Testing out the Fuji X-H2. Sunset hitting these rocks. Sad to see the blighted tree on the right side of the frame, but that’s what Sequoia National Forest looks like right now. The Needles are an eye-catching rock formation that stand out over the valley. I felt lucky to visit right when the setting sun was lighting up the rock face.

This shot turned out great and provides a nice memory of that afternoon. However, most of the shots with the X-H2 left me wanting a little more because I expected more out of the X-H2’s 40MP sensor.

This visit also included my first attempt to use the pixel shift multi-shot technology that Fuji added to the X-H2 previously only included in the GFX lineup. Unfortunately, my tripod setup and the outdoor environment did not provide enough stability to accommodate the requirements for pixel shift multi shot to work. When I put the images into the Fuji Pixel Shift Combiner software, I got lots of ragged edges and artifacts where I expected super crisp high resolution beauty. I learned my lesson and went on to test the pixel shift multi shot capabilities out with a studio environment, and like Jerred Z reported in his video, every use of the technology produces error reports in the Pixel Shift Combiner software, which is frustrating. Check out Jerred Z’s video below.

Here are some miscellaneous shots from the trip, which, unfortunately because I was just testing out the camera I unknowingly shot in jpeg only. I’d rather have the ability to recover some of the highlights in the skies and be able to boost the shadows and see what the raw files could produce. But live and learn was my motto on this trip. I think it’s better to test – at least for me – new cameras in a familiar environment so that my complete focus is on the camera and it’s settings and features, rather than be distracted by the awesome beauty of the incredible Sequoia forest. Live and learn.