Fujifilm Fujinon XF23mm F1.4 R Lens

Product Information

And yet this is not a small lens, and you might start to think that if you’re going to be working with prime lenses this size, you might just as well step up to a full frame system. Fujifilm’s appeal lies in its combination of size and performance. Performance on its own may not be enough. How we test lenses Chromatic aberrations, typically seen as purple or blue fringes along contrasty edges, are not too much a problem with the Fujifilm XF 23mm F1.4 R LM WR lens, except in areas of very high contrast. Vignetting

The newer generation of lenses is also much more compact, thanks to sacrificing a little bit of aperture.

Further good news is that focus breathing is controlled well and there’s only a very slight change to the framing when the focus shifts from infinity to the closest point. Close the 1.4 model to f2 to match the aperture of the compact lens and it improves a little further still, although there’s little to be gained in the middle of the frame of the new lens by stopping it further to f2.8. That said, the compact f2 lens on the right has improved a little closed one stop to f2.8, but still falls behind the premium model on the left.

The Fujifilm XF 23mm F1.4 R LM WR lens has an internal focusing (IF) system that uses a linear motor, which results in fast, accurate, and virtually silent auto-focusing on the X-S10 camera that we tested it with. The softness of the older lens when shooting wide open at its minimum focus distance is also gone. It's really sharp at 1.4 even just 19cm from the subject. The Fuji XF 23mm f/1.4 ASPH is an extraordinary lens. When a lens is just about optically and mechanically perfect, there isn't much to say, other than to go get one. Lens Versus Wide Angle Primes Standard Zooms Telephoto Zooms 10-24mm F4 vs. Primes 14mm F2.8 vs. 18mm F2 16mm Comparison 18mm F2 vs. 27mm F2.8 18-55mm F2.8-4 vs. 35mm F1.4 35mm F1.4 vs. 35mm F2 WR 56mm F1.2 vs. APD 56mm F1.2 vs. 60mm F2.4 Macro X100(S/T) vs. 23mm F1.4 X100(S/T) vs. 27mm F2.8 X100 Converters vs. 18mm & 35mm MCEX-11 vs. MCEX-16 Extension Tubes Looking beyond the slightly different lighting conditions shows both lenses delivering good results in the middle of the frame right out of the gate with minimal benefits to stopping-down any further.The Fujinon XF 23mm f1.4 R LM WR slips in smoothly amongst Fujifilm’s XF lenses with a familiar design, metal barrel and high-quality feel. At 77.8mm in length and 67mm in diameter, it’s longer and fatter than the XF 23mm f1.4 R it replaces (72mm long and 63mm in diameter), which means it doesn’t look quite so neat on Fujifilm’s APS-C format X-series cameras, but at 375g (75g more than the older lens) it still feels nicely balanced. EDUCATION: Chris graduated Magna Cum Laude from Adelphi University with a degree in Communications in Journalism in 2009. Since then, he's learned and adapted to various things in the fields of social media, SEO, app development, e-commerce development, HTML, etc. At 67x78mm and weighing 375g, the new 23 1.4 is longer but a little narrower than the original model and a little heavier too, but the difference in heft isn’t anywhere near like the new 33 1.4 versus the old 35 1.4. Lens distortion has been reduced to the absolute minimum using only optical rather than digital correction, thereby delivering the highest possible picture quality. At the other end of the lens, the Sigma employs a 52mm filter thread and is supplied with a bayonet lens hood. The slightly narrower barrel of the Sony takes 49mm filters, and the lens is also supplied with a hood.

This lens certainly offers professional performance, build quality and features for X-mount cameras and helps strengthen the appeal of Fujifilm’s APS-C range for serious enthusiasts and pros. Optically, it’s superb, and the handling is neat, efficient and effective. But now let’s compare it to the Sigma 23 in full-frame mode, and while some of the imaging circle remains visible as expected, it’s far less extreme than the Sony. Now to be fair, neither lens is designed to be used like this, but you can still see how the Sigma not only has a larger imaging circle, but one that remains respectably sharp well beyond the APSC frame size. I was quite pleased with the aperture ring found on the XF 23mm F1.4 initially, but almost every prime that has been released since has improved upon it slightly. A tighten here, and damp there. I don’t think many would be terribly disappointed with the aperture ring on the XF 23mm F1.4, but it could find its way out of the users setting without their knowledge, so it’s worth noting. Size and Weight

Ok, now for my optical tests, starting with my distant landscape scene, angled so that details run into the corners. You’re looking at the Sigma 23mm at f1.4 here, mounted on an A7 IV body in APSC mode since I needed faster shutter speeds with the aperture wide-open than my A6400 allowed. Here’s the Sigma 23 focused as close as I could to the ruler, where it’s reproducing a subject measuring around 138mm across the frame. I’ll keep the Sigma image at the top and compare it against the Sony at the bottom from its closer minimum focusing distance of 16cm where it’s reproducing 92mm across the frame. Like other models in the series, the only control on the Sigma 23 is a smooth and well-damped manual focusing ring. Likewise for the Sony lens, neither of which has any switches mounted on their barrels. But, oh my, was I in for a surprise. They completely reimagined this lens, and made what I consider the best XF series lens to date! Yes, even better than the XF18mm f/1.4 and todays co-released XF33mm f/1.4. So le’s have a look at this latest lens offering from Fujifilm.

We found the autofocus system to be fast and consistently accurate throughout our testing. Levels of sharpness are highly impressive, right out to the edges and corners of the image frame, even when shooting wide-open at f/1.4. Color fringing is minimal at all aperture settings but barrel distortion and vignetting can be noticeable. Automatic in-camera corrections are generally available and worked well in the Sony mount-option of the lens that we tested. Is it going to give you the same kind of effect for portraits? Probably not, especially as you might not want to be this close to someone’s face with a 23mm lens. Tamron – Need lightweight, compact mirrorless lenses? Tamron has you covered, with superior optics perfect for any situation. With weather sealing and advanced image stabilization, you’ll open up your creative possibilities. Plus in situations like travel, you can fit just about anything in the frame without a ton of distortion. It’s so nice when you can pop a photo into Lightroom and don’t need to mess with the perspective, such as the photo below: Budapest, Hungary during blue hour with the Fujifilm 23mm f2. Autofocus speed, accuracy, and silenceOpen-loop systems of DSLRs and LEICAs can't compensate for these errors and sometimes have focus errors (offsets) which we don't have in the Fuji system. Bravo! In case you’ve not made a decision yet, here are a handful of my favorite photos from my trip to Italy last year, taken with. the Fujinon XF 23mm f/2 WR lens. Atrani, Italy. Photo taken with the Fujifilm 23mm f2 WR lens. Positano, Italy. Photo taken with the Fujifilm 23mm f2 WR lens. Ravello, Italy. Photo taken with the Fujifilm 23mm f2 WR lens. Pompeii, Italy. Photo taken with the Fujifilm 23mm f2 WR lens. Positano, Italy. Photo taken with the Fujifilm 23mm f2 WR lens. Where to buy this lens It toggles between auto aperture control (the ring is set to A) or manual aperture control (the switch is set to one of the aperture values).