Fujifilm X-E4

New rangefinder-style mirrorless offers superb image quality £799/$849

This travel-friendly APS-C mirrorless offers rangefinder styling and matches more expensive siblings for image quality

Specifications Sensor: APS-C, X-Trans CMOS 4, 23.5 x 15.6mm Megapixels: 26.1MP Image size: 6,240 x 4,160 pixels Shutter speed: Mechanical: 15 min-1/4,000 sec plus Bulb; Electronic:15min to 1/32,000 sec ISO range: 160-12,800, exp to 80-51,200 LCD: 180° tilting 3.0-inch 1,620,000-dot touchscreen LCD Viewfinder: EVF, 0.39-inch 2.36million-dot OLED with 100% coverage Storage: SD/SDHC/SDXC UHS-I Connectivity: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, USB-C, HDMI Micro Type D Battery: Rechargeable NP-W126S Dimensions: 121 x 73 x 33mm Weight: 364g, including battery and SD card

The X-E4 is Fujifilm’s most compact interchangeable-lens camera. As the latest in the brand’s X-E series of mirrorless cameras, it has a rectangular rangefinder-like design rather than the mini DSLR-styling of the X-T series. It’s for enthusiasts who value a classic, compact design over all the bells and whistles of the X-S10 and X-T4.

This is the fourth camera in Fujifilm’s X-E series, following the design of previous versions closely, but with Fujifilm’s latest 26.1MP X-Trans sensor. This gives it a modest increase in resolution over the previous X-E3 – but the real gain is a newer generation of back-illuminated sensor design, which gives a step up in all-round image quality. It’s the same sensor used in Fujifilm’s flagship X-T4. This means the X-E4 also gets a powerful on-sensor phase-detect AF system, with 425 focus points covering the whole image area. The X-E4 is not really designed for the same kind of user as the X-T4, though. It can shoot at a frame rate of 8fps with its mechanical shutter, or 10fps with its electronic shutter, but it’s not really a sports camera, not least because its size and shape make the handling a little awkward with longer lenses.

It can also shoot 4K video, but at a maximum 30fps frame rate, and while the Fujifilm X-T4 and the X-S10 have in-body stabilisation, this camera does not, so for both stills and video you will be reliant on lens-based stabilisation, where available.

The other notable feature of the X-E4 is its kit lens. Most mirrorless cameras are sold with a zoom, but the X-E4 kit option comes with a Fujinon XF 27mm f/2.8 R WR ‘pancake’ prime,

with a 40mm effective focal length and a slim profile that perfectly matches the slim camera body.

Key features

Two things set the Fujifilm X-E4 apart from regular mirrorless cameras. One is the rectangular rangefinder-style design. Most mirrorless cameras are designed to look like DSLRs, with an electronic viewfinder on the top of the camera; on the X-E4, the viewfinder is built into the back top-left corner. The X-E4 doesn’t have a grip for the fingers of your right hand, either – but if you decide the camera is too awkward to hold as a result, you can get an optional handgrip.

The external exposure controls on the X-E4 have become a Fujifilm trademark. Where most cameras have a mode dial and set the lens aperture and shutter speed electronically via menus and on-screen displays, the X-E4 has an old-school shutter speed dial on the top, and the 27mm kit lens has a physical aperture ring.

Both of these have Automatic positions, so you still have the usual

Program AE, Aperture Priority, Shutter Priority and Manual exposure modes, but you achieve them with combinations of aperture dial and shutter dial settings. Old-school film photographers will love it,

“The X-E4 has an old-school shutter speed dial on the top”

1 There’s not even a bump on the front for your fingers to grip, but that’s all part of the X-E4’s minimalist design aesthetic. The new XF 27mm f/2.8 R WR kit lens is a super-slim pancake prime, and a key part of the X-E4’s appeal. The X-E4 is the fourth iteration of Fujifilm’s range of rectangular rangefinder-style mirrorless cameras. 2 3

The viewfinder is mounted in the top-left corner, not on top like other Fujifilm cameras. The touch sensitive rear screen has a tilting mechanism, but no sideways movement for taking vertical shots. There’s no four-way controller on the back, but this small joystick does the job. 7 4 The X-E4 offers Fujifilm’s trademark classic external exposure controls, including a lens aperture ring and a shutter speed dial. There’s an exposure compensation dial – although it’s quite easy to forget you’ve applied it. Naturally, the X-E4 takes all Fujifilm X-mount lenses. 5 8 6 9

The X-E4’s Dynamic Range Priority mode has done a good job here, keeping detail in the bright clouds and in the shadows under the pier.

The X-E4 produced bright, vibrant colours even under overcast skies; in this shot, it’s held on to the highlights in the clouds, too.