FUJIFILM FUJINON ASPHERICAL SUPER EBC XF f=35mm 1:1.4 R Lens (f/1.4)

Review of the FUJIFILM FUJINON ASPHERICAL SUPER EBC XF f=35mm 1:1.4 R Lens (f/1.4).

Overall Rating:

The 35mm/full-frame equivalent field of view is with a 53mm lens. One very nice feature of this lens is that is takes standard 52mm filters which are inexpensive and plentiful on the used market. It's made in Japan and was introduced 11 years ago. Its debut price was $600 USD.

Performance

This is a sharp lens. It's sharp even at f/1.4. Chromatic Aberration: just a tad as is visible in the images below but sharpness is still excellent. Compare this lens to the Fujifilm Fujinon 18-55mm f/2.8-4 R LM OIS Lens.

Vignetting: none.

Distortion is another non issue with this lens.

This lens is at its best around f/5.6, but f/1.4 is not bad. Stopping down to f/2, the already good images improve quite noticeable. At f/2.8 it is nearly perfect and bokeh is still beautiful.

Diffraction appears to set in at f/8, so f/5.6 or maybe a little smaller is the sweet spot. This lens does not feature Lens Modulation (LM).

Autofocus is noisy so it is not a good choice for video.

The lens is a wonderful bargain on the used market.

Construction

Build quality is excellent. It's all metal construction. The aperture ring is no looser than the one on the 18-55mm lens. Unlike the 18-55mm, it does not spin endlessly which is a plus. It could use a lock on the A setting (for Automatic Aperture) so that one doesn't accidentally move it out of this position.

It accepts standard 52mm filters and the filter threads do not rotate allowing for easy use of a polarizer.

The fast f/1.4 aperture makes for great low light photography. This is the most compact fast lens that Fujifilm makes for their X-mount system. There are more compact lenses than this but they do not reach f/1.4!

Bokeh

Really soft, nice and creamy bokeh. The bokeh score is adversely affected due to LoCA being present.

Infrared

Infrared performance is poor. There's an infrared hot spot. Too bad.

Specifications

8 elements in 6 groups including one aspherical element
Close focus to 28cm/11in
f/1.4-f/16
Rounded diaphragm with 7 blades
Weight without caps is 187g/6.6oz
Angle of view: 44.8°
Filter attachment size: ø52mm
Price: $600 USD (2012)
EXIF: XF35mmF1.4 R

Images

Filter Lens Ratings