shot on assignment in Jamaica.
I've always liked the 135mm (full frame) equivalent focal length for portraits. That focal length, especially when paired with a fast and sharp f-stop, does a great job compressing images and focusing viewer attention on the primary subject in the frame. I've owned the Nikon 135mm f2.0, the Canon 135mm f2.0 and lenses in other formats that are in the same angle of view category. I've liked almost all of them.
I noticed that the 90mm f2.0 lens, which is usually priced at around $950, is currently (and apparently through March) available at retailers for the reduced price of $699. Or $698, depending on the dealer....
I have a project for which this lens would be most welcome but before I pull the trigger on yet another lens in the Fuji system (I just bought the 14mm f2.8 a little over a week ago) I thought I'd check in with all of you Fuji shooters and see what your take on this lens might be.
I understand that it does not have image stabilization but I figure I can work with that given my (again---recent) purchase of two XH1 cameras which feature in body image stabilization. Anything else it may be advantageous to know?
Thanks, Kirk
A few more favorites from my days with 135mm lenses....
Paris.
Genius.
Love.
Kirov. Russia.
location.
Actor.
Artist.
Legit street photographer.
Creator.
Ice cream. Park bench.
Dancer feet.
coffee shop customer.
I’ve got the 90mm. If it has a weak spot, I have yet to find it.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your quick reply Paul. Much appreciated.
ReplyDeleteI am like Paul, I like the 90m and it has worked well in a studio environment. In the old days I used a Nikon and 135 for street photography. More recently I like the 50m for street stuff.
ReplyDeleteProbably my favourite Fuji lens, for image quality, but also the one I use the least! But that's more because I'm not doing many portraits or weddings at the moment, and I stick to the 23/56 for walkaround stuff. But the 90mm is wonderful, and also focuses quite close, so I can use it for credible shots of wedding rings etc. I don't see any downsides at that price, if you have a use for the focal length! Highly recommended.
ReplyDeleteI don't have the Fuji 90 (I wish!), but 135 waa my favorite for portraits for many years.
ReplyDeleteBack when Phillip Greenspun's photo.net was one of the go-to sites for photo-fans, he wrote that you couldn't possibly be a professional photographer without a 70-200mm f2.8 lens. I left a comment that I had been a professional for some years at the time, and had never owned anything longer than a 135.
Strangely, I never received a response from him.
Hey Kirk, I borrowed one for a few days last month and used it on some portraits in the studio.
ReplyDeleteGreat lens, lovely bokeh and rendering. However I found it difficult without any stabilization and we were shooting aputure lights and I was trying to keep a low ISO.
Aside from that a lovely lens.
Beautiful lens, should work well with your IS bodies. It can be hard to handhold in low light width an XT.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Paul that weak spots are hard to find. I love mine. Beautiful rendering and nice soft out of focus areas. Outdoors, I try to shoot around 1/200sec and have no problems with it not being stabilized. Although not its intended purpose, I've also used it for intimate landscapes to pick out individual features when the wider lenses get boring.
ReplyDeleteCheck out the comments on Fred Miranda https://www.fredmiranda.com/forum/topic/1581230, or go to the Fuji Forum on Fred Miranda to see a number of comments to your very question. General consensus is that it is an excellent lens.
ReplyDeleteThe 90mm f/2.0 seems to vanish from in front of my XT-3, especially with the battery grip connected. The 135 equivalent field of view that you mention, Kirk, puts me in intimate conversation range with the subject, as if neither of us need raise our voices to hear well. Its simplicity and ability to get out of the way in the process of carrying light to my eye reminds me of the Olympus 75mm f/1.8, which lens I believe you’re also fond of. I’m delighted with it.
ReplyDeleteDear Kirk,
ReplyDeleteI enjoy your writing and photos immensely. And with this latest set of pictures and also looking at the 'Renee in the old studio' photo, I have to make my very first comment. Or, rather question: when will you, for your personal work, start using b&w film again? A nice little Bronica RF or Mamiya 6 maybe? Me thinks your 6x6 b&w film photos always stick out in a galery like this one.
And, while I'm at it, a second, unrelated question: what happened to your 'large pixel' Nikon cameras? I got a D300S and I love the tonality, if I can use base ISO that is.
Kirk I owned a copy when it first came into the scene, attached to an XT-1. Magnificent colour rendition and bokeh but it had two drawbacks. Quite slow autofocus and very noisy. (“Noisy” as in the lens’ gizzards seem to shake all the time. Nothing wrong with the lens but that’s the way it was). Having said all this, later model Fuji bodies may have improved focus speed a lot but I can’t comment from experience.
ReplyDeleteMax from Down Under
Hi Kirk, I knew you would like the 60mm and I am positive you will like the 90mm. I am always amazed at the quality of the output of this lens. I've used it with an XT1 & 2 to shoot my daughter's jazz gigs in dark venues handheld and wide open without any problem. Cheers, John
ReplyDeleteA jewel from Fuji and that is saying a lot because they really make great glass.
ReplyDeleteIt's a fantastic lens. I love it and use it probably more than I really should. I don't think you'll be disappointed by it as long as the FoV is one that you like to work with.
ReplyDeleteI saw someone mention that the 90 was slow to autofocus on the X-T1. It's incredibly fast and accurate on the x-pro 2 and, I assume, newer bodies. It's one of the fastest focusing Fuji lenses.
The lens "thunks" when you turn off the camera. That's normal and is nothing to worry about. It's the magnets used in the Af system dropping into their resting position when they lose power.
Didn't read a damn word of your article. That first pic...
ReplyDeleteWith the X-H1 image stabilisation it has no gotchas.
ReplyDeleteI haven't used one personally, but it constantly gets rave reviews from the Fuji user crowd.
Jonas Rask reviews of Fuji lenses are always enjoyable, if you haven't found him yet.