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Lately, I’ve found myself missing the days when a good old camera was always by my side. I’d convinced myself that the iPhone Pro would replace that, but I realized I was fooling myself.

So, a week before heading to Munich to visit an old friend, I decided to treat myself to a Fujifilm X-T30 II. It was a bit of an impulse buy, but I managed to snag a good deal. 

It’s far from the most advanced camera out there, but it ticked all the right boxes: affordable, beautiful, compact, and best of all, it saved me from wasting hours on post-production just to achieve the right look.

I wasn’t too fond of the kit lens (15-45mm f/3.5-5.6) at first (though I’m warming up to it), so I picked up a cheap TTArtisans 25mm f/2 to supplement it. Between the manual focus, soft sharpness, and the swirly bokeh, I had moments of regret. But in a way, it was a nostalgic reset—back to the days when I only had my dad’s old Nikon FG-20 with a manual 50mm f/1.8 to work with. For the price, the lens does have its own character.

Here are a few shots from the first day wandering around the old town.