Daniel Tengs
I am a Norwegian extreme sports photographer and a Fujifilm X-Photographer. I was lucky to get a call from Fujifilm in the beginning of 2016 regarding switching to Fujifilm. I got to try their gear and immediately fell in love.
I was curious of how the equipment would work for my use but as it turned out it worked great.
When I started the transition to Fujifilm, I brought my full frame setup with me just in case the Fujifilm system didn’t perform the way I needed it to. Lets just say that the full frame system quickly found a shelf in my office.
Small and lightweight:
One of the first and very important things I noticed when switching from full frame to the mirrorless system was weight. That is a considerable change and a massive advantage, when hiking, not only in the back country but also in ski resorts. When I am shooting in a resort for example, I usually ride snowboard with the camera in my hand, it goes without saying that I need a camera that is durable and can withstand rough treatment, and I really feel that has been the case with both the X-Pro2 and the X-T2.
I do most of my work in harsh conditions around the world, but Norway is usually the biggest challenge, with both snow and humid weather. It really puts the equipment to the test. I was struggling a bit, with my previous setup, with moisture in my lenses, and they would fog up when I was shooting in sunlight, but I have not had any problems with that after switching, which has been great for me. That is mostly thanks to the WR lenses that Fujifilm are producing.
Electronic Viewfinder (EVF)
Together with being lightweight, the EVF is a huge change when switching from a standard full frame camera to a mirrorless camera. It took me two days to fully adjust, but once I did, I have never looked back.
On sunny days up the mountains with snow all around, using the screen to check focus, details, or just look at your picture used to be a big challenge because of all the ambient light. But now I just look though the EVF, browse my photos, check details, sharpness exposure, just to name a few, and all that without ambient light spilling on to the screen.
The EVF also gives you a live exposure, which means that you see the final result with the settings you have chosen on the camera. That has made me a better photographer. I don’t shoot over or underexposed files any more. When a cloud covers the sun for only a brief second I am adjusting to get the perfect exposure, because I can see the smallest change. That is also a serious advantage when working with snow, which can so easy be over exposed.
Sometimes I shoot sequences. I do that to show a trick, or a big jump. When you are shooting a high-speed trick you need a quick shutter. That is exactly what the X-T2 has to offer. When you use the camera without the grip it produces 8 fps, but when you put the grip on, and turn on the boost button, you get 14 fps. Which is ridiculously fast!
Favorite lenses
In my line of work I sometimes just put one or two lenses in my jacket pocket and ride with the camera in my hand. That is why I am very dependent of flexible zoom lengths. So the three mostly used camera lenses I have are the XF50-140mm, XF16-55mm and the XF10-24mm. Those three I rely on with most of my field shooting but I do love to play around with prime lenses and I do it more and more. I just love the XF35mm for portraits and lifestyle. I bring it with me everywhere I travel.
Feeling
You know, when you are holding a Fujifilm camera. You just want to go out and play with it. I could definitely recognize that when I picked up my first Fujifilm – the X-T1. I fell in love with the way Fujifilm makes their cameras. Shutter, ISO, Aperture, all on the outside. It is the feeling of crafting a picture with you own hands, and it looks beautiful.
I am really looking forward to a full season of shooting with both the X-Pro2 and the X-T2. And the old bulky and heavy full frame setup is out for sale.
I am not saying that you have to go and buy a Fujifilm camera, but I can strongly recommend everyone considering a new camera to have a serious look at the Fujifilm X-series.
To see more of Daniel’s work, please visit: www.tengsphoto.com
