Moving into day three with the X100 finding its place in the bag… and rightfully so. Before I get more into that, I want to address some points on carrying around a compact camera, since that is one distinct purpose of this little experiment. I want a compact camera that takes high quality photographs, that is easy to use, and that fits inside my messenger bag without being intrusive, on a daily basis. Not too much to ask, is it?

The Fit

A big part of this for me is how easily the camera will fit into my life without being annoying or intrusive. The DSLR I own would never feasibly come with me in my bag to work or anything like that. It’s just way too damn heavy and bulky. The X100 on the other hand, is most definitely neither of those. It’s tiny, almost to a point where that’s a negative aspect of it. OK, it’s not that small, but it’s small enough that it’ll fit inside my bag along with whatever else I may need to carry for the day.

Walking around town, the extra bulk in the bag courtesy of the camera is definitely noticable. I usually walk around with the messenger bag over one shoulder. With the X100 in the bag, it was enough extra weight (not that it’s heavy to hold) to notice that required me to sling the messenger bag over one shoulder and wear the bag on the other side to balance the weight. Once I did that, walking around was pretty cruisy. Noticing the camera in the bag was pretty difficult to do once I figured out the right way to do it. Another win.

The First Shoot

Firstly, power-on time is very very short with the X100. You’re ready to shoot immediately. By my count that’s three big wins almost immediately.

I walked from the office down to Seattle’s sculpture park after work to take in a quiet evening and get in some quality time with the X100. We Are Augustines were playing on my ipod and life was grand. I’ve gotta say, I thought yesterday that shooting with this camera was fun. After a full couple of hours of shooting with it… it’s really fun! I think I love most the aperture and shutter speed dials. Flipping from manual mode to auto this-or-that was never so easy. Shooting with live view is a breeze. Reviewing the images to get all the information you need (and then some) is easy as pie. All the thought and effort that went into the design of this rig is shining right on through.

Here are a handful of images from the shoot (including the first image above):

Notable Notes

I’ve come to realise a few things after the first shoot. Some things that I initially highlighted as potential drawbacks to the camera. Firstly, the menu system is a little getting used to, especially given my “Nikon background”. Each mode of the X100 (be it playback or shooting) has both a menu and a “drive” option. The menu gives you access to all the settings you need, and the drive option lets you choose how you shoot – single exposure, burst, AEB, etc (more on drive in a subsequent post). Sufficed to say, as I’ve had more time to play with it, it’s becoming more and more second nature and starting to make sense.

I can feel the camera becoming a faithful sidekick. I’ve yet to see it fail to be there quick enough to miss a shot.

More to come over the next day or so as shooting progresses…