The Goldilocks Lens
© Fujiflim
Before I start talking about the lens, first a bit of context. On my Wales Coast Path (WCP) walks I have been using Fujifilm kit. This was a new system for me as I had been using Sony Alpha. I decided that I needed something lighter than full frame, but with better image quality than something like a Sony RX10 bridge camera. When I started, this consisted of the XT-3, the 18-55mm kit lens and the 55-200mm tele zoom. The bag I have uses for walking is the Mindshift Horizon 34L. This has a rotating camera section for easy access without removing the bag. It could hold the kit above easily with room for a few extras - like a fast prime.
©Mindshift Gear
Over time this line-up has changed. The first change was to change from the 18-55mm to the 16-80mm. The reason for this was that I found I was having to change lenses a bit too much due to the lack of overlap and the broad nature of the subjects. Next to change was the body. I have moved on to the XT-4. The main reason was to get IBIS and the better battery. For my walks it wasn’t strictly necessary, as I was using OIS lenses and not shooting much video. However, as is the way of things, my Fujifilm system had been filling out with a number of primes without OIS and I have a collection of vintage lenses.
So was I happy with my line-up? Not quite is the answer. There was nothing wrong with the image quantity, I had just discovered that, when I saw wildlife, it was always a bit too far away for the 55-200mm. I do own the 100-400mm, but that is a bit of a beast to take on long walks and is too big to fit in the bag’s camera section. I was in need of a “Goldilocks” lens and those nice folk a Fuji heard my call. So does the snappily titled Fujifilm XF 70-300mm f4-5.6 R LM OIS WR fit the bill?
I think we first need to decode the name. The 70-300mm range on an XT-4 gives a 4.3x zoom range with a full frame equivalent of 107-457mm. The aperture range is typical for lenses of this range. A constant aperture would have been great but the lens would not have been so compact. The LM stands for a linear focus motor offering speed and quietness. The OIS is the built-in stabilisation. This should work with the IBIS in the XT-4 to improve stabilisation even further. Lastly, WR means that this lens has Fujifilm’s weather sealing. Always nice to see on something that is going to have to brave the fickle Welsh weather. That “Green, green grass of home” is green for a reason. Coastal walking has other challenges like sand and spray to face too.
The compact size of this lens is remarkable. With the lens caps and hood on its hard to tell it apart from the 55-200mm. I know because I have already mixed them up a few times on my desk. It’s a smidge longer (15mm), but the same diameter and weight (580g). It still fits easily in my bag’s camera section and won’t put any more strain on my Peak Design capture clips than before. So that’s the first test passed.
The 70-300mm is dearer than the 55-200mm but not by much at least at list. The older lens is more likely to see deals and there is always the used market. Given their similarity, it’s really down to whether you want to trade a little speed for that extra reach. The 100-400mm is significantly more expensive even used.
Fujifilm XF Teleconverters: 1.4x(130g) and 2x (170g) ©Fujifilm
I still have a bit of overlap on zoom range with the 16-80mm which is nice. The filter size isn’t the same though which is a shame - it’s 5mm smaller at 67mm. I have this theory Fujifilm is trying to never use the same size twice! The extra reach is noticeable than I thought. I use 8x binoculars and my frustration was that I could spot things with those that I couldn’t shoot effectively. Now I am more confident I could get a usable image. However, a huge change with this lens is that it accepts the existing 1.4x and 2x teleconverters - something the 55-200mm doesn’t. This means that I can go up to a FF equivalent of 900mm at the cost a few 100g and still keep everything in the camera section. That’s an A+ pass right there!
Minimum Zoom 70mm f4.5 1/680s ISO400 Astia jpg OOC
Maximum Zoom 300mm f5.6 1/500s ISO500 Astia jpg OOC
One difference between the 55-200mm and the 70-300mm is the external switches. Both lenses have an unmarked aperture ring with a switch between Auto and Manual. However, whereas the 55-200 has a switch to turn the OIS On and Off, the 70-300 has an AF limiter with either Full or 5m to Infinity. I wish it an option to limit the close focus range too. This is because the close focus is really good, giving an excellent 0.33x macro ratio. It’s all the macro I would need on walk. The downside is if it is at infinity when you start to close-focus the subject is such a blur the AF hunts - but not always far enough. You have to move closer in stages. I tried manual, but it takes a while to get through the full range. A marked aperture ring would be nice but they are impractical on a variable aperture lens. Just remember the lens will open up as you zoom and potentially override your setting. You will need remember to close it down again as you zoom out - I wish I could.
Close Focus at Minimum Zoom 70mm f5.6 1/1250s ISO400 Astia jpg OOC
Close Focus at Maximum Zoom 300mm f5.6 1/1900s ISO500 Astia jpg OOC - focussed on tip of stamen
I have only had time to do one test so far with the new lens. I took it on an 8km loop near my house which is about half distance for a typical WCP leg. I didn’t take my bag, I just had the XT-4 and the 70-300mm on a medium width Peak Design strap and the teleconverters shoved in my pockets. It was far from ideal for photography. It was overcast and misty, if not actually wet. The light was flat and low contrast - boring I think is the technical term. I didn’t know if I would see much in the way of subjects but I was going for the walk anyway.
137mm f5 1/210s ISO2000 ProNeg Std jpg OOC
It handles pretty much the same as the 55-200mm and is well balanced on the XT-4. With the 100-400, I feel I need to add the battery grip to balance, which also adds more total weight. The zoom action is really light for a new lens - lighter than the 55-200mm. It does have a lock at the 70 end if you are worried about zoom creep. Its only about a quarter turn from lock-to-lock, so pretty quick.
It is not designed as a walkabout lens but I didn’t find starting at 70mm (100mm FF) too limiting. However, I really like shooting with 85mm and 135mm on my 35mm film cameras so that might be a “me” thing. The extra reach is welcome though. It’s not always about far subjects but also small ones. I find the flight zone of small birds is just a little too far for 200mm on the WCP. I’ll walk slowly forward to get the bird big enough in frame and, just as I am starting to get there, it moves an extra flight zone away. Eventually it gets to the end of its territory and returns to the start. I feel I might be able to get identifiable images now. Not much luck on my test route though, but I was wearing my orange puffer jacket. It is great for keeping me from getting run over on the country lanes. However, the only place I would ever be camouflaged in it would be in a crowd of Dutch football supporters!
160mm f5 1/400s ISO400 Astia jpg OOC
I did a few tests to look at depth of field. It’s not an especially fast lens, so I wasn’t sure what kind of bokeh to expect. General fall-off transitions were quite nice. Having that combination of reach and close focus is great if you want to obliterate the background. At the shorter end with very complex backgrounds it can look a bit busy. I shot some horses through a thick hedge row and it blurred out the hedge decently. It was a bit washed out, but I noticed later I was set at f8, so it could have done a lot better. As for aperture, at the marked focal lengths it is: 70mm-f4, 100mm f4.5, 135mm f5, 200mm f5, 300mm f5.6. This is actually quite a nice progress as variable apertures go. I have seen lenses that lose light a lot faster as you zoom.
300mm f6.4 1/250s ISO640 ProNeg Std jpg OOC
Full disclosure here, I am NOT a wildlife photographer. I am a photographer who occasionally shoots wildlife when it is kind enough to present itself right in front of me. It became clear very quickly that my knowledge of how to optimise the XT-4 focus modes to capture things like birds in-flight is seriously deficient. When reading the next section you need to bear that in mind.
There is an area along the walk that, when I first tried the route, was completely underwater from the winter storms. The water has receded enough to walk the route now but it has not gone entirely. This has not gone unnoticed by the local wildlife and I had some views of new residents on what should be fields but are currently large ponds. This included geese, ducks, black-headed gulls and other water fowl. I tried shooting them both with the lens on its own and with the two teleconverters.
First up for testing is the OIS. For still images, this was excellent in all the combinations. It’s pretty effortless to compose steady shots right up to that 900mm FF equivalent. This was true on distant and macro targets. I am not going to make judgments on sharpness though until I have a day with less atmospherics. Focus with good for the lens on its own and with the 1.4x TC. It struggles more with the 2x TC where you are at a minimum of f11. On a brighter day, with more contrast, it might have done better. The extra length of the 2x also makes it start to feel a bit nose heavy but it’s not uncomfortable. For handling, you don’t really notice the 1.4x is on. If you knew you were going to need lots of reach most of the time, like at an RSPB Reserve, I’d be tempted to leave the 1.4x TC on. The birds in the pictures below are at least 400m away and I have tried to use a shutter speed (1/250s) that’s fast enough to reduce subject motion blur, but slower than the reciprocal to highlight the OIS.
Maximum Zoom with 1.4x TC 420mm f8 1/250s ISO640 ProNeg jpg OOC
Maximum Zoom with 2x TC 600mm f11 1/250s ISO1600 ProNeg jpg OOC
In video, the OIS performed brilliantly on stationary targets. I did try pan-tracking a group of distant walkers at the full 900mm and I found you needed to be super smooth or it would skip a little. This is an extreme handheld case though, and I didn’t try adjusting the OIS/IBIS options.
The final test was comfort and this was a strong pass. I was out for nearly three hours with the camera on a 3cm wide unpadded strap with no discomfort at all. I am sure my jacket’s padding helped, but weight is the real killer especially when carrying anything cross-shoulder.
In summary, I think this is a lens a valuable addition to the Fujifilm line-up. To offer that extra reach in a lens so close to the 55-200mm dimensions is compelling in itself. When you add to that the ability to accept the teleconverters and the semi-macro abilities it begins to look like a real star. It certainly fits my requirement so well it would be churlish to complain. Those more serious wildlife and sports photographers may still want the extra features of the 100-400mm. Those with a shorter standard zoom may not want to have a range gap between 55-70mm so the 55-200mm still has a place. For the rest of us, I think Goldilocks is in da house!