Fuji X100 firmware update UPDATE

David, What settings does the X100 not retain after power off/on? Maybe I'm missing something or just learning to live with it.....
Don

Mine is loosing ISO settings and flash settings. I'm having to check everything is as I want it, every time I switch it on. It doesn't do this every time however.

I am beginning to wonder if I have a camera that has faults beyond the software/menu issues. However it works fine once its powered up, and I have it with power save disabled so it doesn't turn off at all.

I constantly have to monitor the ISO settings, which seem to have a mind of their own. I'm using the function button to control these, as I rarely use auto ISO. The flash is very erratic, one picture will be perfect, the next completely underexposed.

I'm trying to discover whether I'm touching some button by mistake but the function button is not something that its easy to press by mistake.

I've talked to my dealer and they had some notice that Fuji were probably going to release this update a while ago. Since when its up and running, it performs (reasonably) consistently, we've agreed that I'll install the new firmware and see if it fixes the problems, if not they have agreed to replace it, if it is indeed faulty.

I am still using the very first firmware version. I didn't install the update already released.
 
That's interesting, David. Thanks for the details on the erratic ISO. I have not had the problem at all. I briefly tried Auto ISO but, so far, it hasn't been my choice, though I could well change my mind in certain circumstances, I'm sure. I, too, use the Fn button for ISO and haven't ever had it change on me. I did, however, update my firmware. I wonder if that's what is the matter, though it wasn't mentioned as one of the fixes, I don't think.

I've only used the flash a couple of times, but I was very pleased that it didn't wash everything and everyone out... Just let it sit at 0 and haven't done any sort of testing.
 
David,

You're aware that the the ISO is sticky within a given shooting mode, no? IE, if you set it to 400 in aperture priority, switch to shutter priority and then change the ISO to 200, then to fully manual and switch it to 1600, and then program mode and switch it to 3200, the next time you go back to aperture priority it's gonna be at 400, and the next time you go to shutter priority, its gonna be at 200, etc. Between that and the manual iso setting ALSO being the minimum ISO setting in AUTO ISO (again, sticky per mode), and the ISO jumping around with different DR settings (which you may or may not use?), I was confused as all get out by this camera for a while. I've decided the path of least resistance is to set 200 as the manual ISO in every mode (and thereby the minimum in every mode when in auto ISO) and leave auto ISO turned on pretty much always. And I let it jump around as it might and so far I've always been happy with the results. But I'm mostly shooting in jpegs and I do let it play its DR tricks automatically too. If I was shooting raw, I would set the DR to 100% only, but I'd still probably use either auto ISO all the time or manual iso all the time. Going back and forth with this camera is just asking for trouble. And I don't switch modes that often, using aperture priority probably 80-90% of the time and shutter priority the rest. Manual I use very rarely and I don't believe I've ever used program mode. So that reduces the confusion somewhat also.

-Ray
 
You're aware that the the ISO is sticky within a given shooting mode, no? IE, if you set it to 400 in aperture priority, switch to shutter priority and then change the ISO to 200, then to fully manual and switch it to 1600, and then program mode and switch it to 3200, the next time you go back to aperture priority it's gonna be at 400, and the next time you go to shutter priority, its gonna be at 200, etc. Between that and the manual iso setting ALSO being the minimum ISO setting in AUTO ISO (again, sticky per mode), and the ISO jumping around with different DR settings (which you may or may not use?), I was confused as all get out by this camera for a while.

As before thanks. I'll see if this is causing the problem. No I wasn't aware of it.
 
Once I learned these quirks, I haven't been surprised by the camera since. I've sort of learned to think along with it. Do I like the way it thinks? No, not a lot of the time. But once I understood its logic, I learned how to use it to my best advantage. But I'd still call some of those solutions workarounds to some pretty funky UI design decisions that just don't make a lot of sense to me.

-Ray
 
David,
First off.... Do the current firmware update.
Usually there are fixes not listed in updates and this could resolve your issues.

I've been using auto ISO after reading many post about it.
The camera then shows 3200 until it reads light then adjust accordingly.
I'm about 800-900 frames in and nit a bad one yet, well as far as the camera goes.

All in all, I'm very happy as it seems to be a very satisfying camera.
 
Right, the downside is the UI system for controlling ISO makes absolutely no sense on a number of levels. The upside, and its a HUGE one, is that the camera is so good up into the highest reaches of the ISO stratosphere that you can set it to auto and just not worry about how little sense the UI makes. With every previous camera I've used, there were very real tradeoffs associated with using ISOs above 800, in some cases 400, and in some cases even above 200. So I wanted to be in firm control over where the ISO was set and only make those tradeoffs when I really had to. With the excellent high ISO on the X100, I just trust it up to 3200, it hasn't done me wrong yet, and that free's up my creative impulses to control aperture and shutter speed without worrying about the ISO tradeoffs associated with using a bit too fast a shutter speed or too small an aperture. Because there either aren't any or they're too small to bother me.

All in all, a nice set of problems to have!

-Ray
 
OK, you guys. I am now going to give the Auto ISO again. I can easily see how in a changing situation it would be very handy, and I do already know how great the image files are even up to my 64,000 or was it 640,000.:tongue: Really, at 6400 it looks darn good to me.
 
It would be good to have the Auto ISO on the ISO menu.
Seems like an easy fix. I have the fn button to ND but never use it.
Time will tell if Fuji is reading and concerned about it's users.
I think they are.
 
You're aware that the the ISO is sticky within a given shooting mode, no? IE, if you set it to 400 in aperture priority, switch to shutter priority and then change the ISO to 200, then to fully manual and switch it to 1600, and then program mode and switch it to 3200, the next time you go back to aperture priority it's gonna be at 400, and the next time you go to shutter priority, its gonna be at 200, etc.

Ray you are a star!!

Thats sorted that one out. All the modes were set at different ISO speeds. Interesting concept from the Fuji engineers! I can't think of a single good reason why thats a good idea but I guess someone might.

That also might explain why I'm getting erratic flash performance, since I've been moving from S to P.

We live and learn.
 
Ray you are a star!!

Thats sorted that one out. All the modes were set at different ISO speeds. Interesting concept from the Fuji engineers! I can't think of a single good reason why thats a good idea but I guess someone might.

That also might explain why I'm getting erratic flash performance, since I've been moving from S to P.

We live and learn.

I can't think of what they were thinking either. But I remember when this was first being discussed somewhere or other (I can't remember where I first heard half of this stuff), I recall a bunch of folks saying that either Canon or Nikon (but I don't remember which) does this same thing on their DSLRs. Some people hate it, some like it based on having gotten used to it over the years. Not being a DSLR user, I can't independently confirm.

I have yet to fire the flash, and have used flash so rarely in the past that I don't understand squat about it, so I'm never gonna be of any help there.

Anyway, glad I could help on one part of the problem.

-Ray
 
Glad to hear i'm not the only one having issues with the ISO. I switched my camera to A mode to take a quick pic yesterday and the whole shot was ruined because the ISO was at 3200.
 
Dpreview has updated their review of the X100 since this recent firmware update. I found out about it thanks to Fujifilm Finepix X100 News & Rumors site. There were definitely a couple of things that piqued my interest, as I made my way through Dpreview's review, which came out on July 8th, 2011: Just posted: Our updated in-depth review of the Fujifilm FinePix X100: Digital Photography Review Perhaps you'll find some of their points interesting, as well...or maybe I was just too oblivious to understand a few things on my own?

For example: in Manual Focus mode, with Auto ISO activated, apparently Exposure Compensation does not work - see page 8. (I don't really use manual focus, often, though I know it can be a very worthwhile option for many.)

I also found that it's not just my imagination but that sometimes when I try to switch between the OVF and EVF it really won't do it...but that it is probably due to the file writing to the card. Page 10 has some thoughtful observations, from my point of view.

I won't go into the different points that were particularly interesting to me because we're all different, but for me it was a worthwhile read. I did skip over the file analysis sections, and since I still shoot RAW (though they are VERY impressed with the JPEGS). Their "Overall Image Quality/Specifics" section was very positive and you'll just have to read their "Final Word". Hint: even the critics at dpreview are pretty much in love.:flowers_2:
 
Back
Top