Endless Photography Projects (Even With a "Bad" Camera)
Can the Fujifilm X-half be something more than just an wildly overpriced toy?
I wrote in my last newsletter about the concept of “more” and “less.” It’s my way to focus on what I want more on in life, and one of the things I want a LOT more of is creating art!
(Petapixel actually did an article about my creative process here!)
And although I don’t want to talk about gear all the time… I’m an 80’s kid. I grew up loving Transformers, Nintendo, Sega, and even the Amiga Computer system. I have always loved technology, so sometimes I’m going to allow it to inspire me.
When the Fujifilm X-half went down from a ridiculous $850 to a still-stupid $650, I decided to cash in my camera store credit for this ridiculously cute camera.
WHY????
I already have the OM SYSTEM OM-3 (my favorite camera, by far, of all time), and one of the things I love about that camera is how small and light it is… and there is NO reason really to even think about the X-half if I already use and love the OM-3, is there? Is this just GAS?
Because the X-half is the COMPLETE opposite of the OM-3. While the OM-3 is blazing fast and can tackle anything you throw at it, the X-half is not. It’s slow to use, the optics aren’t great, and the sensor struggles with dynamic range. When you press the shutter release button, there’s a painful wait until the actual shutter activates. This feels like the old days of really slow digital cameras like this weird 25-year-old Nikon compact digital I had. An $850 modern digital camera SHOULD be faster than this.
And while it can’t even shoot RAW files, it has one incredible gimmick: Film Camera Mode. In film camera mode, the camera becomes locked into a choice of 36, 54, or 72 exposures. The rear screen is turned off, so you can only frame shots through the viewfinder (which is pretty poor). Every time you take a shot, you have to “advance” to the next shot with your thumb, just like the film days.
It’s a BLAST to use the Film Camera mode, gimmick or not. When you’re finished with the roll, you’ll need to connect the X-half to your phone to “develop” the film. Seeing the photos appear on the screen gives me just a touch of that old feeling of seeing film develop in the darkroom.
The result of Film Camera mode are these stunning contact sheets, and each photo in the “roll” is also downloaded to your Photos app.
Again - WHY buy the X-half? Because the world is a project, and I have some specific ones lined up for this weird, highly flawed camera. The limitations inspire me.
Here are some of the projects I’m working on with the Fujifilm X-half (and that you can steal with ANY camera, including your cell phone).
Project One: The Neighborhood Project
I love art shows. I’ve had them before (just the fun coffee-shop ones), and since I want “more” art in my life, I’m gravitating more and more toward saying “yes” when I find myself inspired by a project.
What I want to do is have an art show where the “main” prints I have up are the contact sheets of “X-half film rolls” shot in different neighborhoods around Omaha.
Here is the X-half contact sheet of the Benson area in 36 exposures:
Some examples of the individual images (charming… but definitely flawed)":
I’d have the contact sheets printed very large (the contact sheet files are surprisingly good ones), and include some prints available from each neighborhood as well. I bet people would love it. It’s not deep art - but it’s fun as hell. I’ll have the X-half around my neck during the show!
The 17-megapixel sensor/lens combo (f/2.8) isn’t the best, but still does a decent job in rendering mood:
The straight-out-of-camera jpegs (remember, there are no options for RAW) can look rich at times, especially with the famous Fujifilm film simulations (this one Acros R):
PROJECT TWO: CHANGING DOWNTOWN
My man Kurt Johnson and I want to have a joint art show, and this is one of our ideas. The outlined area is an area around Kurt’s studio that’s undergoing drastic changes. It’s perfect for the X-half’s film camera mode.
The flawed camera does make the photos feel different and can unify a project if I choose a single way to shoot.
The X-half is a perfect way to document the area’s transformation (from industrial and rustic to modern), with the rough, grainy files coming through with some nice rendering and color.
PROJECT FOUR: JOSYLN ART MUSEUM
It’s winter, and the older I get, the colder it feels. SO - I need some indoor places to go and practice my photo skills. This time I loaded up a 72-shot roll of the light leak filter and headed to my local (free!) art museum:
Next, I loaded up another roll of film at the museum, this time fully focused on monochrome minimalism (something I’m not always good at, so this also becomes practice!):
And as a “project within a project,” here is the minimalism with an exit sign within each photo:
THIS IS JUST THE START!
Throughout 2026, I’ll be sharing many of my “projects” throughout the year, as well as my journey into trying to find galleries that might show my work. I have a lot of dreams I want to fulfill, and I might as well start now, even if I’m already 50!
LET ME KNOW what you think and how I can help YOU be more creative this year (and always!). We’re on this journey together.
My Latest YouTube Video
This one was fun to make, where I relate camera reviews to SCIENTIFIC PROOF that some cameras are better than others based on the all-time best movies. It’s just me making fun of camera reviews:
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Comments? Leave them below or email me: jerredz@gmail.com
Love the projects. They just inspired a new project of mine. It’s the ricochet inspiration from the x-half!
Also, Amiga 500 FTW!
Jerred: What a wonderful post. 2 reasons: 1) I, too, own a Fuji Xhalf and I like it very much, despite or due to the limitations, I cannot say. I have it with me every day - it makes a difference to use a camera rather than a phone. My camera is in M and I use the mechanical aperture (mainly). 2) Scrolling through your pictures, I was like "oh, this looks like Nebraska". When I saw the pictures you took at Joslyn, I knew I was right. As an exchange student I graduated from Central in 1990. In Humanities we often had assignments at the Joslyn (typo in your headline btw). Seems like the place hasn't changed that much during the years. So thank you for sharing your pictures. (Where do you teach, btw?)