My dream camera from Fujifilm

After the time spent with a Fujifilm camera and some lenses I have thought through many times the decisions Fujifilm has made with their cameras and lenses. Having read many stories about the decisions and forum posts about them, I have a bit differing opinion what Fujifilm should do next. And this is, at the same time, my dream camera.

Fuji has done many good cameras that take beautiful pictures. I would still insist that the images come here the first, and then comes the cameras. The images are beautiful and they are made possible from many kind of cameras that aren’t, from my viewpoint, so good as the images are. Fuji also has sticked to the APS-C format. This format was mainstream some years ago, when Samsung, Canon, Pentax, Sony and Nikon, meaning almost all the big players in camera industry, accepted it as “good”. Of these only Samsung dropped the ball seeing no future for their APS-C based mirrorless system. What is most important, is that all other companies but Fujifilm made 35mm “full-frame” sensor cameras along the APS-C sensor size. Only Fujifilm stayed in their idea that APS-C is “good enough” for majority of photographers (meaning the audience that buys enough cameras to make the company profitable). Okay, Nikon made totally absurd decision with it’s “1” -system and personally I thought that was it for Nikon. But they came back and now Fujifilm is alone with their sensor size decision.

Fuji has many times stated that they have the bigger, fuller than full-frame, sensor for those that want “bigger”. And that Fuji will NEVER go to full-frame in their cameras. I do not have references for those sayings, but that is what I recall from the information I have read.

Personally I always wanted to think that buying an APS-C system for example from Canon made the “upgrade-path” possible to full-frame. But now it seems Canon is even considering that they won’t make APS-C sensors for their current RF-mount (though I don’t believe such, I think Canon is probably just delaying and testing the waters or even finishing the system for APS-C sensors). But having a Fujifilm APS-C -system DOES NOT offer upgrade path. Okay, the flashes might be used for their both systems and color settings (film simulations) are the same. But as far as I know you cannot use any adapter to buy GF lenses and use them with the X-system cameras and later or at the same time with the GF-system. So, if one decides that they want bigger, they basically are changing systems. There is no difference if you changed alltogether to Canon or Sony or Nikon. So, my view is that Fujifilm has made a huge mistake here.

But coming back to the main subject, the dream camera. We all have such and any opinions here aren’t worth a thing for any manufacturer, like Fujifilm, if the dream camera was bought only by one person. But I think Fujifilm has missed a big opportunity to make a X100-series camera with full-frame sensor. My dream camera from Fujifilm would be a X-1 with 35mm full frame sensor and a fixed prime lens with 40mm focal lenght and with aperture around 1.8. The camera could at the start have a Bayer sensor around 36 MP (these are available cheaper from Sony than making the research for X-trans in this size). By making this Fujifilm could strike in the full-frame crowd giving one of their most loved camera series with bigger sensor and this would not tie their hands to make an ILC camera with full-frame sensor. I think the XF27mm equivalent focal length with bigger aperture would be accepted very well, I believe as well as a 35mm focal length. And personally I would choose the 40mm for a fixed-focal-length camera more likely than the 35mm focal length.

One might ask why Fujfilm would not do this with the GF-sensor size. I believe the price would still be so high that that alone would prevent making such a camera.

So Fujifilm, don’t be so stubborn with this full-frame question. Here would be your opportunity to make more money and back up from your attitude without losing your face. And you would give a wonderful camera for enthusiasts to live with.

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