04.02.2020

X-T4: A Cinematographer's View

Established cinematographer, Sean Boyd, tells us how X-T4’s versatility allowed it to fit perfectly into his video workflow while providing him with the freedom to create stills whenever he needed to. 

Sean Boyd has been creating video for some time, but he first found his love for making images as a stills photographer. While he has now made the full transition into cinematography, photography is still a huge part of his creative process. We find out Sean’s thoughts on the FUJIFILM X-T4 shortly after he spent some time with the camera.

Sean loves to use photography as a form of escapism, and he begins by telling us how X-T4 has made the perfect companion for doing just that. “As much as I love what I do down to my core, on most of the video projects I work on there are many elements, moving parts and things going on, and that can get hectic,” explains Sean. “Sometimes I just want to pick up the camera, head to a location I like and start snapping photos without worrying about what lighting I have to bring, the shot list for the day, and the hectic schedule.

“X-T4 makes doing that easy,” he continues. “I can strap it around my neck, hike around the mountains of Oregon for a week and get the camera soaked in water and the next week I can assemble it in a cage with cinema lenses, matte box and the whole nine yards. It’s just incredible to me that such a small package can offer so much.”

“I can lighten the load with an A and B cam for productions. I can keep the size of the camera small or large and have it ready for whatever type of shot we need at a moment’s notice”

This same versatility, coupled with X-T4’s powerful battery life, has made it easy for him to adapt to any professional shooting situation. A long list of new features, including the vari-angle LCD touchscreen, five-axis in-body image stabilization (IBIS), and digital image stabilization (DIS) has made X-T4 just as well-suited to creating handheld YouTube content as it is to full-scale productions. “I can lighten the load with an A and B cam for productions. I can keep the size of the camera small or large and have it ready for whatever type of shot we need at a moment’s notice,” he explains.

Additionally, the camera’s outstanding performance did not go unnoticed by Sean. “X-T4 was honestly great. My workflow was the same and many times I’d get nervous and doubt the camera, but when I pulled the footage into post it looked incredible,” he beams, highlighting the camera’s selection of 18 Film Simulation modes as a huge plus. “Getting a baked-in stylized look in-camera is just awesome to me. The JPEGs are incredible. I don’t really do any post-processing at all.

“Show me a hybrid camera with better color science,” he urges. “The moment I first saw the footage I had shot on a FUJIFILM camera that was it, I was hooked. If you’re going to tell beautiful stories, make sure you make beautiful images.”

This praise was only strengthened by X-T4’s ability to record professional-quality 4K/60p 10-bit video at 4:2:0 color internally and 4:2:2 via the built-in HDMI port. “The 10-bit internal recording is a game changer. Having a camera this small that shoots such a wide color gamut and log is just amazing,” says Sean. “I can be discreet when I need to, I can capture great dynamic range, and I have the flexibility in post for great grading results without terrible color banding. Until now, if you wanted 10-bit, you were looking at much more expensive cameras or ones that lack many of the great features X-T4 has.”

“If you’re going to tell beautiful stories, make sure you make beautiful images”

Sean sums up by telling us that X-T4 makes the ideal addition to his professional setup. “This camera did not change the way I shoot at all – and that’s a good thing. If I have to change my workflow, fuss and fight with the colors in post or deal with poor reliability, then that’s not the camera I’m bringing to the job,” he says.

He concludes by praising X-T4’s overall abilities as a hybrid camera: “On either end of the spectrum, whether it’s photo or video, this camera delivers. Nothing else out there can put such amazing photo and video quality at the tips of your fingers with the ease, affordability, and reliability of X-T4.”

X-T4 is coming soon to your nearest FUJIFILM Authorized Dealer. Learn more and read the full specifications here.

Watch Sean’s full video below!

ABOUT THE PHOTOGRAPHER

Sean Boyd is an LA-based director of photography who is highly experienced in shooting everything from music videos to commercials, branded content and much more.

Vimeo: Sean Franklin Boyd
YouTube: Venture Arthouse
Instagram: @venturearthouse
Facebook: @venturearthouse