iconara

I just got my XF50-140mm repaired by Fujifilm in the UK after I dropped it, damaging the mount and metal around the front element. Now I'm noticing that it's no longer as sharp when I open it beyond f/5.6. I've never been able to see any sharpness difference on this lens from f/2.8 to f/8, but now there is a distinct loss in sharpness from f/5.6 to f/4 and again to f/2.8. It's more noticeable when zoomed in to 140mm, but it can be seen at 50mm too if you compare photos side-by-side. Is this something I should have expected Fujifilm repair to discover and fix? When I sent it in I explained I had dropped it and that the mount and front metal was damaged. I know the sharpness loss was not there before the drop since I have photos, but I don't know if the loss in sharpness is due to damage from the fall, or from the repair not being properly quality tested. What should I do? Can I request that Fujifilm fix this? Should they have picked up on this during the repair? Another factor in this is that due to Brexit it took over four months to get the lens repaired. It was stuck in UK customs both on the way to the UK (from Sweden) and on the way back. I really don't want to have to send it in again and get it back in September or October.

I have had good success with Haida screw on filters for my Samyang/Rokinon 12mm. I bought a kit of three, 3, 6, and 10 stop that come with a front and end cap so that they all screw together into a compact puck. You can find lots of sellers on eBay.

I recently bought a set of Haida ND filters, and I'm very pleased with the quality. Very little color cast, just a tiny shift to yellow, but much less than I've seen in sample images that used Lee and Hoya. I opted for screw-on filters rather than square for two reasons: I've not been able to stack square filters because of light leaking in between them creating flares and smudges – and I find it inconvenient with having to carry the adapter rings and filter holders in addition to the larger filters. My set of three Haida filters screw together into a convenient puck that's pocketable. Here are two photos taken with Haida filters, and an X-E2: https://www.instagram.com/p/BGaAecVC3GA/ (~10 minute exposure, XF 18-135mm, ND1000 + ND64 stacked) https://www.instagram.com/p/BGUYaK8C3Ao (~10 minute exposure, Samyang 12mm, ND1000 + ND64 stacked) I have a set of step-up rings to use the filters on lenses with smaller diameters. The Haida screw-on filters are available in sizes up to 82mm, so they should work with the XF 10-24mm. There's also a 100mm and 150mm square series.

I'm blown away by the upgrade. It's a really tired phrase, but it really feels like a new camera. I love all the new possibilities for function buttons, I love the new autofocus, I love the new way to change view mode (no more menu!). There so may great things. The focus peaking seems to have been updated, I now get highlighted outlines of in-focus areas in some situations, I can't remember that the peaking has been this pronounced before, but maybe I'm just thinking that everything is new because it feels so new.

I've been looking at vintage lenses for a 21 or 24mm for a while, and it's hard. Wide angle vintage lenses are really expensive, and mostly because they are rare. They're also very rarely faster than 2.8. Making a SLR lens faster than that would make it very large, the reason the Fujinon and Samyang/Rokinon lenses are small and fast is that they were made for cameras with ASP-C and short flange focus distance. I've especially been trying to find a 24mm Hexanon, specifically because the AR mount has one of the shortest flange focus distances of the SLR systems, which means that the adapter is smaller and it all fits much better on a small camera body like the X-E2.

A combo of the new features of X-Pro2 with the features already in X-T10 would be a great combo. These are my hope-for-features: Flippy-tilty screen. Being able to review photos on the rear display by pressing the preview button, like I think the X-T1 and X-T10 can X-Pro2's new sensor (assuming it gets one, but that seems likely), but not more than 24 MP. Being able to control more features from the function buttons, like setting focal length when using adapted lenses. More accurate focus peaking. Most of the time it just looks like everything is in focus. Put the tripod mount away from the battery/memory card door. It's a pain to have to unscrew the quick release plate to switch batteries and cards. A less useless phone/computer/camera communication setup. The WiFi feature is a joke. Better ergonomics, a thumb grip is a must on the X-E2.

For me a battery usually lasts for around 400 pictures, which is also around what fits on a 16 GB memory card, so I've gotten into the habit of just replacing both at the same time. I use the EVF almost exclusively in EVF + sensor mode, the battery life is significantly shorter when the back LCD is active a lot. It would be nice if the battery indicator was more reliable, but I more or less use the picture counter as an indicator nowadays.