So if you read my first fuji blog you will know that I have recently made the switch from Nikon to Fuji… If you didn't read the first blog post, keep up! Here is a link for you to check it out…
Making the switch from my full frame Nikon gear to all Fuji was something I knew I wanted to do, but for a long time I was having a hard time actually pulling the trigger, that was until a family member mentioned she was looking at starting up her own wedding photography business & was looking to get a complete kit… She was after a kit with zooms so I offered her a deal on all my Nikon gear & she decided to take it…
Then came the tough decision making process… What lenses, cameras & accessories to buy to complete my new kit… The hardest decision being wether to drop the zooms for primes or carry on shooting the classing 24-70/ 70-200 equvilent line up that has worked so well for me for a long time… Fuji’s 50-140 f2.8 lens had amazing reviews, the image stabilisation is known for being amazing & the images it produces have a beautiful look… In the back of my mind I was imagining every time I cranked the 70-200 out to 200mm to capture the tight portrait shots during a ceremony, or the times I like to compress the hell out of the background in an images to give the smoothest bokeh imaginable… I then remembered the reasons I love the Fuji cameras… The classic look, the small size, the retro feel… The 50-140 goes against all of that for me… I decided against the 50-140… Once I had decided on that the rest almost all fell into place…
Standing out, the XT1 with it's 'EVF hump'...
I already owned the x100s, X Pro 1, 35mm f1.4 & a few Fuji instax cameras… The XT1 is currently Fuji’s top performer & with a nice little Black Friday offer it was quickly added to the line up… Next was a portrait lens… I could ‘get away’ with only shooting the 23mm of the x100s & the 35mm 1.4 but I needed something that could give a little more compression & a little better separation from the background…
The fastest lens in my kit, the gorgeous 56mm 1.2...
The 56mm f1.2 from fuji was an obvious choice although I did consider the 90mm f2 for some time but decided it just wouldn't be as practice & again it was getting a little large… The 56 will stay on the XT1 most of the time acting as my main portrait lens & low light monster with its massive 1.2 aperture…
Oh... Isn't she sexy... I really should have moved that water bottle out of the background though!
Having decided on the longest lens in my kit I was after something a little wider than the 23mm on the x100s… A lens that is fast enough to be used during the evening reception of a wedding with good focusing abilities… It needed to be wide but not so wide that it would distort peoples faces as this lens would be used for group shots of people… Fuji’s massively underrated 18mm f2 lens was perfect… Its wide, but not too wide, fast, quick to focus & is sharp enough for what I need, plus its as cheap as chips… Im sold, the 18mm is in the kit too…
On top of that lot I added the Samyang 12mm f2 just for a bit of ultra wide fun, the Nissin i40 flash for some TTL flash fill for people shots during wedding evening receptions & Fuji's 16mm Extension tube for ring & detail shots…
Anyway enough is enough… I got a rip off Pelican case to pack my gear away safe & loaded it up… So now you know what I will be shooting... All of this gear will be reviewed & field tested in my up & coming blog posts so please stay tuned!
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Howard
p.s. The next blog post will be the first of a series... 'How I made this photo', where I share a photo, some background info & how I processed the photo to get it to its final state...