I once fell in love with Fuji's Super CCD 'honeycomb' sensors in their early digital SLR's. With just a handful of different sensors on the market (long time ago) it pushed out some of the best images and color. Not long after, Canon and Nikon dominated and well I wasn't shooting Fuji any longer. There's no doubt that they've got the skills, but they've just been a step behind the competition IMHO.
Well I think i'll be playing Fuji Fan Boy again with their latest release. If you've got a love for cameras, you won't be able to neglect the sexy new Fujifilm X100 Digital Rangefinder. Like the announcement of Olympus' PEN cameras, It's a throw back to old school designs stuffed with modern technology. It's not all about looks either. Fuji has taken many considerations on the X100 to include some awesome features in both video and photography not found in this line of Digital Rangefinder cameras. First off, this is not an interchangeable lens camera, but with it's 35mm (equivalent) F/2 prime lens who needs anything else? Using a large 12.3MP APS-C sized CMOS sensor, it's much larger than the micro four thirds cameras (Olympus Pen 7 GH2, and more like Canon's T21, T3i, 60D, or 7D.
You can switch between optical or EVF viewfinder, shoots in both JPEG and RAW, up to 12800 ISO, 720p HD Video @ 24fps with Stereo Sound, Manual Kelvin white balance included, and the body is built with a Magnesium Alloy Top Cover. Did I mention built in ND filters with an equivalent f-stop reduction of 3?? That's crazy! To keep with the throw back feel, the new X100 also has Provia, Velvia, Astia, and other Film Effects. For flash control, there's even a Hot Shoe on the X100 and an old school manual cable shutter release can be used by threading into the shutter release button (how many young folks know about that?).
It's all digital, but they've even added the detail of an actual 'click' on the shutter button, click feedback on every dial, and aperture control through the lens ring - oh snap! The only other camera that I would consider next to this would be those of Leica's Digital rangefinders, which will run you close to $2,000 dollars. Fujifilm's new X100 Digital Rangefinder should be giving Leica a run for their money.
Fujifilm Finepix X100 Digital RangeFinder Camera
