Fuji X-T1, A Contrarian Ergonomic View

 

X-T1, the latest darling of camera reviewers   Since it's announcement at the end of January 2014, camera reviewers have been fulsome in their praise for Fuji's latest interpretation of the traditional/modern hybrid mirrorless interchangeable lens camera. Several early reviews including those from Tech Radar, Pocket Lint, E Photozine and Photography Blog,  gave it 5/5 stars,  a level of support you don't often see. Several of the reviewers wrote that they were very excited to be testing this camera. The X-T1 has generated a level of emotional response not usually seen in journalists whose daily grind is to review stuff.

The Sceptic     I am a sceptic by nature and a grumpy old man as well.  My good humour has not been improved recently by recurrent  problems with osteoarthritis. I can and do  manage to find some kind of fault or imperfection with every camera which passes through my hands.  I am, by the way, completely independent and ecumenical in my criticisms. No make or brand is favoured and none escapes unscathed by critique.  Nobody  gives me product to test.

Notwithstanding  my  disposition to grumpiness, I think there are  real issues with the X-T1's ergonomics which deserve some discussion.

The Camera Ergonomics Blog   I started and continue this blog with the purpose of raising consumer awareness about ergonomic issues in the design of cameras. I was moved to do this by my perception that some cameras featured ergonomic realisation so atrocious it defied belief. 

I don't think the X-T1 has atrocious ergonomics, but it is not the cynosure which some reviewers appear to believe.

What's the problem ?  I identify two specific ergonomic issues about the X-T1 which I believe deserve thoughtful consideration.   They both derive from Fuji's attempt to blend traditional and modern user interface features in one device.

1. Shutter button position on top of the camera body, and the ergonomic consequences which flow from this placement.

2. Use of  "set-and-see" dials for  primary and secondary exposure parameters, and the ergonomic and functional consequences which flow from this.

A little background   To illustrate  the concept of a "traditional" user interface I  use the Pentax Spotmatic of 1970 as an example. This is a classic manual control film SLR.  I used one for several years in the 1970's and recently bought another one on E Bay to reacquaint myself with it's delights and  frustrations, of which there are several. Many SLR's of the era had a very similar appearance and control system.

To illustrate the "modern" user interface I have used the Canon EOS 300, one of the earliest cameras with a Mode Dial.

 

The Pentax Spotmatic photo     You can see me holding the Spotmatic in the photo. This is a minimalist control system. You can see all the control modules in the photo. Manual focus is by turning the front ring on the lens. Aperture is set with the rear ring on the lens. You can estimate depth of focus directly on the lens. Shutter speed is adjusted via the set-and-see dial on top of the body.  Film speed is set by lifting and rotating the same dial. This can also function as a simple form of exposure compensation setting.   There were no zoom lenses for consumer cameras in those days. This camera has the two features which I want to discuss in this post, namely shutter button on top of the body and primary exposure parameters on set-and-see dials.

 

The Canon EOS 300 photo   Canon's SLR's had been sprouting handles of various kinds for several years through the 1970's and 80's. But the T90 of 1984 took the next step. It enlarged and raised the handle, put the shutter button on top of the handle, (not the camera body)   and added a control dial behind the shutter button.  Around year 2000, the Mode Dial appeared.  The EOS 300 in the photo shows the projecting handle, shutter button top front on the handle, control dial behind the shutter button, a raised thumb support and a Mode Dial. These are the main features of  the "modern" control system found in most DSLR's today.   Primary exposure parameters are adjusted with a combination of Mode Dial setting  and control dial movement.  There is zoom but no aperture adjustment on the lens.

The digital era  The Spotmatic and EOS 300 are of course film cameras. Now digital cameras are festooned with a multitude of features, modes and control modules the like of which could not have been imagined in the film era. But these have been added on top of the underlying core functional control layout. Many  modern cameras use the "modern" system but some including the X-T1 use the "traditional" system.

 

Consequences of locating the shutter button on top   Several modern electronic cameras have chosen for reasons known only to their designers to locate the shutter button on top of the body. For example the Sony Alpha 7/7R, Canon G16, Nikon P7800, Fuji X-Pro and X-E1/2 and of course the Fuji X-T1.

If you look at the Pentax Spotmatic photo you can see how the fingers of my right hand have to arrange themselves in order to hold this camera.  The right hand has to rotate back so the index finger can get onto the shutter button.  This has consequences:

* A full anatomical handle cannot be fitted or if it were to be fitted would require uncomfortable separation of the right index and third fingers. The Alpha 7/7R does  this.

* There is no clear place where a front control dial might be located.   The A7/7R, G16, P7800 and X-T1 each does have a front control dial fitted and in each case accessibility of the dial is compromised. It is tucked down in front of the top section of the body and obstructed  by  the right third finger when holding the camera ready to shoot. With each of these cameras you have to shift grip with the right hand to get the right index finger onto the dial.  That is suboptimal ergonomics. The only cameras which I have encountered which manage this situation reasonably well are the Olympus Pens and Panasonic GX7.  These use a horizontally mounted control dial located like a collar around the shutter button. That works because you can rotate the dial without having to shift the third finger.

* There is no opportunity to build a right middle finger hookup notch into the handle configuration. The photo of the orange mockup illustrates a design which does provide such a hookup.   The handle shape is designed with a pronounced notch below the shutter button. This has two benefits.  It permits optimum positioning of the shutter button so the right index finger falls on it naturally. And it allows the third finger of the right hand to support the weight of the camera with muscles relaxed, without having to squeeze the body to gain purchase on it.  Who cares ?  In order to operate the X-T1, the user has to remove the left hand completely from support duties beneath the lens in order to access and turn the ISO dial.

 

Consequences of  allocating primary and secondary exposure parameters to set-and-see dials on the camera top    The X-T1 places set-and-see dials for ISO, shutter speed and exposure +/- on the top plate.  Aperture is adjusted via a ring around the lens barrel. On single focal length lenses the set aperture is displayed on the lens barrel. But with variable aperture zooms the aperture cannot be thus displayed so it goes to the EVF/monitor camera data display instead.     Some reviewers have opined these direct displays to be a wonderful idea because you can see your camera's primary (aperture, shutter speed and ISO) and secondary (exposure compensation) exposure parameters without having to put the camera to the eye.  However in practice, there are several problems with this. I mention just three:

1. You cannot see any set-and-see dials of any kind when you are actually taking photos, with your eye to the viewfinder, in the Capture Phase of use. This is when you most need to see this camera data.    The camera makers helpfully provide you with the same data as a readout in the EVF or monitor.  But if you have the data in the EVF or monitor you don't need the same data on set-and-see dials on top of the camera.  If modern cameras were really simple things like my old Pentax Spotmatic this would not be a problem. But modern electronic cameras have modes.  Focus mode, autofocus mode, drive mode, flash mode, exposure mode, stabiliser mode, etcetera.....etcetera...... the list goes on and on.  It really streamlines camera operation in Prepare Phase (the minutes just before capture) if the most used modes can be brought out of their hiding place in a menu and allocated to set-and see dials. This is the best use which can be made of set-and-see dials.

The opportunity cost of using set-and-see dials for primary exposure parameters is that those same dials cannot be used for more beneficial purposes, especially modes which require setting in Prepare Phase.

2. It is possible, in fact quite easy if you have a systematic approach, to identify and name each of the actions required to operate a modern camera. Furthermore, it is easy enough to conduct a time and motion study of each of these actions.  This study identifies how many movements of the hands and fingers are required for each action and notes the complexity of each movement,  together with observation about any other movements required to make the index movement possible.  For instance you can study [switch from aperture priority AE to shutter priority AE]  or [change shutter speed when in shutter priority AE]  or [change from single AF, single shot drive to continuous AF, continuous drive, 4 fps].  You get the idea.  On a modern camera there could be dozens of  such actions which might be worth studying as the potential number of permutations of the various modes and operational settings runs into the millions.  Every time I run tests  like this comparing cameras with  modern, Mode Dial + Control dial(s) operating system with cameras having traditional, primary exposure parameters on set-and-see dials, I find the modern method uses fewer movements of less complexity to carry out almost all the actions required to operate the camera.

3. There being no mode dial there is no 'Fully Auto" mode for novices. In fact the whole layout looks as though it would frighten off most novices. Fuji may say they are just looking to fill a niche populated by expert/enthusiast users. But in a market environment of steeply falling sales across all categories I think it highly likely that manufacturers need to capture buyers of all expertise levels.

 

Photo Panasonic GH3  This is an unambiguously modern electronic camera which makes no attempt to appeal to the glory days of traditional photography.  Some bloggers and reviewers have criticised it for lacking "soul" or "character" and there was silly me thinking it was just an inanimate device.  This is my all day every day camera which most decidedly does not work like a Pentax Spotmatic and is thankfully not cluttered with redundant user interface modules to slow down it's operation. It has a proper ergonomic handle and uses set-and-see interface modules efficiently.

Summary  Harking backward is not the way forward.  The hybrid traditional user interface might have nostalgic appeal and "character" (whatever that may be) but it is less efficient than a well designed, fully realised modern interface.

What about the answer to my original question: If the X-T1 is the answer what was the question ?  I really have no idea and have no knowlege of the decision making process which goes on in any camera making enterprise. So I must guess and my guess would be something like: "If you can't beat them and can't join them, do something different."  That more or less describes what Fuji is doing and I wish them well. But I think they are on the wrong track.

In due course the market will deliver it's verdict.