X-E1 + 60mm (latest firmware)

I'd like to know your opinion on this combo. There are few reviews on internet of this specific combo and firmwares have maybe improve the user experience ? Please share your experience !

My needs : portraits and close-up. I wonder if the auto-focus will be efficient ? Do I need to use the macro-mode on X-E1 ? How does it compare with 56mm for portraits ?

Autofocus is fine for my needs in daylight / single point AF with 18-55mm, slow and sometimes never lock in dim light, and I don't use tracking often.

Don't know about this particular combo but top tip - if AF is struggling in low light, snap to MF and hit the AE-L / AF-L button. For reasons known to nobody, this often works when AF is completely banjaxed by the light level.

57LowRider wrote:

Don't know about this particular combo but top tip - if AF is struggling in low light, snap to MF and hit the AE-L / AF-L button. For reasons known to nobody, this often works when AF is completely banjaxed by the light level.

Agreed with the above.

The 60mm f2.4 is an excellent portrait lens. While not able to provide quite as narrow a depth of field as the 56mm f1.2 it does have 9 bladed aperture which helps give a really creamy bokeh to out of focus areas. As a macro - well true macro is 1:1 whereas the 60mm is 1:2, so a close focusing lens really but this lens works really well with extension tubes and being small and light it is fine with the cheap "Pixco" ext tubes. For most work the close focus suffices. Switching the XE1 to macro with any lens simply biases the AF to look nearer for focus point - so yes, use it.

For me the 60mm f2.4 is a great portrait lens for close quarters portrait work especially studio but don't confine it portrait/macro - it is a fine lens for picking out detail in wider areas too - as below

The 60mm is stellar in terms of res

To have a responsive lens since it's a macro design you always need to prefocus in order to avoid the lens going from narrow to infinity or the reciprocal With the latest firmware and XT the lens is quite fast

I just retriedmy 60mm right now

As long as you prefocus once to be at your working distance the AF is fast

Moreover it focuses now easily in low light especially with the biggest size of AF sensor which makes it a useful portrait lens in dim light

Focus peaking is a pleasure with max redlight for FP since the 2.4 aperture maximize the FP signal in the EVF

Strong, small light non intrusive, a gem

57LowRider wrote:

Don't know about this particular combo but top tip - if AF is struggling in low light, snap to MF and hit the AE-L / AF-L button. For reasons known to nobody, this often works when AF is completely banjaxed by the light level.

Thanks ! Gonna try this trick !

Thanks all ! I may give the 60mm a try sooner than later

I like how small and inexpensive it is comparatively to 56mm and I'm already used to slow autofocus with X-E1 then...

Turlututu wrote:

My needs : portraits and close-up.

The 60 is surely the answer then.

I wonder if the auto-focus will be efficient ?

Certainly good enough. It's not the quickest, especially on the X-E1, but you're not shooting sport. I like MF for close-up and for posed portrait anyway (even on the X-T1). I like using MF with the AF button on the rear of the camera - that gives you AF with MF as well and won't change focus when you go to click the shutter. This actually works better on the X-E1 than X-T1 because the button on the E is bigger.

Do I need to use the macro-mode on X-E1 ?

Apparently this helps but I tend to forget! Maybe it's not an issue for me because for macro I will always use MF. It's no longer an issue on the X-T1 that I use anyway since the firmware upgrade.

How does it compare with 56mm for portraits ?

As good in my experience, unless you want very shallow DoF. IQ is as good and focussing isn't far off either, neither lens being quick.

Thanks for the answer !

slimandy wrote:

Turlututu wrote:

My needs : portraits and close-up.

The 60 is surely the answer then.

Make sense

Other alternative is 56mm + legacy lens (I have a Kiron 105mm 1:1, Minolta mount, but it's huge, manual focusing and focal length is too long...). 60mm seems a smaller alternative.

I wonder if the auto-focus will be efficient ?

Certainly good enough. It's not the quickest, especially on the X-E1, but you're not shooting sport. I like MF for close-up and for posed portrait anyway (even on the X-T1). I like using MF with the AF button on the rear of the camera - that gives you AF with MF as well and won't change focus when you go to click the shutter. This actually works better on the X-E1 than X-T1 because the button on the E is bigger.

Do you try it with moving people or kids ?

Do I need to use the macro-mode on X-E1 ?

Apparently this helps but I tend to forget! Maybe it's not an issue for me because for macro I will always use MF. It's no longer an issue on the X-T1 that I use anyway since the firmware upgrade.

I'd like a similar firmware update on X-E1 but I guess it's too old and contrast-only AF makes it impossible...

How does it compare with 56mm for portraits ?

As good in my experience, unless you want very shallow DoF. IQ is as good and focussing isn't far off either, neither lens being quick.

I read the Fuji vs Fuji comparison between both lenses and 60mm seems nice.

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Turlututu wrote:

Do you try it with moving people or kids ?

The limiting factor for you will the XE1 not the 60mm as I posted earlier with XTs the 60mm is rather fast once it has acquired the working distance and continuous AF on XTs wit the 60mm works rather well so probably ok with kids just playing around

I find it (in the conditions mentionned) faster than the 18-55mm that I find very slow

I don't know about XE1 performance with the latest Fw you should try

I use the 18-135mm with rather rapid and erratic movements but it's quite a big lens, that  however fits well even on the small XT10 (smaller than XE1)

Turlututu wrote:

Thanks for the answer !

slimandy wrote:

Turlututu wrote:

My needs : portraits and close-up.

The 60 is surely the answer then.

Make sense

Other alternative is 56mm + legacy lens (I have a Kiron 105mm 1:1, Minolta mount, but it's huge, manual focusing and focal length is too long...). 60mm seems a smaller alternative.

To be fair a legacy lens might still make sense. 60 doesn't give you much working distance and the Fuji isn't 1:1. For this reason I also have a Tamron 90.

I wonder if the auto-focus will be efficient ?

Certainly good enough. It's not the quickest, especially on the X-E1, but you're not shooting sport. I like MF for close-up and for posed portrait anyway (even on the X-T1). I like using MF with the AF button on the rear of the camera - that gives you AF with MF as well and won't change focus when you go to click the shutter. This actually works better on the X-E1 than X-T1 because the button on the E is bigger.

Do you try it with moving people or kids ?

Yes, but I managed to get shots of my kids with a manual focus film camera too!

Do I need to use the macro-mode on X-E1 ?

Apparently this helps but I tend to forget! Maybe it's not an issue for me because for macro I will always use MF. It's no longer an issue on the X-T1 that I use anyway since the firmware upgrade.

I'd like a similar firmware update on X-E1 but I guess it's too old and contrast-only AF makes it impossible...

Yes, an upgrade to the X-T1 would be a noticeable improvement if the E-1 is proving tricky, or maybe an X-T10. The X-E1 is a nice camera though. Excellent IQ.

How does it compare with 56mm for portraits ?

As good in my experience, unless you want very shallow DoF. IQ is as good and focussing isn't far off either, neither lens being quick.

I read the Fuji vs Fuji comparison between both lenses and 60mm seems nice.

I have used both too.

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James_MG wrote:

Great combo and very fast, just picked up the 60mm a couple months back and enjoy the lens. Also recently picked up the x-T1 and while faster i was expecting a much bigger improvement.

Did you check the FW - vers 4.0  and make sure the lens FW is up to date also. The 60mm still isn't blisteringly fast but similar to the 56mm f1.2 now and is less likely to hunt.

James_MG wrote: picked up the x-T1 and while faster i was expecting a much bigger improvement.

The 60mm has a macro lens design plus an old mechanical engine so whatever is the AF system it will somehow remain slow

For fast operation with XT1 always prefocus to your working distance, then the AF is fast since focus is achieved with PDAF sensors. When CDAF sensors are involved the lens is slow to focus.

Avoid the focus from infinity to close and the reciprocal, macro lenses are very slow to perform focus from one extreme to the other. CAF is not reliable with this lens due to slow motion of the focus engine.