Instax Square Link

I just bought a Fujifilm Instax Square Link. It is a device that print Instax Square picture. Send from your smartphone a picture, obtain a hard copy on Instax Square instant film. If you have an Instax Mini Link, this is the same for Instax Square.

What’s in the box?

The box contains the printer, a light manual and a USB-C to A cable for charging.

The printer is battery powered (hence the cable). There is no film. I got a pack of white border and a pack of black borders.

The printer is like a big bar of soap. It is still slightly larger than my Instax Mini 90 Neo camera, but that’s to factor in the difference in size of the film pack.

I has two buttons, large one having a LED to show the status, a large door at the back for the film cartridge and a small trap door hiding the USB charging port and a reset hole. The latter is for cases where the troubleshooting involve turning it off and on. There is no display, like for the number of frames left.

The Instax Square Link compared for size to an Instax Mini 90. Both are roughly the same size.
The Instax Square Link compared for size to an Instax Mini 90

The initial setup consist of charging the printer using the provided USB cable (or any USB-C cable for that matter) and a charger (not included); and loading the instax square cartridge. That step is exactly the same as loading you favourite Instax camera.

To turn the printer on, press the big button for a solid second, it will light up white. The colour will change to flashing purple when printing

Print job

Screenshot of the Instax Square Link app

To use it you need a compatible smart phone (Android or iOS), install the Instax app and connect to the printer with Bluetooth. Within the app you can select images to print, and it’s fairly easy. There are other features within the app but beside the collage or frame print, I really don’t get it.

From my phone I printed a picture I posted a while ago on Instagram, works great. I also printed a picture I took recently directly with my phone. As long that the image is on your phone, you can print it.

Once you printed a picture, you can press the smaller button to reprint it, until the printer turns off. Otherwise you can use the application history to re-print later on. In some circumstance it doesn’t recollect the picture printed on the iOS app. This seems to happen if you use “share” to the Instax Link Square instead of selecting the picture from the application.

The Instax Square Link printer is ejecting the print with the picture face down.
The Instax Square Link ejecting the print.

Fujifilm manual state that the print takes 90 seconds to develop, but in my tests after 2 minutes it wasn’t developed.

The print facing is leaning against the printer. The image is not completely developed.
The print developing after 2 minutes.

In the end you obtain a colourful print.

The colourful print is flat on top of the printer, fully developed.
Print from the Instax Square Printer

The output ressemble a lot to the scan.

Instax Camera

One of the feature in the app is the “Instax Camera”. It is basically the camera app to take the picture before printing it. It put the live view inside a small Instax frame. It allow adding the date time superimposed, printed as a 9 segments led display, another bout of nostalgia that the demographics of that device have no recollection of.

Cost

The printer cost CAD$180 (I got mine on sale at CAD$160). On regular price, it’s priced between the SQ1, the cheapest Instax Square and the SQ40 the more comprehensive model. It’s not gonna break the bank.

The 2x 10-pack of film with white borders was CAD$28, and the single 10-pack of black border was CAD$17. That make a cost per print to CAD$1.40 for the white border and CAD$1.70 for the black border. There are other colours a bit more fancy if you like. You can buy the white border film in bigger pack which bring down the price per unit. A 100 pack bring the cost down to CAD1.20 a print. Also while I can find Instax Mini at my local pharmacy, Instax Square is less common. This is to be considered if you need resupplies in a hurry.

The tinfoiled pack of film leaning against the cardboard packaging that contain 2.
Instax Sqaure film pack in its protective packaging as coming out of the box

Specs

The image size is a 62mm square (2.4in). The image printed is 800×800 pixels, which boils to 318 dpi. That’s a resolution similar to any print you got from a minilab. According to the manufacturer you can print around 100 pictures (that’s 10 packs) with a single recharge.

Verdict

Pros:

– Simple to use.
– Device reasonably priced.
– Battery powered.
– Output quality.

Cons:

– Requires a phone app, very limited interoperability.
– Unlike older models can’t be used from a Fuji-X camera.
– What will die first? The printing mechanism or its battery that can’t be replaced.

After thoughts

I enjoy using my Instax Mini but I’m often left off guard with the quality, and it seem all related to the optics on the camera and the exposure, with a limited dynamic range. It’s possibly part of the challenge. The printer demonstrate that the film rendition is good and that an hybrid like the Instax Mini Evo would probably offer similar results. Sadly the hybrid Instax Square SQ10 and SQ20 cameras that were in the earlier Instax Square lineup are no more so the search for a better image quality will probably need to be sought out of the other camare makers like Lomography, MINT or NONS.

Previously: NONS instant cameras

News: Fujifilm X-M5

After a week of rumors, Monday 14 October 2024 set as the date by Fujifilm for the X-Summit, and an announcement about some firmware updates, we now know about the Fujifilm X-M5.

The X-M5 is the smallest Fujifilm X body. Without viewfinder, but a tilt screen, it is geared towards “creators” — think of it as a video camera. It presents as the inexpensive video body in the Fujifilm X lineup, a market cornered mostly by Sony, Panasonic and Canon. The Panasonic S9 is a prime example albeit at a much higher price point.

The X-M5 doesn’t have IBIS (In Body Image Stabilizer), however it has electronic stabilization for video, a system which dampen the camera motion shake at the price of a 1.33 crop. With 26.1 megapixels, it uses the older X-Trans 4 image sensor, albeit with the 5th generation X-processor. It uses the NP-W126S batteries (that’s the smaller ones as found on the X-Pro and earlier X-T), has a mic and headphone jacks, and HDMI Micro.

On the controls, I’m just skeptical of the film simulation dial. Why a dedicated dial for this? I just hope it can be reconfigured to something more useful.

The camera comes either body only or with a kit lens XC 15-45mm f/3.5-5.6 OIS PZ, the most compact zoom lens in the line. The OIS helps with the lack of IBIS. And two colours: silver or black, the latter being for April 2025.

The MSRP for the X-M5 is to be €899 / £799 body only. Add 100 in either currency for the XC 15-45 zoom in kit. Canadian price is CAD1079 body only, and CAD1199 with the 15-45.

DPReview has a review already

Other announcements today included the XF 16-55mm f/2.8 R LM WR II zoom lens, an update to the previous model, and the XF 500mm f/5.6 R LM OIS WR telephoto lens.

Link: Manufacturers Were Unprepared for the Point And Shoot Camera Revival

Petapixel, back in August: Manufacturers Were Unprepared for the Point And Shoot Camera Revival

As a result, 2019 saw the last major point-and-shoot releases from Canon, Nikon, and Panasonic. While Sony’s latest photography-first point-and-shoot, the RX100 VII, also released in 2019, newer pocket-sized models like the ZV-1 II and ZV-1F have shifted towards focusing on vlogging and content creation.

I have been complaining about the lack of availability of both the Fujifilm X100VI that is literally unobtainium and something to replace my defective G7X MkII (Canon is out of stock everywhere and whoever answers the Canon forums gaslight readers by telling them to check their retailers, while they can’t even replace camera they refuse to repair).

I really don’t enjoy smart phone as camera. In the beginning it was the quality, then at one point it ended being good enough, and I enjoyed it for a bit. But I’m over this. Don’t get me wrong the best camera is the one I have with me, and likely I have a phone, but that doesn’t mean I enjoy using it or that it inspires me. Also now with “computational photography” they add plenty of software to make them look better, sometime just turning the photo to goop like I have seen on some cheap Android smartphones.

We’ll see what the future brings.

Link: The magic of Fuji Frontier SP-3000

Sebastian Schlüter wrote in 2018 about The magic of Fuji Frontier SP-3000.

Fuji Frontier is the product line moniker for minilab solutions from Fujifilm. In the early 2000 their minilab Fuji Frontier was the reference for film processing and printing, and one of its main attribute is that the printing phase was done digitally. Instead of optically enlarging the image, you put the source film transparency into the scanner, and it will print the images on photographic paper (RA-4 process). And the SP-3000 scanner, the latest model that was part of that minilab system, is still thought after as it produces high quality images out of the box. This was part of the magic (that can’t be distinguished from technology). Just to add how this was revolutionary, it allowed producing mini contact sheets, and it allowed printing slide film without intermediate negative or without inversible (positive) photographic paper. As a business, you could charge 5-10$ extra to store the scans used to print on a CD. Your 1 hour photolab likely used one of these, or its competitor like Noritsu, Agfa or Kodak.

One of the key point of the Frontier is that is does its work fast and automatically. Scanning is always a lengthy process and hard to tune to get good results. The Frontier integrates all of that. Other alternatives are Noritsu who offers a higher resolution, and Kodak Pakon, that requires 20+ years old Microsoft Windows XP to drive it, but is much smaller. Acquisition costs for a Frontier SP-3000 starts at CAD6,000 on the used market and the device takes a huge amount space, so does the Noritsu, and have the same requirement for maintaining the same operating system.

The film to digital workflow is either expensive, slow or poor quality. DSLR scanning provides a good DIY alternative that is reasonably priced if you already have the camera and a proper setup rival dedicated film scanner on many aspects.

Previously: How film commercial processing and scanning is done

The Fujifilm X100VI delays

Apparently it’s still hard to get a Fujifilm X100VI.

In an April 2024 interview, Fujifilm admits that they make 15,000 units a month, which is twice as much as for the previous model, and that they are looking at increasing it. Also the rumor has that they have a 500,000 order backlog. That number is unconfirmed, but with some light math, we can guesstimate it would take over 33 month to fulfill!

This backlog has people that really want one, people that ordered from multiple retailer as to jump the queue, people that are still undecided, and scalpers.

It seems that today the only way to get one is:

  • Place an order and wait an unknown amount of time (tbf I haven’t inquired one of my local retailer yet).
  • Buy it from an Amazon or eBay blessed scalper for twice the price (they are part of the problem, so no way).
  • Buy used from a disappointed user, but then it’s likely still more than buying new.
  • Be an influencer.
Amazon listing for Fujifilm X100VI. Shows two buying options at $3119.99 and $3589.95.
Fujifilm X100VI Amazon Scalpers, September 2024

At that point I have to forego the trying it out phase, and have to place an order if I want one. With a little luck the X100VII will be announced and either it will be cheaper or I will have to move up to the next level.

Meanwhile, it’s not like I don’t have any camera to shoot. My X-Pro1 still works (I got it repaired a few years ago) and the X-T3 as well. Not forgetting that the Olympus E-P1 still works, unlike the G7X MkII that can’t be replaced, and the 5DMkII is still in order. Lately, I also have been using an original Ricoh GR Digital 2 (the small sensor from 2007). And I have a stash of film in the freezer with both 35mm and medium format. Maybe I don’t need a new camera after all…

Previously: Fujifilm once struggled to sell cameras…, Fujifilm upgrades

Using manual lenses on a Fujifilm X

Using manual (adapted) lenses is great on a Fujifilm X. I have a set of Canon FD Macro lenses that are terrific.

At first you might have issues as the shutter doesn’t fire when such lens is on the camera. The camera thinks you don’t have a lens and therefor prevents you from firing the shutter. You need to enable “Shoot without lens”. It’s in the manual but not explicitely explain, and it’s inconsistent depending on the camera model. As I have both a X-Pro1 and an X-T3, this confused me as I couldn’t find it on the X-T3.

Fotodiox, who sells mount adapters, has you covered in their help guide. But really Fujifilm, couldn’t you at least be consistent? It’s not even “later models changed it”. X-Pro2 does it differently from the X-Pro1 and X-Pro3.

Here are some instructions:

Allow shooting without lens

On the Fujifilm X-Pro1:

1. Press the MENU button. Go to the 3rd page of the SHOOTING MENU:

Shooting Menu

2. Select SHOOT WITHOUT LENS:

Shooting Menu 3, Shoot without lens

3. Make sure it is ON:

Shoot without lens, on

On the Fujifilm X-T3:

1. Press the MENU button. Go to the SET UP menu:

Set up menu

2. Select BUTTON/DIAL SETTING:

Set up Menu, Button/Dial Setting

3. On the second page, select SHOOT WITHOUT LENS to be ON:

Button/Dial Setting Menu, Shoot without lens Menu Shoot without lens, On

Setting the focal length

Optionally, you should set the lens focal length. This helps the camera deciding shutter speed and others, and also this get added to the Exif meta data.

On the Fujifilm X-Pro1:

1. Go to the same SHOOTING MENU page 3 and select MOUNT ADAPTOR SETTING:

Shoot Menu 3, Mount adaptor setting

2. Select a lens:

Mount Adaptor Setting, Lens 5

3. If you need to change the focal length select FOCAL LENGTH SETTING:

Mount Adaptor Setting, Focal Length Setting

4. Set the focal length:

Input Focal Length, 0 5 0 mm

On the Fujifilm X-T3:

1. Go to the SHOOTING SETTING menu:

Shooting Setting. page 1/2

2. Go to the second page select MOUNT ADAPTOR SETTING:

Shooting Setting page 2/2, Mount adaptor setting

3. Select one of the 6 focal lengths:

Mount adaptor setting, Lens 5, 50mm

4. If you need to change it, select FOCAL LENGTH SETTING and set the focal length:

Mount adaptor setting, Focal Length Setting Input Focal Length, 0 5 0 mm

You should now be set. Remember if you use a different lens to set the focal length. You don’t need to reset the SHOOT WITHOUT LENS to OFF for use in other cases.

Link: Fujifilm TX-1 long term review

Gale Lee wrote a Fujifilm TX-1 long term review for Casual Photophile.

The Fujifilm TX-1 (also known as the Hasselblad XPan) is a camera defined by a single design directive: take true panoramic images using 35mm film without wasting a millimeter of material, and everything about it— from its design to its physical engineering— flows from that goal.

and

The Fujifilm TX-1 (also known as the Hasselblad XPan) is a camera defined by a single design directive: take true panoramic images using 35mm film without wasting a millimeter of material, and everything about it— from its design to its physical engineering— flows from that goal.

Last year, I linked about the Hasselblad X-Pan which is the rebadged version of the Fujifilm, and talked about rangefinders. The Fujifilm TX-1 remains on top of my list of camera to try, this is why each time somebody write about it I wished I had one.

And what Gale tells us is that this camera is a tool a tool that may work for you, but maybe not. What make the TX-1 is the 1:2.70 aspect ratio and the fact that this is camera that you can shoot hand held, like street photography, but not only. It can be challenging to use but, once you are able to control, the results are… wow.

Back in the early 2000s I considered getting one, but its price, and the fact that the 24x65mm frame would be difficult (read expensive) to scan, I sort of chickened out. I’m pretty sure it’s more expensive now than it was back then.

This made me think on what kind of specs would I need to have similar quality panoramic format camera, but digital. Cropping is easy but in that aspect ratio the loss of pixels is significant. And then there is framing, I don’t know which camera allow setting a custom aspect ratio; back when I used an Olympus E-P1, I shot a lot in 16:9 aspect ratio. This scale down on the 12 megapixel.

Link: Fujifilm once struggled to sell cameras…

Reuters: Fujifilm once struggled to sell cameras. Now, it can’t keep up with demand

After it sold out last year, the company increased production in China to double the launch volume for the VI that debuted in March,

The X100 VI is still not available anywhere as I’m pondering a Fujifilm upgrade. They claim to have manufactured even more.

But the long waitlists and steep prices may drive customers to competitors, such as Canon’s G7X

Pardon? Can someone tell me where the G7X MkIII is available? I can’t find it anywhere from B&H to my local camera stores. And don’t mention the scalpers on Amazon.

Anyway good on Fujifilm with their success. I love my X series not everybody like Sony.

News: Fujifilm Set to Restart Color Film Production in China

PetaPixel inform that Fujifilm Set to Restart Color Film Production in China:

Fujifilm reportedly held a color film launch event in China where it announced it would restart the production of its C200 and C400 color negative film through production partner Yes!Star.

C200 and C400 are the successor of the Superia line of films: consumer grade (but high quality) colour negative film. With film prices rising, and choice reducing, it seems like good news.

More supplies is better. With Ricoh releasing a new film camera, it seems that film is not dead.

Rangefinder

The Leica M is the de facto digital rangefinder camera.

Rangefinder

What’s a rangefinder? It’s a viewfinder where a moving part is coupled with the lens focusing to triangulate the parallax. That moving part is projecting the image taken offset the viewfinder, and move when the lens focusing moves. If the two images coincide, the triangulation is focused on the subject, indicating the lens is now in focus. Still not following? You can read about rangefinder cameras on wikipedia.

The rangefinder is a great device to be able to focus precisely without having a through the lens viewfinder like on a reflex camera. It allowed a more compact camera design than a reflex camera, are there is no need for a mirror box, while still allowing precise focus. This was long before auto focus systems. Which is at the heart of the Leica M, mostly unchanged from the 50s design, at least in principle.

Some quite unique cameras like the ultra wide Fujifilm TX-1 or Hasselblad X-Pan were rangefinder cameras. This was a good solution that a reflex design couldn’t allow easily. There were also some medium format rangefinder like the Mamiya 7 that allowed much more compact design.

On of the design constraint of a rangefinder is that the field of view of the viewfinder is fixed, and while some camera can change the frame lines depending of the focal length of the lens, it can’t got wider than it is, and the longer the lens, the smaller the frame is. In general lens shorter than 28mm were less accurate to frame do to the frame line being outside the field of view.

So now that we have mirrorless, through the lens (auto) focusing, what’s the point of a rangefinder camera? The rangefinder is a precision device much more fragile of complex to manufacture, that may need readjustment over time. Part of the design of the rangefinder is that the viewfinder is offset from the lens, and usually also offers a wider field of view. This leads to a style of shooting that is particular to it.

I once shot a couple of rolls on a Leica M7 in 2011 and I loved it. The feeling, the results, I can’t really describe it though. You can still buy a Leica M6 new for little under CAD$8000 (body only).

Digital rangefinder camera

In 2004, Epson did make the R-D1. It was a digital rangefinder camera, the first one. While still being able to use Leica M lenses, it sold for a fraction of the price of Leica flagship M7 rangefinder film camera, as it was based on the much cheaper Cosina R bodies. This camera wasn’t perfect, but filed a niche. I think one of the biggest limitations was that it was an APS-C sensor, thus had a 1.5x crop factor. The 35mm lens you were fond of on a Leica suddenly became like a 50mm. If you loved wide angle, then it became a bigger issue, wider angle lenses, even non-Leica, where much more expensive. Full frame sensors weren’t a thing at the time. When Leica released the M8, it had the same issue, at a much higher price; albeit with the APS-H sensor, the crop was only 1.33x. With the discontinuation of the Epson R-D1, Leica M became the only game in town.

Fujifilm X

In 2010 Fujifilm introduced the Fujifilm X100 and a year later the Fujifilm X-Pro1. The former introduced Fujifilm hybrid viewfinder, which led to a lot of people wrongly calling it a rangefinder camera, which is inaccurate. Rangefinder style is probably a better moniker.

What did the X100 offer? The optical viewfinder allow shooting more like with a rangefinder camera, with overlaid frame lines (parallax corrected as bonus) in a wider view than the lens offered ; as well as other indicator that a digital display can offer. The focusing was done using an auto focus system like on most digital camera, through the lens. The hybrid part allowed to switch, as needed, to a completely electronic viewfinder. Best of both world.

The X-Pro1 brought this viewfinder to an interchangeable lens system, based on an APS-C sensor, that the whole Fujifilm X is now based on, with more traditional body designs. I bought one sight unseen. I love it and is saddened by the fact that the X-Pro3 is no longer available, and that the X-100 VI (the 6th generation) isn’t available yet.

Pixii

In 2018 we started hearing about the Pixii. A French made rangefinder digital camera. I noticed it again recently in my meanderings, I then realised I had never followed up on it ; I actually had forgotten about it, maybe because I thought it was a vapor ware, or something. The camera is real. At about USD$3000, it is priced less than half of the Leica M that goes for USD$8000.

It is definitely a rangefinder camera, with a digital overlay. That’s awesome. The image quality seems to be good according to reviewers. Pixii even offer the DCP profile for colour, and how to use them in Rawtherapee which it to be outlined as not other camera vendor care outside of the Adobe monopoly or their sub-optimal application.

What else?

It seems that in the 2023 model (A2572) some of the controls require a companion proprietary phone app, a bit like the Leica M-10D. This raises a lot of red flags as it mean the camera will be much less usable without it, which mean that if Pixii ever discontinue the app, or the phone gatekeeper do, you are SOL. It’s a bad industry trend.

The other point is the fixed storage, where you buy your camera like a phone with a fixed memory capacity. This is nuts. Not only you pay an unnecessary premium (USD$270 for going from 16G to 64GB, while a 128GB SDXC goes for USD$20, or a higher speed for USD$120), but what happens to having separate cards? If you need more storage, connect the camera to your computer they say. What happens if your flash storage die? Like a MacBook, you throw it away? For example the Leica T has some internal storage that is apparently a microSD that you can upgrade if you open the camera, and it is in addition to an external slot. I clearly remember the outrage when a major brand camera didn’t come with dual card slot. So I don’t get how not having one would even get considered… It feels like they designed it like a smartphone.

The last point, and it’s even more fundamental. It’s the sensor size. There is nothing wrong with an APS-C sensors, they can deliver quality even in low light, and Fujifilm proved it. It’s great with a dedicated lens lineup, but the M-mount lenses come from film, and are designed for a full frame system that is the Leica M since the Leica M9. If you have a set of prime lenses for your shooting style, the Pixii will need a different set to compensate for the 1.5x crop factor.

Macfilos has a review of the camera. They say:

The Pixii is, in some ways, the most modern rangefinder camera imaginable. There was no legacy to consider when designing the body.

Ahem, M-mount lenses are a significant legacy. Even more that they are designed for a full frame sensor (or a 24×36 frame on 35 mm film).

About the app:

*It is technically possible to use the Pixii almost completely without the app (see the comments section), but it is the opinion of the reviewer that this makes little sense as the whole concept of the camera is based on connectivity.

I’m still of the belief this is a planned obsolescence item. Software does suddenly stop working. Software from trillion dollar corporation do. Software from smaller outlet do. Mobile app store do remove apps for many reasons. If that ties important feature, this turn your camera into a brick. The Panasonic Lumix S9 might also suffer from this.

Now I’d love to take it for a spin, being able to say how it feels as a camera. The shortcomings on paper that I mention are not fatal as an image capturing device.

Update 2 August 2024: Added that the M8 had a 1.33x crop.