FUJIFILM X-Pro2 (10mm, f/8, 1/105 sec, ISO200)

The light makes the picture and the lens. The camera is just a black box that once held the film and today holds the sensor. While sensors are different their influence on the picture is overrated.

I really like my new Fuji X-Pro 2. I like how it handles, I like the viewfinder and the nice shutter sound. And of course I like that the new sensor gives me more details than the one in my X-T1 but none of those things really change my photography. New lenses do. Since I switched to Fuji I got a couple of new lenses: the XF 10-24 OIS to cover ultra wide for landscapes. The XF 55-200 R OIS to cover the tele end also for landscapes. And finally the XF 16/1.4 WR by accident because they had a second hand one and I made the mistake to put it on my camera.

But let’s start with the XF 10-24 OIS first. An ultra wide angle zoom. Maybe one of the most important lenses in every camera bag. Even if your standard lens starts at 16mm it is simply not wide enough. To be able to produce images with real impact no matter if interiors or landscape shots you simply need a wider lens.

FUJIFILM X-Pro2 (10mm, f/8, 1/90 sec, ISO200)
FUJIFILM X-Pro2 (10mm, f/8, 1/80 sec, ISO320)

Even though I own the fantastic XF 14/2.8 R I know that I needed a substitute for my Canon EF 16-35/4 IS for those really wide shots. I was a little nervous if the Fuji was good enough and even more so if the distortion correction was baked into the RAW file. In short: It is good enough and the distortion is corrected automatically if your RAW converter uses this data. Lightroom does so I’m happy. When I look though the viewfinder the distortion is clearly visible especially at 10mm but when I open the files in LR everything is fine and all lines are straight.

Talking about straight lines. It is mandatory to hold the camera absolutely straight to avoid that buildings are falling backwards. As soon as you tilt the camera even slightly upwards or down you get into trouble. I would like to have a 3D spirit level in the viewfinder but the effect at 10mm is so dramatic that it is not necessary at all.

FUJIFILM X-Pro2 (10mm, f/8, 1/80 sec, ISO400)
FUJIFILM X-T1 (16mm, f/1.4, 1/200 sec, ISO200)

And there was a second lens with me. The fantastic Fuji XF 16/1.4 WR. Here are just two examples. Wide angle plus a narrow depth of field usually is full frame territory. But it works. A little big and heavy for my taste but simply extraordinary in its performance. A very special lens. Maybe Fuji’s best lens so far.

FUJIFILM X-T1 (16mm, f/1.4, 1/140 sec, ISO200)