The cultist combo: X-Pro 1 and the XF 18mm f2
True, lately I have been addicted to old photography gear. Now, being the owner of the cultist Fujifilm X-Pro 1, it gives me the chance to experience a few first generation Fujifilm lenses, the XF 35mm 1.4, and the XF 18mm 2. This blog centers around the latter, that precious and challenging 28mm field of view.
Going to 28mm after a while takes a little bit of getting used to. It is a small, light lens, just a bit noisy, and tends to slightly hunt before getting focus. And on a slower camera (compared to newer ones), like the X-Pro 1, the focusing feels insecure sometimes, which in a sense is good, it forces you to put your eye on the viewfinder to check focus, thus stopping your to review your composition. In other words, this combo is not necessarily a fast, run-and-gun type of camera tool. If you are shooting from the hip, or with a twisted wrist, or any other shooting techniques away from your eyes, you'd have to trust your instincts about the focus hunting of the lens and the speed of the camera.
This is not why I bought the X-Pro 1, though. If I wanted speed, and quick reactions, I got the X-Pro 2. But that camera is too classy, too beautiful, too expensive, in other words, a bunch of attributes that distract me from taking pictures in places where you wouldn't want to be noticed wearing a Rolex. The X-Pro 2 has its uses, its moments. I got the X-Pro 1 because I have started to love the rangefinder ergonomics, its built, and its dear ability to slow my walk. Indeed, when carrying the Xpro-1 once in awhile I feel compelled to shoot fast, and the camera reminds me it's not made for that, and coupled with the XF 18mm F2, you are truly compelled to take it easy.
So now that we are clear on what this combo can and can't do, let me share why I've been loving it so much lately. Having both the camera and the lens work technically a bit slower forces me to face my fears, forces me to move beyond the composition, into the conversation, to get close to the subject, to get a better shot, to get personal, not to see the shot, but to feel the shot, and to learn to trust your knowledge of the camera and its limitations, and hoping when I get back to my computer, sit down and download those pictures, I can feel proud of my hits, my misses, my photos. Kinda like the feeling you get when taking pictures with a film camera, you only know after you develop your pictures.
The XF 18mm f2 is sharp enough, not razor sharp like the XF 35mm 1.4 (that one is impressive), but it does something interesting to compensate, its color rendition, its contrasts, its interpretation of light and shadows, all of those attributes makes this lens one to keep. And given what it teaches me when coupled with the X-pro 1, makes it one to recommend if you pursue similar goals.
