CES 2012: Fujifilm X-Pro1 First Look

The Fujifilm X-Pro1 is a big "little" camera, no doubt about that. Despite an almost non-existant 17mm flange back distance it's deep - controls are not at all crowded on the spacious top deck of the camera. Still, it was lighter than I expected, balanced nicely with the 35mm lens.

Interface-wise, Fuji has added a quick menu button which pulls up a screen loaded with frequently accessed controls like white balance and ISO. In this menu you'll use the directional buttons to navigate between settings and the small command dial above the playback button to make selections and adjustments.

Taking the lens off, it was almost a shock to see the sensor right there at the front of the camera body. Fuji reps claim this move will improve optical performance with less room between the sensor and the back element of the lens. Remember also that there's no low pass filter, since a new pixel array will allegedly take care of all moire headaches.

A lever on the front switches between viewfinder modes. The first is a traditional optical viewfinder, and by switching into the next one a digital display is brought up. An eye sensor automatically switches from LCD to viewfinder mode when you bring the camera up to your face. A digital level and grid overlay are available display settings in the viewfinder.

Will professionals take to the X-Pro1 the way that Fuji hopes they will? For an estimated $1700 it stands to be a pretty serious investment. Once we can get our hands on a fully functional unit we'll put it to the task of a full review. Until then, click through to the image gallery below for more photos of the X-Pro1.

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