I’ve used several mirrorless and other dedicated cameras for a couple of years now, and everything I have seen has shown me that while smartphones can take great pictures, they pale in comparison to what you can get from a decent dedicated camera.

I tested a Canon compact camera side by side with my OPPO Find X8 Pro, which certainly isn’t a slouch in the imaging department, and when viewed on my PC monitor, the Canon won hands down.

As such, I have moved on to looking more closely at the various camera releases that cross my desk.  When the Fujifilm X-T30 III was announced, I was immediately interested because it is a compact camera body with an enthusiast lens on it – the next step up from the Canon PowerShot V1 I tried last year.

What is the Fujifilm X-T30 III?

The X-T30 III is a mirrorless digital camera that weighs just 378 grams and features a classic centre-viewfinder style. It features a back-side-illuminated 26.1 megapixel X-Trans CMOS 4 sensor and an X-Processor 5 image processing engine from Fujifilm. This enables processing images twice as fast as the previous generation while also being more power-efficient.

The camera is not large, and as long as you have big pockets, it will fit in them at 118.4 x 82.8 x 46.8 mm, and 329g (or 503g with the kit lens).  It will not fit in your standard shorts pockets, but it might fit in a jacket pocket.

As a new user to Fujifilm, you may be overwhelmed at times by the sheer number of buttons on the camera, but you don’t have to use them to get great images.  

The top of the camera body has three main dials, with the dial on the left-hand side a new film simulation dial – this lets you quickly change the film simulation on the fly.  While not all of the available ones are included on the dial, the most popular ones are, along with a few slots for some custom ones you can setup yourself.

This film simulation dial replaces the drive dial on the previous generation.  Now you access the type of image you want to take by using the drive button on the back, left, top of the camera body.  Not a huge change, but something that takes some getting used to.  This is a nice change once I got used to it – the Canon had a drive dial that I used a lot, but this change in film simulation offers a more camera-enthusiast and professional-quality to the pictures.

I wonder if Fujifilm could have a hybrid drive/film simulation button that lets you set your four favourite film simulations alongside five or six drive modes?

Once again, though, you can just set this on auto and shoot your heart away, but I tested out a few of these and got some great-looking pictures.  

The right-hand side offers a shutter speed dial and an exposure compensation dial.  Although I did not touch the shutter speed dial much, its presence is great if you want to quickly switch to photography of fast-moving subjects.  

The exposure compensation was extremely handy to have, although there were a couple of times I accidentally bumped it before snapping the pic, and the result was over exposed.  The ability to adjust it quickly when required was handy.

The other main thing on the top was the pop-up flash.  I did not use this very often, but having it there and ready to use decreases the number of accessories you may need to cart around with you.  

As you may have guessed just from the top of the camera, this is a more advanced camera than the Canon I used last year.  In saying that though, for beginners, there is an auto mode for all of the above dials that makes it simple to just point and shoot. 

The rest of the buttons can be customised to do whatever you need them to.  I have no problem with this and like this type of customisation.  My problem came with the location of the Q button.  I cannot count the number of times I accidentally pressed that button and had the quick setting show up.  I like the button’s function, just hate its location.  I dare say I would get used to it after a good couple of months.  

The rear LCD touchscreen tilts to allow you to use the camera from waist level.  It does not swivel though, unlike some other brands so taking selfies is tough sledding.  I’m not a big one for tilting the touchscreen but it can come in handy – I would more often be using it for selfies, when it is nice to be able to see just what is in the frame while the camera is on timer and a tripod (eg. for that large family photo on Xmas day).  This is far from a deal breaker, but something I feel that Fujifilm could have included to improve the camera.

As stated above, the camera is not super compact but it is still pocketable – within reason.  I liked the compact size of the Canon, which I could fit it in my pocket a lot easier, but this Fujifilm is not *that* much bigger, depending on the size of the lens you fit to it.  The Fujifilm, though, does produce nicer pictures (by how much, though?) and has a lot more flexibility with settings as you become more and more proficient with your photography skills.

Features

The FujiFilm X-T30 III lacks in-body image stabilisation (IBIS), so you will have to rely on in-lens stabilisation to prevent shaky images.  This wasn’t a huge issue for me but may be for some, especially with nighttime photography when you may use a slower shutter speed.  I just had to be careful when taking images in low light.

The X-T30 III features Fujifilms “latest predictive autofocus (AF) algorithm”  which is designed to be able to track moving subjects with ease, “even in low contrast scenarios.”  

“X-T30 III uses X-Processor 5’s subject detection AF to accurately track a range of subjects. Built using deep-learning AI technology, it detects animals, birds, cars, motorcycles, bicycles, aeroplanes, trains, insects, and drones.”

Combined with face detection, the result is fast and effective.  If you do not want face detection, you can easily switch that off – and quickly if you assign that function to one of the customisable buttons.  I had it assigned to the “Fn” button so a simple press of that toggled it on or off.  

You can also manually change the focus by selecting a subject on the touchscreen.  The software will then follow that subject and keep it in focus until you change the focus.

The lens that came with the X-T30 III is the new FUJINON XC13-33mmF3.5-6.3 OIS lens.  This is included with the X-T30 III full kit package.

The lens covers a focal length from wide-angle 13mm (equivalent to 20mm in 35mm format) to standard 33mm (equivalent to 50mm in 35mm format).  It is just 37.5mm in length and weighs only 125 grams.  Other features include:

  • Everyday compact zoom lens for X Series
  • Wide-angle zoom that covers 20-50mm in 35mm format equivalent 
  • Lightest FUJINON interchangeable zoom lens at 125g
  • 4.0 stop image stabilisation to create with confidence 
  • 9 Aperture blades for smooth out-of-focus highlights

While I am a novice with lenses, I found the lens to be a good all-rounder.  It was relatively compact will still offering versatility in my shot-taking.  I dare say it would be a good one for holidays but if you need something specialised (such as photographing wildlife in Iceland – my 2026 plans) you would need something with more zooming or wide-angle abilities.  I dare say I am going to do more research before my trip to Scandinavia to get the most out of my photos. 

My only issue with the lens was that you have to pop it out for a quick shot.  You can’t just quickly point and shoot but have to pop the lens out manually.  The more I used it, the faster I got at it, but the whole process is slower than the compact camera I used. 

Imaging

Now that fluff is all well and good but how good are the images?  I’ve selected a good-sized sample below.  Have a look and see what you think.

I took a range of photos using the different film simulations (of the same subject). These are changes that you really need to play around with to decide what you like and when — I’ve spoken to a couple of experts who have their favourites so it is important to experiment and see where yours lie. Some of the differences are really subtle but here they are:

Fujifilm XApp

The FujiFilm XApp is really good and nearly everything you need in a camera app.  It allows you to easily transfer images from your camera to your smartphone – you can resize them or not, depending on your preference.   I chose not to resize because I can do that elsewhere, get the originals while you can, in case the memory card becomes corrupt.

You can also control the camera itself in the app, and do virtually everything from it.  You can control the film simulation, exposure compensation, ISO sensitivity, shutter speed, white balance, flash, and timer.  Of course, you can also see the viewfinder, which is what you will need to do if you are taking a selfie or using the camera remotely.

One thing you cannot do within the app is to edit images or apply any film simulation post-capture.  This is disappointing as it would have been nice to check out all the different film simulations before using them in the wild.

The app is well-made, and although the connection can take a minute or two at times, it seemed stable and consistent once connected. 

Final thoughts

The Fujifilm X-T30 III is a great camera for novices and experts alike. It is compact, fits a wide range of lenses, and has a multitude of functions, whether you wish to use your expert photographer skills or plain old auto mode for those who want to just point and shoot.

Auto mode is still really good and offers fast focus, great exposure, and high-quality images, so don’t be scared of buying this if you are just a novice — I still am, and I was comfortable with it after using it for a couple of weeks.

The images are great, and yes they are far better than what your smartphone can produce — no matter which smartphone you have. The only advantage of the smartphone is that you always have it with you, but if you are heading off on holidays if you take a camera such as this one with you, you will undoubtedly end up with better quality images capturing those precious holiday moments.

The Fujifilm X-T30 III is available now at RRP AU$1,679 with just the camera body itself. The Fujifilm X-T30 III body in a kit with the XC 13-33mm F3.5-6.3 OIS lens will cost you RRP AU$1,949. It i s not cheap but you get what you pay for.