80mm Macro Announced - Thoughts?

[Rod McD]

Hi,

See DPR News. The 80mm f2.8 Macro OIS WR has been announced. US $1200, available in November. It is compatible with the TCs.

We've waited a long tome to see this lens. I'm very confident that it will have excellent optics and I'm glad to see that it has a limiter switch on the barrel alongside the OIS switch.

It doesn't have a tripod collar and it doesn't look like there's space for an optional one either. It looks very substantial but we don't know the length and weight yet - the full specs aren't out, even on Fuji's own global site. I'm betting that it's heavier than the 90/2 (540g) and if people use it with TCs or extension tubes, it may well be a very front heavy rig without it's own tripod collar for better balance. More so on the smaller Fuji bodies.

We also don't know if it's IF, and if so whether it allows decent working distances at higher magnifications.

I'm looking forward to hands-on reports.

Regards, Rod

 

[Rod McD]

Update - another DPR member has posted in the comments on the article that the weight is 750g. I don't know if that is confirmed from a Fuji source, but if so, that is a very substantial lens in this system. 'The Brick' has been edged out....... And it would have made a tripod collar all the more useful.

Consider for a moment mounting the 750g lens with a 150g TC totaling 900g weight on cameras like the XE3 or XT20 that weigh under 400g. And then attach the whole rig to a tripod via the camera's own base plate socket. My gauge is that it will definitely be front heavy on lighter cameras and perhaps taxing for the tripod socket on some models.

Regards, Rod

 

[mbaginy]

The lack of tripod collar makes me not even consider this lens for macro work. I shoot all my macros mounted on a tripod and often switch from horizonal to vertical aspect, depending on requirements and Image. A tripod collar is a most useful aid.

A built-in lens shade would have been nice too.

I get the Impression that most camera and lens manufacturers no longer produce for the serious macro photographers. Image stabilization is great for hand held shooting of insects, but worthless for plants and other objects.

 

[Sjak]

Update - another DPR member has posted in the comments on the article that the weight is 750g. I don't know if that is confirmed from a Fuji source, but if so, that is a very substantial lens in this system. 'The Brick' has been edged out....... And it would have made a tripod collar all the more useful.

That's about the weight of my Summicron-R 90 including adapter (the adapter has a tripod collar); it is indeed quite heavy. Due to the relatively short length, it is not totally unbalanced; the combination with the X-T1 balances nicely at/near the tripod collar.

If the FX 80mm is substantially longer, then the center of gravity will shift forwards, and this could be a problem, especially without tripod collar.

But all the talk on the lens is based on rumors, so let's wait and see the official specs if and when released ;-)

 

[Rod McD]

Hi Sjak,

It's been confirmed - ian387 is at the Fujikina and has confirmed the weight at 750g in another thread on the road map.

Cheers, Rod

 

[Sjak]

Sorry, I missed that part

 

[Iuvenis]

I was interested in this lens, as I do sometimes want to go closer than the 60 allows and my only real telephoto is the 50-140.

However, this lens with the 2x converter will be almost as heavy as the 50-140 and won't give much more reach. If I did more pure macro work, I'd buy it without question. As it is, I think I'll pass.

By the way, there are some specs and mtf graphs on the Fuji site (at least in the UK).

 

[celestialemissary]

The lack of tripod collar makes me not even consider this lens for macro work. I shoot all my macros mounted on a tripod and often switch from horizonal to vertical aspect, depending on requirements and Image. A tripod collar is a most useful aid.

A built-in lens shade would have been nice too.

I get the Impression that most camera and lens manufacturers no longer produce for the serious macro photographers. Image stabilization is great for hand held shooting of insects, but worthless for plants and other objects.

--
Mike
www.mikebaginy.weebly.com

I'm not serious macro photographer but I would love to get this lens.
I was using 90mm with extension tubes and without OIS it was hard...
+ I could use this + 1.4x for some sports (motorsports )
But 1200$ is a bit too much for me right now

--
https://instagram.com/_u/celestial__emissary?r=sun1

 

[Powerdoc]

The lack of tripod collar makes me not even consider this lens for macro work. I shoot all my macros mounted on a tripod and often switch from horizonal to vertical aspect, depending on requirements and Image. A tripod collar is a most useful aid.

A built-in lens shade would have been nice too.

I get the Impression that most camera and lens manufacturers no longer produce for the serious macro photographers. Image stabilization is great for hand held shooting of insects, but worthless for plants and other objects.

 

[machoman]

yeah...it's a bummer with the tripod collar - it's too late to fret now....it's split milk. At least it's a real macro....

I can hardly wait to try it out and see how much more resolution closeups will be with these fuji cameras that have no AA filters.

Alas it will be quite expensive in Australia......

 

[Lettermanian]

For me it's always the same dilemma with Fuji: I can't afford the gear that I like the most. I love the Fuji system for many reasons, but I usually have to wait two years or so before I can justify the expense of buying used gear. Right now $1299 USD is $1580 CDN plus 15% tax for where I live, so $1817 CDN for this lens is just too rich for me. I would like to add this lens to my arsenal but will have to wait...

 

[Rod McD]

Hi,

Yes, I'm in Oz too. The straight dollar conversion from USD RRP of $1199 is about AUD $1500 (if it's the equivalent price here). No small expense.....

Cheers, Rod

 

[machoman]

It's got internal focusing - so that's a win.

"The focus lens groups move within the lens barrel meaning that the length of the lens does not change. Therefore there is no need to worry about accidentally touching the object you are shooting."

Loading…

www.fujifilm.com

 

[JS Burnie]

Too big without a tripod collar. Too heavy to hike with.

I think I'll stay with my 90mm and put up with less magnification.




Small Icelandic Flowers

 

[92Diggers]

I love the 60mm but this seems a big improvement if you love your macro work (WR/OIS/1:1/faster AF).

It is quite big and expensive though, especially in the UK (Equiv $1600) but I am not sure that will put me off. The fact you can use the extension tubes and the TC makes it quite versatile.

It's coming up to autumn now in the UK and I can't see me wanting to use it much before Spring 2018, so I'll wait and hope some rebates/discounts materialize by then.

 

[georgehudetz]

Too big without a tripod collar. Too heavy to hike with.

I think I'll stay with my 90mm and put up with less magnification.

I could see that. But, with OIS & compatibility with the TCs, the 80 does offer flexibility that the 90 does not.

It could make an interesting alternative to the 50-140.

 

[Rod McD]

It's got internal focusing - so that's a win.

"The focus lens groups move within the lens barrel meaning that the length of the lens does not change. Therefore there is no need to worry about accidentally touching the object you are shooting."

http://www.fujifilm.com/products/di...80mmf28_r_lm_ois_wr_macro/features/index.html

Maybe it's a win, but maybe not entirely. It depends. It's true that IF lenses don't extend, and they maintain aperture as you focus closer, but the downside is that their FL reduces. The reduction in FL at high magnifications is significant. The consequence is that the working distance decreases. You don't get the WD of a conventional external focus macro lens or a lens on extension tubes.

It remains to be seen how the 80/2.8 affects WD (being fully IF) and how its WD compares to the 60mm. The Fuji 60mm is an interesting lens..... it seems to use some trickery to focus. The lens extends to focus to 1:2 but only by about 20mm. Earlier MF 55mm macro lenses used to use a double helix and extend much more and still only got to 1:2. So the 60mm must have some sort partial internal focusing going on too.... I guess we'll learn these things when testers review the lens.

Regards, Rod

 

[JS Burnie]

OIS - quite right. I'm hoping for an IBIS body to use with my 90mm - some day.

We'll see what the 80mm quality is with teleconverters. I also want to see who matches it with a shiny new X-E3!

 

[yardcoyote]

My first thought is "huge". Huge, heavy, and pricey. At least up till now I have been practicing "small Fuji" and leaving the big lenses to my DSLR with its deep grip. There I have the Pentax 100mm macro, which is an excellent lens all around and very good for handheld garden macro and bug hunting. The Fuji 60mm f/2.4, for all its quirks, is also good at that job and handles close to perfectly on my little X-T10.

I'm just not sure how the 80mm would fit into my kit as I see it now and in the immediate future. Not only would it be a huge financial step on its own, but I would assume it would by necessity bring an X-Tx sized body with it. Even secondhand, that is going to be a lot of money.

Considering that my current plan for my "next Fuji" ( of course there's going to be one), is to add a secondhand X-Pro2 and the 50mm f/2, going for the big macro would be a big change in direction.

 

[Ian387]

Here's what it's like with both a teleconverter and extension tube – pretty front-heavy!

[ATTACH alt=""Touch and try" at Fujikina "]1769411[/ATTACH]
"Touch and try" at Fujikina

I wasn't permitted to use my own SD card or camera body, but it could certainly get extremely close focus on the watch they had on the desk to practise with. The build quality was fantastic and all the dials turn very nicely indeed. There's a huge focus ring on it. Without the extension tubes it didn't feel much different than the 16-55mm which I'm fairly used to. There was a presentation by a Fuji X guy who had been using it for a while, and those macro shots were impressive. I'd love to know how he did his sharpening, because I've never seen anything like it from Fuji before!

It's going to be out of my budget sadly so I'll continue to use the 16mm for anything macro-like, but I wonder if this could be Fuji's new best prime...