Quick take: In part 3 of my X-H2S firmware 7.10 testing, I focused on photo autofocus with the Fujifilm 150-600mm in about the worst conditions possible: dark, wet and cold. Bird and animal detection worked well, IBIS made 1/160s at 600mm easy, and ISO 8000 held up. Whatever autofocus issues people had in photo mode are gone. It's totally solid.
Why a Photo-Only Test
After my video-focused firmware tests, I got a lot of comments asking about photos. I sometimes forget people buy cameras for that, not just video. Someone specifically asked about wildlife. The only wildlife we really have in Jersey are geese, ducks and squirrels, but I did my best.
The complaint people had before was that in AF-C, and in modes that were previously AF-S, the camera would show a green in-focus confirmation, and then the photos turned out not to be in focus. That's worse than plain bad autofocus. I never ran into it, partly because of a pro tip: if your camera ever gives you autofocus trouble, switch to single point. Single point is still good on every digital camera.
A Tough Test Setup
I used the Fujifilm 150-600mm, which is slow at F5.6 to F8 at the long end. Add a dark, wet, cold evening, and this is a hard environment for any autofocus system. The camera's screen was also being recorded externally, and that takes up some processing power.
Birds and Subject Detection
Fuji's subject detection mode picked up birds well. It found geese and ducks right away, though it ignored them if I aimed above them. Switching between bird and animal detection made a difference for squirrels, and I'd love an automatic mode that picks the subject type for you. If you're really shooting birds, though, you probably want a dedicated bird mode anyway. For people who shoot animals regularly with continuous AF, let me know how it compares for you, but to me it works really well.
Shooting through brush and foreground clutter was its weak point. It sometimes grabbed the grass or water instead of the subject until I adjusted manually. I'm not sure other brands are much better there.
IBIS and High ISO
At 600mm and 1/160s, I knew the shots would be sharp without checking. The X-H2S has the best IBIS I've used on any camera for photos. Video is another story, but it's still better than Sony's IBIS for video, and Sony's is bad.
Noise performance is good. I pushed to ISO 8000 in the rain and still got usable images, including a little portrait. At the end I spotted a deer in near darkness at ISO 8000 against a low-contrast background, and the camera hunted a bit. From experience, I'd blame the environment more than the autofocus.
Telephoto Is Fun
People don't realize how much background separation you get past 300mm, even with a cheap lens. My favorite telephoto is still the Fujifilm 70-300mm: fast, small and really good image quality. Telephoto landscapes are fun too.
The Verdict
Photo autofocus is perfect for me now. To the viewer heading to Botswana who asked whether to update before the trip: you're good. There are no concerns, and you're unlikely to be shooting at ISO 8000 in the rain with an external recorder attached.
For the record, I never had autofocus problems even on the X-T3, which is supposed to be archaic by comparison. Its continuous center-point AF wasn't great for photos, but it was fine for video and manageable for sports. For people photos, the X-H2S will be easy. I might actually get bored since I won't have to focus and recompose.
Side Notes
The manual focus clutch on the 150-600 feels totally disconnected. The 200mm F2's is just as bad. I don't understand why they don't add resistance.
I edit most commercial work in DaVinci Resolve because the color management is so much better, but for multicam and for mixing 360 footage, Premiere is still better in some ways.
I think video autofocus tests should change. Jumping around in front of a still camera isn't how most people shoot. If you're chasing your kid on a soccer field, you're moving the camera too.
Final Thoughts
This was the last of my firmware 7.10 autofocus videos for the X-H2S. In photo mode, whatever issues anyone had are gone. When Fuji updated the X-T5 a month later, I tested that too: X-T5 firmware 4.10 autofocus update.
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