I Took the New Fujifilm X-E5 & Pancake Lens on a City Adventure: A Travel Photographer’s Dream Duo

Choose Fujifilm’s best-selling camera of all time, the
X100VI compact camera
By replacing its fixed moderate-wide lens with a lens mount that accommodates various X-mount lenses, offering diverse viewpoints and applications, you get the updated Fujifilm X-E5.

Sure thing. For additional details regarding the minor distinctions between the pair of cameras, you might want to check out what I have written on this topic.
X-E5 vs X100VI piece
, which also contrasts the X100VI’s fixed 23mm f/2 lens with the recently unveiled XF 23mm f/2.8 lens released along with the X-E5—the two lenses can be bought together as a set.

I make this comparison because I similarly anticipate great performance from the X-E5—a sleek and fashionable rangefinder-style mirrorless camera, which stands out in 2025 due to its rarity. This model comes equipped with a stabilizing 40MP APS-C sensor and offers various film simulation options, much like the X100VI.

These attributes make the X-E5 and 23mm f/2.8 kit a dream pairing for travel photography – which is why, ahead of the product announcement, Fujifilm invited me to road-test the new camera and lens in what should be a natural habitat – the charming city of Valencia in Spain.

The X-E5, along with the 23mm f/2.8 lens, shares a sleek design akin to the X100VI’s compactness and has an improved control arrangement. This combination turned out to be quite unobtrusive, allowing me to take some delightful photos that beautifully encapsulate my time in Valencia, where I visited popular attractions and immersed myself in the local customs.

Believe me, the X-E5 is a genuine photographer’s camera, perfect for travels, photojournalism, and capturing moments on the streets. Priced at $1,899 / £1,549 with the new lens, you can also get just the body alone for $1,699 / £1,299 (pricing for Australia still pending).

There were several elements that caught my attention during the photo sessions which left me extremely satisfied with the outcomes.

Getting the look

For many years, Fujifilm’s film simulations have played a significant role in boosting their camera models’ popularity. These days, these distinctive color profiles hold even greater prominence within Fujifilm’s lineup of cameras. For instance, you can easily access them via dedicated dials on both the XT50 II and X-M5 models.

It’s now the X-E5’s turn, with a comparable dial, along with the most adorable feature among them all—a small window showing your chosen film simulation out of six popular options available.

Nevertheless, my focus is on the three slots designated for customizable appearances. From an extensive roster of 20 film simulations, you have the option to select any one and allocate it to a specific custom setting; afterward, you can adjust the appearance according to personal preference to develop what are known as ‘film recipes.’ As with previous iterations, this feature isn’t entirely novel, yet the procedure has been refined for enhanced usability.

The heart of Valencia features an old cathedral along with various churches, coupled with delightful cobblestone streets; thus, I aimed to use color profiles that would capture this ambiance effectively.

I began with the Eterna Cinema film simulation for a customized slot—it offers a natural appearance, neither overly vivid nor dull, complemented by subtle atmospheric grain. Afterward, I fine-tuned this setting, enhancing some contrasts and adjusting hues slightly until achieving the desired effect. Spending just five minutes on these adjustments proved worthwhile when capturing scenes around the city.

Since it was sunny out, and I did some exploring when the sun was at its peak, I opted for another preset: Fujifilm’s Acros mode with a red filter setting. This choice enhanced the drama in the sky and complemented the stunning architecture of the art and science buildings located near the historic district perfectly.

Timing the shots

Valencia is a vibrant city teeming with both visitors and residents, making timing and composition key elements for travel and street photography here. This environment also pushes your photographic abilities to new heights.

Waist-height shooting offers a more subtle approach since your focus is on the camera’s screen instead of directly facing those nearby. This method was quite useful for me as I often adjusted the tilting touchscreen upward. Unlike the X100VIs 100-degree tilt capability, the X-E5’s monitor can flip up an impressive 180 degrees, making self-portraits simpler. However, the screen boasts only 1.04 million dots, marking a step back in terms of resolution.

I also utilized the camera’s digital cropping feature, accessible via a control lever on the front of the X-E5. On the X100VI, a comparable lever switches between the electronic and optical viewfinder displays.

Similar to the X100VI, the X-E5 offers more megapixels for your experimentation compared to the X-E4 — 40MP versus 26MP. This means that photographs remain sufficiently large even after applying the digital crop feature, which decreases the resolution but provides an effect equivalent to a shorter focal length from the fixed 23mm lens.

The digital crop composition offers three viewing options along with the choice of aspect ratio: you can view the full image area where the cropped sections are highlighted by a boundary line; alternatively, these areas can be shown in grey, or finally, you may choose to see only the portion defined by your digital cropping.

Both options that allow you to view beyond the edges of the frame make capturing street photography much simpler, providing that additional second as the subject comes into play. This technique has been particularly useful for me with the X100VI compact and its optical viewer, which lets you observe what is happening outside the current framing.

In general, the X-E5 boasts numerous appealing modifications in both design and operation compared to earlier models from Fujifilm, resulting in an effortless journey for travel photographers. So far, my experience with this camera has been solely through pairing it with the new 23mm lens; however, many more options are available, like the equally compact 27mm f/2.8 from Fujifilm.

I’m presently finishing up a comprehensive review of the X-E5, so stay tuned for that post for additional information and my concluding thoughts. For now, I trust you’ll appreciate the extensive collection of photos provided below.

Fujifilm X-E5 sample images

My introduction to the Fujifilm X100VI has been an eye-opener – this device has imparted five valuable lessons about photography that go beyond what my phone’s camera can offer.
Top FujiFilm Camera of 2025: Leading Mirrorless and Compact Models, Both Retro and Modern
Fujifilm’s X-half is a small vintage-style point-and-shoot camera packed with quirky film photography options, and I absolutely adore it.

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