Fujifilm X-T5 Review: Everything I Hate About the T5
Like most other creators these days, I’m on a perpetual quest to find the smallest, lightest kit possible. For me, this quest is even more important because I travel full time- meaning every piece of gear in my bag has to be carefully thought out. Not just due to the lack of storage space I have in the luggage I travel with, but also from a weight perspective as I lug all this stuff (+ clothes and other necessities) around the world.
As a hybrid street photographer/filmmaker, this is not an easy task to achieve. I am unwilling to compromise on quality, so I have to be strategic about what makes the cut.
A lot of what has worked for me so far comes down to finding pieces that don’t serve just one singular purpose, but are multi-use.
Enter the Fujifilm X-T5
The T5 caught my eye originally because I needed a body with solid video specs that could also give me the photography experience I enjoy with Fujifilm cameras. The goal was for the Fuji X-T5 to be my go-to, one-stop shop for most of my work while traveling while my second camera (a Fujifilm X-Pro 3 - but don’t buy one in 2023) could simply be a backup in case something happened to the T5 or something I could throw in my bag for a quick walk around town.
So how’d it work out?
It works. I’m a big fan of the Fujifilm X-T5 and all that it has to offer both on the video and photo sides. I think it’s a solid tool, and at least for now, I’m pretty happy with my travel setup.
This video features a TON of photo & video samples from early testing with the Fujifilm X-T5.
That said, you’ve probably already heard enough about how amazing the T5 is from other creators out there. It’s pretty universally worshipped by YouTubers and reviewers, but to be honest, it wasn’t love at first sight for me. In fact, it wasn’t until very recently, after almost four months of shooting with it, that I started to click with this camera.
THAT is what I want to dive in this Fujifilm X-T5 Review.
I might be jeopardizing my chances of ever becoming a Fujifilm ambassador, but that’s okay with me. I believe honesty is everything, and while I don’t hate my T5 (anymore) I think there are some things you should know about it before you go out and get one for yourself.
Who needs, wants, or asked for 40 megapixels?
Sure, having that extra resolution is nice if you crop heavily, but I never had an issue with my 26mp Fujifilm X-Pro 3 or my 24mp Sony a6400. I don’t think anyone who needs a 40-megapixel sensor is shooting with crop sensor Fujifilm cameras.
I promise you can’t tell the difference on Instagram, YouTube, a website, Pinterest, Reddit, Twitter, etc. which is where 98% of the work from photographers buying gear at this price point will go. Nothing at all wrong with that, but I’m attempting to illustrate a point.
That statistic is anecdotal by the way. It’s gotta be pretty close to correct though.
Bask in the glory of 40 whole entire megapixels. Yep. This is how I share most of my work, and chances are- so do you! ☺️
Aside from the files being massive, there’s just no reason at all that the average camera consumer actually needs that much resolution. Fuji already has the GFX series- medium format bodies aimed at professional photographers who generate income from their work, and who will truly get value from the resolution offered there.
What Fujifilm should have done instead
If Fuji wanted to introduce a more budget-friendly resolution-focused body to their lineup, they should have made an even higher MP sensor and sold it as an upgrade to the base T5 which never needed more than 30 megapixels at the absolute most.
A recent Fujifilm X-Pro 3 sample (26 MP sensor). *Note that all photos on my site are ultra-compressed to help pages load quickly and they STILL look just fine.
The resolution bump has officially surpassed what the average street, portrait, landscape, etc. photographer actually needs, and become a file-size burden on those of us who shoot mainly for screens and were perfectly content with the existing sensor. And you can quote me on that.
Remember: It is entirely possible to get good quality 40x60” prints out of a 26-megapixel camera. I’ve tried it.
Listen, I’m not mad that I have a little (a lot of) extra resolution to play with, but after shooting with this camera exhaustively for months, there has not been a single instance in which I have noticed or felt I benefitted from the upgrade.
Low-light performance
In Fujifilm's defense- I expected low-light performance to suffer, but they seem to have figured that out for the most part. I don’t shoot a lot at night, but I haven’t noticed all those megapixels on that little tiny sensor struggling with what I normally put it through
Recovers shadow detail beautifully. Even shooting compressed raw. More Seattle photos.
The screen
I don’t vlog as a rule, and I don’t record very many talking heads. Maybe once a month at most. That said, I’m annoyed that I can’t see myself when I do. Before you come at me for slandering your beloved tilt screen, hear me out…
Other manufacturers (Fuji included) have shown that there is a way to have a screen that tilts for photography and flips out or up for recording video of ourselves as well. And it’s not just a feature for ‘vloggers’, who are a completely valid kind of shooter regardless of what people might say on the internet.
Many creators film A or B-roll of ourselves and/or others, without someone to operate our camera.
Still from a recent video I shot in Arizona.
It’s not just vloggers who benefit from being able to compose a shot while in front of the camera though.
It also helps for shooting at tough angles like straight up in the air, very low to the ground, sideways when you need the camera backed up against a wall in a tight space, etc.
The only saving grace is that the app now functions, at least most of the time. That means you can monitor via your phone screen, but it’s still far from a perfect solution.
I will admit that if faced with the choice, I’d rather have a tilt screen than a flip-out screen simply because I shoot more stills than video. At least for the moment. But my point is that we shouldn’t have to choose at all.
Take a look at the Sony A7RV screen, the Fuji X-E4, the Sony a6x00 series, etc. It’s possible to give us the best of both worlds.
I will say I’ve softened on this issue quite a bit because I love the screen on the T5 for everything else, but I do wish I could get some of the functionality of the Fujifilm X-H2s without losing the feel of shooting with the T5 or Fuji’s other bodies with analog controls. Really, that’s the crux of most of my issues with the T5, and probably always will be.
Lack of Fujifilm hybrid options
While many Fujifilm cameras have solid video specs, and the company offers the H2s as a real, full-featured hybrid, it comes with a lot of compromises.
CF-Express Cards - They’re extremely expensive and require additional adapters. I see the benefits for sure, but I’m not sure we are quite ready to be forced into this tech yet.
Lack of analog controls and the distinctive look and feel of Fujifilm cameras.
Size & weight.
Price, of course.
Flip out screen ONLY
So where are the hybrid cameras? I get that Fuji’s aps-c line is not geared toward professionals, but there are hybrid creators who are not professionals. Droves of them. Do they really just have one single option in the whole lineup? My bad- two. Now that the X-S20 is around.
Case-in-point: The X-S20 doesn’t really remedy any of my above gripes aside from using conventional SD cards. It’s just a cheaper, lower-spec version of the X-H2s for all intents and purposes.
I’ll be honest, if I wanted something like the X-H2s, I’d just buy another Sony camera. That line abandons most of what makes Fujifilm special.
Build quality
This is basically a $2,000 (USD) camera at the time of writing- September 2023.
Even used it’s not cheap. Considering the Fujifilm X-T5's price point, it’s up against, and I hate to keep bringing up Sony, but cameras like the A7IV. Does Fuji really want to fight that value proposition battle? I certainly would not- even if I hadn’t cut serious corners where build quality is concerned.
I get it. Inflation is crazy. But now is not the time to make one of your highest-end aps-c cameras out of more and more plastic, Fujifilm. Not when your only differentiators are look, feel, quality, and user experience.
The autofocus and tech in the T5 are a lot better than the last generation of cameras, but if Fuji is going to charge full frame prices for their aps-c cameras, they’re going to have to incentivize us somehow. So far it’s been user experience, but how long will that remain a selling point with rapidly declining build quality?
This is a point I know I’m not alone on. Almost every T5 video I watched ahead of buying this camera mentioned the decline in build quality. It’s noticeable compared to the T4, my X-Pro 3, my Sony camera, etc. It’s not bad, but it’s declined enough to be discussed.
Wrapping up
Before I close this article, I want to emphasize that the Fujifilm X-T5 is a great camera. There are some things that don’t make sense to me, sure, but it offers improved speed, fantastic IBIS, and a million other features. It achieves this all while staying light and compact, giving us a nice big screen to compose with, and the Fujifilm experience we’ve all come to know and love.
A recent Fujifilm X-T5 favorite from Vancouver, BC.
The images out of it are extremely flexible to work with in post, and I’ve been a big fan of the video coming out of this camera too. I love that a camera like this one exists for hybrid shooters like me who want to stay in the Fujifilm ecosystem.
So while this review of the Fujifilm X-T5 might read a little like a rant, it’s meant to be constructive and I really am excited to see what Fuji has coming up in the future.
I’m sure that they will learn from this camera the way that they have learned from their past offerings, and that makes me very optimistic about the future. Especially with new bodies like the X-E5, X-Pro 4, and x100VI likely just around the corner.
If you’ve got any questions, comments, additional gripes, or rebuttals to the things I’ve outlined here, don’t hesitate to drop me a line. My DMs are always open.