X-E2 + 23mm f2

FTOG wrote:

misterodd wrote:

Blood N Guts Murphy wrote:

misterodd wrote:

For those of you who have some experience with this combo, is this pair fast enough for street action?

Yes.

Was only disappointed when I upgraded to the faster XE3.

In comparison the same camera with the 27mm f2.8 is a tad too slow for some things. But you only notice it with runners, cyclists or other traffic.

Thanks for the reply.

So if I understood you correctly, the 23mm f2 is faster or better with an xe2 than an xe3. If this is true, I wonder why that is.

To add my experience here, having used X-E2, X-E3, XF 27/2.8, XF27/2.8 WR and 23/2.0:

No lens should be slower on the X-E3 than on the X-E2. I found the X-E3 generally faster than the X-E2, although it's difficult to quantify and the lens and shooting circumstances influence the degree of advantage - if any.

The XF 27/2.8 lenses share the same AF motor and are reasonably snappy in AF-S, but tend to "pump" a bit more compared to the 23/2.0. In AF-C, the latter is far superior.

I have only tried street photography with the 35 f1.4 on my xe2 and the autofocus is way too slow to capture moving subjects that are coming towards me. I know that this is a tall order for many other camera/lens combos as well.

For people walking at moderate speeds, I've found the "Fujicron" line of lenses to be quite responses on an X-E3, with likely the camera being the limiting factor - and the photographer.

Although they are not replacement for an AF system entirely, shooting techniques can mitigate some short comings of automatic systems. I've shot street with manual film systems for many years, and with experience comes a higher hit rate.

Thanks for sharing your experiences and insights here.  I definitely need to start shooting again with my xe2.  The last time was maybe 2 years ago.  And I think I might have to purchase the 23 f2 by the end of the year.  Really do hope that the newer f2 lessons will have noticeably faster autofocus compared to the old but wonderful 35 f1.4.