#291: Just how good is the NEW X-M5, plus starting out as a photographer

Kev’s talk at The Photography Show draws more than a few admiring glances, and it’s now a film! The GFX 100RF has been announced and we ask, is it a camera you need for your kitbag? Who is this camera really for, and why does it leave some photographers vacillating between curiosity and a quiet sense of unease? Kev answers these questions and more, whilst attempting to keep his blood pressure within safe limits. Also on the show, finding a small interchangeable lens camera for street work in the Fujifilm range, manual focusing for astro photography, a documentary magazine collection introduced to us by Ashton Zala, sneak peaks of galleries for clients, and a new genre possibly: chicken dinners!? Email the show with your questions: [email protected]  Pic Time: https://www.pic-time.com/ - use FUJICAST when creating an account for discount offers to apply For links go to the showpage.

Kev’s been to Cheltenham to take pictures of people losing money at the races, although he has a secret, not-so-secret strategy! Also, on the show today, do you do colour calibration (?!?), back-button focus-gate, what’s happening with my X-T5’s ISO on all-auto, is there a good free alternative to Adobe products, there’s a hole in my lens hood - what should I do, and how do I cope with guests at weddings instructing me not to take pictures of them? Plus, dealing with working outside your style for clients, the fabled 18mm f2 lens, and should you use your own name as your business identity. Email the show with your questions: [email protected]  Pic Time: https://www.pic-time.com/ - use FUJICAST when creating an account for discount offers to apply For links go to the showpage.

Kev returns from Spain and seems to have found a new career as a handyman, finding a particular passion for cutting stuff down to size with a chainsaw!!! Also on the show today from the mailbag, Neale and Kev answer questions about photographing solo professionally, shooting video alongside stills, showing unedited material to clients, posing v doc, choosing email and mailing list providers, Substack, invoicing software, and why do people think Kev looks like David Brent??!? Email the show with your questions: [email protected]  Pic Time: https://www.pic-time.com/ - use FUJICAST when creating an account for discount offers to apply For links go to the showpage.

Kev is wondering who sent red roses last Friday, was it you? On the show today, recommendations for a good zoom lens sub £400, just how good is the new Fujifilm X-M5, starting from scratch as a photographer, X100V as a powerhouse, audio kit to accompany your photo storytelling, perfect lenses for travel photography, Kev’s post-retirement plans, can you become a pro wedding photographer in your 50s, and a peak inside Neale and Kev’s kit bags. Plus there’s a bonus question on Judo! Email the show with your questions: [email protected]  Pic Time: https://www.pic-time.com/ - use FUJICAST when creating an account for discount offers to apply For links go to the showpage.

Don’t tell Kev, but Wales lost the rugby - at the time of recording, he was completely unaware! Shhh. Neale finds himself on a commercial shoot where things go bump in the night. Also, on the show, why are so many pictures shot in a vertical fashion? Kev isn’t convinced the world needs vertical images AT ALL! We talk about the number of pictures shot at weddings, gallery stats, the best time to send images to a client, taking a tripod v shooting using IBIS, updating your website to court search engines, showing pictures online that have feeling, understanding how to use ai and upselling social photography packages. Email the show with your questions: [email protected]  Pic Time: https://www.pic-time.com/ - use FUJICAST when creating an account for discount offers to apply For links go to the showpage.

Kev gets dewy-eyed over the music of Ralph McTell, remember the Streets of London, and Neale is feeling hopeful and buoyant about people and business in 2025. Questions today about the best camera for sports photography from the Fujifilm range, the quirks of Auto ISO, content insurance for kit away from home, more issues, photo challenges for 2025, content creators snapping your original ideas, and what software the boys use for editing video. Email the show with your questions: [email protected]  Pic Time: https://www.pic-time.com/ - use FUJICAST when creating an account for discount offers to apply For links go to the showpage.

The boys hit the resolutions road running and answer questions about their photographic callings and choices in life and ‘employing’ your partner as a second shooter. Also, today, should you let your camera choose ISO for every condition, facial recognition and battery drainage, focusing on eyes through reading glasses, Squarespace websites, HEIF format speed issues in post-production, the pictures that affected us from 2024, battling muddy images and how do you squish photos for optimal web use? Email the show with your questions: [email protected]  Pic Time: https://www.pic-time.com/ - use FUJICAST when creating an account for discount offers to apply For links go to the showpage.

The boys cancel Christmas, well, the pre-Chrimbles planned episode at any rate, with Kev’s home town hit by the Malmesbury Malaise, so our exploration into the cavernous Cupboard of Doom will have to wait until ’25. In the meantime, we have the winner of the Lowa boots; discuss how to expand your Insta reach and answer, “Why does my Fujifilm camera keep asking me to recycle the power?" Also, how to wear the cloak of invisibility when trying to act unobtrusively as a candid photographer, what defines a strong black and white image relative to the technical approach and a Zine of the Week by Kenny Gordon from Glasgow - a celebration of football. Email the show with your questions: [email protected]  Pic Time: https://www.pic-time.com/ - use FUJICAST when creating an account for discount offers to apply For links go to the showpage.

Kev is photographing in the boxing ring with a GFX; hope he can duck out the way quick enough! Questions today into the show about making a macro investment, finding a perfect workflow that isn’t complicated when it comes to saving our precious pictures for all time, will more and better ai editing software reduce the need for personal presets, in wide-angle land - what’s too wide when it comes to hitting the dance floor at a wedding to get super expressive shots, what does it mean to drag a shutter, and am I wise to register a domain more locally sounding that a dot com? The book of the week is You Rebel Scum by Daz Smith, a ten year project to document ‘rebels in society.' Email the show with your questions: [email protected]  Pic Time: https://www.pic-time.com/ - use FUJICAST when creating an account for discount offers to apply For links go to the showpage.

Neale’s entering the yuletide spirit early, Kev's fine tuning the recipe for humbug, but they’re both keeping their heads down when it comes to current affairs. Thank St. Nicholas for photography as today on the show we demystify the questions of tech that bamboozle you, whilst Kev explains why he is de-Muskifying at the same time. Why did Threads not quite make the noise creatives thought it may, how can I tell my client that the events pictures I have made are not to be presented free of charge to other parties and what’s the proudest achievement of your photographic career, so far? Also today, buying third party STUFF for your Fujifilm camera kit and enjoying vintage lenses. The book of the week is Pentwyn No. 3 Colliery from one of our supporters, Martin Ellard. Email the show with your questions: [email protected]  Pic Time: https://www.pic-time.com/ - use FUJICAST when creating an account for discount offers to apply For links go to the showpage.