Last November, my good friend, Dylan, invited me to travel to LA for the Adobe Max conference and am I glad he did!

Not only was the conference amazing (I'm already registered to go back in 2016)! At the and of the opening session, to celebrate the 25th anniversary of Photoshop, they announced that everyone in attendance would go home with a brand new Fujifilm X-T10 and 18-55 lens kit! As a Canon shooter, my initial thought was “That’s cool. Maybe I’ll sell it on Ebay and pay myself back for some of the conference.” But once I opened the box, I knew I was in love. It was built like a tank. The classic style, small size, a lens felt better than any Canon lens I own, and the dials—oh, the dials. It was such a departure from my Canon DSLRs where everything is on a screen. It was tactile, and although new, felt very familiar. I was smitten...I was in deep smit.

Since then, I have purchased the 14mm f2.8, 18mm f2, 35mm f2 (LOVE), 56mm f1.2, 27mm f2.8 (probably gonna sell it), and the 23mm f1.4 (AMAZING) hand grip and thumb rest. As you can tell, I’m hooked. This camera literally goes EVERYWHERE with me. My wife and kids may be planning an intervention.

I have read of many other photographers making the big switch from Canon or Nikon to Fuji. I’ve been tempted to do so myself. After bringing both kits along for a photoshoot earlier this year, the Fuji performed admirably in the field and I actually enjoyed shooting it much more, but the real test came when comparing raw files in Lightroom. In low-light (which all of this project was) the full-frame Canon had the Fuji beat hands-down when it came to noise and detail. That being said, I’m honestly not sure if my clients could tell the difference between the two files. As far as color and AWB, the Fuji was the clear winner. I barely had to make any adjustments in Lightroom. If I was shooting weddings or photo journalism and not as much commercial work, it would be a no-brainer to make the switch. I am now eagerly awaiting the Fujifilm X-T2 rumored to arrive this summer. If they can close the gap enough with Canon when it comes to low-light performance, it may be enough for me to make the switch this year. I’d happily sell my entire Canon system for something that brings me this much joy to shoot. And, at the end of the day, I'd say that’s the most important thing.

Last week, my family took a vacation to Washington DC and, of course, the camera and lenses were with me for the entire trip, safely tucked away in my Lowepro Slingshot Edge 250 AW with Peak Design Capture Pro attached to the strap for easy access. Most of my photos were shot inside museums or at night and this camera, once again, blew my mind.

As an aside, I also picked up a Fujifilm Instax Share Printer and printed photos for my kids along the way. It was such a blast! They are far too young to have any recollection of printed photographs, much less instant prints. The joy they got from watching the images develop before their eyes was worth the price of the printer and then some.

The Washington Monument, shot from the FDR Memorial

The Martin Luther King Memorial at night

The Whitehouse, photographed from the top of the Washington Monument

The Washington Monument shot from the MLK Memorial at night

This summer, I’m headed back to Cambodia and I CANNOT WAIT to bring this camera along. This is my fourth trip and in the past I have either travelled with a point-and-shoot or with my 5D MkII and 40mm pancake lens (still too big). To be able to bring a whole lens kit with me will be amazing!