Fujifilm Photography News and Rumors

There has been some speculation that the EU import duty, which was imposed on cameras in 2007 is the reason that the Fujifilm X-H1 has a limited record time, but this is highly unlikely. Many things in the EU are taxed and regulated in ways that we aren’t used to in the United States, but the EU import duties for devices that can record video, which varies between 4.9% and 12.5% is complicated.

I won’t get into the politics or an in-depth legal analysis because it is very dry but originally all cameras that could record video were going to have to pay this tax until a compromise was reached. The compromise was that cameras that record less than 30-minutes would avoid the duty, but once they recorded even one minute more at a specified quality or higher they would have to pay the minimum duty. Now a 4.9% duty isn’t bad, but what about 12.5%… Well, 12.5% was only if the device could record from a TV like a VCR, which then leads to some interesting legal arguments. I imagine most companies decided they weren’t worth making and just segmented their product lines as a result, which became more profitable.

Then… in 2016 the EU eliminated import duties on “Television cameras, and video cameras, and their component parts” (Meijburg Tax Law). Could a tax law firm in Europe have incorrect information on their site? I suppose they could, but it’s unlikely the EU is listed on the WTO: Information Technology Agreement. I’m not a lawyer in Europe so I wouldn’t know and have heard that the tax expires in 2018 (Max says 2019) which might be related to the WTO agreement. There have been a lot of free trade agreements over the years and if these companies wanted to get around the tax than they would find a way.

From an engineering and business perspective, it would not make sense to pay the tax if your camera could only record for 45 minutes or so because there would be little benefit to customers. You are better off increasing profits or passing along the savings to customers so you can undercut your competition. This is why I expect to see an unlimited record time in the future when Fujifilm is ready and able to deliver one. Beyond the Fujifilm X-H line of camera, many manufacturers use artificial limits to segment their cameras and the 30-minute limitation will likely remain a useful tool going forward thanks to the EU.

Also, it looks like the Fujiguys are vlogging now…

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Fujifilm X-H1 News, Rumors, and Collaboration
Fujifilm X-H Owners Group
Fujifilm X-H Page

X-H1 Camera: B&H Photo / Amazon / Adorama
X-H1 Body with Battery Grip Kit: B&H Photo / Amazon / Adorama
VPB-XH1 Vertical Power Booster Grip: B&H Photo / Amazon / Adorama

The Fujifilm X-H1 is out in the wild and we have X-H1 owners group members that picked theirs up already and they are impressed. Some people are rushing to make content and but it will still likely be a few days before we see some quality comparisons from vlogers like Maxs Yuryev, until then a lot of these early comparisons surfacing can be taken with a grain of salt. Early opinions have been very positive with no one saying Sony’s IBIS beats Fujifilm’s, but some have claimed Panasonic and Olympus still have the best IBIS system. This wouldn’t surprise me, but I want to see it via a scientific comparison.

The Fuji X-H1 is looking quite durable from the various videos released. Below there is a video of a photographer that works in the cold with his X-H1 and it is constantly getting snow and ice built up on the outside. It looks like the X-H1 can withstand the elements much like the Fujifilm GFX. Maybe a photographer will leave the X-H1 outside overnight in the cold like the GFX.

photographyblog – Fujifilm X-H1 Review

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Fujifilm X-H1 News, Rumors, and Collaboration
Fujifilm X-H Owners Group
Fujifilm X-H Page

X-H1 Camera: B&H Photo / Amazon / Adorama
X-H1 Body with Battery Grip Kit: B&H Photo / Amazon / Adorama
VPB-XH1 Vertical Power Booster Grip: B&H Photo / Amazon / Adorama

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Fuji Guy Billy showed up at Big Head Taco’s for an interview to continue promoting the Fujifilm X-H1. Most of the details are rehashed, but there are a few new ones like, relay recording, that make we wonder why the X-H1 wasn’t designed with an unlimited record time. If the recording limitations are hardware related than it’s likely that a future X-H1 will have an unlimited record time like the GH cameras, which is very useful for some videographers.

• First thing the shutter feels so different there is no shutter shock
• More Robust
• Brough Color Science to the video side of things
• A lot of improvements to look at for the video side of things
• Equally good in Stills and Video unlike the GH cameras
• Lenses are the big advantage over full frame competitors
• Very customizable
• No one else made film/instant cameras/instant film/cameras/lenses/photo labs/etc… except Kodak could have said it in the past but their cameras weren’t very good.
• MK lenses have electronic contacts on X-mount, but not E-mount
• IBIS works best with lenses that have electronic contacts because it can tell subject distance
• Fujifilm believes in dials because they make you feel more connected because you’re not diving into menus
• Sub monitor changes depending on the mode you’re in.
• Silent mode lets you change all your settings on the touch screen so your mic won’t pick up the dials moving
• Video mode lets you auto continue from one card to the next when filming.
• 30 min recording limit with grip and 15 min without, but if you use an external recorder there is no limit.
• Body is USB chargeable
• Booster lets you Plugin and shoot
• You can tether and there is a cable lock included
• The X-H1 currently had an advantage shooting high-frequency low contrast objects
• You can set up a function button to toggle on 120fps

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Fujifilm X-H1 News, Rumors, and Collaboration
Fujifilm X-H Owners Group
Fujifilm X-H Page

X-H1 Camera: B&H Photo / Amazon / Adorama
X-H1 Body with Battery Grip Kit: B&H Photo / Amazon / Adorama
VPB-XH1 Vertical Power Booster Grip: B&H Photo / Amazon / Adorama

Fujifilm released their seventh Development Story covering IBIS, but it strictly covers the hardware side of IBIS and not the software side mentioned by Jun Watanabe in his interview with DPReview. We were already quite aware of the tight tolerances needed for Fujifilm IBIS to perform optimally, which they relayed by discussing laser measurement, but in their latest article, Fujifilm covers the different components of their system.

“Precision is the key to make a good IBIS. The depth of field varies on the focal length, but generally speaking it is shallower than 5 microns for the light rays of F1.4. The image can get blurry when it is off just by 1 micron. The XF lenses have characteristics of clear separation between focal plane and defocus area.”

It’s interesting to release a precise measurement of light being in focus because this is very technical information beyond most readers. 5 microns at f/1.4 (we can assume they are talking about the Fujinon XF35 1.4) is between the size of a red blood cell and bacteria, it is actually about the size of fine talcum powder. Further, the IBIS system has to be within the tolerances of 1 micron to avoid any blur that could be caused by the system, which is about the size of E. Coli or a smoke particle. This is interesting stuff to grasp and could have been better explained via analogies because 1 micron is a very tight tolerance. The scaled is difficult would best be expressed with an analogy anecdote. All of this must be taken into account with an IBIS camera when moving the sensor, but it’s not really an issue with a fixed sensor because the tolerances are fixed in the body.

The base plate, joint, and sensor are all key parts involved in maintaining the toleranced necessary for Fujifilm’s X-H1 IBIS system to work properly. Fujifilm had to go beyond building a rigid body to accomplish these tolerances.

“The joint, which is shaped like a ball, is placed on the surface of the base. In order for the ball to move smoothly, the surface of the base also needs to be smooth. However the problem is that the base plate is made of magnesium alloy and is not smooth enough even when polished. To work out the problem, we combined it with a mirror-finish stainless plate….The stainless plate has the value of Ra0.05. Ra is the measurement for smoothness, meaning the average unevenness of the surface is maintained under 0.05 micron….The joint is also special. It is made of durable ceramic that is tough against deformation. The diameter of the ball is 1,500 micron and the manufacturing tolerance is ±0.3％ (less than 5 microns)….

The sensor surface needs to be adjusted in quickness and with precision. The key to the fast and accurate positioning is the torque. If the actuator lacks power, then it can probably handle positioning of the sensor. It cannot guarantee quick and precise positioning….The actuator of the IBIS unit in the X-H1 is quite big. It is double the size of a typical unit for the APS sensor. But it means that this is twice as much powerful.

According to X-H1 Development Story #7 -In-Body Image Stabilization this attention to precision led to a happy accident when engineers accidentally set the vibration generation machine to twice what it should have been the Fujifilm X-H1 camera was the only camera capable of handling the load. Now, this setting could have been their testing start point so don’t get too excited, but Fujifilm is humble bragging that they have the best IBIS system currently available. From what I have heard it is very good, but I haven’t seen a lot of silky smooth stabilized footage yet. Hopefully, we will see some in the coming days as more users receive theirs.

Development Story #6
Development Story #5
Development Story #4
Development Story #3
Development Story #2
Development Story #1

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Fujifilm X-H1 News, Rumors, and Collaboration
Fujifilm X-H Owners Group
Fujifilm X-H Page

X-H1 Camera: B&H Photo / Amazon / Adorama
X-H1 Body with Battery Grip Kit: B&H Photo / Amazon / Adorama
VPB-XH1 Vertical Power Booster Grip: B&H Photo / Amazon / Adorama