We had a product night with the X Pro 3 last evening.

Wow!

The thing that struck me straight away was the attention to photographic empowerment. This camera is not playing catchup. It is not making excuses or showering you with fluff features (see previous post), but is aimed squarely at empowering the dedicated photographer to take photographs.

This is a sharp tool, made to purpose.

Yes, the menu is again differently laid out to previous models and the features are almost uncountable (again see previous post). There was a refreshing shift away from video for the dedicated stills shooter.

The features that were focussed on were;

improvements in sensor design, image controls in camera, with an aim to making the in camera image the finished product and better flow through of in-camera manipulations into RAW work flow.

You really get the feeling that this camera, controlled fully, can give you almost an entirely in-camera work flow or near to it.

Styling was refreshingly simple and consistent with previous X Pro’s, with only good tweaks, and those were mostly tactile. I especially liked the flip down screen. This is something that I am finding an issue with newer Olympus cameras, after using the flip out and roll style screens for street photography.

I just do not like the video-centric screen design for street shooting.

Will I jump ship into Fuji?

No, but there may be a long term re-integration into some Fuji gear for specific roles.

The X200 (X100 mk2?) with improved sensor (see XA 9) and better view finder might do the trick, or maybe the XT30, but no whole sale switching. A long lens is still in the want pile, with the Fuji 100-400 being a true contender. Adding the Panasonic 100-400 is tempting, but I feel a Pana camera would be needed to get the most out of it, so switching to Fuji for just this lens is actually reasonable, but that is usually where the rot sets in. Having multiple brands with me, usually means fleshing them out fully, creating duplication, guilt and rationalisation. Fully switching would actually be more sensible, but I am almost perfectly happy as is.

The reality is though, another Pen F (still very close to the same dynamic as the Xpro even after several years), or a Panasonic G9/95, allowing me to move on from the EM5’s makes the most sense.

My ideal kit?

Way too hard!