Fujifilm X-T20
This camera packs a punch
£799 (body only) from Fujifilm, fujifilm.co.uk Features 24.3MP, X-Trans CMOS III sensor, ISO100 to ISO51200, 4K video at 30fps, 11.8x8.3x4.1cm, 383g weight (body only, including battery and memory card)
Fujifilm has taken a lot of the good stuff from the X-T2 and packaged it in a lighter, more affordable body to give us the X-T20. The X-T20 incorporates Fujifilm’s latest 24.3MP X-Trans CMOS III APS-C sensor. The ISO range gets a boost as well, with a native sensitivity range of ISO200-12,800, which stretches to ISO100-51,200.
The camera’s three-inch touchscreen doesn’t offer the same breadth of control as, say, the one on the Canon EOS M5, limiting you as it does to tapping the display to acquire focus and trigger the shutter. You can also pinch to zoom when reviewing images. If you’re hoping to be able to toggle and adjust controls on the rear display, we’re afraid that you’ll be left disappointed.
There’s a single SD card slot on the X-T20, compared to the X-T2’s two, and it doesn’t support UHS-II cards. But it does offer 4K video capture (3840 x 2160) at 30fps, as well as Full HD (1920 x 1080) at 60p, both of which support film simulations. There’s an input for a microphone, but not for audio monitoring.
While there’s no weather sealing present, as on the X-T2, the X-T20 sports magnesium top and bottom plates which, along with a comfy (if modest) grip and the tactile covering used, make the X-T20 feel like a very solid and quality piece of kit.
Along the top plate and to the right of the viewfinder is the large shutter speed dial, with settings running from 1 to 1/4000 sec plus Bulb, Time and Automatic. To the right of that is an exposure compensation dial – but whereas the settings on the Fujifilm X-T10 run from -2 to +2EV, the X-T20’s range has been extended to +/-3EV.
As we saw on the X-T2, there’s also now a ‘C’ setting on the dial, which lets you set compensation up to +/-5EV using the camera’s front command dial, and as on the X-T2 this works very well.
There’s also Fujifilm’s Quick Menu system, accessed via the Q button. As the name suggests, this gives you quick access to 16 key settings, and it’s possible to customise these should you so desire, with a choice of 28 different options. This works well, and it’s handy to be able exclude features that you don’t use in favour of those you do. Performance You could be forgiven for thinking that Fujifilm would give the X-T20 a strippeddown autofocus (AF) system compared to its flagship siblings, but that’s not the case. The X-T20 features the same system as the X-T2. Whether you’re shooting static or fast-moving subjects, the AF is nice and quick. While continuous focusing with the X-T10 could at times be an optimistic affair with plenty of ‘slightly out’ shots, focusing tracking with X-T20 is much improved.
The X-T20 uses Fujifilm’s proven TTL 256-zone metering system, which performs admirably, even when directed at highcontrast scenes. At times, it can tend to
underexpose the shot, but we’d happily take this to avoid blown highlights, and recover detail in the shadows later.
If you’re going to use the X-T20 to shoot a lot of portraits, the metering is geared to provide a bias towards overexposing the shot for a more flattering high-key result. It’s easy to fine-tune the exposure, though – as we’ve mentioned, set the exposure compensation to ‘C’ and it’s quick to adjust. And the joy of mirrorless is that the viewfinder will display the exposure in real time, so you won’t get any nasty surprises when reviewing your images.
Battery life is 350 shots on a single charge, a slight improvement over the X-T10. But when compared to the Nikon D5600, which has an impressive 820-shot battery life, it’s found a little wanting.
There’s no support for UHS-II cards, but despite this the X-T20 can still rattle off eight frames in a second, with the buffer good for 23 uncompressed raw files or 62 JPEGs.
A sensitive subject
The X-T20’s sensitivity range compares quite favourably to rivals; the limit of ISO51,200 is a stop better than the Canon EOS M5, while the ability to record raw files at this sensitivity is better than the X-T10’s JPEG-only option.
Files at the lower end of the sensitivity range deliver really clean results – you’ll be hard-pushed to find any signs of luminance noise (grain-like in appearance) in flat-colour areas, such as blue skies. It’s only at ISO3200 that luminance noise starts to become an issue. That said, at this sensitivity results are more than acceptable; the noise has a natural look to it, while even up to ISO12,800, results won’t be unusable, provided you apply a bit of noise reduction in post-processing.
Pick up and start shooting with the X-T20 and it certainly doesn’t feel like the X-T2’s poor relation. With its tactile controls and polished handling, it’s a very satisfying camera to shoot with.