Roughly 9 months ago I finally got my hands on the Fujifilm X-Pro3.

And I wanted to love this camera.

I really did.

I was enamored by the body shape, the color, and the screen - all of which I thought would change my photography.

And it did, but I can’t really say for the better or worse.

Because although there were many upsides to working with a camera like the X-Pro3, there were also many downsides.

In my experience I felt that this camera could be a niche photographer’s dream or another photographer’s nightmare.

This is 9 months with the X-Pro3.

The Viewfinder Experience

What separates the Fujifilm X-Pro3 from many other modern cameras is the viewfinder experience.

The X-Pro3 was built to be a viewfinder camera.

This is most obvious from the design of the screen: hidden and available only when pulled down.

Now obviously you don’t need an X-Pro3 to do this.

Technically you can turn off the screen on another camera if you want the same effect.

And many older film cameras are viewfinder only as well.

So the X-Pro3 isn’t “special” in that sense.

But it was a dive back into an older style of shooting.

And before using this camera, I had this idea in my head that the X-Pro series along with the x100 series were “the” street photography cameras.

Obviously there are leicas and whatnot but aint nobody can afford those.

So I wanted to try the X-Pro3 out and see how it affected my photography.

And I’ve got to be honest.

The X-Pro3 is good but there is a lot of room for improvement.

Here’s a quick run through of things I noticed when using this camera:

One.

The screen is awesome for waist level shots, however lacking if you want to shoot vertically.

The screen cable thing is also notorious for breaking if you’re too forceful or happen to have a fragile one.

This has led me to not pull it out fully and use the screen only at waist level, for fear that it might break.

Two.

The extra button next to the Q button is pretty handy and I kinda wish some of my other cameras had this.

Three.

Shooting with the viewfinder can be annoying if you wear hats.

I’ve noticed I had to switch my entire hand position upside down when shooting vertically so as to not bump my hat.

Four.

Shooting waist level has forced me to change my hand position.

Originally I could still fire with my index finger on cameras like the V, but because the X-Pro3 is a big bigger, it’s more stressful on my wrist.

So now I point the lens with my left hand and press the shutter with my thumb.

This has ironically spilled over into how I shoot on other cameras and can be a bit quicker.

And Five, the big one.

Viewfinders are slower, not faster.

This is the biggest difference I noticed in my time with the X-Pro3.

The viewfinder experience is a slower mode of photography.

Because with a screen all you have to do is lift your camera and take the picture.

However a viewfinder takes more time to look through the hole and take the shot.

So I don’t know why, but this is something that took me a while to realize.

I thought because the X-Pro series was known to be good for street photography, they had to be fast.

And that you could walk around the city doing your thing and snap away seamlessly.

Because that’s how I used the x100v, after all.

It’s a quicker, more rapid, candid camera and I rarely found myself needing to stop or slow down.

Now you could probably still do that with the X-Pro2, but the X-Pro3 is different.

Putting the camera to your eye takes an extra second.

Then, needing to frame the shot takes another extra second.

These extra seconds will force you to slow down, stop, and be more predictive in your photography.

And with that process comes a slower more intentional form of taking photos.

You’re not trying to “avoid being seen”, because it’s pretty obvious when you’re taking a picture.

You’re also not trying to be fast because it’s kinda hard to be fast.

And all of this took me a long time to not only understand but also embrace.

And I’ll tell you why and how I went about it.

My Struggles and Solutions

Understanding that the X-Pro3 was meant to be a slower shooting experience was a difficult transition.

I didn’t want to shoot that way and I kept trying to figure out ways to make it work my way.

Shooting faster, composing faster, being quicker with it.

A large part of this was because I’m uncomfortable shooting slow, especially in street photography.

I’ve mentioned this before but I don’t like to be seen taking a photo.

I feel like it causes for awkward interactions, being noticed, and can ruin the moment.

And I found myself getting frustrated at times because much of this could be avoided if the camera just had a normal screen !

Right?

I found myself thinking:

“Was I dumb for buying this camera?”

Because the camera itself is cool but if it makes photography harder for me, then what’s the point?

But after many months of taking photos I stopped trying to fight it.

I know I could always sell the camera later, but for now lets just pretend as if this was the point.

It’s like the camera was saying, “Hey, you gotta embrace it.”

“Pulling the camera to your eye is a noticeable action.

People can tell you’re taking a picture.

Now what?

Are you just going to not take the picture or are you going to embrace it?”

Because that’s what it is.

The X-Pro3 IS a bit weird.

So you have to figure out how to be more patient and only take pictures when you can see the shot happening.

Otherwise it’s wasted movement, and wasted exposure.

So that’s what it feels like to me when I’m taking photos.

Obviously this depends on your photography and environment, and your experience will probably be different.

But that was my main struggle with this camera.

And here was my proposed solution:

I figured that if I needed more time to take my shot, maybe I could balance that with a tighter focal length.

I’d been doing a lot with the 33mm and maybe a 50mm would be more suited towards this type of photography.

So lets talk about that.

50mm Photography

The XF 50mm was a lens I picked up recently as a means to fill this gap in my photography.

I had a hunch that if I needed to be slower to shoot mainly viewfinder anyways, a longer lens could help with that.

That way I didn’t need to be so close to my subjects.

And a review on this lens will be coming soon, so stay tuned for that.

But for now we’ll just be speaking about it in the context of the X-Pro3.

Using the X-Pro3 with the 50mm solved a lot of problems.

But like many solutions, they also have problems of their own.

You simply can’t have it all.

With the X-Pro3 I was indeed able to compose my images more slowly, patiently, and intentionally from afar.

And this was great when trying to take pictures in open spaces.

However I ironically found myself in an opposite habit with the 50mm.

Because I didn’t need to get close, I no longer tried to get close.

It sounds so stupid but it’s true.

In situations where I had to get closer with the x100vi or the 33mm, I’d move my feet and walk closer.

But with the 50mm, you don’t really need to.

And so unless you constantly remind yourself to get closer, you’ll probably stay at a comfortable distance.

All of which could lead to less intimate photos.

So that’s been my experience.

The 50mm has helped me with the slower process but it also feeds into those bad habits of mine.

I’ve also noticed the focal length is too tight for most everyday scenarios.

Meaning it’s a great focal length but more situational than the 33mm or the 23mm.

I can do street portraits and things like that from afar, but I can’t take a picture of a cup of coffee or food because it’s too close.

And if you’re sitting across the table from a friend, you don’t want to be taking a picture of their face like that.

So I figure it’s a good lens to bring along with you, but not be that main all purpose focal length.

Now my current strategy is to continue to use the X-Pro3 with the variety of lenses I have and really embrace it’s way of shooting.

Slowing down, being intentional, and being seen.

In this process, I hope to learn to be more patient and comfortable in my street photography.

And if all else fails, I might sell the camera.

Final Thoughts

After using this camera for many months, I’ve learned a lot about my own photography.

And I think that overall, it’s a good thing.

I’ve learned that there’s a time to be quick and decisive and there’s a time to be slow and intentional.

And although I love the x100v and vi for their speed I have gotten into bad habits of “quick photography”.

Which I’ve been trying to counteract lately by intentionally slowing my photography to really align, frame, and perfect the shot.

And the X-Pro3 has helped with that because I’m really forced to do so.

And obviously you don’t need an X-Pro3 to do this.

You could simply remind yourself to slow down and compose more carefully.

Or you could grab whatever camera you have and turn off the screen.

Another upside of using this camera is it made me a bit more bold.

I’m slowly embracing being seen taking photos, and that’s fine.

This is what I do, who cares if people see me.

It’s a weird mental battle with myself, but it exists.

Yeah I’m here taking pictures, so what?

I’m going to do it, take my time with it to get the right shot, and that’s that.

So my final thoughts are: I like this camera.

It’s a fun camera to use but it does have it’s own quirks.

I see what they were doing with this camera but I can’t quite say that it’s better or worse because not having a screen kinda sucks.

And this entire experience we’ve been talking about technically wouldn’t exist if this camera had a normal screen.

And obviously there are many other cameras that are viewfinder only, not just the X-Pro3.

So that’s why I stress that the viewfinder experience isn’t necessarily better.

There are interesting benefits to it but there are also downsides.

And understand that the Fujifilm X-Pro3 is not for everyone.

For the niche photographer, it could be perfect.

But for the normal photographer who just needs a good working camera, I don’t know if I could recommend it.

It’s got its quirks, its shortcomings, and you have to consider those things before deciding to buy this camera.

Which is a shame because I really do like the idea of this camera.

I think if Fujifilm continued the process and shot for an X-Pro4, they could really make something special.

But as of right now, we have no idea if there will ever be an X-Pro4.

It seems like most of their attention is on developing these other popular lines.

So those are my thoughts.

The Fujifilm X-Pro3 could be a niche photographer’s dream or another photographer’s nightmare.

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