GOING MONO WITH THE X-T1

Fujifilm X-T1 - Fujinon XF 56mm (85mm eq.) w/polarizer
1/2200" f8 ISO 400
Converted into monochrome with Silver Efex Pro 2

As I already stated, the quality (and ease) of monochrome conversion should always be taken in account when reviewing a camera. I have owned the X-T1 for a few weeks now, and still find myself in the steepest part of the usual new-camera learning curve. Especially when it comes to black&white.

Every sensor-processor-firmware pipeline has its own "personality", and my first impression is that the X-T1 has a slightly lesser attitude to monochrome than, to quote a camera I know quite well, the Olympus E-M5. As a matter of fact taking a good luminance-based description out of a Bayer-matrix sensor is not an obvious task. And things get a little more complicated when the capture is made by a 36-color pattern sensor (Fuji X-Trans) instead of a 4-color one (Bayer), as the former involves a far bigger interpolation process in order to correctly render colors while avoiding random moiré and similar artifacts. Speaking about artifacts, when mono-converted both Bayer and X-Trans tend to show irksome white outlines along the edges of objects bordering on originally blue skies. With X-Trans this issue is bigger, and chrominance-based tweaking of those areas (typically, darkening the sky by red filtering) should be avoided in favor of a luminance-based approach, which I find more wearisome and less effective.

Nothing to do with the smooth monochrome conversions made possible by Sigma's Foveon sensor which, like color film, is based on a three-layer luminance detecting architecture (no interpolation here, pure per-pixel resolution). Or, as far as I know, with the Leica M Monochrome, a camera that I really would like to try, if only there where a chance to rent one in Italy. Anybody has one available?

Fujifilm X-T1 - Fujinon XF 56mm (85mm eq.)
1/1000" f8 ISO 200
Converted into monochrome with Silver Efex Pro 2