This image was taken with a 13 year old camera and kit lens. As a photographer I get the same question asked at least one a week, does the camera really matter?
The answer is yes and no. It all depends on what you plan on doing with the image. I take pictures with many different cameras all the time and sometimes I feel like I missed an opportunity by bringing the wrong camera, but the fact is you can’t bring every camera in your arsenal just like you can’t bring every lens either. You have to bring only the necessary items otherwise you would have to carry a big, big bag! This image was taken with a 13 year old Fuji X-pro 1 and a kit lens. The sensor isn’t that big by today’s mega sensor standard. It comes in at 16 mega pixels which is small compared to many cameras on the market today. Even my iPhone has more megapixels than this camera. Sadly all pixels and all sensors are not the same regardless of their size. If you are taking a picture to post online any camera including your smartphone can do the job and do it well! The problem starts when you want to print the image big and find out that the file is lacking oomph.
My advice is simple, use the camera you have with you at the moment you get inspired or the opportunity arises to capture a great picture. If you do have time to plan then that’s an entirely different ball game. I print big and that requires a camera system that has plenty of quality pixels. When making large pints you need a camera system with a large sensor and great quality pixels. You also need a great lens so you can get every detail out of that sensor. Even when you shoot with a professional camera but use a kit lens the images will never be as good as when you use good glass.
There is always an exception and this is where I think Fuji broke the myth years ago. Fuji has always produced great glass since their film cameras and most recently with their digital Range Finder cameras. The lens I used to capture this image is a standard kit lens that came with another amazing camera I bought right before the X-Pro1, the Fuji XE-1. It has the same sensor as the bigger and more professional brother but smaller in size and a less buttons and knobs. I’ve made pints as big as 16×20 without any problems with both cameras using the same kit lens and they came out great. I bet I could stretch it even larger and get the same quality but I haven’t tried yet.
Fuji is also known for their beautiful colors just like in the film days with their FujiFilm Velvia 50 which by the way is one of the color presets you can select when shooting with any of their digital cameras.
This image was taken at night using the Fuji X Pro1 and kit lens. I used a tripod and left the shutter open for 10 seconds. I could have gone longer but the lights under the bridge were changing quickly and I would have created a weird color cast if I did.