*completely trivial
Some time ago I wrote a review of the Fuji X100. To save you the trouble, my conclusion was: “as a carry everywhere camera which produces beautiful photos even when the light is low, which is discrete and non-threatening on the street and is a pleasure to hold and operate (usually), then it is hard to beat”.
More recently I wrote a review of the Panasonic GX1.To save you the trouble, my conclusion was: “I think the GX1 is the best compact system camera on the market right now”.
It would appear that I am an overly effusive in my praise. Cut the bullshit Spike, which one of these cameras is best?
I freely admit that I bought the X100 based not on any need, but because it looked beautiful and took beautiful photos. It was a slower than my GF1, the interface was crap and macro was a non-starter. But the viewfinder was spectacular and the images that popped out of it were so much cleaner than the GF1; especially at higher ISOs.
If you are not in a rush, The X100 will be a willing companion and reward you with some lovely photographs. And I have enjoyed it in that mode, although I have at times been tempted to throw it against a wall in frustration thanks to its shitty interface.
And now there is a GX1 in my life and the failings of the X100 are amplified. The X100 is a slow to focus, especially in low light. The GF1 was faster, the GX1 is faster still. I was taking some social event photos at the weekend. I have been using the X100 because of the quality of the output, the downside of this is having to ask your subjects to talk amongst themselves while you try and persuade the damn thing to lock focus. This weekend, in frustration, I pulled out the GX1. Instant focus lock, even in the semi-darkness. Refreshing.
The interface of the X100 was designed by a committee; on crack. A charming idiosyncrasy becomes wearing over time. The GF1 was better, the GX1 is way better, with tactile buttons, touch screen, quick menus and four programmable function keys. The knurled knobs on the X100 are all very well; but if the rest of the controls are buried in menus you can’t reach because the button is too small for your finger….
Ah, but the viewfinder. Well indeed, the X100 hybrid viewfinder is a thing of joy and the GF1 viewfinder is the opposite of a thing of joy. But the GX1 viewfinder is a much improved beast, although the vote would still go to the X100 on that one. Oh, and it also wins on the silent shutter issue; given that it has one and the GX1 doesn’t.
Lenses? The X100 has one and it is very good. The GX1 of course has access to an entire world of lens-based goodness, so it is not a fair comparison; but worth noting in passing that the X100 gives you a camera and the GX1 gives you a system.
But, but, what about the images I hear you not asking? The X100 stood clearly above the GF1 on that one. Lovely smooth images with good colours straight out of the camera. Similar could come out of the GF1, but you had to work on them; and they never had that Fuji look.
So how does the GX1 stack up? Let’s have straightforward daylight shot, a medium where the Fuji shines:
Fuji X100
Panasonic GX1 with Panasonic 20mm lens
Both are clean with no base ISO noise. The Fuji’s colours are a touch more vibrant out of the camera and overall I prefer the look of the Fuji image; but enough to justify having the camera…?
Moving indoors and let’s take an ISO 1600 shot. Against the GF1, the X100 was a clear winner, but how will it do against the GX1?
Fuji X100
Panasonic GX1 with Panasonic 20mm lens
Both have retained colour well, we will need to look closer to check the noise:
Fuji X100
Panasonic GX1 with Panasonic 20mm lens
The Fuji still wins, with noticeably less noise. But the Panasonic is not far behind and bit of noise reduction in Lightroom could clean up both of them.
The much improved image quality of the GX1 has narrowed the gap to the X100, but the X100 still has a slight edge.
So, to summarise:
In the blue corner we have the X100. A thing of beauty which has slightly better images, a silent shutter, an hybrid viewfinder and some shiny knobs to twiddle. On the downside there is the sluggish focus, the wanky interface and the hopeless macro.
And in the red corner we have the GX1. A thing of less obvious beauty with almost comparable images and a good viewfinder which can handle any lens. Fantastic focusing, slick, customisable interface and support for manual/macro focusing. On the downside there is….nothing major I can think of.
In conclusion, the GX1 is a clear winner and my X100 is going on eBay next week.
Comments 🔗
2012-01-30| Dave saysNo! You can’t sell the X100! It’s the best poor mans Leica in the world :-)
2012-02-04| galumay saysWow! I cant imagine selling my X100, while I havent used the GX1, the X100 is just so much better than any other camera I have used over the years. I dont have the same issues that you have had with it, perhaps thats becaue of the type of photography i do. I almost never do macro shots, I use the manual focus after using the AEL/AFL button to get initial focus, I found the menu system was clunky but like anything, over time I memorised my way round it. The hybrid viewfinder is a thing of beauty, and that alone would be enough for me to choose it over anything else. I love the discipline and concentration of a fixed length lens and not having to carry a range of lenses is a blessing.
Those who havent used it may consider it a poor man’s Leica, but they dont actually make a camera that does what the X100 does, as well as it does it.
I guess it just shows there is no single answer to questions like this, I know plenty that would reckon we are all barking mad because we dont have a 50D Mkii with a bag full of lenses!
2012-02-04| Dave saysI own a X100 too and while I hate it sometimes for its small annoyances (autofcus!) the pictures are just amazing. And since I don’t have any idea or intention to do some PP I will never sell it. Those OOC JPEGS are outstanding!
2012-02-04| Spike saysI agree with both of you, the X100 takes lovely images and the viewfinder is great. If it was stuck in my hand as an only camera for a long trip I would be content.
But as the GX1 now comes so close in image quality; for me I can’t justify hanging on to it.
As for being a poor man’s Leica, unlike the Leica it doesn’t need to go back for recalibration on a regular basis and the covering doesn’t fall off!
2012-02-09| ZenTravels saysThe Fuji might is only a poor man’s leica in terms of look…and that sweet OVF. the GX-1 shines much more in street photography because of it’s speed which is the traditional field of rangefinders. The Gx-1 is also a system camera just like a Leica. The Fuji might be closer to a Miniilux or CM than a Leica M series
2012-04-05| M saysI’m actually here because I’m thinking of leaving my X100 for the GX1. I can’t stand the sluggish AF on the X100. And btw, the X100 is by no means a poor mans Leica M*. The Leica is a manual focus rangefinder camera. The X100 is 100% unusable in manual focus mode.
2012-04-05| Spike saysCome to the dark side my child; you will not regret it. Massively quick and accurate AF in all light conditions, and automatic zooming in makes manual focus a breeze.
2012-04-05| David saysThe AF is quite good with the latest firmwar, 1.21. They even fixed the MF for the poor Leica man :-)
2012-04-25| AskB saysI have the GX1 with the PL 25mm and love the IQ. Also have the X100 and love it for its IQ and quiet shuter. In fact the shutter noise is my biggest grip with the GX1. The X100 is so more fun to use. However, I can’t make myself to sell any of the two! :-)
2012-09-27| Number Ten saysI tried the Fuji X100 and I loved it for it’s image quality and silent shutter. This camera has low noise in both the image quality and the shutter department. However, when the juicy Olympus OM-D E-M5 came along, it was bye bye X100. Micro 4/3 gives you a whole range of excellent lenses and accessoiries. Much more flexible. The OM-D can be what you want it to be. A full blown professional quality camera system with grip, extra battery, shoulder strap, and high quality zoomlens like the Panasonic 12-35mm (and all of this goodness still weighs less then most DSLR’s. Or it can be a stealthy small almost pocketable camera with a small pancake lens like the Panasonic 14mm or 20mm. Also, I like to have some more megapixels then twelve. Sixteen is a nice minimum I think.
2015-05-03| Bill Cromwell saysYour comparison is still interesting today. Only now whe have the Fuji X100T. Comparing the X100T or any other Fuji X series camera to the Panasonic GX1, I see little difference in RAW image quality. The in camera processing of the Fuji removes noise and this results in a smooth image with less detail. There is little or no in camera noise reduction with the Panasonic GX1. As a result, the camera produces RAW images that are noisier but also more detailed. With some post processing I can make the GX1 images look like Fuji images. The colors from both cameras are different and it’s not always possible to make them look the same, but the extra detail of the Panasonic images allow the heavy noise reduction that is applied in camera by Fuji. Interesting and at the same time a bit disappointing. Not much progress in four or five years. Yeah, let the Fuji fans go crazy about my comment, but deep down you know it’s true.