Fujifilm's new X-E5 is one of its sleekest mirrorless cameras yet
It's yet another retro-looking mirrorless from Fujifilm, but it's one of the more striking designs, with cleaner, straighter lines on its single-piece machined top plate that give it a bolder look than the still hard-to-get X100VI. The two share the same sensor, tilting rear screen, and in-body image stabilization system. And with the new 23mm f/2.8 lens announced alongside it, the X-E5 can even match the focal length of the X100's built-in lens — but with a more pronounced, contoured grip. The lens is initially available only in a bundle with the camera for $1,899.95, but will be sold standalone for $499.95 in late 2025.
The new X-E5 is slightly larger than the last-gen X-E4 to accommodate image stabilization, and at 445 grams it's about 80 grams heavier. The new, flippy control lever on its front has five programmable functions for enabling things like Surround View, which lets you see beyond the frame when shooting in cropped aspect ratios.
Fujifilm's popular film simulations get a dedicated dial on the X-E5, with a viewing window on the top plate that's reminiscent of frame counters on vintage cameras. There are 20 built-in film simulations in total, and the dial features six of the most popular presets, plus three user-customizable options.
The X-E5 has another new feature inspired by retro cameras: a Classic Display Mode for its built-in 2.36-million dot electronic viewfinder. Enabling this mode gives the viewfinder a vintage heads-up interface, with simplified red electronic numerals showing exposure values, rangefinder-like frame lines with rounded corners, and a needle-style light meter on the side. The frame lines look similar to the ones found on a Leica M3, while the light meter takes me right back to my old Pentax K1000 and other 35mm film SLR cameras.
Fujifilm is sticking to its playbook of updating its X-series cameras with its latest sensor, stabilization, and autofocus tech. The X-E5 isn't as left-field as the quasi-toy X Half camera, but I wager it's closer to what dedicated X-series fans actually want. And Fujifilm obviously isn't done going to the well for more vintage vibes from classic cameras.
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Gizmodo
11 hours ago
- Gizmodo
Film Schools Are Embracing AI. Should They?
Jake Panek, a 20-year-old film major, says he's had a great time at DePaul University in Chicago, and a very positive experience with the school's cinema program. However, a recent email alerting students to a new course in 'AI screenwriting' triggered a wellspring of untapped rage in him. The email, which was circulated last week, offered undergrads the opportunity to examine 'the rapidly evolving role of artificial intelligence in the screenwriting process' and to help students 'explore how AI can support and enhance creativity in writing for film and television.' Panek wasn't having it. Not long after he received the email, the young filmmaker was so angry that he took to Instagram to express his thoughts: 'seeing this email made me embarrassed to be a depaul film student,' he wrote, tagging the school and its film program. 'I think the professor that'll be 'teaching' this course, every student who enrolls in this course, and everyone who is allowing this course to happen should seriously reconsider it—THIS COURSE SHOULD NOT BE A THING.' When Panek talked to me about the program, his disdain for the class didn't seem to have waned much. 'I think it's bullshit,' he told me. 'I'm just so angry at the very existence of it.' DePaul's School of Cinematic Arts is considered one of the top film programs in the country, and it has often distinguished itself by allowing the student body to access cutting-edge equipment and software. Recently, however, officials at the school have become interested in AI. In May, the film program held an 'AI in the Arts' symposium, designed to explore 'the transformative role of Artificial Intelligence in the arts.' Even before this event, certain people within the administration have been pushing the film program to further explore integration of AI into its curriculum, said Matthew Quinn, the DePaul professor who has been tasked with teaching the new screenwriting course. 'Our school, the School of Cinematic Arts, is in the College of Computing and Digital Media,' said Quinn. 'Our dean is from the School of Computing, so they're of course very invested in AI.' DePaul also has an AI task force, he added, noting that there was a university-wide effort to study and integrate AI into the curriculum. What does an 'AI screenwriting' course entail? Quinn said that the course was very similar to other screenwriting courses that he'd taught, with the key difference being that generative AI was used to help create and shape the material. 'So, like when it comes to generating log lines and then working on character bios and character development, and then ultimately culminating with a step outline [a step outline is a summary of a script's scenes],' Quinn said that students in the class would 'collaborate' with ChatGPT. Later, students would participate in a workshop where their assignments were discussed, Quinn said. Students would talk about their creative process, discuss their collaborations with the chatbots, and explain what was 'helpful' and what wasn't. The class was designed to replicate 'the process of developing a script,' he said. Quinn also noted that, currently, DePaul's film program has a policy that requires students to acknowledge the use of AI in screenwriting. If students use it, they have to explain why and how, he said. It's currently at the faculty's discretion to determine whether students can use AI in that way or not, he added. DePaul isn't the only film school that has begun to offer AI-related courses. The University of Southern California recently launched an AI for Media and Storytelling studio, which is designed to explore how the tech can be integrated into the film, media, and journalism industries. UCLA Extension recently launched a new course called 'Creative Process in the Age of AI,' and even the American Film Institute has dipped its toes into the space, having debuted a three-day seminar series on 'Storytelling and AI' earlier this year. Holly Willis, the co-director of USC's AI studio, said the school got interested in developing a new AI program in 2023, not long after the release of ChatGPT and the groundswell of cultural interest in generative AI. 'It was kind of around that same time,' Willis said. 'I think at that moment, it was such a huge thing, we realized 'Oh, this is a really important shift',' she said. Willis, who has now taught multiple courses examining potential creative applications of AI, describes herself as 'deeply critical' of the technology but also said that she was 'very excited about [the] new forms of storytelling' that the tech could provide. 'I think there are definite problems with generative AI and how it's been introduced to filmmakers and artists, and how, right now, much of the ownership of the tools is within a corporate context,' she said. 'But at the same time, the work that I'm seeing artists do is really exciting.' In an article about AI's use in the arts, Willis highlights the work of Souki Mansoor, a former documentarian who 'stumbled into the AI filmmaking rabbit hole' and now works in the tech industry. Mansoor, who served as a guest speaker in one of Willis' AI-themed classes, currently works for OpenAI as 'Sora Artist Program Lead,' according to her LinkedIn profile. It's unclear what that really means, but Mansoor, who describes herself as a 'recovering filmmaker,' has produced some visual pieces using platforms like the ones OpenAI is currently marketing. Indeed, in 2023, she 'generated' a short film dubbed An AI Dreams of Dogfish, using prompts entered into RunwayML's Gen2. While Willis expresses excitement for works of the sort that Mansoor has produced, she notes that some of her students seem a little concerned about the infusion of AI into the arts. 'I would say that students are very nervous,' she said. 'The first class I taught when we started this initiative, students were very wary…like, 'Why are we paying for this education when anyone can now create these images so easily?'' They didn't realize that you still needed 'skills and storytelling,' she said. As for DePaul's AI screenwriting course, Quinn said he hasn't seen a ton of pushback from students, but there doesn't appear to be a whole lot of interest either. 'Right now, there's not even that many students enrolled in it,' Quinn told me. 'It might not even run.' He further clarified that the course wasn't about mindlessly embracing AI. Instead, he described it as a workshop designed to expose students to different perspectives on the 'current state-of-play' of the technology and what it could potentially offer creatives. Quinn admitted that he, himself, was 'conflicted' about AI's use in the creative arts. 'It's not like I'm a huge proponent of AI and love AI,' he said. 'It's more like, as an educator, I feel like I'm doing a disservice to students if I'm not exposing them to this or pretending like it's not happening.' Quinn wants students to make an informed decision on whether they want to engage with AI or not, and to do that, they need to understand it. For students like Panek, however, the whole thing seems like a huge betrayal of the fundamentals of the creative process. 'I understand the desire, as an artist, to take a shortcut,' Panek offered. After all, making movies is really difficult, and it can often feel like the world is against you. But Panek said that he and his fellow students find their own ways to solve problems—that's part of making movies. 'Taking the shortcut of generative AI' ultimately 'doesn't do anything for anyone,' he said. 'You're not gaining anything by typing something into a computer and having it spit something back at you,' he added. 'Filmmaking is hard,' Panek said, while noting that if 'you're not willing to…find your own solutions to things, and your first thought is just, 'Oh, well generative AI exists, let's just use that'' it's hard to really call yourself an artist.
Android Authority
12 hours ago
- Android Authority
The same photos, four ways: How Android brands see the world differently
Robert Triggs / Android Authority It's the perfect time of the year to take snaps of pretty, colorful things. But as we know, not every camera captures the same scene in quite the same way. Often, the differences are small, but when it comes to color science, every brand has its own take on what the perfect picture looks like. Despite years of innovation and brand partnerships, it seems impossible to please everyone. Whether it's Samsung's historic oversaturation or more modern issues with bland photos from the Pixel 9 Pro, it just goes to show that taking the best photo every time remains a dark art. So, for today's camera shootout, let's look at how this year's best smartphone cameras see the world — not to declare a winner but out of simple curiosity. To test, I grabbed the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra, Google Pixel 9 Pro XL, OnePlus 13, and Xiaomi 15 Ultra. If you want, you can follow along with the full-res pictures in this Google Drive folder. Don't want to miss the best from Android Authority? Set us as a preferred source in Google Search to support us and make sure you never miss our latest exclusive reports, expert analysis, and much more. Let's start by looking at the main cameras, which are usually our best bet for image quality and color consistency. The first thing to note is that none of these phones are widely different in terms of quality. Exposure, white balance, and even levels of detail are all reasonably similar, especially when looking at the full-frame picture. Still, the Pixel 9 Pro XL and OnePlus 13 are the most conservative in terms of color when it comes to landscapes, though the latter leans into a slightly brighter exposure. By comparison, Samsung adds a bit more vibrancy to the first scene, and the postbox shot is definitely a bit cooler than the others. Xiaomi is clearly the odd one out, adding considerably more saturation to the sunflower's yellows, but is then more subdued with deeper shadows and more contrast in the second picture — let's call it a more dynamic approach to color science. Galaxy S25 Ultra Pixel 9 Pro XL OnePlus 13 Xiaomi 15 Ultra Galaxy S25 Ultra Pixel 9 Pro XL OnePlus 13 Xiaomi 15 Ultra Galaxy S25 Ultra Pixel 9 Pro XL OnePlus 13 Xiaomi 15 Ultra When it comes to the brighter flowers, these themes remain, only more exaggerated. The Pixel 9 Pro XL is certainly the blandest in terms of saturation. The Galaxy is more colorful but is also rather dull in terms of exposure. The OnePlus 13 is considerably brighter and more vivid than the other two. While the colors are bright, they aren't skewed too heavily, and it arguably captures the feel of the scene best of all. The Xiaomi 15 Ultra, by comparison, is too saturated, too heavy on the contrast, and verges on blown out. Already we have three sets of pictures with quite different approaches to color science, but what about some trickier lighting with dark foregrounds and bright backgrounds? Galaxy S25 Ultra - HDR Pixel 9 Pro XL - HDR OnePlus 13 - HDR Xiaomi 15 Ultra - HDR Galaxy S25 Ultra - HDR Pixel 9 Pro XL - HDR OnePlus 13 - HDR Xiaomi 15 Ultra - HDR Again, there are some very similar-looking pictures here, but there are some obvious differences as well. The Pixel tries its hardest to ensure a consistent exposure across foreground and background, while others are happy to allow for some slight underexposure. The OnePlus 13's results vary widely: the first picture is underexposed, while the second is brighter than the competition. Xiaomi and Samsung are pretty consistent and sit very close together regarding exposure. It just goes to show that even though all of today's flagships offer brilliant HDR capabilities, the results can still look different. When it comes to zooming in, matching color profiles between lenses is surprisingly hard to achieve. Phones have to accommodate the different light capture capabilities of unique lens and sensor pairings, and then process the RAW image to produce a similar look, no matter which camera you're shooting with. Still, as you can see below, some scenes can end up looking rather similar even across brands; only Samsung adds a meaningful level of saturation to the ultrawide shot below. Galaxy S25 Ultra - Ultrawide Pixel 9 Pro XL - Ultrawide OnePlus 13 - Ultrawide Xiaomi 15 Ultra - Ultrawide Galaxy S25 Ultra -2x Pixel 9 Pro XL -2x OnePlus 13 -2x Xiaomi 15 Ultra -2x Galaxy S25 Ultra -3x Pixel 9 Pro XL -3x OnePlus 13 -3x Xiaomi 15 Ultra -3x Galaxy S25 Ultra -10x Pixel 9 Pro XL -10x OnePlus 13 -10x Xiaomi 15 Ultra -10x Some pictures look very different when using the phones' zoom capabilities, partly because we're really honing in on individual elements. Despite its seemingly warm and vibrant colors mixed with a bright exposure, the OnePlus 13 most closely captures how I recall these scenes: a warm sunny day and bright light streaming in through the window. OnePlus' color palette blends accuracy with just a hint of vibrancy that's a mix of realism and pop. Google and Xiaomi are on the other side of the scale. Google is overly conservative, washing out the depth and color from the two flower shots while punching up the guitar pedal's deep orange. Xiaomi tends to lean toward higher contrast, which adds depth and mood. The sunflower picture is particularly phenomenal in terms of detail and colors — it looks like a shot I'd grab from my mirrorless. This leaves Samsung meandering between all three. Its ultrawide and 2x flower snaps are overly saturated, but its 3x and 10x snaps are rather more neutral. Despite their history of oversaturation, modern Samsung flagships are less clear-cut. Sometimes, the saturation is there, but other times Samsung's color science can be as conservative as Google's — and occasionally even more so, as with the more accurate guitar pedal snap. No two cameras are quite the same Robert Triggs / Android Authority Well, that was interesting — it's amazing what a bit of color processing can do. I'm not going to declare a winner here because a lot of color science comes down to personal preference, and I honestly like quite a few of these different approaches depending on the shot. I'm a big fan of Xiaomi's moody exposure for portraits and macro shots, while OnePlus' added pop and exposure help capture the feel of a scene as well as just the detail. Google's conservative approach has merits, too, particularly if you're after a consistent look regardless of the lighting. Even Samsung leaning into boosted colors where it sees fit could be good if you want to balance occasional saturation with an otherwise conservative palette. Which phone's photo color profile do you prefer? 2 votes Google Pixel 50 % Samsung Galaxy 0 % OnePlus Hasselblad 50 % Xiaomi Leica 0 % In any case, this leads me to an interesting observation from all the brilliant smartphone cameras I've tested this year. We're at yet another crossroad between realistic and enhanced colors, but unlike a decade ago, I think the enhanced options are winning. Heavy-handed use of saturation has given way to more refined color palettes, leveraging scene detection and object segmentation to introduce more color when it works and ease off the throttle when it doesn't. Personally, I think brands from China that have partnered with some of the biggest names in photography are doing this a little better than household names in the US. Of course, there's even more we could discuss here — portraits especially vary greatly depending on focal length, aperture, and color science. Perhaps another time. Follow
Yahoo
20 hours ago
- Yahoo
Palantir (PLTR) Strengthens Ties With SOMPO in Multi-Year AI Partnership
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