I continue to use and enjoy my E5/23 2.8. I'm starting to branch out and try some new things. The first thing I would like to try is the control lever on the front of the camera.
Do my fellow E5 shooters use this function and if so in what circumstances? Even though I have read about it in the Fuji online instruction manual (which should be a printed manual supplied with our cameras), I really don't really know about when/how to use the function properly. Any thoughts/suggestions will be appreciated.
I find the lever super useful and it is one of my favourite controls on the E5. I have mine set with one of the short pulls to bring up the custom settings. As I am changing them all the time, that what I mainly use it for. I think I have the other set to film sims, ISO, and aspect ratio, but I don't use them much.
I use mine to switch subject and face recognition on and off. I use the middle button to bring up photometry for changing metering modes. This setup is super useful to me because I switch between multi and spot metering frequently and Fuji being silly locking photometry unless both recognitions are turned off.
Have an A1 MK2 as my main camera, the E5 can be quite a chore to getting things done. But I wanted a high res APSC camera and accompanying lenses for portability.
There are a few things in the interface on that (overall very good) camera that I’m not so thrilled about, but I think that controller looks pretty useful. (There was a physically similar — but with different functionality — lever on the front of my old XPro2, and I found it quick and easy to use.)
I dislike the location of the PLAY button because when I used my left hand to press it, the LCD was deactivated by the viewfinder being blocked. I've changed the Control Lever "push" action to PLAY. I've found it to be a very intuitive action and miss it on my X-T5.
That front lever has gotta be one of the MOST useful button in any cameras I've owned. The location is just chef's kiss, and it actually works. Mine's setup like this:
Pull right: switch between EVF/LCD view modes
Press left: AF mode
Center button: Self timer
I didn't set up the long press options because I just wanted it to have 3 simple functions that I will actually remember.
mdude85 posted: "It's interesting to see how other people use it because I don't use it at all, except for the center button, which I use to control ISO."
I agree. Thanks for sharing your use fellow E5 shooters.
RoamingScott wrote:
I loved the lever on the X100 line. I can’t imagine using it for one thing and leaving 80% of its potential functionality on the table.
I honestly have trouble remembering what each actuation does, so it's easier for me to just leave them blank I think for me it's a usability cue -- I associate directional movement of a component with increasing or decreasing a single setting's value.
Between the Q button and the preprogrammed dials and buttons, there isn't much else I need to control on the fly. If the XE5 had a combination ISO/SS dial (like the X100), I probably would not use that lever at all ...
We often use tools whose power exceeds our personal needs. In fact, it is normal to design things that way, since designing tools that exactly match each person’s unique preferences turns out to be absurdly expensive and even impossible.
Cars come with seating for 4 or 5 even if you always drive alone. Your television shows far more sources than you’ll ever watch. Your hot pot has settings you will never use. Your camera has features that aren’t relevant to your particular photography — do all of us use the highest ISO setting? the manual focus aids? video? all of the AF options?
So, no harm done if a general purpose controller works well for one or two things that are very important to you even though it can do other things that you don’t need.
gdanmitchell wrote:
We often.use whose power exceeds our personal needs. In fact, it is normal to design things that way, since designing tools that exactly match each person’s unique preferences turns out to be absurdly expensive and even impossible.
Cars come with seating for 4 or 5 even if you always drive alone. Your television shows far more sources than you’ll ever watch. Your hot pot has settings you will never use. Your camera has features that aren’t relevant to your particular photography — do all of us use the highest ISO setting? the manual focus aids? video? all of the AF options?
So, no harm done if a general purpose controller works well for one or two things that are very important to you even though it can do other things that you don’t need....Show more →
That is a very insightful response, Dan, and your car & TV analogies are spot on!
It's so irritating that the X100VI doesn't allow this level of customization from the control lever. Its placement and multi-inputs make it a super convenient control.
shujert wrote:
It's so irritating that the X100VI doesn't allow this level of customization from the control lever. Its placement and multi-inputs make it a super convenient control.
Sure glad I got an E5/23 2.8 instead of the 100VI......
I think for me it's a usability cue -- I associate directional movement of a component with increasing or decreasing a single setting's value.