Boats, bridges and motorcycles

If you by any unrealistic chance should have read some of my recent posts, then you will know that I am as stable as a slow turning spinning top when it comes to decisions about cameras.

Last year I owned my trusted and favorite Fujifilm X-T2 along with a X-Pro3 and a Nikon Zf. The X-Pro3 I had to return as it had developed some issues with the shutter button that made it finicky and sometimes requiring a very firm press.

The Nikon Zf I just outright sold as I was not really bonding with it and never really felt any of the “recipes” available came anywhere near Fujifilms'.

Now lately I have been getting a lot better at editing and have been going over a lot of the old Nikon Zf images. This has unearthed a lot of pictures that I would otherwise have dismissed as being to clinical or too far from what I appreciate in an image.

Hence I started to consider purchasing the Nikon Zf again.

But applying the same new editing skills to my X-T2 files makes me question whether I actually need a new camera at all.

Yes, I could sometimes wish for a little faster and better autofocus. But 95% of the time I photograph things that stand still. Sometimes I wish for a little better image quality, but taking the raw-files through modern editing software almost always gives me that extra quality I in some scenarios long for with the SOOC jpgs.

What I do have with the Fujifilm X-T2 is a camera I know how to operate from muscle memory. It is light, comfortable and has all the features that I need. Yes, the X-Pro3 does offer a little extra quality SOOC as well as Classic Negative film simulation and a small bump in build quality and comfort. But as much as I love the concept behind the hidden screen it just means that I have a harder time taking some of the shots I love which are taken while riding my motorcycle. In a lot of cases I rely on the back screen for composition as I do not have time or ability to use the viewfinder.

It is way lighter and better balanced than a Nikon Zf. And it is not like I was super annoyed with the weight of it - after all I am considering buying one again - but it was just not super well balanced and the rear screen looks like it is molded onto what otherwise would have been a beautifully designed camera. On image quality the Zf will outperform the X-T2, no question, but what I end up doing most of the time is removing sharpness and add grain to the Zf files to make them suit my style and taste better - and then what is that extra quality worth?

Below are some images I recently edited with the free version of Capture One. Several years ago I bought a Tri-X preset/style pack for Capture One that I used a lot. But as I switched to Ubuntu/Linux (My Fujifilm photography worflow on Linux/Ubuntu) I rarely use it anymore. I do however have the ability to dual boot my laptop and hence use Capture One on Windows.

Judging from the images I got out of it here below I believe that I should do so a lot more often. At least until I may find a way to recreate the same look with Darktable. Because the look of these contrasty grainy black and white image are exactly what I am after when doing black and white photography.

The images should almost rasp your hands like sand paper if you touch your screen.

These images does exactly that. They bring texture, atmosphere and contrast to what would otherwise probably be boring scenes.

So maybe I do not need a new camera. Maybe I just need to use the one I have even more.

This one above I think is my favorite. It is even more calm below, but there is something about the texture of the railing and the back of my friend that adds to the image.

After looking at these images I look even more forward to the motorcycle season starting again.

Right now there is snow and blistering cold outside.