in time to Leica Ms (four or five M3s, and later an M6), as well as a couple Nikons, two Canon DLSRs and a Hasselblad, all with the usual variety of lens. I did the darkroom route early on, owned my own darkroom equipment and actively printed large-scale photos. I've been in shows, galleries and have pieces in museums and private collections in both the US and Europe. About 10 years ago I shifted abruptly into digital photography and began learning Photoshop and a half dozen plug-ins. So I've taken a few photos, and generally know my way around a camera. Last, as a disclaimer, I don't know Diechtierow, and have no affiliation with Fuji or the publisher.
Now, back to Mastering the Fuji X100... Diechtierow, the author, owns and shoots an X100. He's clearly an enthusiast, and writes with passion. He sprinkles the book with tips that he learned the hard way, and doesn't hesitate to be critical when the camera's functions don't meet his expectations. In other words, although he loves the camera, he's not a Fuji apologist. That too wins points from me. I don't need a manual from a fan boy.
Mastering starts off with basic setup tips, then moves into a section-by-section discussion about the LCD monitor and the hybrid viewfinder; exposures; focusing with the X100; ISO, sensitivity and noise; IQ; white balance; correct jpeg settings; dynamic range; series, bracketing, panoramas, movies; macro photography; flash and use of the ND filter, fn button and quick start mode. The book concludes with a very brief discussion about accessories.
Part of my enthusiasm about Mastering is that it intelligently deals with both the X100's basics as well as the not-so-easily discovered nuances. The book shines, particularly in comparison to Fuji's owner's manual, which is astonishingly basic. In comparison, Mastering is clear as a bell, thoughtfully organized and the useful reference it claims to be. To my great surprise as an X100 owner, I learned a few tricks. Nice! By the time I was halfway through the book, I'd concluded the short money I'd spent was already a great investment.
Some of the better sections? Diechtierow provides definitive Shooting and Setup Menus. What a pleasure after trying to dig through Fuji's version. Diechtierow discusses the use of histograms and Fuji's exposure dial and what to watch for. His discussion of Fuji's less than impressive manual focus option is one of the best I've seen. There's a useful section on focusing in the dark. Diechtierow is particularly adept at comparing the pros and cons of RAW versus JPEG shooting. He even provides, somewhat to my amusement, a "profile for a RAW shooter"--settings to maximize IQ for those shooting RAW, something I hadn't considered. I quickly changed my shooting profile, as this was a persuasive section (and I exclusively shot RAW with the X100).
There's an excellent section on dynamic range (DR). He's careful in this lengthy chapter to differentiate RAW from JPEGs, ISO speed and "exposing to the right" using histograms. Of particular use are his comparative photographs at DR100, DR200 and DR400. The photos pop out the differences in dark and light areas when different DRs are dialed in. There's a thorough discussion of the pros and cons for each of these settings. I found myself nodding in approval.
As noted, Diechtierow also describes proper techniques for macro photography. There's also a thorough discussion of flash, which includes automatic, forced, suppressed and slow syncro flash. There are comparative photos of various subjects taken with and without flash. He also discusses Fuji's EF-20 and EF-42 flashes; I own the latter, and had to agree that the EF-42 is a beast that quickly unbalances the X100 if not used carefully.
I'll skim over many of the details in the book--he provides more than enough. Suffice it to say that I found nothing missing, and that the information provided is logically organized--exactly what I'd expect for a reference book.
Regardless of my general praise, I encountered a few irritations. The index is woefully inadequate. I'm an index guy--it's the first place I turn when I want to know what page to find something. As thorough as the overall book is, the index works as its opposite--a hurriedly put together section that could be tremendously improved. I suspect an editor and not Diechtierow put the index together. As the author of several books, I know that the index is always compiled only after a book is formatted for printing. Nevertheless, Diechtierow should have raised hell over this issue.
I also found many of the photos poorly printed. In some sections Diechtierow provides three side-by-side photos, intending to show differences in, for instance, noise or DR. Unfortunately, in many instances, the three photos print almost identically. To Diechtierow's credit though he provides a webpage that has a far better example of many of these photographs. Does that work? Sure, but the book quality should have covered that, and I should not be forced to close the book and go on-line for better illustrations.
But these are minor quibbles. Overall I'm pleased to add this to my photographic library. It works as a good resource; the price is great; and the information thorough and varied enough to satisfy photographers from neophytes to those who are highly experienced.
26 of 32 people found the following review helpful
By Burt Feggs
Format:Paperback
The primary substance contained in this book deals with very basic information that would apply to virtually any digital camera. If you aren't sure what auto white balance is and whether to use it, whether to use RAW or JPG, large vs medium vs small image sizes, fine vs normal quality, etc. then this is to the book for you perhaps.
I didn't need a book to explain to me what ISO is, the positives of high ISO (faster shutter speeds, etc.) and negatives (noise, etc.), and what auto-ISO does. I don't need to know what focus/exposure lock is, nor what the priority shooting modes are.
What I was looking for was an inside track as to how the X100 does things differently, intriguing options, solid opinions on settings, etc. This comes in a very short supply and is easier to obtain through a simple internet search or manual reading. For instance, the X100 has a lot of complaints in regards to focus. The book tells you that focus is done using contrast detection and thus gives a common sense solution. But you could've found the same in the manual or on the internet. Or, the Fuji solution for usable filter threads is a very expensive proposition. There is a workaround solution easily found on the internet. You'd think, in a book on mastering the camera, you'd find something about it? Nope - instead the author just tells you to buy the expensive piece.
And where settings are concerned - I'd expect the author to give his opinion on each setting and how he uses it. How do you use it walking around - what is your complete settings setup? He tells you here and there what he prefers, but this should be across the board.
If you are looking for any information about the movie mode - don't buy this book. Why? Because the author claims in the text that the movie mode is outside the bounds of the book since the book is only about photography. It is? I thought the book was "Mastering the Fuji X100" not "Mastering Only the Photographic Aspects of the Fuji X100". Thus, by the title you'd expect all facets of the X100 were covered - not just some - but that's what happens here. Totally inexcusable.
I guess my expectations were vastly different as to what a book like this would be. In reality, it is 60% a digital camera primer book, 30% on how to navigate menus (which is no different from the manual) and 10% about intricacies and insights of the X100.
And the index, well let's just say that there are many more words in this review than there are in the index.
If you are shooting to jpg, this is your first digital camera and you have no photographic knowledge, maybe you can glean something. Otherwise, I'd highly recommend that you skip this title altogether. I didn't learn anything from it that wasn't already common sense, general digital camera knowledge or included in the manual. And further, now with the newly released firmware 1.20 (and more possible on the way), new features have been added (using the Raw button as a Fn button) which makes internet research even more worthwhile than this book.
I didn't need a book to explain to me what ISO is, the positives of high ISO (faster shutter speeds, etc.) and negatives (noise, etc.), and what auto-ISO does. I don't need to know what focus/exposure lock is, nor what the priority shooting modes are.
What I was looking for was an inside track as to how the X100 does things differently, intriguing options, solid opinions on settings, etc. This comes in a very short supply and is easier to obtain through a simple internet search or manual reading. For instance, the X100 has a lot of complaints in regards to focus. The book tells you that focus is done using contrast detection and thus gives a common sense solution. But you could've found the same in the manual or on the internet. Or, the Fuji solution for usable filter threads is a very expensive proposition. There is a workaround solution easily found on the internet. You'd think, in a book on mastering the camera, you'd find something about it? Nope - instead the author just tells you to buy the expensive piece.
And where settings are concerned - I'd expect the author to give his opinion on each setting and how he uses it. How do you use it walking around - what is your complete settings setup? He tells you here and there what he prefers, but this should be across the board.
If you are looking for any information about the movie mode - don't buy this book. Why? Because the author claims in the text that the movie mode is outside the bounds of the book since the book is only about photography. It is? I thought the book was "Mastering the Fuji X100" not "Mastering Only the Photographic Aspects of the Fuji X100". Thus, by the title you'd expect all facets of the X100 were covered - not just some - but that's what happens here. Totally inexcusable.
I guess my expectations were vastly different as to what a book like this would be. In reality, it is 60% a digital camera primer book, 30% on how to navigate menus (which is no different from the manual) and 10% about intricacies and insights of the X100.
And the index, well let's just say that there are many more words in this review than there are in the index.
If you are shooting to jpg, this is your first digital camera and you have no photographic knowledge, maybe you can glean something. Otherwise, I'd highly recommend that you skip this title altogether. I didn't learn anything from it that wasn't already common sense, general digital camera knowledge or included in the manual. And further, now with the newly released firmware 1.20 (and more possible on the way), new features have been added (using the Raw button as a Fn button) which makes internet research even more worthwhile than this book.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
By Tony Murray
Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase
This is a well written book, but do you need it? I think for anyone who buys a X100 they are probably very well versed with the operation of a rangefinder camera. Between the manual and on-line resources you will get enough information to drive this camera. However, if you wish to fast-track the learning curve then this book will not break the bank and is a good buy. Mind you, the X100s UI is such a dog you probably do need any help you can get.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
1.0 out of 5 stars
WORTHLESS
I COULD NOT SEE BUYING THE CMERA IF THIS BOIOK IS SUPPOSED TRO GUIDE THE USER- WHY WHY WHY WASTE GOOD TIME PRODUCING SOMETHING THIS HORRIBLE- SHAME ON YOU AMAZON
Published 3 months ago by mario
5.0 out of 5 stars
essential information for this quirky, excellent camera
I am an avid photographer who takes a picture of something most days. The Fuji X100 has become
my always with me carry around camera. Read more
my always with me carry around camera. Read more
Published 3 months ago by Gerald
3.0 out of 5 stars
X100 Maual
Too much discussion of basic photography concepts - not specific (deep) enough on the real subject: How to use and master the X100. Read more
Published 4 months ago by William
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great Book
Recently I purchased the Fuji X100. This is my first experience with this type of camera. I currently own a Cannon and Nikon DSLR and have had good learning experiences watching... Read more
Published 5 months ago by Joanne Doyle
3.0 out of 5 stars
It's good for newbies
It's a good compilation of tips & tricks available on the X100. Well explained and perfectly structured. Read more
Published 6 months ago by Roger
4.0 out of 5 stars
Handy auxiliary guide for the Fujifilm X100
Having recently purchased a used X100 without the original manual I thought I would give this guide a try. It is nicely illustrated and very well organized. Read more
Published 7 months ago by DuaneD
5.0 out of 5 stars
Using the Fujifilm X100
Very informative and well written book. Great example making it great reading. It covers the basics and also goes into depth when required, but not getting to the stage as being... Read more
Published 9 months ago by Bob B
3.0 out of 5 stars
You may find it useful
Good for who just started with the camera. Although not totally great for already advanced users, but there is something you might learn from this book. Read more
Published 11 months ago by CannotDigital
3.0 out of 5 stars
Just a basic guide
This book doesn't really give you much more than the manual, and really just goes through the menus step by step. The author seems to gloss over the finer points. Read more
Published 14 months ago by Ian
5.0 out of 5 stars
Learning about the Fujifilm X100 Features
This is an excellent book for someone to learn the basics of how and why to use the Fujifilm X100 camera.
This Author really knows how a digital camera works. Read more
This Author really knows how a digital camera works. Read more
Published 14 months ago by Irving Ko
Front Cover | Front Flap | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Flap | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
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