OMG – Fujifilm’s film-roll mode is the outright cutest camera feature I’ve played with in years
Fujifilm’s half-time was at the reception of a little Flak, with some of the Tiktok Techradar viewers essentially qualifying it as a plastic novelty.
There is real, even if half X could have been a good $ 150 cheaper than its launch price of $ 849 (£ 699 / $ 1,349 in), if it was not for American rates.
Aside from the price, however, I really appreciate prolonged time with the retro compact while I finish an in -depth review – you can consult my first X -Half First impressions while waiting.
It may not be technically one of the best compact cameras, but half X certainly stands out from the crowd, with a series of features that act as a love letter to analog photography – more specifically photography half.
As I write this, it’s been days that I have not used the unique film roll of the X HALF, and I always smile at it – it is most likely the most adorable camera function that I have used for years.
Digital analog
Fujifilm has a long history in the cinema, being one of the main producers of 35 mm films. And he found a winning formula with his X series of digital cameras when she introduced her “films simulations”, which helped trigger a purchasing frenzy around compact cameras and the resulting price increases.
Now well known, these simulations of digital films imitate the color and feeling of the Fujifilm movies stock, allowing you to get the look you love, on the camera. There are currently 20, with classics such as VELVIA (VIVID), provia (standard) and acros (monochrome), with the possibility of personalizing these presets to create your own “recipes”.
The possibility of obtaining the appearance of the film, with the convenience of digital technology, has created many converts to the brand, and this has certainly helped Fujifilm cameras themselves with the retro part.
Half X takes the analog dial of Fujifilm and turns it at 11.
Inspired by half -ram film photography – where each vertical frame is half dimensioned, thus doubling the number of frames that you get on a 35 mm film roll – The half movie has a 1 inch vertical sensor, diptych skills and a vertical touch screen at the rear.
Then there is the pretty film window, displaying the selected film simulation – it’s a bit like the film window that you get on analog cameras. These charming characteristics are not even the best part of the film X Half if you likes, however – I am here to share my experience of his charming film roller mode.
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Run with
Fujifilm X Half Film Film Film mode is a bag full of pleasure, if you have a weakness for cinematographic photography.
Slide the touch screen and you can activate the mode, then you select the number of frames in the film roll; 36, 54 or 72. Once the roller is starting, you are locked in the film simulation – as if you used a film roll – and the rear display goes from live view to a number of frames (see the gallery above).
You are instead to compose photos via the optical viewfinder – it is a basic display. I did not use the viewfinder too much, however – the lens of 28 mm f / 2.8 of the X Half is wide enough for you to simply point and pull, without taking too much care.
You can switch between auto and manual focus, add a time time for almost everything. The Roll Film mode brings the camera for a few decades, until you use the “roller” and the regular mode returns, with live views.
Turn off the camera off the roll and when you turn it on again, it will take back where you left it. Do you want to leave the middle of the roll? It is also an option (and you don’t really waste the film), although I resisted this temptation.
There are beautiful small touches, including a “crank” to go to the next frame – the camera will not take the next blow before doing so. During all this time, image reading is not available in mid-term. No, seeing your photos come later …
Once the “roller” is finished, you can download wireless shots on the Fujifilm X Half application, where you will see your photos for the first time.
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It is a digital reimagination of sending your turn to the laboratory for treatment. Each photo is displayed in the application on a contact sheet – another nice little touch for photograph fans like me who learned photography in the dark room.
There are a few startups that work on such a premise, such as the next Echolens. But have such a fun functionality in a camera made by Fujifilm, with its films simulations? It is a winning formula in my book.
I am not embarrassed to say that I grove with pleasure when I used the roll mode of the film, and a few days later, I always smile there. It also helps that half X is a charming and retro compact.
A too expensive plastic novelty camera? Maybe. But the last thing you can call half X is vanilla. I am absolutely for the cameras that bring out the smiles, and half X certainly does that. Do not take it too seriously, and it could simply win you too.
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