Is the XF10 the best street camera today?

During a recent conversation, a friend teased me about my extreme camera choices. On the one hand I shoot with the top-of-line Fujifilm GFX 50S and X-series for work. While on the other, I have taken to relying on my compact XF10 for much of my personal photography. They have a point. Sort of.

While the XF10 isn’t the optimum choice as a work camera, it is an excellent option for candid public photography (CPP). The really small size, great image quality and simple features make a terrific travel and street camera. The XF10 does sacrifice some of the more advanced features of the X-series. However, the features it does have make it worth considering as a second camera. And for street shooting, I believe it might be the best Fujifilm camera available. Really.

First of all, the 24MB sensor is terrific. The images it produces are different from those captured with the X-trans sensor, but still fantastic. Since the XF10 retains most of the popular Fujifilm film simulations, you get terrific colour and black and white options. Developing the RAW files in Lightroom on your computer or mobile device also produces great results.

Size matters. In this case, the small size of the camera makes it very easy to always have the XF10 with you. As they say about the best camera…

Snapshot. This is a feature that allows you to quickly toggle between two presets that are ideal for CPP. Preset the XF10 to either f/5.6 and focus at 5 metres or to f/8 and 2 metres, and start shooting. As I often shoot from the hip, this is a excellent feature for my style of street #ObservationalDocumentation. No viewfinder, no problem.

The 18mm f/2.8 lens is also ideal for CPP. Wide enough to accommodate tilted horizons and a bit of cropping, plus the ability to be close to subjects and still capture a lot of context as well.

So, while my use of the XF10 might seem a little extreme when I have the option to use the top-of-the-line cameras that Fujifilm produces, I don’t agree. For CPP and other non-work photography, the XF10 has become my camera of choice. Most of the time…

A few example follow:

NB: All images captured with the Fujifilm XF10. Most in Snapshot mode. RAW files processed in Lightroom CC for the iPad.