Man of Honour
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- 18 Oct 2002
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- West Coast of Scotland
I've bought from there and sold on second hand no problems at all.
Fuji X Series
- Thread starter nolimit
- Start date
Had a family celebration yesterday and it's the first time we've all been together for a while. I took some group portraits with the 23 F2 and the 56 1.2.
Oh my word, the 56 1.2 renders the most divine group portrait images. I had to stand about 10-15 metres away but the resulting images just blow the 23 out the water. Best results were @1.4 with everyone razor sharp in focus and beautiful bokeh.
I'm assuming could get similar results with the 35 1.4 if I wanted to be a little closer - or is the technique of standing far away the only way to get photos of this calibre?
Oh my word, the 56 1.2 renders the most divine group portrait images. I had to stand about 10-15 metres away but the resulting images just blow the 23 out the water. Best results were @1.4 with everyone razor sharp in focus and beautiful bokeh.
I'm assuming could get similar results with the 35 1.4 if I wanted to be a little closer - or is the technique of standing far away the only way to get photos of this calibre?
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The compression is due to the distance you are from the subject. So it won’t be quite as good closer with the 35.
So basically standing further away with a longer focal length lens is the best way to get those results? It's crazy even the grass about half a metre in front of where theyr'e standing is just bokeh. What sort of results would I get with the 16mm 1.4 if I shot wide open and stood right up close to them... assuming still some bokeh but no where near the same level of seperation?
Problem you have is the closer you get the thinner the DoF becomes.
I'm impressed you got everyone in focus @f1.4! Normally for group shots I would shoot minimum f4, possibly 2.8 at an absolute push but if light allows f5.6 is ideal.
Yeah the compression thing really can make for some very nice photos. There's a guy on YT (cannot recall his name/channel) but he shoots portraits exclusively at 400mm and his results are just sublime. The downside in practice for us normal folk is that it detaches you quite considerably from your subject.
I've done a couple of family events and just took my X-S10 along with 23mm f1.4 and it was a joy to use.
I'd love to give the 56mm a go (along with the 16mm) due the high praises both get however for all I would use either it's hard to justify the cost.
Yeah the compression thing really can make for some very nice photos. There's a guy on YT (cannot recall his name/channel) but he shoots portraits exclusively at 400mm and his results are just sublime. The downside in practice for us normal folk is that it detaches you quite considerably from your subject.
I've done a couple of family events and just took my X-S10 along with 23mm f1.4 and it was a joy to use.
I'd love to give the 56mm a go (along with the 16mm) due the high praises both get however for all I would use either it's hard to justify the cost.
I asked them to stand completely level with each other. I did some at f2.8 but struggle to notice any difference in sharpness - the bokeh at f1.4 is just fantastic! With moving subjects however I completely agree, can't seem to get decent results at anything wider than 2.8.
Oh mate, sad to hear this but I guess it's an expensive hobby and if you're not using your gear the money could indeed be put to use elsewhere.
Yep going to just use my iPhone and for most photos in bright conditions I’m more than happy. Try and do more video too which the iPhone does really well.
Yep as above shot our family event on Monday with the Fuji but did all the video work on my iPhone. The 12 Pro stabilisation and 4K is more than up to the task of capturing those important moments on video. I’ve offered to take your 16mm at asking in the MM.
You'll love the lens I'm sure
X-T30 and 35 f2 still for sale on MM, I have good offers from Wex for cash so I'll leave them on MM for a few more days before they go off to them.
To avoid confusion I will refer to ND1000 as ND10 (they’re the same but it just makes the rest easier to explain). For this scenario you may benefit more from a graduated ND filter, possibly an ND4 or ND8 - this is especially so if you are shooting into the rising/setting sun.
In terms of a standard filter ND10 is quite strong and I would generally only use mine for 30sec+ exposures. I also have an ND6 which I find gets more use. ND10 is quite specialised.
Thanks. Sounds like ND10 is going to be overkill in that case and the ND6 would be more suitable for all purpose. I’ll have a look at what’s available.
If it helps I have been using Zomei filters for the past few years and have no complaints with them. They are definitely budget friendly but not cheap rubbish either. I’ve tried a few different ones and found them to be the best value for money.
Is it worth investing in a proper system if I feel I might use this as my main landscape lens?
I’ve got a Samyang 12mm which is sublime for astrophotography but to be honest I’ve never been a fan of the ultra wide field of view for landscape work. When it works well the results can be great but most of the time my results have always been a bit underwhelming - so thinking the 16 might suit me better.
The main reason I went with the square filter system is I have (or at least had) a penchant for changing lenses constantly (plus I was working across both FF Canon and Fuji systems for a period so that involved different lens sizes as well) so it was a PITA to keep investing in different circular filters for each lens size. So now I have whatever size adapter rings I need and just one set of square filters which is much easier to work with - when I say a system I only have three plus a circular polariser - ND4 Graduated filter and ND6+ND10 full filter.
Your synopsis of the Samyang pretty much mirrors mine. I used mine for astro which, as you say, was excellent however for landscapes it was just average - unless you had some great light to work with. I found colours and contrast were alright but nothing special. It's not the sharpest lens in the world but nice and sharp for the price.
I sold it and bought the 10-24 f4 which I have enjoyed using. It's sharper than the Samyang at 12mm plus goes that little bit wider which I like. Beyond 18/20mm it does get quite soft but I have the 16-80 f4 to take over from that point.
For my astro I have been experimenting with my 23 f1.4, which is much better, but when I need wider I've been stitching shots together which has been fun.
As I said above I think the 16mm would be a terrific investment for anyone who would get the use out of it. I'd love one but it would leave me with three lenses that do 16mm and there's no way I could sell the 10-24 because I'd miss the 10mm for sure.