The presence of Fujifilm’s HR X-Trans 5 sensor in most of its latest X-Series cameras has meant that more cameras are now 40MP or higher than ever before. And while I dearly love Fujifilm’s range of retro-cool and portable X-Series cameras, I do wonder how many users are battling with less-than-adequate results. First things first, there’s nothing wrong with the X-Trans 5 or any high-resolution sensor at all, but what casual or beginner photographers might not be aware of is that there are a few caveats when it comes to ultra-detailed, high-resolution imagery.
Beating camera shake...
The first hurdle to overcome is camera shake. By capturing more detail, high-resolution sensors are highly sensitive to micro movements that can subtly blur pixels and create an overall soft aesthetic. This is compounded by the fact that most fledgling photographers are taught to shoot handheld using the reciprocal rule. The reciprocal rule tells you to take your focal length (crop factor applied if necessary) and ensure that the denominator of your shutter speed matches or exceeds that number.
So, to capture a sharp image while using a 50mm lens, you’d first need to apply the crop factor if you’re a Fujifilm shooter, making it an equivalent 75mm. This means your shutter speed would need to be 1/75 sec or faster. The problem is that this only works if you’re using a roughly 20-MP sensor. For 40MP, you really need to be doubling or even tripling the reciprocal rule in order to guarantee a sharp shot. So, returning to that 50mm lens, you’d be looking at shooting around 1/150 sec to 1/225 sec. Add a long lens and less-than-ideal lighting conditions into the mix and things can get very tricky, very quickly.
Another thing to factor in when opting for a high-resolution camera is file size. I shoot with a 45.7MP full-frame camera and let me tell you, image management isn’t fun. Not only do I run out of storage space all the time, but uploads and downloads are sluggish, and my outdated MacBook chugs when I’m running big batches of images in Adobe Lightroom. And finally, high-resolution cameras tend to be more expensive than their lower-resolution counterparts (but you knew that).
So, am I telling you to avoid high-resolution cameras? Absolutely not. The flipside is that they capture gorgeous, highly detailed imagery while affording more pliability in post-production, not to mention the ability to crop. And, because of the industry’s demand for high-resolution cameras, you’ll usually find that high-res sensors are paired with the very latest imaging tech such as advanced AF algorithms and top-tier image stabilisation. However, if you’ve been out and about with your Fujifilm X100VI, wondering why everything looks a little bit blurry, now you know. You need to up your shutter speed a little bit. Or a lot…
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