The Best Fujifilm Lenses After 4 Years of Trial & Error
Choosing the right lens can be a daunting task especially if you’re new to photography or don’t wish to buy, try, sell and repeat. Well I’ve done the hard work for you and in this post I will show you what I think is the best Fujifilm lens kit that covers every possible scenario. Not only will I talk about each lens individually but I will also combine them into sets.
Context
I’ve been with the Fujifilm system since 2018 and in that time tried and tested most of their lenses. The kit that I have now has stood the test of time and for well over a year I have not come across a scenario where I don’t have the right tool for the job. As a full time travel photographer, these lenses have seen everything, from the desert, to a rain storm, from peaks of mountains to a hectic market In Istanbul. These are not cabinet trophies, they are tools and they show it. Finally, please keep in mind that you do not need all of this to take great photos. None of these are must haves and in all cases there are smaller, lighter and way more affordable options. I will talk about these later in the blog. I only have them because this is what I do full time to make a living.
Lenses
First thing is first, let’s get some common attributes out of the way. All of these lenses are weather sealed and have linear motor focusing. Weather sealing is obvious, and linear motors make a huge difference especially for video. This kit is also designed to be multi purpose and overlap. There isn’t a lens here that just has one job or purpose.
Primes
Let’s begin with the primes and I have two. The 18mm f1.4 and the 33mm f1.4. Both of these are from the latest generation primes and I have to say are some of the sharpest Fuji lenses I have come across. Although bigger than the older f2 or even f1.4 counterparts, I don’t think these lenses are that big at all and they balance well on all Fuji bodies. Aside from the sharpness the general image quality, colour rendering and overall feel is great. If I had to pick fault, I’d say that the aperture ring on the 18mm is noticeably easier to move than the 33mm. This has resulted in me knocking it by accident quite a few times. Honestly at this price point, you’d expect the two lenses to have the same feeling. Other than that I am more than happy. In fact around 90% of my street photography has been on one of these.
Zooms
Moving over to the zooms, let’s first look at the 16-55 f2.8. If I had to only keep one lens out of my entire kit, it would be this. Although not as sharp as some of the others, the image is outstanding and I do believe it has a certain look to it. However for me the highlight is just how bulletproof and reliable it is. This lens is by far the oldest in my kit and is coming up to 4 years old. This lens has seen it all, from being completely drenched by seawater to hours of shooting in the pouring rain to even being jammed up with sand. Finally considering everything, the size and weight of this is not bad at all, however on smaller bodies like the XT30, this could be a little front heavy.
Next up we have the 50-140. It’s a niche lens given its size, cost and weight however the image quality is outstanding and by far one of the sharpest out there. I personally love the fully internal zoom as it helps with minimising anything getting inside. Just like the 16-55 this has been used in the desert and did get some sand behind the focus dial. However a quick service at Fuji got that resolved. The one negative about this lens is the very cheap lens hood that it comes with. Although I don’t use lens hoods, under certain conditions they can be handy however this one is so cheap and nasty and can even scratch the lens. The rest of the lens is built incredibly well and after nearly 4 years of use, I am yet to encounter any issues. However I’d say this lens is only really practical on bigger bodies like the XT or even the XH series.
The final zoom is the 8-16 f2.8. This is even more niche and right of the bat id say that for most people who just want a nice wide angle, the 10-24 might actually be better. The 8-16 is big, heavy, extremely expensive and can’t take any filters. At least not without crazy adaptors. For the record, I only got it because I got £600 off the price so I thought fuck it why not. Some positives then… as with the other red badge zooms the image quality is outstanding. Does get quite soft round the edges as you get wider, but that’s to be expected. Great autofocus and overall seems to be built really well. One thing to note is the focus ring is noticeably easier to move than the other zooms. Maybe it’s by design or maybe the build quality across product lines needs to be more consistent. Either way after 3 years, I’m happy.
So far I’ve just given you my general impression on the lenses from a technical standpoint. Now it’s time to talk about practical application… and this is where we will split this into kits.
Street Photography Kit
Let’s start with street photography and it’s the combination of the 18mm and 33mm primes. The 18mm will cover bigger scenes, establishing shots and photos where you’re right in the middle of the action. The 33mm will be for subjects and intimate details. The 18mm can also serve as a fantastic environmental portrait lens and come in quite handy when architecture is involved. The 33mm makes for a great traditional portrait lens. Between them I find myself covered for 90% of what I encounter in the street. Also coupled with the new 40mp sensors, you got the ability to then crop these into a 23mm and a 50mm respectively. Finally being f1.4 lenses, they make for fantastic low light photography too.
Minimal Travel Kit
The travel kit can vary depending on location but for most scenarios if I have to stay minimal, I would bring the 16-55 and the 33. The 16-55 is what id use most of the time because you are covered for everything and can be confident that you won’t miss the moment. The 33 comes in when you want a smaller / lighter setup, when you want to blend in more or if you have to shoot in low light. These two lenses really compliment each other and they would be my choice if I had to just travel minimally. However if I was travelling somewhere more remote and not city focused, I’d bring the 50-140 along too.
Landscape / Architecture Kit
I must admit I don’t do as much landscape photography as I wish, however every time I do it, I usually want to shoot either really wide and capture the entire scene, or go really right and get the small details. So for this kit I use the 8-16 and the 50-140 to cover the two extremes. The 8-16 can get all the foreground in and really make the scene feel grand whilst maintaining straight lines and not warping anything. The 50-140 can pick out even the smallest details within this large scene so that combined with the wide shots, you get a much better perspective on the location. This can also be applied to architecture photography and cityscapes. Now the one glaring issue is the size and weight of these two lenses. So if for whatever reason it was too much, id swap the 8-16 for the 18mm but keep the 50-140.
YouTube / Video Kit
Finally we have YouTube and Video. As mentioned earlier, all of these are fantastic Blog lenses but typically for talking head sections like these I would use the 8-16. This allows me to sit closer to the camera and the mic whilst also making use of a smaller space. When I am out and about trying to get some B Roll in the city, the 16-55 is my go to as you can get a huge selection of shots very quickly.
Cheaper Alternatives
As amazing as these lenses are, they are not for everyone. So let me now suggest some alternatives so that you can have the same kit but for half as much money.
Instead of the 18mm f1.4 go for the 23mm f2
Instead of the 33mm f1.4 go for the 35mm f2
Swap the 16-55 for the 16-80
Swap the 50-140 for the 70-300
Finally swap the 8-16 for the new 10-24