[With Sample Photos] Taking a Tough Digital Camera Out into the City: The Surprisingly Good Street Snapshot Skills of the FinePix XP90

Hello. This time I took a rather "unexpected" camera out onto the streets.

It's FUJIFILM's waterproof, tough digital camera, the FinePix XP90 .

"Isn't that a camera for underwater or snowy mountains?" If that's what you're thinking, you're right. But when I deliberately used it hard as a street "snapshot camera" in the city, I discovered an interesting world.

This time, I'll report on the XP90's "street performance" with plenty of personal opinion.

1. Cutting Out the City with "One Hand": Ultimate Mobility

I believe the biggest weapons in street snapshots are "small size" and "speed." The XP90 fits in a pocket and has a large shutter button you can press even while wearing gloves. For walking around town, that's just right.

Ordinary city scenery: a barber shop's pole and an iPhone repair sign. I shoot this "everyday clutter" quickly with one hand, without stopping. Because there's none of the "okay, here I go" tension you feel when raising a high-end camera, I feel the warmth of the city is captured just as it is.

2. Not Afraid of "Skimming the Ground": Low Angles Thanks to Toughness

The true value of this camera is, after all, its ruggedness. Low angles scraping along the ground that would make an ordinary camera hesitate are no problem for the XP90.

Look at the impact of this one. Aiming at passersby's feet past a traffic cone. Or catching the asphalt where your own shadow stretches, from right down at the surface. Once you're freed from the worry that "the camera might get dirty" or "I might bump it," your viewpoint becomes more and more free. This "low viewpoint" brings a dramatic change to your snapshots.

3. Fujifilm's Signature "Color Punch" and "Intense Contrast"

What surprises me when using the XP series is how it renders color. As you'd expect from Fujifilm, a film maker, the vividness of primary colors and the way it depicts light and shadow are very dramatic.

Blue, yellow, red. The XP90 fixes the colors that fill the city in a rich, powerful way. The contrast on bright days is also somehow nostalgic, reminding me of "the excitement of the early days of digital cameras."

Deep shadows created by strong sunlight. By deliberately emphasizing the difference between highlights and shadows, an ordinary scene of moving through town is cut out like a scene from a movie. This "decisive rendering," which you won't find in the latest high-resolution cameras, may be the real pleasure of using the XP90 on the street.

The XP90 Turned Out to Be a Snapshot Camera That "Turns Everyday Life into an Adventure"

It would be a waste to keep it only for underwater use. The FUJIFILM FinePix XP90 was a supremely tough and creative companion, not only for harsh environments but for roaming freely through the "jungle" of the city where we live.

A camera that teaches you the fun of shooting "freely and boldly" more than shooting "beautifully." If you come across one used, please pick it up. The road you walk every day will surely look different.

View all FinePix XP90 products here

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