Four seasons of wildlife photography with the Fuji X H2s and XH2 plus the fuji 150-600mm lens 

Thanks Joe 🙏

Good reminder because I was thinking the 150-600mm wasn't great for sharpness but there's a lot of variability of skillset... All the video was recorded with the xh2s?

❤❤❤😂😂

Thanks for your kind comments 👍🙏

Thank you very much!🙏

Hi Jason thanks for the kind comments. Go for it on your wildlife photography adventures. Patience, perseverance & persistence be with you 🙏👊 Ant

Thank you kindly!

Thanks 🙏

Many Thanks for your kind comments🙏

Thank you!

Thank you very much!

Thanks for the lovely comments 🙏 I would love to do more. But I need to choose what I produce carefully as my free time is quite squeezed 😂 kind regards Anthony

Totally agree 👍🏻

Glad you enjoyed it! 👍🙏

Glad you enjoyed it! 🙏

Thanks for your nice comments Sigurd 🙏

Thanks a lot!

Thank you very much!

Hi thanks for nice comments. I generally use zone focus mode with a slightly smaller than max focus area. I usually use the mode 2 I think - the one that’s supposed to ignore obstacles. I also tried manually setting the tracking modes tracking sensitivity 2, speed tracking sensitivity 0 zone areas switching Auto. To be honest I haven’t done a controlled test though, It still struggles with busy backgrounds and I still and have to work at it sometimes. 👍

Hi Donovan thanks for the comments, my auto focus settings change quite a bit depending on what I am shooting. For video I use manual most of the time unless trying to track birds flight against the sky then I use continuous AF usually on setting 2. For stills I use single point or small zone setting with bird eye detect for perched birds and then for birds in flight a slightly wider zone with bird eye detect. For mammals animal eye detect with zone or single point spending how close the subject is. 👍

Hi Jerry I won’t have time to make any videos for the next month or so unfortunately, too busy with freelance work and other priorities. Thanks for the feedback though 👍🙏

Hi Christopher I think it’s hard to say exactly as I haven’t done a proper side by side test but obviously the higher frame rate gives you more options on the X-H2s, and it felt more confident and more responsive. 👍

Hi Okcay if the bird is in flight and it’s a larger bird say owl sized with slower flight I tend to use between 1/2500s or more towards 1/1500s if the light is lower F8-F9. I use the zone focus with bird detect and 30 -40 frames per second. The continuous tracking mode 2 mostly. If the bird is perched then anything from 1/1000s - 1/250th depending on if the bird is still or on the move a or how much light there is. Usually at f8 but of the light is good F9 if the bird is filling the frame to give more depth of field. It does vary alot depending on movement of the bird and the light. 👍

Thanks Peter 👍🙏

Hi Conannass the 200 was used about 25% of the time usually some of the mammal shots and close up broll shots at the beginning but only a couple of bird shots. 👍

Hi Raja thanks for the comments, I won’t have any time to do another video for a while though 😂 kind regards Anthony

Hi Levi thanks for the share and compliments. The first couple of intro clips were the 200mm f2 👍

Hi Jana glad you liked the video! I use a portable zoom H1N for some recordings rather than a on camera mic. Although I did use a little of the natural audio from the camera when it suited the shot. Kind regards Anthony

Thanks Marco! 👍 Filming was all done on the XH2s except the wide angle clips the low light clips with the deer at sunrise and my to camera review which was the XH2 so I could use 8K and crop to edit jump cuts 👍

Thanks for the comments. Most of the footage is handheld but usually sat down using my knees or one knee to steady myself. I used the tripod on the kingfishers from the hide and when filming the Roe Deer in the woods. I just have focus peaking on when in manual and turn off the magnifier function and use the back button to initially apply focus. 👍 hope that helps

Hi Peter it is Astia soft -2 highlights and shadows and 200DR 👍

@@anthonyhurren5613 Thank you!

Forget the xh2 for moving birds if you are photography minded. Go for the h2s. It's a much better wildlife option. Better choose the h2 for landscape, portrait, or still videos, though in that case, I would actually look elsewhere entirely (ff). The xh2s is a bargain for its features which is why it is a valid choice.

Hi LiquidCylinders, I choose the XH2s generally for birds in flight but sometimes I choose the XH2 with my 200mm F2 + 1.4TC for Owls as I can have cropping room for the shorter focal length lens, but I always use mechanical shutter with the XH2 to avoid rolling shutter, its fine with these larger slower birds but obviously you are limited to 15 FPS and its not blackout free like the XH2s with its 40FPS. I often have the XH2s with my 150-600mm attached and my XH2 with my 200mm F2 when waiting for wildlife in camouflage to be ready for either scenario for a bird or a larger mammal. But I would choose the XH2s if I only had one choice, for that stacked sensor speed and the 4K 120p video. Hopefully the next generation of stacked sensors for the XH2s will have more resolution. Kind regards Anthony

Hi Tony all handheld except the roe deer in the bluebell woods, I had to add some warp stabiliser for a few shots but not all. 👍

@@anthonyhurren5613 what is your experience with the setup for BIF CAF? Percentage wise how many would you say are in focus. I ask as the A9/ Sony 200-600 I generally get around 90% sharp the video side of things not so great as the overall stabilisation isn’t that great on Sony. My Nikon D500 and Tamron G2 150-600mm combination had better stabilisation 😊

@@tonyb736 hi Tony it’s difficult to say it can loose it if there is complicated background so it depends on the scenarios. Against sky or distant background it’s great around 80-90% But it’s a bit unpredictable against bushes and trees etc. video can track but it can suffer from focus pulses again if the background is complex. There are some better test videos online to refer to as I am rarely in situation long enough to do a controlled test. kind regards Anthony

@@anthonyhurren5613 thanks for taking the time to reply. Info provided is most helpful combined with your video, which incidentally is excellent an professional piece of work, with audio tracks that compliment. Thanks, and I look forward to further videos you post - Tony

Hi I actually just shoot normal 8bit 4K but with these settings: colour profile Astia Soft, highlights & Shadows -2, Dynamic range DR200. The Astia Soft profile is great for nature, it gives a soft colourful and warm feel. But obviously It also massively helps to shoot in nice morning and evening light 👍 kind regards Anthony

Hi Joze I use Lightroom for all my editing. 👍

Hi Staiain thanks for the question. Did you mean panning with video or stills? If you mean video it is certainly a challenge if your using the 150-600 at the long end 900mm equivalent, I normally stick to static shots if using the lens at 600mm but panning becomes more effective and less jittery at the shorter lengths. Also if using handheld then technique becomes vital I normally support my shot on my leg by crouching down. But to be honest I don’t have another system to compare it with, I would like to try the Z8 with the 600pf or day for a comparison. 👍 kind regards Anthony

Hi Stephan it’s a good question and very hard to measure. I have had my ones pretty wet especially recently everything seems ok so far, but I haven’t been in sub zero temperatures.

Yes Lightroom 👍 seems ok to me although to be honest I don’t worry too much about over pixel peeping that close as people don’t view files or prints at 200% in reality I think capture one probably still has cleaner results but best check some of the latest reviews about that 👍

LR handles Fuji files great at this point and it is easy to incorporate Fuji's film sims for a unique look. Compared to C1 I do, for whatever reasons, feel compelled to play with sharpness and noise reduction settings more in LR, depending on the quality of the exposure. In C1, I find default settings for sharpening and noise to be fine maybe 70-90% of the time. I like that C1 will import my star ratings on import (I rate photos a lot in-camera in an attempt to save time culling later). LR does not do this, which is annoying to me. Both programs can generate amazing images. Worms appear when oversharpening in either program, and is not dependent on camera make (I.e. I can see them on any brand). By default, LR's sharpening looks OK, but I tend to like to decrease the "details" slider from 25 (default), to 3-5. I crank the sharpness slider from 50-100 and may or may not use masking.

Hi thanks for the comments. I think the 100-400 is a good starting point. If you could get the 150-600 instead that would be even better though as the reach is so beneficial for birds and smaller mammals especially 👍 I use a 150gb card on my XH2s and have a 512 gb for my x-H2. It depends on what you photographing but I generally never fill them up with wildlife photography unless on those rare occasions I have a session with lots of continual action and shooting which is hardly ever.

@@anthonyhurren5613 thank you very much for your reply! I was asking about storage thinking about recording 4K video, since I also would want to use the XH2s for that as well.

If you can get the 512GB Cf express type B card then that would be plenty for most day trip outings. I also use a 128gb SD card in slot 2 for JPG back up and extra video recording space if needed. 👍

@@anthonyhurren5613 thank you! That's what I would end up getting, hopefully. Keep up the good work!

Hi when you say 7Q buttons set up did you mean 7 custom buttons? Kind regards Anthony

Hi Marvin I think I could make it work but obviously less frames per second would mean less frame options but obviously more resolution to crop👍 I haven’t done a lot of testing with the xh2 with BIF yet though so hard to make a good comparison yet. But I think it’s pretty good against a sky so I think with aviation you would be fine 👍

I think he gaves you the answer in the video : c1-c7 customs modes that allow you to change the all set-up in less than 1 second (the X-T5 can’t do it). And also the possibility to assign the af mode selection to a front button, impossible with a switch button.

Hi Dazza thanks for the message I don’t have enough spare time unfortunately to make a video on this subject (I have to carefully choose what videos I am willing to spend time making) Matthieu Gasquet has a comprehensive video on RU-vid XH2vs XH2s though. I generally use zone focus plus bird eye detect, and either continuous mode 2 or I tweak my own continuous modes. Shutter speed usually 2500/S or above and using f8 when using my 150-600mm. It does struggle with complicated backgrounds but does well against the sky or distant background. 👍

@@anthonyhurren5613 - Thanks very much for your reply buddy. Yes, this is what I’m experiencing, focus being pulled to background rather than staying with the bird!🦅 It’s so frustrating. I generally use Zone and Mode 2, but in frustration I switch about trying to find that bit extra. I have set-up a custom setting that was recommended by another RU-vidr on his channel, but it really doesn’t seem to get any better keeper rates. I find the bird eye detect disappointing even for smaller birds on trees etc, preferring a small single box in continuous directly on the eye gives me far better consistency, but that is next to impossible for birds in flight obviously! Thanks for your time, I will endeavour to get better and work on technique. 🙏 Regards, Dazza. 🇬🇧

At first I missed the 7+7 setup too but finally realized I didn’t actually need or use the 14 presets on my XT4. So now I use 5-7 of the presets per XH camera and it works! 🎉 Glad you found what works for you too

Hi no I didn’t use any filters as when I am hybrid shooting wildlife there is no time to change filters so I have to break the 180 shutter angle rule but with mostly slow motion this doesn’t really matter 👍 kind regards Anthony

Hi Mrz have 2 camera bodies for all my work professional paid work. So it also benefits my wildlife photography where I can have the 150-600 and the 200mm f2 plus the 18mm 1.4 if I need them in one 18L mindshift backpack. The Z9 is a great camera but very heavy, the A1 also a great camera but they are both very expensive and I prefer the lighter weight of APSC designed lenses generally. Kind regards Anthony

@@anthonyhurren5613 So, besides image quality, we can say Fuji gear is lighter and cheaper, and having 2 bodies with 2 focal-length lenses would be better for field photography rather than 1 camera with 1 lens! correct?

@@mrz1342 hi mrz yes that’s a fair summary but also plus the crop factor that APSC gives. I love the 1000mm EQ the 150- 600mm gives 👍 also bare in mind I shout with Fuji gear for my paid work weddings, corporate, portraiture etc. so I changed from full frame canons to Fuji x mirrorless systems years ago when they first they came out, as I always wanted to have two bodies but with smaller 1.4/1.2 prime lenses for wedding photography specifically. I also love the fuji colour straight from camera which is especially time saving when shooting video for wildlife and weddings etc where I do minimal grading. Hope that makes sense?. I would defo like to have a go with a Z8 or Z9 or A1 one day though to see how much difference there really is. Kind regards Anthony

@@anthonyhurren5613 Yes it makes sense. the most important matter for me is the unique image quality as you mentioned. Especially perfect JPEG files and no need for manipulation in posts that I don't like at all and it's kind of humiliating my artistic photography manner. Having 2 bodies in parallel for field photography came to my mind after watching your video and I like the idea. it makes the gear pack much more flexible and confident plus time saves. Although I am 60 and not strong like you is the same as my younger age to carry a heavy backpack :) I saw some noise in XH2S but seems it's removable by the Ai denoise feature in Lightroom or other apps. I am very sensitive to crispy image making and pixels peeping that is why for landscape and still life I prefer my GFX100S but for more portable hiking XH2 is helping me a lot with almost the same quality.

@@mrz1342 oh just seen the GFX mk2 announcement and an up and coming 500mm f5.6😆😃 I would love to give that combo a go for wildlife 👍

Same here. I watched so many om1/canon/Sony/Panasonic/fuji reviews. Still can’t decide.

Hi Sauron thanks for the comments, did you mean subject tracking or general tracking? I can’t give a fair comparison to other brands as I haven’t used the other latest mirrorless cameras . But I have found the tracking on the X-H2s very good in some situations but not so good if the background is very busy and it’s close behind the subject. I think Sony and Canon still lead the way in this area at the moment judging by people’s side by side tests online. Hopefully Fuji will improve this going forward with firmware upgrades. But to be honest It’s good enough for me and I don’t like to complain too much as technology has got so so good compared to when I started photography many many years ago back in the film days😂😂. To be honest the main limiting factor really is the photographer and learning the field craft rather than the technology these days. Kind regards Anthony

@@anthonyhurren5613 Thanks for your response. I don't want to pay $2500 and buy a camera that lags behind its competitors. especially if this is caused by bad software

​@sauron7187 I'm so over the af Bashing. It's nonsensical. There is not a single competitor with a stacked sensor in the same price range. If you actually use its capabilities, you can kiss the "competition" in that price range goodbye. Sony? Slow af sensor readouts with too much rolling shutter and/or far too little fps. Panasonic? Unusable (relativly speaking)for wildlife still even though the general af has greatly improved. Nikon? Z8 is double the price and the z6ii not really competiton in this field due to age. The zf is the only competitor with comparable quality and price but doesn't have cf express nor stacked sensor. Better in everything but wildlife and video. Which leaves Canon which simultaneously had the biggest crowd of "DSLR forever" and "that AF of competitor xyz is shit"... do I need to go into why that is utterly ridiculous? Anyway, I tried the r7 for a while, which is the closest here, but it's completely outmatched by the xh2s. So yeah... in that price range the fuji can't really been beat even though Canon fans will probably stone me for saying so. But it is true.