Wide Eyed: The Fujifilm XF 18mm f/1.4 R LM WR
Life will sometimes choose its own direction, aiming us like lowly arrows at a target. We were discussing street lenses and FOVs on the 1EYE Slack channel when I got an email from Fujifilm, offering a quick project with the upcoming XF 18mm F/1.4. A day later I’d already received a pre-production unit and started planning.
I’ve often repeated that I’m not a wide-angle shooter, preferring 35 mm or 50 mm equivalents in most cases. Certainly for street or documentary photography. But given the lockdowns and boredom, I’d recently been craving the classic 18mm, which I’d only used once, during the X-Pro3 promotional shoot. So I guess one plus one equals… serendipity? Either that or this was all exquisite timing.
Grown-ups
Ok, first impressions: I’m not going to lie, the size threw me off. I was expecting something compact, similar to the f/2 version and…it is not. In fact, it’s in the physical range of the XF 56mm f/1.2 or the XF 23mm f/1.4, which is probably due to the combo of brighter aperture, higher IQ and use of a linear motor. Physics being physics. But this last features means faster and much smoother focussing, turning this lens into a potential video contender — and I believe this probably played a big part in the company’s decision-making process. That linear motor, combined with custom video settings on the X-T series, makes it possible to get very fluid focus changes when using AF-C. It’s not a negligible point. In fact, it’s a feature that, to this day, still makes the XF 18-55mm super useful as a video lens (along with OIS of course).
Is it too big? No. It balances really well on the X-Pro3, and it’s probably even better on the X-T4. But the takeaway is that the size and weight immediately differentiate this model from its predecessor: it’s not so much an update as another lens entirely. Which is fine—I just wasn’t expecting it.
Back in the USS…err… Montreal?
I wrote one keyword for this project: city. I wanted a street shoot, period. Ideally on a sunny day. Because I desperately needed it, but mainly because of the lens’ focal length. So I watched the weather, crossed my fingers one morning and packed my gear. I drove to Montreal, parked the car in my usual spot at the Old Port—party like it’s 2019. Except for the mask. And the monopod dangling haphazardly from my bag. And the second kit for shooting video, in between shooting stills. Right…so not like old times. But hey! I was strutting downtown baby. That’s a milestone right there.
I’d expected disorientation, from the wider angle but also from a rather severe lack of practice. But oddly, everything just naturally fell into place. I spent a couple of hours walking through the streets, and it was as if I’d been there the day before. In hindsight, it probably helped that I hadn’t shot in the city for so long: my eyes simply accepted the 27 mm FOV. I didn’t constantly expect a tighter frame to appear in the EVF.
As for the lens: it performed brilliantly. This thing is fast—which certainly helped while I regained my footing.
So: which One?
This new lens is, unquestionably, superb. It ticks all the right boxes in terms of IQ, performance, weather resistance AND, as I mentioned, it also fits into a video workflow. However, if I were to choose one or the other today… I’d probably get the classic f/2—because of its size/stealth, the mobility factor and more importantly, how I’m likely to use it. Which is what matters most IMHO. I’d suggest it’s what you need to ask yourself as well if you’re on the fence. But let me be clear: the f/1.4 IS the better of the two. By far. It’s sharper all over, has lovely bokeh…we could go down the list. But life is an eternal compromise folks, and what we have here is choice instead of replacement. I like that. I like that it may leave room for an actual update to the older model too. Who knows? Maybe a new XF 35mm f/1.4 as well? Just as magical but with smoother performance? A full Original Trinity redesign?
But shhh….that’s just me daydreaming ;)
More info here.
P.S I’ll be publishing a few more stories shot with this lens in the next couple of days.
