So I got a Fujifilm X-Pro2, because I wanted to try something a bit different. I didn’t wanna go for the X-Pro3 for three reasons:
The price
I don’t like the new screen implementation
Have you seen the goddamn price???
So last-gen X-Pro for me it is.
I’ve only shot with it for about an hour or so today, but so far so good. I started out in front of the Magasin du Nord department store, waiting for my girlfriend to come back after raiding the chocolatier. I saw these signs they put up about welcoming customers back after the Covid-19 shutdown, and then I saw this gentleman strolling by.
X-Pro 2 w. XF 27mm f2.8 1/250 sec @ f10 ISO 500
I really liked the match between the colors of the advert with his shirt and skintone. Not bad for the first ever frame with a new camera.
Then I basically did a 180 degree turn, which brought me straight on with the Royal Theatre building. There was quite a lot of traffic, and I ended up shooting quite a few trash frames, until this one:
X-Pro 2 w. XF 27mm f2.8 1/550 sec @ f10 ISO 200
I really liked the silhouette of her bike with the basket in front, and her ponytail. Plus there was something about the way the stone almost glowed in the sunlight.
At this point my girlfriend returned, unfortunately sans chocolates. You could only buy them in large packs, and apparently that’s a bad thing.
We decided to head for the street kitchen on the harbor, which took us by Kongens Nytorv, a large square in Copenhagen. It had been covered up for years by scaffolding as part of the metro construction, but now the flower beds and the equestrian statue are back in full glory. I remember sitting on the benches here as a kid, and wanted to capture some of that summer vibe.
X-Pro 2 w. XF 27mm f2.8 1/320 sec @ f8 ISO 200
I liked this frame because it shows all the things I just mentioned, plus it has the Danish flag waving in the background. DENMARK F*** YEAH.
I also took a frame of the Royal Theatre from the square, but it just didn’t “pop” for me. I think the light would have to have been a bit different for it to really work for me.
X-Pro 2 w. XF 27mm f2.8 1/500 sec @ f8 ISO 200
Maybe if there was something else in the foreground instead of the two ladies I’d have liked it better. It has a very old school vibe, but the two women just don’t play into that. A shame.
Since it was on the way I also had to take a shot of Nyhavn. Its Tourist Trap Numero Uno in Copenhagen, and there’s a bazillion photos of the place, but I just couldn’t help myself.
X-Pro 2 w. XF 27mm f2.8 1/450 sec @ f8 ISO 200
On the way back there were two shirtless dudes on the boat itself which looked really cool, but at that point I had packed away the camera and just wanted to go home and have some dinner.
About ten steps later I noticed this freaky looking bike. Or what used to be a bike, because after having been at the bottom of the canals for god knows how long, there wasn’t much bike left. I framed it up and hope someone or something would come in to provide a bit of interesting middle ground, and some young lady on a bike was apparently happy to oblige.
X-Pro 2 w. XF 27mm f2.8 1/450 sec @ f8 ISO 200
I really like this shot. I can’t put a finger on why, it just has a certain je ne sais quoi. The edit does get rid of some of the detail on the bike, so here’s a different edit where you can really see just how covered in gunk it is.
We then came to the bridge across the harbor, and found this scene. Now this is usually not weird to see on a hot day in Copenhagen, but I gotta say, given that we’re in the middle of a pandemic and gatherings of more than 10 are forbidden by law, this was a bit of a surprise. In my eyes this is waaaaay too many people huddled waaaay to close together.
X-Pro 2 w. XF 27mm f2.8 1/4700 sec @ f2.8 ISO 200
As we finally made our way over the bridge, we discovered the street kitchen was closed. Gawd damn it. But in the end it was all good, because I got my pick of the day on the way back over the bridge. I give you, The Copenhagen Harbor Royal Battlefleet.
X-Pro 2 w. XF 27mm f2.8 1/250 sec @ f8 ISO 320
I really dig the flow of the image, with the two front kayaks forming a leading line to the four at the back. And of course like a proper pleb, I am a sucker for that orange/blue combo. So this photo is my pick du jour.