Fuji X-A5 First Shots: Perhaps the best image quality we’ve seen yet for $600

posted Monday, April 23, 2018 at 2:55 PM EDT

Fujifilm has been very successful at making cameras with excellent image quality, and that's been the case throughout their ILC line from the entry-level X-A series all the way up to the recent medium-format GFX-50s. Their latest entry-level model, the Fuji X-A5, has now taken its first lap through our test lab, and we're ready to unveil our signature First Shots for discerning eyes.

As our seasoned readers know but which bears repeating for anyone new to our site, this allows you to pixel-peep the X-A5 lab images of our test target across the available ISO range, and to also compare the X-A5 lab images side-by-side against any camera we have ever tested using our handy Comparometer. The adventurous do-it-yourselfers out there can head down one of those roads now, but for an early look at a few popular comparisons, we'll take a quick glance here first.

$600 is an intriguing price point for an ILC. This allows smartphone users a chance to step into a much better and more versatile world that won't break the bank, and it also allows a seasoned X-T, X-Pro or GFX shooter the chance at a 24mp APS-C back-up camera for the bag at a reasonable price. Either way, we're here to help you decide if this model will get you where you want to go.

Let's take a quick look alongside a few obvious competitors in this price range from both the mirrorless and DSLR worlds at the tricky ISO 3200 level and see how the X-A5 stacks up to the competition where it counts the most. For comparison-sake, we'll start with a 1:1 Still Life crop from the X-A5 at base ISO to get a general IQ frame of reference.