The Fujifilm 35mm f/1.4 R lens was officially announced in September 2011. I was privileged to be one of three UK photographers involved in the launch of Fujifilm’s first interchangeable lens X-Series camera, the Fujifilm X-Pro1 . The 35mm XF f/1.4 was one of Fujifilm’s initial lens for the X-Series and it quickly became a firm favourite.
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The Fujifilm 35mm XF f/1.4 lens has a fixed 35mm focal length. This is equivalent to a 53mm focal length in full-frame (35mm film) terms. This makes it akin to the nifty fifty lens revered on full frame cameras, and closely resembles the field of view of the human eye.
Fujifilm XF 35mm Images
The 35mm f/1.4 R was my first go-to lens for the X-Series system and quickly became my lens for choice various photography applications, including portrait, street, and low-light photography.
Excellent Low-Light Performance & Stunning Bokeh
The wide f/1.4 aperture of this lens allows for a significant amount of light to enter the camera. This is particularly useful in low-light conditions, as it enables you to capture sharp and well-exposed images without the need for a flash. The lens excels in lowlight, indoor and nighttime photography. The f/1.4 aperture also makes it a great lens for music photography.
The wide aperture also creates a shallow depth of field, resulting in a pleasing background blur, or bokeh. This can be especially appealing for portraits, as it helps to isolate the subject from the background, making your subject stand out in a visually striking way. To learn more about bokeh and shooting with a shallow depth of field see ‘Shooting Shallow‘.
Fujifilm 35mm Images Set II
This gallery features images from around Northern Ireland. It also includes music photography for Gungor, Amy Grant and Kyle Suckling.
Versatility and Quality
The 35mm focal length is often considered a “normal” lens, which closely matches the perspective of the human eye. This makes it versatile for a wide range of photography styles, including portraits, street photography, documentary photography, and everyday shooting.
The lens is designed with high-quality glass elements to produce sharp, detailed, and colour-accurate images. It minimises distortion and aberrations, ensuring that your photos are of top-notch quality.
Fujifilm 35mm Images Set III
Photos of the mini adventure, Duke Special, Northern Ireland locations, Ernie and James Price (Whitestar Coffee).
The inclusion of a manual aperture ring on the lens is a distinctive feature allowing photographers to easily control the aperture settings quickly. This tactile control can be appreciated by photographers who prefer to adjust settings manually and provides a more direct and intuitive shooting experience. This is particular useful when capturing music photography.
Long Exposure Photography with the Fujifilm 35mm f/1.4
Long exposure photography with the Fujifilm 35mm f/1.4 R lens can produce stunning and creative results. This lens, with its wide maximum aperture, is not typically associated with long exposure photography, but it can still be used effectively for this purpose.
The use of a quality ND filter makes long exposure photography simple. How to capture long exposure photographs.
See also 8 essential accessories for landscape photography
In Conclusion
The Fujifilm 35mm f/1.4 R remains a popular choice among Fujifilm photographers due to its combination of excellent image quality, low-light capabilities. The lens offers stunning perforance in range of photography styles, from portraits to street photography. The Fujifilm 35mm f/1.4 R is a must-have prime lens for Fujifilm X-Series users.
Links
Music Photography Guide
Should a 50mm lens considered essential?
Ten Years of the Fujifilm X-Pro1 Camera
Long Exposure Photographs of Northern Ireland
5 ways to improve your long exposure photography
