This is my first time travelling oversea with a group of photography enthusiasts. It’s a short 2 days 2 nights photo trip in Melaka (also known as Malacca), Malaysia. To make this happens, Fujifilm Singapore organized together with Fujifilm Malaysia and a photography community called Photojam.
Fujifilm StudioLeft: Gallery FujiFanBoys 4th Annual Best Of Show winners Right: Waiting area
This is my first oversea trip since Covid-19 and I am pretty excited about it.
Left: Last-minute discussion? Right: After a briefing by Fujifilm Singapore
Throughout the trip, Fujifilm Singapore also brings some lenses and cameras for us to try and have a taste of those drooling gears. I have the opportunity to shoot with XF200mm F2 and the XF18-120mm F4 lenses.
How we spend time on a coach.Cleared path before the heavy traffic jam
On paper, it’s about 3 hours trip from Singapore. We kick off from Fujifilm studio at 7 pm and we should reach approximately 10 pm ish. But due to expected and also unexpected events like heavy traffic jams, the starts of the school holidays and bad weather conditions, we only arrived at the hotel at 1.27 am.
Left: Birds at the stopping area for a short break. Right: Always smile, always smile
The first event starts at 8am at Philea Resort, which means we have very short hours of rest time before we have to go for breakfast and board the coach.
Bird photography at night.
Nevertheless, everyone manages to wake up and proceed as planned. As a start, the organizer planned models to shoot around the resort. Little do we know, Sigma Malaysia is invited to join in the fun as well.
Breakfast area at Noble Resort Hotel Melaka (Formerly known as Novotel Melaka)Left: Boarding the coach for our first event Right: Our tour guide shares itinerary for the day First stop, Philea Resort & SpaChit chatting with our Malaysia photographerCameras and lenses loaning session commence. Jere sharing what it is like to have GFXLeft: Tour guide, 小鸿 Right: Busted shot
Jasper preparing drinks for everyone.
Left: Proceed to shoot destination Right: Make-up artist / model?Shot with X-T3 and XF200mm f2Our Fujifilm staff, Jasper, working hard carrying the heaviest and most expensive X-mount lens.Both shots with X-T3 and XF200mm f2.
Lunch and photo sharing session by Malaysia photographers at LTP Riverview restaurant.
After a short break, we also have a chance to do Photowalk at the Street Paul’s Church, Red Square and Jonker Street.
Left: Always challenge the signboard Right: Peace Left: Always challenge the signboard Right: PeaceShe’s adorable!Remember to roar!Left: Another adorable little one. Right: Huge sky…
The good people in Fujifilm Malaysia, Sigma Malaysia and Photojam invited us to chill in the roof garden of our neighbouring hotel. The night view is indeed remarkable.
The night view.
The second day morning is the same spot as Photowalk but with models again. Of course, we have a choice to continue to have Photowalk or model shootings.
The morning sun…It’s an ad…XF18-120mm f4XF18-120mm f4Firers watch your front!Left: I saw a neko chan. Right: Just playing with XF18-120mm
Just love it.
Left: Photographer and model Right: View from my hotel roomLunch before heading back to Singapore.
2 days 2 nights photo trip is a short trip. Although this is a short trip, it is a fruitful one. We get to know new friends from Singapore and Malaysia. Sharing many ideas and many gears discussion with one another.
I thank Fujifilm Malaysia, Sigma Malaysia and Photojam for their hospitality during this trip. Not forget to thank Fujifilm Singapore for organizing this wonderful UNESCO-listed Malacca.
Thank you Ron Lee, X-Photographer, for sharing this shot.
I think TTArtisan has a soft spot for “50mm” and they released the 50mm f0.95 not too long ago. And now, TTArtisan had just released its third 50mm lens and it is the most compact 50mm lens TTArtisan ever made but it is the slowest in the lineup yet.
TTArtisan 50mm f2
But there is something different about this lens from the other 50mm lenses and that is this lens is designed as a full-frame lens but can also be mounted with various APS-C lens mounts (i.e. X-mount, M-mount, E-mount, RF-mount, Z-mount and M43-mount).
Fuji X-E4 with TTArtisan 50mm f2
Does that mean the image quality is better because the optical glass is bigger than the APS-C sensor size? Let’s find out.
TTArtisan 50mm f2
Before I start, I would like to thank TTArtisan for sending me this lens for review and it is my privilege to do so. But you can rest assured that this review will be based on the lens I received and it is purely on my own opinion.
The design is different from that of 50mm f0.95 and 23mm f1.4. You will not see the zebra-like design in this lens. Having said that, it gives a minimalistic and more modern-look design.
The aperture ring and the manual focus ring are still the same quality as any other TTArtisan lenses. The enjoyable clicky feedback on the aperture ring is one of my favourites among other 3rd party manufacturers while the manual focus ring is giving a satisfying smooth experience.
In my opinion, the sharpness is decently sharp at wide open. Speaking of shallow depth of field, f2 gives a considerably good separation between subject and background. Of course, it is not as shallow as other faster prime lenses can give. Shooting at f2.8 or smaller apertures gives a better rendering of sharpness and contrast. However, I am pretty satisfied with the image quality at f2.
In my testing, chromatic aberration and vignetting are surprisingly better (based on my past experiences with other TTArtisan lenses). Although they are slightly observed especially when you are shooting wide open. Nonetheless, they can be fixed in post-processing, so this is the last I should worry about.
From MFD to infinity, the focus throw is approximately 160°. In my view, this compact lens gives quite an ample amount of “distance” for more precise focusing.
Like most manual lenses, the result is might not at its sharpest at the infinity marking. Rotate slightly backwards on the focus ring to get a better result.
At 75mm (in full-frame equivalent), the 50cm MFD is no different from other 50mm lenses. I was expecting that the MFD will be further because of the compactness of the lens but I was wrong. At least this is something I think is quite a remarkable achievement from the TTArtisan engineers.
When shooting at MFD, I do notice a little softness in the image. From my standpoint, I think it is totally acceptable.
Price Point
At 69 USD, this is one of the most affordable lenses TTArtisan offers. There is another 69 USD lens (at least at this moment in writing this review) from TTArtisan and that is 35mm f1.4.
For 69 USD, the amount is not that painful to spend. If you are new to photography and also wish to have some hands-on with a full pledge manual lens. If you want to attempt to try some portrait shots, this is also a good lens to try. Besides that, this lens can also be used for other genres like street, documentaries, landscapes, cityscapes and product shots.
There is another group of photographers who should consider this lens too. And they are photographers who are still using the older camera models and can consider getting this lens to spice up some love with the cameras and shoot.
TTArtisan never fails to surprise photographers with their new lenses. They always have something to fill in those “gaps” in their lenses lineup. This makes me think about what is up on their sleeve.
Personally, I love to use this lens simply because of its compactness, nice-looking design and not compromising on the image quality that much. I think this lens is best matched with the X-E series and X-A series for achieving the most compact package.
Meanwhile, I am still hoping TTArtisan will release the first autofocus lens for Fujifilm.
Fuji X-T3 with TTArtisan 50mm f2
Thank you for reading.
Disclaimer: 1. All the shots taken here are shot by me. 2. Some of the shots are slightly edited in Lightroom Classic to my preferences. Otherwise, the shots are straight out of the camera. 3. The opinions are based on my experience. If there is any mistake, please kindly drop me a message and I will gladly make the amendment. 4. I reserve ownership of these images, if you wish to use my images, please notify me.
If you like my works, please follow me on either one of the 2 Instagram accounts:
Usually, for the same focal length, there are basically 2 paths for making it. The first one is to make with better optic, faster, brighter and premium price tagged lens. The second one is to make a smaller, compact and wisely priced lens. And this Laowa 10mm f4 is the later one. Laowa Lenses (also known as Venus Optics) has been in this optic industry for almost 10 years. They have created many unique innovative lenses such as 24mm T14 2x PeriProbe, 4mm f2.8 fisheye and fast f0.95 Argus series of lenses. And this 10mm f4 is their newest creation.
Laowa 10mm f4 Cookie
I am glad that I have a few days of opportunity to try this lens before it was sent back to its headquarters in China.
Fuji X-E4 with Laowa 10mm f4 Cookie
On a side note: this lens comes with various mounts too (i.e. RF, Z, E and L mounts).
Laowa 10mm f4 Cookie
Design and Build Quality
The lens is compact, hence, the name “Cookie”. Probably Laowa is trying to come up with a new term rather than using “pancake”. Nonetheless, I can’t help to compare it with the XF27mm f2.8 WR and the overall size is somewhere close to each other. Laowa 10mm is about Ø59.8mm X 25mm while XF27mm is Ø62mm x 23mm. However, the weight of the Laowa 10mm is heavier (130 grams against 84 grams).
This 15mm (in full-frame equivalent) lens comes with solid and good-built quality. Everything in this lens body makes of metal, including the rear bayonet. This Ø37mm filter threaded lens comes with a clickable aperture ring and a smooth focus ring. Anyway, it does not come with a lens hood.
The lens cap is of the traditional “squeeze to release” type. Nothing special to shout about. Not forgetting that this lens comes in 2 colours, black and silver.
Image Quality
This cookie lens offers an impressive 109.3° angle of view. But I have to say that it is not the best image quality I have ever seen. I mean when I first know of this product and its price tag, I set my expectation lower
At wide open, you will be greeted by a very heavy vignetting result. You can correct it in post-edit or set it to a lower aperture like f5.6 or f8. Also, I felt that the image is better and sharper if you step down the aperture to f5.6 or f8. At f4, the image seems to be softer and with less contrast.
Distortion is also noticeable at the corners and this is an expected result for such an ultra-wide angle. Hence, I can only suggest you take note of the distortion unless it is intended that way.
Another remarkable thing about this lens is its minimum focus distance, 10cm. Basically, I am shooting very close to the subject and the shadow of the lens is probably in the photo as well (if you shoot facing downward).
If you shoot at infinity, the result is actually not sharp at the infinity marking. You have to rotate the focus zoom slightly backwards to get the right infinity shot. I can’t tell you how exactly backwards it is as I am afraid that the lens I am tested with may have a different “right” infinity spot than the copy you have. But you can also explore it yourself and you will get it.
Another thing to note is the thin focus ring and aperture ring. I have a pair of huge hands and fingers which is a little challenging for me to rotate the rings. My personal uneducated guess is that to achieve a compact size, making the width of both rings thinner might be a decision made by the company.
A new photographer who does not wish to spend a fortune and does not mind having a manual lens to have an ultra-wide angle shooting experience.
Conclusion
During my test, I do miss quite a fair bit of shots and it is likely due to my incapability to nail the focus well. Nevertheless, I have mixed feelings about this lens. The photos sometimes turn out to be better than I have expected but sometimes it turns out to be soft.
At f4, it is not the brightest ultra-wide lens I have ever used and it is obviously meant for outdoor day use, such as architecture, landscape, creativity, abstract, and maybe a little bit of street. You can do some indoor/night shots if there is sufficient strong light to accompany you.
This cookie lens has a few competitors (Rokinon 10mm f2.8 and Samyang 12mm f2.0) in this price bucket. If you like something compact and do not mind the slower aperture, then this should be your choice. Because none of them beat the compactness of this cookie lens. Alternatively, Laowa also offers a more premium ultra-wide lens, Laowa 9mm f2.8, with 200 USD more.
Thank you for reading.
Disclaimer: 1. The lens is from Laowa Optic and I have returned it by the time this article is available online. 2. Most of the shots are straight out of the camera with some shots edited via In-Camera Raw Processing. 3. The opinions are based on my experience. If there is any mistake, please kindly drop me a message and I will gladly make the amendment. 4. All the shots taken here are shot by me. I reserve ownership of these images, if you wish to use my images, please notify me.
If you like my works, please follow me on either one of the 2 Instagram accounts:
Before all else, I would like to thank Ms Carmen, Marketing Manager of Fujifilm Singapore, for loaning the X-H2S for review. By the time this review is online, the camera unit had returned back to Fujifilm Singapore.
X-H2S
Get started
After months of waiting and numerous rumours flying over the internet, the X-H2S was finally announced in X-Summit OMIYA 2022, together with XF150-160mm and XF18-120mm. Fujifilm categorised it as a flagship model, which means the best of the best technologies Fujifilm can offer is in this camera body (or maybe together with the upcoming X-H2). If I remember correctly, The “H” in X-H stands for “Heavy-duty”.
X-H2SX-H2S
If you have watched the X-summit, you will know this flagship model addresses three groups of categories: sports photography, wildlife photography and videography.
X-H2S
While I do not belong to any of the three categories and I do street photography most of the time, my perspective of using this camera will be more on people on the streets and things revolving around the streets.
Also in this hands-on sharing, it is based on a photographer’s point of view as I am not a videographer trained. To test with people on the streets, I have also used various lenses of mine to see how well this camera can perform.
Fujifilm has come thus far when comes to image sensors and processors. Now, Fujifilm has come out with its first-ever Stacked-Back Side Illuminated (BSI) X-Trans CMOS sensor 5 HS and X-Processor 5. With this new processor, Fujifilm has also introduced Nostalgic Negative film simulation to the APS-C camera. Nostalgic Negative was only made available to GFX (first with GFX 100S) series only. I know not many people actually talk about this film simulation but I just want to highlight how much I like this film simulation after I tested out the GFX 50S II.
When I first saw the camera, it was resemblant very much to the GFX100S/50S II. It is also a totally different design from its predecessor, X-H1. This is a good way to distinguish between models. The new X-H2S can be distinguished easily at a glance too, especially since there is a label “S” on the front of the camera body.
The magnesium build camera is sturdy, durable and solid to hold. Something I am expecting from a flagship camera. The weight of the camera is 660 grams but personally, I do not feel it is heavy to hold and I think that because the weight is well distributed across the camera body.
For a note, it is just 53 grams heavier than X-T4 and 13 grams lighter than X-H1.
Handling
X-H2S has an ergonomic handgrip design but some photographers might think it is too large to hold, particularly photographers who have smaller hands. As for me, probably because I have large hands, it is very comfortable to grip. The feeling reminds me much of the good grip I had with my DSLRs back in those days.
Overall buttons are comfortable to press with good tactile feedback. The Focus stick is large and good to navigate focus points and between menus. Nothing to complain about here.
The Shutter
The newly developed shutter button is very sensitive and I have to learn to adapt to it. For most Fuji cameras, I depress half the shutter button for focus and then depress it fully for taking the shots. But then, the shutter button of the X-H2S is probably set it up higher than the other Fuji cameras. I basically snap the shot when I depress “half” the shutter button. It took me a few shots to find the sweet spot. Sometimes I do forget and history repeats itself. It is not something difficult to familiar with, it just takes a while for my muscle memory to familiarise itself.
On a side note, I love the shutter sound. A gentle and very satisfying “tid” sound.
The Viewfinder, The LCD Screen & the Sub-Display
I have to say the viewfinder is really a pleasure to use. The 5.76M dot OLED with a 120fps refresh rate is one of the best improvements Fujifilm has made. It makes the viewing experience so smooth as if I am shooting through an optical viewfinder. (Remember to set to EVF frame rate priority to enjoy the 120fps, otherwise, it is default at 60fps.)
However, the LCD screen keeps the same 1.62M dot resolution as the X-T4 but is still better than my X-T3. The display is indeed sharper and it is a good screen to meet my needs.
The “always-on” sub-display reminds me of the DSLR’s sub-display but better. As a sub-display, it provides all the necessary current settings and information to allow one to have a quick view.
The image quality is great and that is across all ISO ranges that I used in this test. Honest speaking, I cannot find anything to fault it. Personally, I feel that the image quality has some improvement at the high ISO range, especially on the ISO 3200. Not a dramatically huge difference but you can tell. Other than that, it is hard to tell the difference between X-H2s and X-T3.
The autofocus performance of the camera is kind of limited by the lenses. Because the performance of this X-H2S is really fast, it does push the limit of the older lenses to work faster. If the lens is on the slower side (for example a lens without Linear Motor), you can feel that it works slightly slower and also missing out on some focus tracking (but it picks up pretty fast). That said, the newer lenses (such as XF 23mm f1.4 WR) are really designed to optimise with X-H2S than the older ones. All in all, the autofocus is really snappy and accurate. The older lenses do feel snappier too than having them on my X-T3.
The focus tracking is a real improvement here. The eye-AF together with the Subject Detection such as “Animal”, “Bird”, “Automobile”, etc does pick up well and is quite sticky to the respective subject, especially a moving one. But if there is more than one subject in the frame, then that is another story altogether.
On paper, it states that it can achieve up to 7 stops of compensation with some lenses can only go up to 5 stops. In the real world, how stable is it with my shaky hands is more matters to me. The results show everything. I have tested with 4 lenses and it turns out that the IBIS is impressive. Whether it is combined with an OIS lens or not, my handheld results are pretty consistent and terrific.
I notice there are some people who commented about the battery life that does not last for the whole day. But in my 2 weeks of testing, it lasts me for the whole day with 35% remaining the least, that is about 500 shots taken.
Based on the CIPA standard, the battery life is rated as 720 shots. And based on my calculation, it is about there. So I think the rating from CIPA is quite consistent with my experience.
Although battery consumption is subjective to individual usage and many other external factors to be considered, all I can say is that this NP-W235 battery is definitely better than the NP-W126S on my X-T3. If your photography consumes more battery power, then just bring another one. If bringing two batteries is insufficient, then make it three.
PASM dial is something I familiar with for a long time, especially since I used DSLR before. I do not hate it nor I am happy to see it. It just reminded me of how I should operate the camera differs from the one with Fuji-style dials.
I do miss the Fuji-style dials with this X-H2S but handling the PASM dial is not a show stopper for me.
Something else…
The focus mode selector switch has been replaced by the “fn3” button in X-H2S. By default, fn3 is set as the “focus mode selector” function. If you are a person who switches various modes a lot, this might be a little ignoring to you as it takes you to a screen to select the focus mode with your D-pad and the “OK” button to enter instead of instantaneously switching with the switch.
Another thing that I do not mention is the memory card. It comes with 2 slots, one for CFexpress Type B card and another for UHS-II. Because I do not have a CFexpress Type B card which unable to verify the capability of read/write speed of the camera when shooting at 40 fps.
Probably some photographers might notice this. The front dial is now not clickable.
One last interesting thing to share, X-H2S is the first Fuji camera that comes with a variable shutter speed. It calls “Flickerless S.S. Setting”. You have to enable “Flicker Reduction” first before you can set the “Flickerless S.S. Setting” on. This helps to eliminate flickering lighting from indoor LED lighting, bulb and monitor screen, etc. Only Manual and Shutter priority modes can enjoy this functionality.
Feedback
For the next generation of X-H series, I hope that the position of the Focus stick to be a little lower, probably beside the AEL button will be a better option. Whenever I want to change the focus point, I need to shift my thumb much higher to reach for the Focus stick and by doing so, I have to reorientate my hand placement on the handgrip.
Another thing I hope Fujifilm can do is on the focus mode selector. Instead of the cumbersome control, you may consider making the fn3 button to toggle between the modes. I believe it will be easier for photographers who need to toggle often. Probably it can be added in a firmware update.
Above are some of the little feedback or more like my personal preference.
In my own words
The grip, the sub-display and the overall size of the camera pretty much reminded me of the good old DSLR era. Oftentimes it also reminded me of how far technology has come.
After 2 weeks of use, I believe Fujifilm has delivered the flagship model very well and beyond my expectation of what a flagship camera can be: a hybrid, heavy-duty camera for both worlds.
For Fuji enthusiastic (who like dials, dials and dials) like me, I will not get it for my personal causal shooting. Yes, the stacked BSI sensor is very attractive to me. The focusing speed and the AF tracking are something my current X-T3 cannot do with. What I can hope is that the future X-T5 has most of what X-H2S or X-H2 has to offer together with the X-T3 flip and tilt screen and I will be ready to smash my piggy bank.
Who is this for?
This is a flagship camera and also a workhorse that is designed with professional photographers (and professional videographers) in mind. It has the best performance Fujifilm has to offer to date. But that does not mean non-professional photographers should not get it. If camera size is not a factor, this X-H2S will be a camera you can consider as it is the pinnacle of Fujifilm for years to come.
Also, Fujifilm also confirmed they will be releasing X-H2 which comes with 40 megapixels in the X-Trans 5 HR. X-H2S focus on speed while X-H2 focus on fine details. Only the photographers themselves will know which camera can meet their demands in photography and the photography genres they are shooting.
Fujifilm just laid out them for you to choose from.
Disclaimer: 1. All the shots taken here are shot by me. 2. All of the shots are straight out of the camera with some edited via In-Camera Raw Processing. 3. I reserve ownership of these images, if you wish to use my images, please notify me. 4. The camera firmware is 1.01. 5.The opinions are based on my experience. If there is any mistake, please kindly drop me a message and I will gladly make the amendment.
Today is the official launch event for Fuji X-H2S in Singapore and I am lucky enough to get invited for attending this event. This event comes with some outdoor activities and then a lunch session to end it. I feel that this is a very unique way to launch a product. To keep things simple, I just brought my X100V with me.
Menu for the daySome starters
The starter that caught my attention
X-H2S Launch OpeningInteraction moments The view from my tablePortraitsPhotographers in actionsBirds in actionThe modelsThe foodsImagine one day we have a camera with phone functionalityThe wines…Last but least, X-H2S
First of all, I would like to thank Ms Carmen, Marketing Manager of Fujifilm Singapore, for loaning the XF18-120mm and X-S10. By the time this review is online, the units had returned back to Fujifilm Singapore.
In this hands-on experience, I used this lens for photography only and nothing related to videography. Because I do not know about videography, I shall leave it to the experts to review from the videographers’ point of view.
Conclusion (TL;DR)
I am doing something different and decided to push up my conclusion so that you guys can decide to skip or continue to check out this lens.
Over the course of 2 weeks, as a prime lens user, I enjoy every single moment of using it. It brings me back to the fun of using a zoom lens without sacrificing image quality. As for the power zoom functionality, it took me about half a day to get used to it. After all, I started learning photography in the “power zoom” era.
This is a constant f4 lens and it may not have a large aperture like f2 or f2.8 and might not please some potential videographers. But every lens created has its purpose and every lens does come with pros and cons. Just how we weigh them before getting the lens, it’s up to the individual.
Of course, if you are looking for a faster lens than this and they are already existed in the market, the red badge and the MK lenses.
Personally, this lens is a great lens that has great versatility. Fujifilm strikes a good balance between compactness and image quality, is lightweight and has very useful focal lengths. From a photographer’s perspective, this lens is on my recommendation list.
Fujifilm XF18-120mm f4 LM PZ WR was first teased in X Summit PRIME 2021 and finally announced in X Summit OMIYA 2022. And now, it should starts shipping in September 2022. This lens has a focal length that is equivalent to 27mm – 183mm in the 35mm film format which gives whopping 6.7x times zoom. It is probably the most versatile constant aperture zoom lens from Fujifilm yet.
During the X Summit OMIYA, Fujifilm emphasised that this lens is designed for videographers in mind and based on the expertise Fujifilm has in the broadcast industry. But can photographers use this lens for general photography purposes?
Design& Build Quality& Something more…
For a start, this lens is tall but a tad shorter than XF70-300mm. It comes with a 72mm filter size and internal zoom (yeah!). From the appearance, it gives an impression that this is a heavy lens but the 460 grams on this lens do not feel that way. The lens body is built out of polycarbonate material but I believe these are some of the reasons to explain why. (These are my guesses and not from any official Fujifilm statement.)
Fujifilm XF18-120mm f4 LM PZ WR and Fujifilm XF70-300mm f4-5.6 R LM OIS WR
First, it helps to reduce the overall weight. The lens is designed for portability so that videographers who wish to pair it with any cameras can balance it well and can use it handheld for long hours without stressing the arms.
Second, it might help bring down some costs and allow more potential videographers to reach out for this lens.
On a side note, when the lens and camera are mounted on a gimbal, the videographer does not need to recalibrate the gimbal when changing to any focal length.
Overall, the built quality is great and does not feel cheap at all. For forgetting that it comes with weather-resistant too!
If you have noticed, this lens does not come with an aperture ring. But it comes with 3 ways of zoom functionalities (zoom ring, zoom/focus control ring and zoom button) and a manual focus ring. It also comes with a button named Z/F (Zoom/Focus). This is also the first lens I have ever seen having 3 options to choose from. How do these 3 zoom functions work? Let me try to explain it.
Zoom ring – It works like what it is intended but with a little twist. The focal length actually changes “electronically”. The experience is different from what the usual manual zoom ring has, it does not have that “instant” zoomed focal length. What it gives is a steady zoom in and out. However, I will not recommend photographers to use this zoom ring to change the focal length from 18mm to 120mm and vice versa. The throw is approximately 360° from 18mm to 120mm which takes me 4 times to complete. (Update: the production unit takes approximately 90° from 18mm to 120mm) What I do is to use it as a compliment to the next zoom functionality. For example, some small fine-tuning to the focal length which I feel is easier than using the zoom/focus control ring.
Zoom/focus control ring – When I use this control ring, it kind of reminded me of my first camcorder. Clockwise for telephoto-zoom and anti-clockwise for wide-zoom. It is that simple. Sometimes, I overshoot the desired focal length, and I come to have a habit of using the zoom ring to adjust. At least it works for me. Of course, you still can use the zoom control ring to adjust to the desired focal length.
Zoom button – there are 2 buttons, the “up” button for telephoto zoom and the “down” button for wide-zoom. Basically, you press once and it will zoom in or out all the way. Press the button again to stop zooming. I did not use these buttons after exploring how it works and I believe this is more useful for videographers.
Image Quality
Usually, when comes to a zoom lens, especially having such a long zoom, I have this mindset indicating that the image quality is probably somewhere sub-par or slight above sub-par image quality.
Well. I think I have to change my way of thinking. The image quality is great. Sharp and have a good level of contrast. I enjoy the results coming out from this lens. The optical is really great even at wide-open.
It may not have the most bokehlicious result but it does render pretty smooth for a zoom lens. It does not give harsh and hard bokeh at all. As for the sunny star, this lens doesn’t seem to give a sharp one, even at its smallest aperture.
From my observation, chromatic aberration and vignetting are nowhere to be seen or at least very mild. This is something I am not surprised about as Fujifilm has controlled well in this aspect, especially for all the recent newer lenses.
Focusing
When comes to focusing, I have this repute that the focusing speed for a zoom lens is generally slower than a prime lens. Again, I was wrong but not completely wrong. Under the sun, focusing is pretty fast across all focal lengths. Though it is not blazing fast like the new generation prime lenses like XF23mm f1.4, it is just a tad slower. But when comes to low light situations, the wide to mid-tele focal lengths are still considerably fast. You will know that it is not as fast as the day but it is still within my acceptable range. At 120mm, the little struggle comes in. But I still manage to lock my focus after a few tries. For all that, I think it is expected behaviour for a long focal length like other lenses.
One thing to note is that this lens is capable of optically parfocal, which means my subject is able to stay in focus throughout the entire focal length. But I think it is more useful for videography than photography?
The MFD is 60cm. At 18mm, I am not able to get close up, rather, I am pretty far from my subject. When you shoot at 120mm, it appears to be fairly close to the subject. Yet far from what a macro lens can achieve.
If you power off your camera, the focal length will be where you left off. Say if you shoot at 50mm and then power it off and on again after some time, it will remain at 50mm. That’s also applied even if you swap lenses and then swap back.
If you want to use this lens to shoot streets, you can but this lens is not as discreet as compact prime lenses. Some strangers might even notice you first before you shoot them.
This range of focal length is always very competitive and Fujifilm has quite a few zoom lenses somewhat close to one another in the market. Namely, XF16-80mm, XF18-135mm, and the most underrated XF18-55mm. Not forgetting about the recently announced Tamron 17-70mm f2.8 and upcoming Sigma 18-50mm f2.8 too. Having said that, the most direct competition, for now, is the XF16-80mm.
Both are constant f4 lenses. The typical advantages between both lenses are pretty noticeable. One wider, one has more reach, OIS versus non-OIS. While I do not test the XF16-80mm fully, I understand from some photographers that the lens is soft at wide open. And I may be biased, but the X18-120mm seems to have better image quality. Nevertheless, at the end of the day, both lenses serve different groups of photographers.
Who is this for?
For travelling photographers who might want to go as light as possible, this lens is also a good option to choose from. As this is an f4 lens, which also means that it might be a little struggling for night street shoots, I will suggest pairing it up with an In-Body Image Stabilization camera or an ultra-fast prime lens to go along with it.
Because it has such great versatility, it can be used for almost anything from streets, editorial, documentaries, landscapes, cityscapes, product shots, and even portraits.
For photographers who do videography occasionally, I also think this is a good piece of glass to have.
Thank you for reading.
Disclaimer: 1. All the shots taken here are shot by me. 2. Some of the shots are straight out of the camera while others are edited via In-Camera Raw Processing and Capture One. 3. The opinions are based on my experience. If there is any mistake, please kindly drop me a message and I will gladly make the amendment. 4. I reserve ownership of these images, if you wish to use my images, please notify me.
If you like my works, please follow me on either one of the 2 Instagram accounts:
X-summit Omiya 2022 has come and gone. It was an announcement of something we have expected and something that we are unexpected.
Thanks to the hints from the previous X-summit and rumors websites, we are pretty much prepared for gears such as X-H2S, XF18-120mm, and XF150-600mm to be announced in this X-summit and truly, they did. Under development XF56mm f1.2 MK II was also finally announced on stage. The statement was sort of confirming what the rumors websites had been suggesting. Of course, I am excited about this piece of the announcement and I can’t wait to get the lens in my hand.
The unexpected announcement, at least to me, is the XF8mm f3.5 and XF30mm f2.8 macro. Fuji hits 2 of my favorites spots; ultra-wide lens and macro lens. I think I will own them some days but I guess I have to prioritize my wishlist first.
*In case you wonder, I am not a G.A.S person and I am not the person who love to buy and sell gears.
Back to the topic, after the price of the X-H2S was announced. A lot of comments flooding the online community. The comments that caught my eyes the most are “X-H2S priced evenly to Canon R6 and Sony A7 IV. Is the price worth it? For this price, I rather go for full-frame.” And many similar statements were made.
Well, if you want to make a comparison, there is no end to comparing this and that. People will always find justification to uphold their judgment. Of course, there is no right or wrong. It is just an individual opinion.
I bring back the comparison on pricing earlier: as Fujifilm indicated that X-H2S is a flagship camera model, so technically we should compare X-H2S with all other flagship models such as Canon R3, Sony A1, Nikon Z9, and OM System OM-1. What is common they all have are stacked BSI sensors. Instead, the comments suggest comparing X-H2S with A7 IV and R6, just because they are in the same price bracket. So is that a fair comparison?
Oftentimes, people might be forgotten to weigh the overall “price” to pay. Because when you are buying a camera, you are buying the ecosystem of that system which includes lenses and accessories. So depending on individual needs, the overall “price” to pay for brand “A” ecosystem might be even more expensive than that of brand “B”. So as a smart consumer/prosumer/professional, I believe one knows how to weigh it. Unless one is too loaded and spending one after another ecosystem means nothing much in his bank, I think you can ignore my statement.
I shall end here and I believe you can understand my point here. Of course, I can further make many comparisons here and there but I cannot find the justification for doing so. Like I mentioned early, there is no end in comparison. My philosophy is simple, buy an ecosystem that can make you go out and enjoy shooting with it.
All in all, I have to highlight that I am not against other camera formats. Rather this is my personal view/opinion on the term “comparision”. Again, is X-H2S priced right?
Before I start with this experience sharing post, I would like to thank and appreciate Mr Lawson from Sigma Marketing (Singapore) for providing me with the loan of Sigma 56mm f1.4 Contemporary DC DN.
Sigma 56mm f1.4 Contemporary DC DNSigma 56mm f1.4 Contemporary DC DN
Intro
Fujifilm has never lacked of lens choices for portrait shooters to choose from. And there are even massive options available from the 3rd party manual lens manufacturers but not so much for autofocus lenses. I think this is the right time for Sigma to jump into the Fuji X-mount bandwagon with its trio lenses, especially the 56mm f1.4.
Sigma 56mm f1.4 Contemporary DC DNSigma 56mm f1.4 Contemporary DC DN with 2 XF 27mm f2.8 WR
56mm (85mm in 35mm format equivalent) is one of the popular focal lengths among portrait lovers. That’s because the mid-tele focal length gives good compression and shallow depth of field. But before going down further. I have to confess that I do not own the XF 56mm f1.2 or any 3rd party autofocus lenses of the same focal length. Hence, I am unable to make a good comparison between them. But what I can do is share my experience using this lens with the readers and hope the readers will have a good perspective of this lens.
Fuji X-T3 . Sigma 56 mm f1.4 @ 56mm . f4 . 1/80″ . ISO 400. Classic Chrome
I have reviewed the Sigma 16mm f1.4 and Sigma 30mm f1.4 and now the Sigma 56mm f1.4 Contemporary DC DN is on the table. This is the last piece of the trio prime lenses and let’s see how good the lens performance is.
Design & Build Quality
The lens built shared the same design elements as its brothers, giving us a low key minimalistic look. I get more enjoyment with the looks, especially the black labelled wordings on it. Similarly, this lens is also made of “Thermally Stable Composite” (TSC) polycarbonate material. Overall, it provides a very well-built lens body that is easy and lightweight to hold. Something to note, the lens does attract some fingerprints on the glossy material. Although it can be easily wiped off with a piece of cloth, it can be a little annoying and hard not to notice it.
Left: Fuji X-T3 . Sigma 56 mm f1.4 @ 56mm . f1.4 . 1/1100″ . ISO 160 . Classic Chrome Right: Fuji X-T3 . Sigma 56 mm f1.4 @ 56mm . f1.4 . 1/1800″ . ISO 160 . Classic Chrome
In my opinion, when I talked about the compact lens, a reasonably small filter thread size and weight are part of the elements. This lens comes with a 55mm filter thread and weighs only 280 grams. So I think this lens qualifies as a compact lens.
Left: Fuji X-T3 . Sigma 56 mm f1.4 @ 56mm . f1.4 . 1/5800″ . ISO 160 . Classic Chrome Right: Fuji X-T3 . Sigma 56 mm f1.4 @ 56mm . f1.4 . 1/5400″ . ISO 160 . Classic Chrome
Likewise, this lens is also equipped with dust and splash resistant sealing that helps to protect the lens from certain weather/environmental conditions. Last but not least, it does not come with an aperture ring either.
Image Quality
According to Sigma Marketing, each and every part of this lens was designed in 2018 (except the mount). Fast forward to 2022, how does the optical quality perform in real-world situations? If you read about how well the Sigma 30mm performed, then you can conceivably conclude that this is as good as that piece of glass or possibly even better. At wide open, the sharpness, details and contrast produced by this lens are comfortably good for my liking.
Fuji X-T3 . Sigma 56 mm f1.4 @ 56mm . f1.4 . 1/4000″ . ISO 320 . Classic Chrome
I do observe some mild vignetting when I shoot at f1.4 but I think that is acceptable. If vignetting is a problem, you can either stop down to lower aperture or remove it via post-processing. As for the chromatic aberration, I do not think I observe any or I barely notice it during my tests. I think Sigma engineers are really doing a great job in this department.
Left: Fuji X-T3 . Sigma 56 mm f1.4 @ 56mm . f8 . 1/640″ . ISO 160 . Classic Chrome Right: Fuji X-T3 . Sigma 56 mm f1.4 @ 56mm . f16 . 1/170″ . ISO 160 . Classic Chrome
For the sunny star result, the shot taken at f8 produces a softer and less rounded result. Contrastingly, the result looks sharper at f16 and more pronounced than that of f8.
Fuji X-T3 . Sigma 56 mm f1.4 @ 56mm . f1.4 . 1/17,000″ . ISO 320 . Classic Chrome
For a portrait lens, what a photographer wants from a portrait lens is bokeh. Who doesn’t love beautiful bokeh? This lens probably does not produce the best bokeh but rather a pretty decent and comfortable to the eyes. Although the bokeh ball is lemon-shaped like at wide open, it does not distract me from looking at the main subject.
Fuji X-T3 . Sigma 56 mm f1.4 @ 56mm . f8 . 1/125″ . ISO 160 . Post-edited Left: Fuji X-T3 . Sigma 56 mm f1.4 @ 56mm . f8 . 1/125″ . ISO 160 . Post-edited Right: Fuji X-T3 . Sigma 56 mm f1.4 @ 56mm . f8 . 1/125″ . ISO 160 . Post-edited
Focusing
Thanks to the stepping motor, the focusing experience is a great one. It is silent, fast and *accurate. I cannot hear a single motor sound produced by the stepping motor while I am focusing. Apparently, my shutter is louder.
Fuji X-E3 . Sigma 56 mm f1.4 @ 56mm . f1.4 . 1/11,000″ . ISO 400 . Classic ChromeLeft: Fuji X-T3 . Sigma 56 mm f1.4 @ 56mm . f1.4 . 1/110″ . ISO 160 . Classic Chrome Right: Fuji X-T3 . Sigma 56 mm f1.4 @ 56mm . f1.4 . 1/350″ . ISO 320 . Classic Chrome
Unlike its brothers, this lens does not inherit the focusing accuracy issue. On the flip side, I do encounter some rare auto-focus hunting at times. It does not matter whether I used it during the day or night, indoor or outdoor. While I tried to replicate the focus hunting issue right from the moment I experienced it, I failed. The lens somehow just does not has this hurdle anymore.
Fuji X-T3 . Sigma 56 mm f1.4 @ 56mm . f1.4 . 1/1800″ . ISO 320 . Classic ChromeFuji X-E3 . Sigma 56 mm f1.4 @ 56mm . f1.4 . 1/5000″ . ISO 400 . Classic Chrome
But do not worry about it. As I understand from Sigma Marketing, their team is constantly updating their lenses to improve the focus quality and accuracy.
Minimum Focus Distance (MFD)
This lens’ MFD is at 50cm. For a glimpse comparison, XF56mm f1.2 is 70cm, XF50mm f2 is 39cm and the XF50mm f1 is also 70cm.
While it is not as close as the XF50mm f2, it is definitely better than the other 2 Fuji lenses have to offer. Does MFD matter? In my case, the answer is yes. It allows me to have a shallower depth of field between the subject and the background.
Left: Fuji X-E3 . Sigma 56 mm f1.4 @ 56mm . f1.4 . 1/26,000″ . ISO 400 . Classic Chrome Right: Fuji X-E3 . Sigma 56 mm f1.4 @ 56mm . f1.4 . 1/23,000″ . ISO 400 . Classic Chrome
Certain lenses have some level of softness when you shoot at wide-open and at MFD. Fortunately, this lens is otherwise, it is surprisingly sharp & usable. I actually like how it renders and it does not have very harsh bokeh results.
Price Point
Okay, this is “straightforward” and also “challenging” at the same time.
Let’s talk about “straightforward” first, if you are on a budget and compare it with the XF50mm f2 (*SRP SGD749, USD449). I think the Sigma 56mm (SRP SGD688, USD479) is pretty worth it. Hear me out. While you sacrifice the weather resistance that Fuji 50mm f2 offers, you have one full stop of light at your disposal. It is always an advantage when you have that extra stop of light, it will come in handy when you need it. More light is a higher priority in my case.
Fuji X-T3 . Sigma 56 mm f1.4 @ 56mm . f8 . 1/300″ . ISO 320 . Classic ChromeLeft: Fuji X-T3 . Sigma 56 mm f1.4 @ 56mm . f1.4 . 1/125″ . ISO 500 . Classic Chrome Right: Fuji X-T3 . Sigma 56 mm f1.4 @ 56mm . f1.4 . 1/80″ . ISO 160 . Classic Chrome
Here comes the challenging part, Sigma is actually priced right between another 2 third party manufacturers, Viltrox and Tokina. I believe you know which one costs higher and which one is more pocket friendly. I cannot speak on behalf of these 2 manufacturers about their portrait lenses because I did not try them out before. What I searched online is that they shared some similarities (with a little 10% difference) like weight, filter size and MFD. I think it is best for you to visit your local stores to have some hands-on experience with these 3 lenses.
Fuji X-T3 . Sigma 56 mm f1.4 @ 56mm . f1.4 . 1/680″ . ISO 320 . Post-editedLeft: Fuji X-E3 . Sigma 56 mm f1.4 @ 56mm . f2 . 1/2400″ . ISO 200 . Classic Chrome Right: Fuji X-E3 . Sigma 56 mm f1.4 @ 56mm . f1.4 . 1/9000″ . ISO 400 . Classic Chrome
*SRP – Suggested Retail Price
Conclusion
This is a decent portrait lens for its price and compactness. In these few weeks of hands-on, I enjoy shooting with this lens a lot. I mean, I actually used it for street photography and cityscape besides shooting portraits. It gives me a new perspective and sees things differently from my usual 23mm and 35mm focal length.
Left: Fuji X-E3 . Sigma 56 mm f1.4 @ 56mm . f5 . 1/1800″ . ISO 400 . Post-edited Right: Fuji X-E3 . Sigma 56 mm f1.4 @ 56mm . f7.1 . 1/1000″ . ISO 200 . Classic Chrome
The optical quality does not tell this lens is actually designed in 2018 and the results are truly usable and sharp and contrast at wide open. In short, Sigma delivers great results in its “Contemporary” series. I am actually excited and looking forward to that one day when Sigma updates its “Contemporary” lenses and distinguishes itself among the third party manufacturers.
Left: Fuji X-T3 . Sigma 56 mm f1.4 @ 56mm . f1.4 . 1/300″ . ISO 160 . Post-edited Right: Fuji X-T3 . Sigma 56 mm f1.4 @ 56mm . f1.4 . 1/480″ . ISO 320 . Classic Chrome
Who is this for?
For photographers who are just picking up and want a portrait lens with a modest budget, this might be a wise choice for you. This lens gives you an extra stop of light as compared to XF50mm f2 and is more economical than XF56mm f1.2. It really strikes a good balance in terms of price and performance while minimising the compromise that it has.
Fuji X-T3 . Sigma 56 mm f1.4 @ 56mm . f1.4 . 1/125″ . ISO 320 . post-edited
Fuji X-T3 . Sigma 56 mm f1.4 @ 56mm . f1.4 . 1/220″ . ISO 320 . Post-edited
For street photographers who love to shoot at a distance away from the subject, this is also a good choice but, of course, it does not have as much flexibility as the Sigma 30mm has.
Left: Fuji X-T3 . Sigma 56 mm f1.4 @ 56mm . f1.4 . 1/80″ . ISO 640 . Post-edited Right: Fuji X-T3 . Sigma 56 mm f1.4 @ 56mm . f1.4 . 1/125″ . ISO 2000 . Post-edited
Thank you for reading.
Disclaimer: 1. The lens is a loan unit from Mr. Lawson from Sigma Marketing (Singapore). By the time this review was online, the lens had returned back to Sigma Marketing (Singapore). 2. The lens firmware that I am using is version 1.00. 3. Some of the shots are straight out of the camera while others are edited via In-Camera Raw Processing and Adobe Lightroom Classic & Capture One. 4. The opinions are based on my experience. If there is any mistake, please kindly drop me a message and I will gladly make the amendment. 5. All the shots taken here are shot by me. I reserve ownership of these images, if you wish to use my images, please notify me.
If you like my works, please follow me on either one of the 2 Instagram accounts:
Is minimalism equal to limitation? In a way, yes. Minimalism is by keeping things as simple as possible, limited yet still functioning as what it suppose to be. In this case, X-E4 has done it and did it right. It has the most minimalistic design Fujifilm has ever created. The design is a bold move. Fujifilm removes some of the hardware functions but still allows photographers to access them when needed via the “Q” menu, setting up the “My Menu” or mapping it to other buttons or dials. While I am not sure by removing the grip from the camera body is a wise choice but honestly speaking, the camera is aesthetically beautiful.
X-E4 is not designed in such a way that it will please everyone but rather, it does attract a niche group of people who adore simplicity. In other words, this camera is what represents the life of how the photographer live in. At least I am.
A little bit of history here. X-E4 was announced on 27 January 2021 and released a month later. And my first ever review post was actually about this camera together with the XF27mm f2.8. (The review can be found here.)
Fuji X-E4 . XF27mm f2.8 WR
I love all the camera designs from Fujifilm, especially the X-Pro series but the X-E series still has a special place in my heart. I cannot explain specifically why I love this series so much. But I think a combination of aesthetic, compact and retro-style designs are probably the reasons.
Fuji X-E4 . XF27mm f2.8 WR
Another short history here. I pick up my first X-E series (X-E3) back in 2019. It is a preloved unit but the overall condition is not heavily abused. It’s a simple camera that somehow I love using for my street shutter therapy more than my X-T3. It’s light, compact and less prominent among other camera designs. It does not look like a professional camera but in its gut, it is capable to meet my needs. X-E4, in my opinion, improves way better than its predecessor in many ways.
Back to X-E4. So how do I overcome the limitations of this camera? Well, I just simply preset the desired ISO auto setting (maximum ISO sensitivity and minimum shutter speed) and that’s all. Most of the functions that I need is actually available in the “Q” menu. Honestly, I rarely touch anything else besides the aperture value, exposure compensation value and of course the shutter button.
Besides people who love simplicity, in my opinion, this camera is very suitable for someone who is a retro-style enthusiastic, an everyday camera for casual photographers and of course a good pickup camera for amateurs. Why so? Firstly, it is not as expensive as its other brothers (i.e. X-Pro and X-T series). Secondly, it is equipped with the X-Trans IV sensor, which is a very capable sensor and also not forgetting that this sensor is also equipped in all its other brothers as well. Thirdly, it has a lot of compact lenses to pair up with (both Fujifilm and third parties manual lenses).
Fuji X-E4 . XF33mm f1.4
To end this, I have been using this camera for months. In these few months of using it, I get to understand what this camera design philosophy is. In my interpretation, the answer is very straightforward. Fujifilm wants to let the photographer concentrate on shooting, enjoy the process of shooting and leave everything else to the camera to handle it. I am glad that Fujifilm dares to design something different from its current line-up of cameras. And I hope this X-E4 will encourage more photographers to bring it out and capture the moments in them. After all, it’s a beauty to hang out with.
Fuji X-E4 . XF33mm f1.4
Fuji X-E4 . XF27mm f2.8
Disclaimer: 1. The camera is a loan unit from Mr. Keitaro So, Divisional Head of Fujifilm Asia Pacific. By the time this review is online, the units had returned back to Fujifilm Asia Pacific. 2. All the shots taken here are shot by me. 3. Some of the shots are straight out of the camera while others are edited via In-Camera Raw Processing and Adobe Lightroom Classic. 4. The opinions are based on my experience. If there is any mistake, please kindly drop me a message and I will gladly make the amendment. 5. I reserve ownership of these images, if you wish to use my images, please notify me.
Thank you for reading.
If you like my works, please follow me on either one of the 2 Instagram accounts:
After three months of delay, the successor of the classic XF23mm f1.4 R has finally arrived on our shore this month. While the price of the newly launched lens is priced at USD 900, the predecessor is easily available between USD 600 to 700~ ish. Is it worth saving the $200 ~ $300 difference? In this post, I will share some of the experiences I had with both lenses and hope to help you in your own decision journey.
XF23mm f1.4 R
XF23mm f1.4 R
XF23mm f1.4 R
Before I start my sharing, I would like to thank Ivan Joshua Loh for lending me his XF23mm f1.4 R for a shoot. This has actually landed me an opportunity to have a full 2 days of hands-on with the classic lens.
Image Quality
The classic one gives an overall decent image quality all most focusing distance but I noticed soft results at its minimum focus distance. Chromatic aberration is also quite noticeable, especially in an outdoor sunny environment and shooting wide open. As for the new one, it produces sharper image quality and addresses those flaws that I mentioned earlier. The rendering of the bokeh also seems to be better than the classic one. More pleasant to the eyes if you ask me.
X-E4 . XF23mm f1.4 R @ F1.4
For the new F23mm f1.4 R LM WR, you can have a look at photos taken here and here.
Autofocus speed
This is a very subjective topic when comes to focusing performance. How fast or slow depends on how the individual defines it. Unfortunately, I have both the classic and new lenses mounted on different camera bodies (due to different loan periods) but the cameras are equipped with X-Trans 4 (if that is the concern). For reference, X-E4 is for the classic lens and X-S10 is for the new lens.
X-E4 . XF23mm f1.4 R @ F1.4
To my surprise, the classic one is not that slow with the newer camera. The focusing speed is acceptably fast and I do not really experience any slow-focusing or focus hunting under dim light conditions. However, it is surely noisy.
X-E4 . XF23mm f1.4 R @ F1.4
For the new lens, the focusing speed is indeed very fast and silent. It locks onto the subject really quick and precise.
Minimum Focus Distance
If you are like me who like to take as close up as possible, the classic is not for you. It’s minimum focus distance is at 28 cm as compared to 19cm on the new one.
X-E4 . XF23mm f1.4 R @ F1.4
Size and Weight
To be honest, they are somewhat close to each other. The overall size and weight is nothing much to shout about or compare. While one is slightly wider and shorter, the other is slightly taller and slimmer. Both are about the same weight and still bigger than the f2 variant.
X-E4 . XF23mm f1.4 R @ F1.4
Appearance
The classic one comes with the push/pull clutch manual focus ring. The aperture ring is close to clickless. Overall, the lens gives a very vintage style design element.
X-E4 . XF23mm f1.4 R @ F2.8 (right) & F1.4 (left)
As for the new one, it is totally the opposite of the classic. Fujifilm has removed the push/pull clutch, gives the aperture ring better clicky feedback and modernize the overall lens design. Plus it includes the Weather Resistant (WR).
Conclusion
The successor iso truly the winner here. I can see how much effort Fujifilm has improved the lens in almost every aspect of the classic one.
Back to the question. Is it worth saving the $200 ~ $300 difference? Ideally, getting the latest glass is always the better choice. If you have no financial constraints, this is the way to go.
X-E4 . XF23mm f1.4 R @ F5.6X-E4 . XF23mm f1.4 R @ F5.6
But if you are just picking up photography with a limited budget, I think there are a few more options besides getting the used XF23mm f1.4 R. I think starting off with 3rd party lenses from Sigma and Viltrox is also another good option (if you are willing to accept their strengths and drawbacks).
X-E4 . XF23mm f1.4 R @ F1.4X-E4 . XF23mm f1.4 R @ F1.4 (left) & F4 (right)
What is your opinion? Share with me in the comment below or DM me in instagrams. Cheers!
As for me, I have a lot of concerns when purchasing a used lens and that’s just my two cents. I am kind of biased to the successor and that’s because I started using the successor before using the classic lens. On that account, I have unconsciously set a high standard for image quality and I cannot turn it back. Yes, it is not a cheap lens but it is unarguably a futureproofing lens for the newer camera bodies which will harness the power of the lens.
X-E4 . XF23mm f1.4 R @ F1.4X-E4 . XF23mm f1.4 R @ F1.4
Disclaimer: 1. All the shots taken here are shot by me. 2. Some of the shots are straight out of the camera while others are edited via In-Camera Raw Processing and Adobe Lightroom Classic. 3. The opinions are based on my experience. If there is any mistake, please kindly drop me a message and I will gladly make the amendment. 4. I reserve ownership of these images, if you wish to use my images, please notify me.
Thank you for reading.
If you like my works, please follow me on either one of the 2 Instagram accounts:
Alwin Kok 