Daily Archives: September 2, 2015

 

 

 

When you have time to think, you think of weird things!  I own most of the lenses Fuji has come out with, but two recent purchases are becoming my favorites.  The 16mm f 1.4 and the 90mm f 2, (24mm and 135mm equivalents) represent the short and long lenses I enjoy most.  A 24mm is the all around wide angle, wide enough to look really wide, but not so wide that it can’t be used “more” conservatively!  The 90mm is a long portrait lens, and a short “long” telephoto.  So what if you had to live with only two lenses?  Could the 16mm & the 90mm be them?

 

I think so.  Both lenses are fast for their focal lengths.  They both are exceptionally sharp, maybe the sharpest I’ve ever seen for their focal lengths.  The 16mm is compact, and the 90mm has a perfect amount of heft and feel in the hand.

 

The 90mm has the perfect, compressed, look that isolates subjects beautifully. I own the 56mm f 1.2 and it is a sweet lens too, but it does not compress like the 90mm and that is a trait I highly value.

 

There is one other thing, zooms make me lazy.  Notice how I didn’t say they make you lazy!!!!  I have no idea how you deal with convenience, but in all honesty, if I don’t have to move, I’m sometimes, shall we say complacent.  This may not be a problem in many areas of life, but in photography perspective is created by your position to the subject.  If you have the right perspective. you need to fill the frame from where you are standing, thus zooms, but if you have the proper focal length from where you’re standing all the better.  Clear as mud?  Right?  Really using single focal length lenses has a lot  of great advantages.  Usually the quality  is marginally better, and of course the maximum speed is almost always better.

 

 

I went out and shot a few images today to just illustrate how each lens covers the same subject.  The statue below shows how glorious the f 2  works to give butter smooth bokeh.

 

 

The flowers photographed at f 1.4 can have sharpness very close, but still have out of focus backgrounds that add to the composition and secondary motifs.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The shot of the Open sign below is a close shot with the 16mm.

 

The same sign with the 90mm, you can see the compression difference at 90mm.

 

 

The Texaco Sky Chief sign below shows the 16mm has the patented sweeping appearance.

 

 

 

The close-focus ability of  the 16mm allows doing some rather neat things like the image below, and after all, isn’t that what is the most cool thing about photography after all, finding great subjects, and using the tools at your disposal to make images, how invigorating is that!!!

 

Blessings,

 

the pilgrim