It’s refreshing to see two creative and talented guys talking about life in such a casual and open way. You might need the subtitles for this one. 🙂
Category: Love
X100VI
I recently bought a new camera. My first in over 12 years.1 The new camera is a Fujifilm X100VI, the latest in their line of fixed lens travel cameras.
It’s a very different camera than what I’ve been shooting with, a still wonderful Nikon D800. I love the D800, but I wanted something smaller and less complicated. Something I can just throw in a bag and not worry about which lens to bring – and the bulk. The D800 with an 50mm lens is close to 2.6 pounds! The X100VI by comparion is 1.15 lbs.
I’m still wrapping my head around the new camera. Learning the menus and commands and getting comfortable with setting it up how I like it. I’ve gone on one long trip and captured a few decent photos.
I wanted to document a few of the things I’ve learned along the way. To help reflect and reset my expectations – and hopefully so others can learn from my experiences.
Setup Command Dial
Unsurprisingly, I’ve customized the front and rear command dials to work just like the D800 – Aperture on the front dial, shutter speed on the rear. ISO set to Auto or I use the dial for specific needs.
This video from JayRegular was really helpful in figuring this out. One note, from Jay in the comments, is really important!
“For everyone who cannot get the aperture dial to work when set to “A” go into menu > wrench icon > button dial setting > aperture ring setting (A) and set it to ‘command’ instead of ‘auto'”
I love how many Fn buttons there are on this little guy and have been playing around with them. I have even set the manual focus ring to switch between the 50mm and 70mm digital teleconverter. It’s like a zoom ring (but not)!
Use the EVF
It’s faster than the optical viewfinder and gives you a better representation of how your shot will look. Coming from a D800 this was a big change to get use to. After a few outings, I’m starting to appreciate it more. I like the idea of an optical viewfinder, but with the offset on the X100VI – and with an added lens hood – it’s almost useless.2
Speed Things Up
Get a good SD card. You don’t need a UHS-II card as the X100VI only supports UHS-I cards. However, if you do buy a card that is faster than what the camera can utilize, you can still benefit when transferring images from the SD card to a computer. For example my Mac’s SD card slot can utilize UHS-II speeds up to 312 MB/s. I picked up a Sandisk that has a read rating of about 200MB/s. For the first week I used an old 80MB/s SD card I had lying around and it was so slow to save and preview images.
In the power management settings there is an option called “boost”. Turn this on. It helps with focus and viewfinder display performance.3 Two of the most key aspects of nailing a shot.
If you’re worried about battery life, Wasabi Power makes a great replacement battery (x2) and a charger for like $30. Way cheaper than Fuji’s own battery and the charger can charge two batteries at the same time over USB-C.
This was a wild one to learn. By default the X100VI will use 2.4GHz wi-fi to transfer images to your smartphone. Switch the wi-fi to 5GHz for noticeably faster transfer speeds. 5GHz has been around for over a decade at this point. It should be the default to give a better user experience and it’s one setting that can be easily overlooked.
Chris Lee (pal2tech on YouTube) created a great beginners setup video for this camera. I learned of this tip and a few others from his videos. Go check them out.
Shoot in RAW
Even though my photo editing app of choice doesn’t support the latest RAW (.RAF) files from this camera (yet), I’m still shooting RAW. Storage space is cheap and I love being able to pull the most range out of the images I shoot. I find JPEG/HEIF images direct from the camera to have too much contrast. Here’s a subtle example between a HEIF version and RAW version of the same image. The RAW file was converted to DNG so I can edit. No other edits to the images, direct from the camera.
Notice how much darker the HEIF image is in the eye sockets. There’s no data there to pull from when editing.
Move with your feet
This is just general photography advice and more of a reminder for myself. For the last 12 years I’ve shot primarily with my D800 and a fixed prime lens. Either a 50mm or an 85mm (for portraits). I’m use to shooting with these longer focal length lenses. The 35mm equivalent on the X100 means I need to move in more often. Or, be mindful that with this camera that you’re going to capture more surrounding context than you would with a longer lens.
You can also fib this a bit with the X100VI. With a 40 megapixel image size, cropping by 50% still gives you a very usable 20 megapixel image. I’m not a purist! Do both if that’s what works for you.
Trust in the Force IBIS
This is the first camera I’ve used that has in body image stabilization. I shoot mostly handheld and would never go below the reciprocal rule when shooting. So if I was shooting with my 85mm I would never go below ~1/100th of a second shutter speed. The resulting image, no how hard I tried to control my stance, grip, and breathing, would result in a blurry image.
But oh boy, the X100VI has five-axis stabilization. I can take a sharp photo, handheld, at a shutter speed far lower than the focal length. I’ve been able to get a few great shots at 1/25 and 1/15. That is pure magic. I’m having to learn that I have this new superpower and where its limits lie, but so far I’m really enjoying it. When I remember I can do it!
The wonderful Dave Etchells from Imaging Resource has this surprisingly in-depth interview with Hisashi Takeuchi from Olympus on how this all works. Fascinating stuff.
Conclusion
I’m heading out on another trip soon. This one a little longer and varied than the last. I’m hoping to have more to share and I’ll update this post if I come across any other tidbits that I think might be useful. Thanks for reading and please share your own tips in the comments and check out more of my photos on Flickr.
See also
Michael E. Koerner
Michael Koerner was my dad. That’s hard to write. “Was”. There’s not much new to be said about the death of a loved one after centuries of human experience, especially those who are the closest to our hearts. But that’s what I’m going to do, because this is my dad. And I loved him.
August 6, 1951 – January 3, 20244
My dad was born in St. Louis, Missouri on August 6th, 1951. The internet says it was a Monday, and hot (92ºF). He doesn’t remember that. He grew up in south St. Louis City, Affton, and was the second oldest of four children. His parents worked hard to provide a safe and loving home and they did. Something that we Koerners continue to strive for today. He had a typical lower-to-middle-class upbringing. Running around the neighborhood getting up to no good, cooling off on the porch roof on a hot summer night. Hanging out with his younger brother Greg. Grandma, Georgia, never learned to drive, having access to public transportation – and Grandpa, Christ, did own a car and would take her wherever she needed. They both worked and cared for their children.
After high school he tried college. Forest Park Community College, but ended up joining the Navy. He spent a few years aboard the USS Reasoner. Even after only serving four years, he had a lifetime of stories to tell. About the people he met and befriended and the places he saw. Southern California – where he met his first wife and my mother, Carla, Vietnam and the Philippines, Washington state and even a little bit of Alaska, by way of motorcycle.
Oh I should mention motorcycles – or really my father’s love for anything with wheels and a motor.
A car aficionado since childhood, my father could look at nearly any vehicle on the road (or often in a parking lot at a local car show) and tell you numerous indelible things about the construction, performance, and culture around it. If it has a 404 (a size of motor), but came from the factory with a 306, he’d know what make and trim and year and…well, you get the picture. He was at every Easter Car Show in Forest Park for the last 30 some odd years. Even the little local ones every month, April through October.
Mike, sorry, Michael – he was big on proper names5, not that he ever chided anyone for shortening them – spent his forty-something years of employment working in warehouses and mailrooms in higher education institutions. First at Washington University’s Central Stores, and later Saint Louis University. He worked hard and smart. Never making a trip back-and-forth empty-handed.
He defied the oft too common stereotypes of a motorcycle-riding, blue collar worker by being a fan of the arts. Which makes sense when you work for universities I suppose. Nah, my dad was just a voracious learner, a critical thinker, a common sense maker. A set of skills that continue to be passed down.
He was kind and loving. You couldn’t get off the phone without saying, “I love you too”, and even in my teenage years – and much to my chagrin – I always appreciated the affection he shared with me and many others. He showed up so many times throughout my life – all the way up until the end. He always told me how much he was proud of me.
He adored being a dad and eventually a grandfather, lovingly known as Pop. Pop attended every dance recital, choir and orchestra concert, soccer game, and numerous other events his granddaughters do. Most recently he helped his oldest granddaughter Kari complete her Eagle Project. He welcomed my wife of now 20 years, Jackie, with such admiration and care that she was taken aback by the first hug and has loved every one since.
Pop and the family
My dad was an avid reader. Of sci-fi, westerns, fantasy – anything with a good story and quick-witted dialog. He even started writing a few of his own stories, unpublished, but loved.
He loved the movies. Film was a big way he and I bonded. Sharing the experience of being in front of a big screen and kibitzing afterword about the plot and characters and special effects. Oh, and going back to the mistaken stereotype, my dad loved the theatre. His favorite show was Mama Mia. A musical based on ABBA songs! I think he’d seen it enough times that they could have asked him up on stage to fill in as an understudy. We loved the Fabulous Fox Theatre and the hundreds of experiences of a live performance. A many blessed memories with the Vogelsangs (his godmother Martha and cousin Pat) and many others.
Education was crucial to my father. Working at universities (and being aware of the world) he always drove home the importance of being open-minded and continually learning. He worked these physically demanding, not very well paying jobs, so I could go to school. My going to college was very important to him – that I could have, and succeed, in a life better than the one he had.
They say a way to a man’s heart is through his stomach and that has never been more true than with my father. He loved to try a new place to eat, to take us out for a casual burger, and to enjoy a home cooked meal. He stuck to the more traditional fare, but he never turned down trying something new.
Never quite a trendsetter, my dad is proceeded in departing this life by his parents, Georgia and Christian, his brother, Gregory and sister, Barbara. He leaves behind a sister, Helen. He is proud of his son Christopher, his wife Jackie, and their two daughters, Kari and Kori. As we were of him.
To tell a story is to have one’s memory live forever. Please watch a film with a loved one and tell a story or two. Pick up a good book and read it aloud to someone. Travel. Go someplace new, even if it’s just a restaurant across town.
If you’re interested, my dad asked that donations be made to the Ronald McDonald House Charities of St. Louis.
He didn’t want a funeral or a burial ceremony. “None of that dreary stuff”, he said. I don’t think he’d want a traditional obituary either, hence, the more casual and conversational tone in this one. Something I think my father was known for. If you want to pay a visit, he is interred at Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery.
A gathering will be held in the near future to celebrate his life. Where we can come together and share stories of him.
Seven Years – or thereabouts
In January I will have been at the Wikimedia Foundation for 7 years. 7 My role has changed a lot over those seven years, as has the organization and the wider Wikimedia movement. At the end of this year, I wanted to take a second to write down what I do and why. This is a pseudo-introduction post for social media (where I don’t have much of a presence) and a chance to pen a, “What I do for a living” blog post.
One of the big things I do is help with movement-facing communications stuff for the Wikimedia Foundation. The non-profit that supports Wikipedia and other free-knowledge projects. My job is to get teams at the Foundation to talk to the volunteers and share what they’re doing. Lots of behind-the-scenes feedback and input on how to find folks and where to talk to them – before we go and talk to them!
That’s always ongoing, never ending work that most of the time works well. Teams write their thinking down and understand what the community values (no surprises!). Folks know about the work we’re doing and can get involved. We understand their needs and concerns and address them. I try to be the voice of the community – as best any one person can – in internal conversations. So we’re as understanding and aligned as a 700+ org of folks, the majority of which are not contributors and are new to this community, can be.
The other big thing I do is help run a community news and event blog called Diff. https://diff.wikimedia.org This is also ongoing, never ending work, that most of the time works well. It’s the more fun, direct work I do in support of the first big thing I mentioned.
The name is super dorky. It’s named after the “differential” view between two edits on a wiki and the difference volunteers make in their work. I get to help share what people are working on from around the world in the pursuit of free knowledge. I’m like the hype man for the Wikimedia movement. Ok, maybe just a hype man, but I love my job and feel very lucky that I get to do this for a living.
In 2022, Diff saw 188,427 visitors making up 386,331 views. We published 640 posts in dozens of languages from close to 300 authors. We have over 720 email subscribers. On the scale of Wikipedia that’s small potatoes (English Wikipedia saw 96 Billion views in 2022), but on the scale of the movement of volunteers – editors, organizers, affiliates, staff, etc. – I’m happy with what we’ve done. For comparison we say we have about 300k contributors across all projects and languages, so to reach 188k “visitors” of that group, and a little beyond, is pretty good in my book.
Diff is very open. You can login with your Wikimedia account and submit a draft. I keep the site running on the software/feature side of things, documentation, and helping review the drafts that come in and answer questions from authors. That last bit takes up a lot of time. I really appreciate everyone who takes the time to write a post and I am here for giving folks the platform and support to share their work.
Here’s a short list of some of my favorite posts this year.
Araisyohei, a volunteer from Japan takes on a behind-the-scenes tour of OYA Soichi Library, a small magazine library in Tokyo. There’s some great photos of their event and an even more amazing video tour of this tiny library embedded in the post.
JA: https://diff.wikimedia.org/ja/2022/06/13/日本随一の雑誌専門図書館でエディッタソンを有/
EN: https://diff.wikimedia.org/2022/06/22/editathon-at-oya-soichi-library-japanese-magazine-library/
Every year Jimmy Wales celebrates Wikimedians for their efforts. Expanded in recent years, the “Wikimedian of the Year” awards are always a highlight. These folks are doing such unique and important work in their free time.
EN (Numerous language selectable in the drop-down): https://diff.wikimedia.org/2022/08/14/celebrating-the-2022-wikimedians-of-the-year/
One of the folks who won an award this year was Annie Rauwerda, from @depthsofwikipedia fame. I was fortunate enough to interview Annie in late 2021, right as she was blowing up. #humblebrag
Her work now has its own Wikipedia article in eight languages!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Depths_of_Wikipedia
Wikimedians host photo contests throughout the year on various themes. Wiki loves Folklore, Wiki Loves Monuments, Wiki Loves Africa, Picture of the Year, and more. These contests capture the diversity of life on the planet and the amazing talents volunteers have – and share freely. I’m in awe and humbled every time we publish a recap of a contest. Here’s a recent one from the Wiki Loves Africa 2022 contest.
Another from April and the Wiki Loves Monuments 2021 contest.
One of the cornerstones – maybe _the_ cornerstone of what makes Wikipedia work are citations to reliable sources. Access to these sources can be challenging. Many are behind paywalls or in journals that are hard to access. The Foundation helps by building a service called the Wikipedia Library, where volunteers can get free access to these sources to help create and improve articles.
I work with a lot of smart folks who are trying to figure out how to create, sustain, and grow healthy and independent communities. One way we do that is by developing programs, training, and resources for communities to succeed. In this three-part(!) series, Alex Stinson explores how organizing helps the movement grow in relation to our 2030 movement strategy.
Editing an encyclopedia seems like a boring, harmless endeavor. Until you realize that there are people who don’t want this to happen. They don’t like facts. Or laws that could greatly hinder how volunteers can contribute and what we’re able to host. Our legal department and our global advocacy team are some of the most caring, invested folks I know making sure people can express facts – and themselves – in areas of the world where that is dangerous.
https://diff.wikimedia.org/2022/04/20/how-smart-is-the-smart-copyright-act/
We also love to republish articles from elsewhere on the web. Wikimedian and deep learning enthusiast Colin Morris shared his work in trying to discover the _least_ viewed article on Wikipedia.
https://diff.wikimedia.org/2022/06/06/in-search-of-the-least-viewed-article-on-wikipedia/
Last, but not least, our product tames take building software for everyone very seriously. We have a new desktop interface (and I think secretly a new mobile interface too) coming in January. In this post the product manager, Olga a good friend and foxhole comrade, talks about how the web team approaches developing their work with equity in mind. The sort of thoughtful product development we need to see more of in the world.
EN (and seven languages):
https://diff.wikimedia.org/2022/08/18/prioritizing-equity-within-wikipedias-new-desktop/
The Wikimedia movement is messy. People can be jerks and the barrier to entry is far too high for my liking. I show up every day trying to increase awareness and participation of what folks are doing. To gather people together and connect interests and ideas. It’s funny to be working in the blog mines in 2022 – not just working – but thriving when so many folks consider a blog as an old antiquated thing. I think they have a place and more folks should turn to them to share what they are doing and learn from others. I don’t know where I go from here professionally. Something I’ve been talking about with folks, but whatever is next I hope is more of this. Positivity, working together to tell the story of our movement, and supporting one another through difficult times.
Surfing Away From Here
These two gents say it better than I.
I’m spending less time online and more time in-person. I abandoned Twitter. Deleted the Reddit app from my phone. I even pruned my RSS feeds. I check deleted Facebook rarely entirely. Instead I’ve created a text list of friends to pay a visit to. I’m going to make it down the list to see everyone by the end of 2019.
I got a Kindle from my wife for an early Christmas present. Renewed my library card. Notifications don’t exist on the Kindle and I’m still stupefied by e-ink. I can’t tab over to another app nor return to a home screen of jeweled distraction. I am spending more time reading long form books (boy is it hard to stay focused. I’m out of mental shape!). I’m playing more with the kids. Spending more time in the kitchen.
And you know what? I don’t miss any of it. The stuff I was “reading” (wasting my time with) were frivolous drops of nothingness. Their mental caloric intake was negative. The fear of missing out has been replaced with the much healthier fear of getting sucked back in.
To quote yet another more eloquent persons, “This isn’t about not doing anything ever, it’s about not wasting your time filling your brain up with stuff that isn’t accomplishing anything except avoiding a feeling of discomfort.”
If you’re reading this, I care about you. I hope you’ll consider doing the same. See you on the outside.
P.S. Want to get lunch sometime?