Images - Fujinon XF 18mm f1.4 R LM WR lens

[Yokosuka_Mike]

Mama's girl.

Fujifilm X-H1
Fujinon XF 18mm f1.4 lens
Classic Chrome film simulation
Yokohama, Japan - November 2021
*Image resized smaller than original (2507 x 1672)

Mike

 

[Yokosuka_Mike]

Can-can dancers in the sky​

Fujifilm X-H1
Fujinon XF 18mm f1.4 R LM WR lens
Classic Chrome film simulation
Yokohama, Japan - November 2021
*Image resized smaller than original (2507 x 1672)​

 

[Yokosuka_Mike]

Couple​

Fujifilm X-Pro3
Fujinon XF 18mm f1.4 lens
Classic Chrome film simulation
Yokohama, Japan - December, 2021
Image resized smaller than original (2507 x 1672)​

 

[Yokosuka_Mike]

Delivery​

Fujifilm X-Pro3
Fujinon XF 18mm f1.4 lens
Classic Chrome film simulation
Yokohama, Japan - December, 2021
Image resized smaller than original (2507 x 1672)​

 

[Yokosuka_Mike]

More of the Yokohama waterfront​

Fujifilm X-H1, Fujinon XF 18mm f1.4 lens
Classic Chrome film simulation
Yokohama, Japan - February, 2022​

 

[Yokosuka_Mike]

Photographers on the Yokohama waterfront​

Fujifilm X-H1, Fujinon XF 18mm f1.4 lens
Classic Chrome film simulation
Yokohama, Japan - February, 2022​

 

[Yokosuka_Mike]

Kannonzaki Beach Park​

Fujifilm X-H1
Fujinon XF 18mm f1.4 lens
Classic Chrome film simulation
Yokosuka, Japan - March, 2022​

 

[DownUnder]

As we say in Aussieland, good one!! I too thought about buying this lens, but in the end I decided I couldn't justify its price - that and having to factor in the cost of a divorce when I got home with the thing.

So I went all budget and bought a Fujinon 18/2.0, secondhand, at a fraction of the new-lens price for the big beauty. It suits my style of photography anyway as I tend to use all my lenses at fixed apertures of either 5.6 or 8. So...

And btw your images are truly marvellous!! I bought into Fujis and Fujinons as I wanted to expand my people/street photography, but here in Melbourne I'm finding if I ventured out and poked my camera into people's noses as you so successfully can do, my own nose would be poking out of the back of my head - Aussies have a strong sense of anti-invasion of their privacy and many don't hesitate to openly say so with appropriate physical gestures of stop-that-or-else.

So being true to my former calling (I'm a happily retired architect), I go on doing fixed portraits of old buildings, which aren't so threatening to my well-being. Also people's pets - I'm told by many that I'm a big meow for my cat images, ha!!

Am looking forward to more from you. Please post again. Cheers!!

 

[Yokosuka_Mike]

As we say in Aussieland, good one!! I too thought about buying this lens, but in the end I decided I couldn't justify its price - that and having to factor in the cost of a divorce when I got home with the thing.

So I went all budget and bought a Fujinon 18/2.0, secondhand, at a fraction of the new-lens price for the big beauty. It suits my style of photography anyway as I tend to use all my lenses at fixed apertures of either 5.6 or 8. So...

And btw your images are truly marvellous!! I bought into Fujis and Fujinons as I wanted to expand my people/street photography, but here in Melbourne I'm finding if I ventured out and poked my camera into people's noses as you so successfully can do, my own nose would be poking out of the back of my head - Aussies have a strong sense of anti-invasion of their privacy and many don't hesitate to openly say so with appropriate physical gestures of stop-that-or-else.

So being true to my former calling (I'm a happily retired architect), I go on doing fixed portraits of old buildings, which aren't so threatening to my well-being. Also people's pets - I'm told by many that I'm a big meow for my cat images, ha!!

Am looking forward to more from you. Please post again. Cheers!!

Hello Ozmoose! And greetings from Japan. Thank you so much for your kind remarks. So very nice of you to take the time to post such well thought out comments.

I had the Fujinon 18mm f2 but I think mine was a bit wonky; it just didn't feel right. The images were fine but the build quality on mine felt a little weak. Anyway, when the 18mm f1.4 came out I traded in my f2 and a few other things and picked up the f1.4. I'm very pleased with it.

I hope you'll post some of your Fujinon lens images... I hate to be one of the only people posting in the Fuji lens forum.

All the best,
Mike

 

[Canyongazer]

Mike, it is clear you are getting along well with the 18mm FL and vice versa.
Good stuff!

 

[Yokosuka_Mike]

Mike, it is clear you are getting along well with the 18mm FL and vice versa.
Good stuff!

Thank you, Canyongazer, very kind of you to say so.

I tend to struggle a bit with the wider lenses (14mm & 16mm) but I find the 18mm very comfortable to use and so versatile.

Riding the Keikyu Train Line
With the Fujinon XF 18mm f1.4 lens​

Fujifilm X-H1
Fujinon XF 18mm f1.4 lens
Classic Chrome film simulation
Yokosuka, Japan - March, 2022​

 

[DownUnder]

More good images, Mike. Compliments flow easily from my fingers/keyboard when I see such good work. So yet more kudos to you and of course your Fujis.

I too have the Fujinon 14/2.8 - a beautiful lens and great to work with, but it and verticals don't get on, so I tend to restrict when and how I use it. Wonderful for images taken in tight places (narrow rooms and medium range panoramas). A friend took a 14 to Nepal some years ago and used it extensively on a mountain trek - the small dust specs in the distance of all his otherwise lovely landscapes are the Himalayas and Everest...

A learning curve there for me. And I'm learning it.

My favourite lenses in order -

18/2.0 for everything/walkabout,

23/1.4 'cause I saw it in the shop, tested it, loved it and had to have it, plus the price was good, so,

18-55, same reason as the 23, luckily I got a good one (several friends have complained about lack of sharpness and wobbling, but not mine) and it's my second go-to for everything when I feel like leaving the 18 in my pocket, and

14/2.8, as aforementioned.

The XT2 has come with a learning curve. I'm still experimenting, trying as best I can to emulate my beloved Kodachrome and Ektachrome deep collars with the, to me, distinctly pastel Fuji color palette. So far, I'm getting there, slowly, with a little too much post processing work for my liking. So I now shoot less and compose my images more thoughtfully, which given the overloaded state of all my Western Digital hard disks, is a great improvement.

To keep my home life sane and my various bit parts attached to where they rightfully belong, I 'white lied' a little about the end cost of my (secondhand) Fuji XT2 kit. Fortunately, nothing domestic-homicidal took place, my partner having sensibly decided that as I'm now securely in what is known at home as "my dotage", me getting out and about every few days with cameras and lenses in my backpack is a far better alternative than paying for expensive medical care or having to play home nursie to a sick old git. So far, I can happily report, all is well and the going is still good, for however long it lasts.

I may be returning to Indonesia and Malaysia (the travel plan so far is Bali, Java, Kalimantan, Sulawesi, Brunei and Sarawak) in late May or early June when a cataract op I have booked for my right eye is done with and cured/recovered. After two years at home, I'm greatly looking forward to this, with a lightweight but quality Fuji kit in tow this time and not a brick-heavy if equally quality Nikon D800 kit.

I am now working on a small folio of images for posting here. A little more time and I'll be there, so.

(I will resist the impulse to write, "watch this space"...)

 

[DownUnder]

Oops, a double post. I do this a lot - I rather suspect it's a given in my old age, as I'm told I tend to repeat myself a lot at home and with my friends as well. But then I have so many good stories to tell...

Mike, I meant to add, but forgot (another given) to say, your on-the-street images show the Japanese, who I've always thought are a most attractive people, all seem to ignore you, as if you were not there with your camera, clicking away.

I do wish Australians and Indonesians would copy this, to me, highly desirable social trait. The former tend to be belligerent in sight of a camera while the latter often as not extend their right hand in an unmistakable gesture of "uang, mister!!".

 

[Yokosuka_Mike]

Mike, I meant to add, but forgot (another given) to say, your on-the-street images show the Japanese, who I've always thought are a most attractive people, all seem to ignore you, as if you were not there with your camera, clicking away.

Hey Ozmoose! You may not believe it when you look at the images but most people have no idea I’m taking their picture.

I never want to be intrusive. I don’t want to bother anybody. If people are out enjoying themselves or just living their life, the last thing I want to do is spoil it for them by getting in their face.

Having said that, there are ways to slide by people and casually take their picture without them knowing it. Firstly, Japan is a very camera friendly place. If you go to a public gathering place a lot of people will be carrying a camera, nothing unusual or out of place about it. Secondly, if you have your camera set up for it, it’s easy to swing it up, take a picture and keep moving and nobody will notice. A lot of times when I’m out my wife will be with me. Later after we get home I’ll show her some of the pictures I took while we were walking around and she’ll ask me “when did you take that picture”. So even she doesn't notice that I’m taking pictures.

Lastly, occasionally I’ll see that a person whose picture I just took suspects that that’s just what I did. In those cases I look past them as if they’re not there and bring my camera back up to my face and point it in a direction past them (and keep moving) as if they aren't there. I’ve heard of other street photographers doing this. However, if I see an interesting person or people that I want to photograph and I see that there’s no way to do it without them noticing, I’ll pass; like I said I don’t want to intrude on people's lives.

I do on some occasions ask people if I can take a picture. Sometimes I don’t even have to say a word; I just point at my camera and then point at them or their dog or car or whatever I’m seeking permission to take a picture of - put the expression on my face that asks if it’s okay along with a head nod and a smile… if they smile back I’m good to go.

This is probably a lot more than you ever wanted to know about how I do people pictures, but there it is.

All the best,
Mike

 

[DownUnder]

Mike, about your #34.

It's obvious you love your new 18 and have bonded well with it. I'm still learning to enjoy mine - the 23/1.4 has sort of stolen its place in my lens hierarchy, but I am now starting to gravitate to my 18/2.0 and practicing with it, although not (yet) with people, for the sake of my nose and other facial features. Aussies dislike having a camera poked in their faces even in public where (supposedly) we are free to shoot away with wild abandon - and they know how to respond...!!

I learned more about street candid photography from this, than I had thought possible. Well written, concise, full of good and useful information.

Have you thought about starting a new thread and discussing your street work with others?? I will be an active participant, being entirely new to the genre after a long lifetime of photographing static things like buildings (as befits an old architect).

I am especially interested in your black-and-white work. How ever do you get those gorgeous creamy mid-tones?? In our harsh antipodean light all I seem to get are over-the-top browns and greens.

Awaiting your thread...

 

[Yokosuka_Mike]

Maître d’ on the loose​

Fujifilm X-T2, Fujinon XF 18mm f1.4 lens
ACROS+G film simulation
Yokohama, Japan - November 2022
Image resized smaller than original​

 

[Yokosuka_Mike]

Street Life - I am becoming addicted to monochrome.​

*

Fujifilm X-T2, Fujinon 18mm f1.4 lens
ACROS+G film simulation
Yokohama, Japan - November 2022
Image resized smaller than original​

 

[Yokosuka_Mike]

Street Life​

Fujifilm X-T2, Fujinon 18mm f1.4 lens
ACROS+G film simulation
Yokohama, Japan - November 2022
Image resized smaller than original​

 

[Yokosuka_Mike]

Kannonzaki Light House
July 12, 2023​

Fujifilm X-T2, Fujinon XF 18mm f1.4
ACROS film simulation
Yokosuka, Japan - July 2023
Image is lower resolution than original​

 

[Yokosuka_Mike]

View from the top of Kannonzaki Light House
A photographer who happened to be there the same time that I was.​

Fujifilm X-T2, Fujinon XF 18mm f1.4
ACROS film simulation
Yokosuka, Japan - July 2023
Image is lower resolution than original​