Fujifilm is adding a mirrorless camera to its solid lineup in the form of the X-T5, sporting a newer look and newer features. This camera succeeds the X-T4, a solid shooter that stuck with many of Fujifilm’s design and functionality principles. It changes the look and feel, while also upgrading internal components, making this come across as a bigger overall change.
For starters, it is the most compact X-T series camera to date, and despite a slimmer and lighter body, it still packs a number of interesting features. Some design shifts may also make the X-T5 more comfortable to hold.
Fujifilm X-T5 details
Fujifilm moved the shutter button and front control dial to improve the grip, though retained the same access to all dials. You still get them for ISO, shutter speed and exposure compensation, and button placement, aside from the shutter, is more or less the same. The body is 50 grams lighter, which is always nice, and the camera is compatible with all XF mount lenses.
The X-T5 has the same 40.2-megapixel X-Trans CMOS 5 HR APS-C sensor Fujifilm equipped in the more premium X-H2S. That also means you can capture video at up to 6.2K video at 30fps. The X-Processor 5 utilizes an AI-based autofocus system to go nicely with the improved in-body image stabilization. You will still be able to tilt the rear LCD either vertically or horizontally, but not flip it, unfortunately. It gets a slight resolution boost, while the electronic viewfinder gets a 0.8x magnification compared to the X-T4’s 0.75x magnification.
Fujifilm’s Pixel Shift Multi-Shot feature has an image processing algorithm that quadruples resolution to 160-megapixels when you really want to go big. The way this works is that the image stabilization inside shifts the image sensor fast enough to help the camera capture 20 frames in one press of the shutter button. Software Fujifilm calls “Pixel Shift Combiner” takes all those frames and processes them into one super image that comes out at 160-megapixels.
There are 19 Film Simulation modes available to choose from if you want to try emulating Fujifilm’s own old school film. For portraits, Smooth Skin Effect can soften skin tones to reduce the amount of time necessary to process photos afterward. And the X-T5 supports the HEIF image format, giving you 10-bit output in files 30% smaller than standard JPEGs.
A new macro lens
Fujifilm also announced a new Fujinon XF30mm F2.8 Macro lens, a prime lens with a 30mm focal length made for macro photography. Since this is for Fujifilm’s APS-C sensor cameras, the equivalent focal length is 46mm in the 35mm film format. The minimum focusing distance is only 3.94-inches (10 centimetres) from the sensor. It is pretty weather-resistant, and small enough to take in a bag along with other lenses.
Coming soon
The Fujifilm X-T5 is already available for pre-order in both black and silver colours at Best Buy.
