As many of you know I’ve been shooting with a Fuji X10 since early in December. There’s been just one problem. Amazingly, I’ve dropped it…twice…on the ground…onto hard asphalt. It still works!
I’ve never dropped a camera or lens before – ever – but for some reason I can’t keep this one from obeying gravity (it’s the law, after all). Both times were in almost exactly the same place doing almost the same thing. I’ve recently been using a wrist strap on both my G12 and my X10, and both times this happened I have been wearing gloves and was in the process of taking them off when the strap came right off my wrist with the glove despite my thinking that I had a good hold on the strap.
The first time this happened I had the camera for only two days. I think it must have hit my foot or something because it got scratched in a couple of places. And just yesterday it landed lens-down and ruined my brand-new, very elegant lens hood that I got for Christmas. But I think that probably saved the camera. I may be able to straighten the hood and make it workable, but it is made of pretty tough metal and has pretty close tolerances, so I’ll probably be better off to buy a new one. Crap. But the camera lives on!
It’s obviously a durable little camera, since other than a few scratches – now a few more scratches – it has been working great. It’s a wonderful camera to use and I really like shooting with it a lot. The manual twist-zoom makes very precise for composition, especially compared to the little lever zoom thing on the G12. I had been looking forward to putting it on a tripod and doing some landscape shooting with it, especially when the lens hood doubles as a filter holder so I could add a polarizer. I’m not sure I can make that work now, it will just depend on how well I am able to straighten it out.
Since it’s “winter” here, I’ll probably be shooting with gloves on for the next few months, so I think I’m going to have to come up with a better way to make costume changes!
I dropped a Nikon Nikormat camera on a wood floor and the shutter button broke off. I had it repaired and I still have that camera today in working order. Some cameras are just built to take it. Sometimes luck is with you, too. The X10 sounds like a great camera and undoubtedly takes great photos (in the right hands).
I’ve never owned a Nikkormat but remember that they were pretty well-built. The X10 has that kind of feel. It’s heavier than you would expect for the size, probably because we’ve become used to lighter-weight plastic cameras. I doubt that the G12 would have survived as admirably. I’m having a lot of fun with the X10 and am looking forward to shooting some landscapes with it.
Well it does sound durable. Not sure any more testing needs to be done. I find the G12 has an unfamiliar feel compared to the larger DSLR so there is a learning curve for me. I actually had the camera strap come off but it happened at home and I did not drop it.
The zoom function of the G12 is not the best, way too sensitive for me where I sometimes just go with what I have and will crop later if needed. A manual zoom would be preferable. Yet, carrying these smaller tools is nice compared to the larger DSLR. They also sure do not intimidate subjects as the DSLR does.
I didn’t know it got cold enough for you guys down there to need gloves. 🙂
Monte, silly as it might sound, the zoom function of the X10 is the thing that drew me – and still draws me – to that camera. I really like the precision of the twist-the-lens method of zooming compared to the relative imprecision of the lever on the G12. Otherwise they are very similar both in terms of handling and output.
Regarding the gloves, you would be surprised at how cold 45 degrees feels when you have lived in the Sunny South for a few years! Truthfully, walking around a breezy parking lot holding a metal camera gets pretty cold. Then again if I was using a “normal” camera strap I could hang it around my neck and put my hands in my pockets. But then I wouldn’t be as ready to shoot. I think after the second episode I’ll remember to be a little more careful the next time!
Sounds like you need to update your ‘technique’ 🙂 Perhaps find a table, platform, or other higher place to take your gloves off so that your camera will not be able to fall. Or perhaps tether it to your sleeve, like parents use to do to their kids’ mittens! LOL
I’m glad that it is a durable camera, for sure!
Paul, I definitely need to update something!
We used to call them “Idiot Strings” but while perhaps appropriate in my case, such terminology would probably be frowned upon these days!