Our Road Tests of the FUJIFILM X-H2S continue, so Church Production sent it to Discover Life Church in Atlanta and let their Creative Director, Andy McMahon, and his co-lead, Zelan Rivera, take it for a spin during Sunday services. In this video, Church Production’s Marcel Patillo tells us what they thought.
The FUJIFILM X-H2S has received the Church Production Road Test Certification. Learn more here.
McMahon used the camera for still photography for the church’s social media team, while Rivera used it for videography, cinematography, and live streaming. It was used in Sunday services and Sunday night young adult services.
“...this camera kicks butt...I loved it" - Zelan Rivera, cinematographer, Discover Life Church
McMahon’s first impressions: “What I was trying to do is temper my expectations and I still was completely surprised at just the quality of the product when you pick it up and you hold it, I don’t know if that makes sense, but you could just feel it,” he says. “And those lenses were like cutting butter, smooth man. If I go to zoom, and then adjust those lenses, it just felt nice. It wasn't too easy to turn it, too hard to turn. It was just like the perfect amount to where you're not pushing the focus over it. It was a really good feel for me and I really liked it.”
But the advantage of the X-H2S isn’t just its obvious photography chops; it’s that the camera switches into cinema-style video capture without missing a beat using its variety of film simulations.
"...I was trying to do is temper my expectations and I still was completely surprised at just the quality..." - Andy McMahon, Executive Pastor/Creative Pastor, Discover Life Church
Rivera says he was surprised with the low-light performance on the video side of things. “It's able to keep the grain down within the shadows. So, when you're filming towards the stage, usually your stage is bright as the heavens, and then it bleeds out going to a darker audience. But it kept a lot of the grain down to a minimum. I loved it. Now, granted, I did have the Fujinon cine-lens, which I believe was 2.8 or 1.8, so I could stop it pretty low. It was a very fast lens. I had more than enough light to film in, but I was really impressed.”
Rivera says the church uses two styles of videography. A traditional look for sermons but then for worship they’re really going for the cinema looks, where the FUJIFILM X-H2S excelled. “Fuji [FUJIFILM] has a more creative image. And, as a cinematographer that's all I care about. So, like the amount of the different film simulations and how you can tack them in by percentages, I loved that look.”
McMahon says the flexibility to quickly transition between still photography and video would be very useful in a church setting and cut down on the number of people needed at a church event. “If we were doing a car wash or we were doing a trunk or treat or whatever, then we could have just one person walk around and kind of make the call. Are we doing some b-roll right here? Or are we doing some stills or are we doing both? So, we could potentially go from three volunteers to maybe just one.”
Take a few minutes now with Marcel Patillo and the creative staff at Discovery Church to hear just exactly what the FUJIFILM X-H2S can do for your creative team, especially given its price point of just $2,199. We’ll give you a hint, Zelen says, it kicks butt. You can also deep dive the cam's specs on FUJIFILM’s website.
Learn more about the FUJIFILM X-H2S here. Shop here.
