Simple Complexity

My name is Jay, and I currently live in Ohio with my wife and newborn Daughter. I have recently rekindled my love for photography, thanks to my Fujifilm X100VI. The draw to Fujifilm X series was its simplistic form factor and complex capabilities. In my research leading me to the X100VI, I had rented a Fujifilm X-E4, X-T5, and GFX50R over a six-month time span. Although the medium format images are attractive, the file size and slower, more cumbersome workflow was a major deterrent. I narrowed my search to a small range finder camera with a fixed lens, IBIS, flash, internal ND and a powerful sensor, along with effortless workflow producing beautiful jpeg files straight out of the camera. All roads pointed to the X100VI being the clear choice.

I have always personally been interested in Japanese culture – food, skiing, car scene, and photography, to name a few. The kaizen philosophy Fujifilm advocates for was a major plus in my search for a new camera. I am confident I will never “out shoot” this camera and will retain it in my collection for many years to come, thanks to this philosophy and continual firmware updates. Needless to say, I am very happy with my move into the X system.

Having this camera in hand for about four months now, I am at a point in its configuration where I have saved a few different backups in my Fujifilm X app. I am continually discovering new settings that can be adjusted to my personal preferences in the camera. Simple but effective things such as a personally configured Q menu allowing me to on-the-fly change, test, and save film simulations and photometry can be compared to digitally painting a picture with my envisioned colors in my composition before pressing the shutter button, and that fascinates me.

Living in Ohio but traveling to the East Coast often, I try and keep film simulations loaded that are best suited for grey weather, green farmlands, as well as sunny skies, and ocean views. I find myself rarely shooting in Raw lately, although do primarily shoot in full manual or aperture priority. While in my prior photography life, I genuinely enjoyed spending hours in Lightroom editing photos, I simply no longer have the time. The efficiency in workflow this system provides has bolstered my ability to not only carry a camera around comfortably but also to capture images confidently with no backend time commitment.

The more frequently I shoot, the more I can feel my eyes wandering to compositions, colors, and shadow awareness. This camera hasn’t left my side lately – bringing it on a few trips in its short four-month possession to the beach, hiking, birthday parties, dinners, airports, and even a family member’s recent wedding. I have found a fixed focal length to be an asset to my composition and have enjoyed using my feet to get the shot rather than relying on zoom, although I am considering the tele-converter lens for a bit more compression in landscape shots.

It is refreshing to pick up a tiny camera on my way out of the house, configured in every aspect to my liking and go out for the day without any second thoughts on lens choice. If I return home with a few keepers, great, if not, I have enjoyed the simple process of taking a few photos along the way. This camera has really forced me to slow down personally and look at things a bit differently.  We have a few upcoming trips this summer with family both overseas and domestically here in the US, and I am looking forward to bringing this camera along every step of the way. I have chosen a sampling of my favorite photos to date with this camera and am looking forward to documenting the journey as time goes on. A genuine thank you to Fuji X Passion magazine for the opportunity to share my passion for Fujifilm and Photography with the world.