Fujifilm XF80 mm F2.8 R LM Optical Image Stabiliser, Weather Resistant Macro Lens

Product Information

Fuji calls this the Fujifilm Fujinon Aspherical Super EBC XF 80mm f/2.8 R LM OIS WR Macro (XF80mmF2.8 R LM OIS WR Macro). Sharpness is incredible. Simply unbelievable. I definitely think it’s the sharpest lens for the X-series. I don’t know what the charts say, and I don’t really care. From shooting this lens extensively I can tell you that it’s so very, very sharp. It doesn’t matter if you’re focusing at minimum focus distance, at infinity or anywhere in between. This. Lens. Is. So. Sharp! Its little brother, the 60mm, would be incredibly proud of the optical excellence that the 80mm delivers in both macro and portrait images – it’s seriously sharp. XF60/2.4 - AF with partially external focus, small, light but not sealed. Focuses to 1:2, with better working distances than the 30mm. Better at living moving critters. AF dated but OK on later bodies. Great bokeh. An excellent all-rounder if you don't need > 1:2. Works with extension tubes to give greater magnification. However, although some of the attributes of an f2.8 hold (like expected sharpness and focussing speed at wider apertures), if you’re going to equivalence focal length, it makes equal sense to equivalence aperture since total light gathering does have a commensurate value.

The pronounced clunk of the lens when it’s tilted might send alarm bells ringing the moment it’s taken out of the box. However, this is quite common with image-stabilised lenses. Switching the camera on engages magnets in the lens and the above-mentioned clunk soon disappears.Our tour of the lens starts at the generously sized round lens hood. It bayonets cleanly and precisely into place and is very unlikely to come adrift accidentally. Within the bayonet fitting for the lenshood is a 62mm filter thread. The front element has been given a fluorine coating to repel dust, dirt and moisture. The rest of the lens elements are coated with Fuji's EBC (Electron Beam Coating) to suppress flare and improve contrast. By f/16, both lenses produce visibly softer results due to diffraction but the 80mm does seem to retain a small lead over the 90mm. f/22 is so soft on the 80mm that I don’t really consider it useable. o Video can be outputted to external monitor via the HDMI port and input audio from an external microphone

The build quality of the Fujifilm XF 80mm f/2.8 lens is exceptional and it also comes with the added benefits of optical stabilization and weather protection. The lens is composed of 16 lenses arranged in 12 groups, which includes an aspherical lens, 3 ED glass lenses, and 1 Super ED glass lens. Additionally, the front lens is coated with fluorine. The minimum focusing distance for this lens is 25 cm. Being a member of several Fuji communities, it never ceases to amaze me the quality and creativity of images I see shot with this handy macro lens. Alongside the release of its new X-T5 APS-C mirrorless camera system, Fujifilm has also announced the XF 30mm F2.8 Macro, the company’s third XF macro lens, joining the XF 60mm F2.4 R Macro and the XF 80mm F2.8 R LM WR Macro. Fujifilm X-T3 + Fujifilm XF 80mm f/2.8 Macro – together they make a good-looking and well-balanced kit.

We can see that there are fairly significant amounts of both distortion (pincushion style) and vignette. The heavier distortion is somewhat of a surprise on a macro lens, as they tend to be well corrected. I used a -8 to correct the pincushion distortion. The vignette was also surprisingly heavy, requiring me to max out the sliders (+100 and midpoint to zero) to give a fully corrected result. As noted, the correction profile takes care of things in the real world, but that level of correction will have somewhat of an impact on corner performance particularly at higher ISO values where noise is more obvious.

quote]As regards the macro capability, it is of course so much more and can cover all the other short telephoto applications. [/quote]When reversed, the lens hood hugs the barrel and provides good protection when it’s being transported. The weather seal Fujifilm has added around the metal mount also does a good job of preventing moisture or foreign matters creeping past. If you are a photographer whose affection is torn between portraits and macro, I can bet you’ve asked yourself at some point: does it make more sense to use a single macro lens for both portraits and macro work, or invest in a dedicated portrait lens? The Fujifilm X-mount is not new, having been introduced in 2011. Currently, and likely for a long time to come, it is the mount I would recommend for people looking to buy an APS-C mirrorless camera. I won’t go into another lecture here, but I invite you to read our article explaining the influence of sensor size on photography. In short, at the moment, other brands offering APS-C lenses are more limited, with the exception of Sony’s “E” mount for APS-C, which still offers interesting lenses. The only real difference in the focus rings is that the 80mm’s is rubberised while the 90mm’s is metallic. Personally I prefer the rubber version as it is grippier and isn’t as cold to the touch. Two extra features found on the barrel of the 80mm are the focus limiter switch and an on/off switch for optical stabilisation. The former lets you choose between three focus ranges: Full, 50cm to infinity, and 25cm to 50cm.