{"id":11968,"date":"2026-08-17T17:17:08","date_gmt":"2026-08-17T17:17:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.analoggwerz.com\/?p=11968"},"modified":"2026-10-13T09:28:28","modified_gmt":"2026-10-13T09:28:28","slug":"fujifilm-finepix-xp15-test","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.analoggwerz.com\/en\/fujifilm-finepix-xp15-test\/","title":{"rendered":"Pink Fujifilm FinePix XP15: tested on a walk around Paris"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Tested: digital compact<\/p>\n

Fujifilm FinePix XP15: a pink waterproof compact put to the test in Paris<\/h1>\n

It was designed for the beach, the pool and being dropped in the sand. We took it somewhere else: a few hours in Paris, from late-afternoon light to neon signs. Here\u2019s what this little pink Fujifilm can really do once it\u2019s off its home turf: eight unretouched photos, the settings read from the files, and what you need to know before buying one.<\/p>\n

Tested in the workshop<\/b> then outdoors<\/span>\u00b7<\/span>8 photos<\/b> unretouched<\/span>\u00b7<\/span>A walk around Paris<\/b>, late afternoon and night<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Le
The XP15 in its metallic pink finish. The lens doesn\u2019t extend from the body: that\u2019s what makes the camera waterproof.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

A camera designed to end up in the water<\/h2>\n

The XP15 belongs to that family of cameras Fujifilm built to be mistreated. It\u2019s written on the body, plain as day: water, shock, dust, freeze proof<\/em>. Waterproof to three metres, able to survive a drop of one and a half metres, unaffected by sand and cold.<\/p>\n

That specification explains everything else. The lens never extends from the body: the zoom works behind a fixed window, otherwise waterproofing would be impossible. The controls are large, well spaced and usable with wet fingers. And the aperture remains modest, around f\/4, because a fast lens unit in a sealed body of this size simply didn\u2019t exist at this price.<\/p>\n

In other words, it\u2019s a daylight camera. The interesting question is how far you can push it before it shows.<\/p>\n

What the spec sheet says, what the files say<\/h2>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Sensor<\/th>\n12 megapixels (4000 \u00d7 3000 px files)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Lens<\/th>\nFujinon 5\u00d7, 36\u2013180 mm equivalent<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Recorded aperture<\/th>\nf\/4 at wide angle, f\/4.5 at around 60 mm<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
ISO settings used that day<\/th>\nISO 100 to 800<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Screen<\/th>\n2.7 inches, anti-reflective coating<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Waterproofing<\/th>\n3 metres<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Drop resistance<\/th>\n1.5 metres<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Video<\/th>\n720p<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Shooting aids<\/th>\nface and smile detection<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n
A detail that throws people: your files will say \u2018XP10\u2019<\/b><\/p>\n

When you open the photos, the metadata reports a FinePix XP10<\/em> and not an XP15. It\u2019s neither a mistake nor a mislabelled camera: the XP15 is part of Fujifilm\u2019s XP10 series and shares its firmware. The installation CD supplied with the camera at the time even says \u2018FinePix XP10 Series\u2019. If you buy a second-hand XP15 and the software shows XP10, all is well.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Set the clock before you go out<\/b><\/p>\n

On cameras that have sat in a drawer for years, the backup battery has died and the clock resets to its factory date. The eight photos from this walk are dated January 2010, even though they were taken this summer. It doesn\u2019t change the image, but it makes sorting impossible. Two minutes in the menu the first time you switch it on will save you that.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

The walk, hour by hour<\/h2>\n

Late afternoon: where it has nothing to prove<\/h3>\n
\"Fa\u00e7ades
ISO 100, f\/4, 1\/170 s. The stone keeps its warmth, and the sky doesn\u2019t blow out to white.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

At this time of day, it has everything it needs. The low-angle light picks out the mouldings, the sky stays blue instead of turning grey, and the stone keeps the warm tone it really has. Colours come out bold, a little strong in the reds: that\u2019s the signature of this generation of compacts, and it\u2019s exactly what many people come looking for today.<\/p>\n

At ISO 100 and 1\/170 s, the file is clean. Viewed at screen size, nothing gives away the camera\u2019s age.<\/p>\n

Under the glass roof: where the dynamic range runs out<\/h3>\n
\"Verri\u00e8re
ISO 100, f\/4, 1\/60 s. The sky holds, but the bas-reliefs plunge into darkness.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

A covered arcade means harsh backlighting: sky filling the frame on one side, shaded stone on the other. The XP15 makes a choice, and makes it decisively: it holds the sky and gives up on the shadows. The bas-reliefs and mouldings around the edge become silhouettes.<\/p>\n

This is the camera\u2019s most visible limitation. With a sensor of this size and era, there\u2019s no latitude to recover in the shadows: what\u2019s black is lost. It\u2019s up to you to pick your side when you take the shot, by aiming at the area you want to keep.<\/p>\n

Dusk: the shutter speed starts to drop<\/h3>\n
\"Terrasse\"Terrasse<\/div>\n

Left: ISO 200, f\/4.5 at 60 mm, 1\/17 s. Right: ISO 200, f\/4, 1\/27 s.<\/p>\n

The terraces arrive just as the camera starts to struggle. It goes up to ISO 200 and lets the shutter speed slide: 1\/27 s, then 1\/17 s as soon as you zoom in a little. At those speeds, handheld and without effective stabilisation, camera shake is no longer just a risk.<\/p>\n

The photo on the left stays sharp because the scene is still and the camera was held steady. The one on the right already shows that slight softness that gives the hand away. It\u2019s not necessarily a flaw (plenty of people like that texture), but it\u2019s better to know about it than to be caught out by it.<\/p>\n

At night: grain, halos and neon<\/h3>\n
\"Fa\u00e7ade
ISO 800, f\/4.3, 1\/4 s. A quarter of a second handheld: the grain is there, but the shot still holds up.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

A quarter of a second handheld, at ISO 800. On paper, it\u2019s a lost photo. In practice, it holds up: the street lamp bursts into a star, the fairy lights bleed a little, the Virginia creeper turns dark red. It\u2019s noisy, it\u2019s soft in the corners, and it\u2019s exactly the look this generation of compacts produces at night.<\/p>\n

\"Enseigne
ISO 100, f\/4, 1\/30 s. With a strong light source in the frame, it turns sharp and clear again.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Illuminated signs suit it much better. When the scene contains its own light source, the camera drops back to ISO 100, the shutter speed goes up, and the neon keeps its colour instead of bleeding into white. That\u2019s the best night-time use for this camera: aim at what glows, not at what\u2019s lit.<\/p>\n

\"Coin\"Vitrine<\/div>\n

Two ways to handle the night: let black be black, or go with a coloured light.<\/p>\n

The dark street shows the same thing as the glass roof, in reverse: anything that isn\u2019t directly lit disappears into black. The green shop window, on the other hand, is the nice surprise of the evening: faced with heavily saturated artificial light, the white balance doesn\u2019t panic and lets the colour cast show instead of half-correcting it.<\/p>\n

What it does well, what it doesn\u2019t<\/h2>\n
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Its strengths<\/h3>\n