In addition to the brand new 5th Generation X Series camera that Fujifilm unveiled last week, the X-H2s, Fujifilm also introduced two brand new lenses, as well, including the much-anticipated XF150-600mm f/5.6-8.
I know, I know… this is the one that a lot of you have been waiting for.
This new extreme telephoto-zoom features high performance optics, weather sealing, and incredible new options for framing and capturing your distant scenes, whether you shoot stills or motion.
XF150-600mm f/5.6-8 R LM OIS WR
Rumors of new XF150-600mm f/5.6-8 began circulating last year, and so there was much speculation about what it would actually look like when it was finally released.
Now that it’s finally here, the details of this new super-telephoto are quite impressive. First of all, it’s a lot less expensive than I would have thought. Given the Fuji’s “white barrel” 200mm /f2 lens is just shy of $6K, I figured that the XF150-600 would be quite a bit more than $1,999.00.
I’m glad I was wrong, because ar this price, it makes Fuji’s 150-600 a truly viable option for a wide range of sports, wildlife and nature photographers who want this kind of focal length and performance.
Costing only $100 more than Fuji’s awesome XF100-400 lens, the new XF150-600 offers a great deal of value for the price, size and weight, and it strikes an impressive balance between long reach and relatively portable design.
Yes, it has more glass, a larger front element, a barrel that’s 4 inches longer, and one half pound heavier, but considering that the angle of view is one third longer, those are reasonable concessions. The Fuji engineers did some serious number crunching on this one.
Now the longest focal length X-Mount lens in the line, the new XF150-600mm lens give you an incredibly extensive view, and the speed to back it up. Using Fuji’s Linear Autofocus Motor with internal zoom and focusing, and On-Lens focusing controls, this lens allows for very fast and accurate autofocus when you’re capturing those very distant or quick-moving subjects, like… ahem… birds.
Combine it with the next generation AF algorithms and performance that was introduced in the new X-H2s, and you’ll long-lens autofocus speed that you could only dream about a few years ago. This combo pretty much makes the most capable BIF setup you could imagine.
The optical design features 24 elements in 17 groups, including four Super ED and three ED elements to reduce chromatic aberrations and color fringing, and help retain a very high degree of clarity, color accuracy and crispness access the entire zoom range.
Weighing at 3.5 lbs (1,605g) Fuji’s 150-600 is about 20% lighter than most other 150-600 lenses in the market. (Tamron’s version is 4.38 lbs, and Sigma’s is over 6 lbs.)
And while it’s not a super fast lens with its sliding f/5.6-8 aperture, with today’s sensor technology, incredibly high ISO performance and its 5-stop OIS image stabilization, shooting at those apertures is hardly the deal breaker that it used to be.
Sure, those numbers push out to f/11 and f/16 when using the 1.4X and 2x Teleconverters respectively, but even that’s not the end of the world, especially on the newer Fuji bodies. Of course, using those adapters, you’re able to push the view out to a standard 35mm equivalent focal lengths out to a max of a mind-blowing 1,828mm.
So, without the teleconverter, the 150-600 gives you almost a thousand millimeters of zoom. With the 2x, you’re pushing close to two thousand millimeters.
Either way, you can’t expect to get that kind of length without any compromises, but again, by cranking the ISO dial up, you’ll be able to nail your subjects with an incredibly close view and still get sharp photos that show off an impressive level of detail.
So yea, the new XF150-600mm f/5.6-8 is by no means a small lens, nor does it have an exceptionally fast max aperture, but anyone who hoped that it would be either of those things is living in a dream world.
Or they were prepared to spend a whole lot more money.
Thankfully, with this new lens, Fujifilm has offered an incredible high performing creative tool that offers reasonable size and wight, and a much lower price tag than most of us were thinking.
And it’s coming sooner than many of us had expected. Not knowing any details, I figured we wouldn’t see it until fall. It’s actually slated to ship on July 7. So yea… if you get your preorder in, you just might be able to have it for your mid summer vacation!
I gotta hand it to Fujifilm; they said this was coming, and man, did they deliver in a way that I think stunned a lot of people. Then again, who knows glass and lens design like Fujifilm?
I haven’t had the chance to try this lens out for myself, but I’m certainly looking forward to giving it a run and seeing what it can do!
Pre-order your XF150-600 lens here.
See more details about this lens at the Fujifilm website.
Hi Dan
Thanks for the preview on the xf 150-600mm. Looking forward to a field review and hopefully some sort of comparison to the 100-400. Hopefully some consolation comments for us early entrants into the Fuji game who have the xf 100-400mm? Thanks for the blogs and keep the good stuff coming. Best from South Africa.
Regards
David Bowes
Glad to see Fuji offer a lens for wildlife instead of another “lifestyle” prime lens that they are flooding their lens map with. I primarily shoot sports like hockey so this lens isn’t for me as it’s too slow, but I hope it does well so that Fuji continues with these offerings.
O man, I lust for that lens. I own several Fuji lenses, they are all excellent to exceptional.
David, I have nothing but praise for the 100-400. It’s fast, powerful, rugged, and being 4″ shorter on the barrel than the 150-600, it’s definitely more portable. It would take some reshuffling to fit the 150-600 in my current photo pack. So yea, if you have the 100-400, then I wouldn’t feel bad at all.
Steve, thanks for the comment. Yes, I agree, Fuji does make some incredible lenses! Which ones are your favorites?
Chad, I agree, this is an interesting lens to add to their line. Honestly, I didn’t really see this one coming, but it’s sure to fill the void for a certain segment of photographers. They do seem to be trying to build a comprehensive kit that offers something special for everyone.
It looks to be a good lens although a slow lens. It is more or less a 100-400mm f4.5-5.6 lens provided with a 1.4x TC which I already have, so I am not likely to go for this lens.
Well, this might make you laugh… the very affordable 16-80 F4 OIS has become my workhorse, hogging probably 65% of on-camera time and mostly replacing my 16-55 F2.8 . Why, you might ask? Because I do handheld action work and my septuagenarian hands need the OIS advantage. However, you asked, ‘my favorite lens’? That’s easy: The 50-140 F2.8 OIS. I have carried and abused that lens since day one: On rugged hikes; mountain bike rides; sail boat racing. It has always performed and produced like a thoroughbred.
Sverre, I kind of agree with you. Already having the 100-400 and 1.4X TC, I don’t see that this would add a huge benefit to my kit without being too redundant on many levels. Either way, there’s definitely an enthusiastic market for this kind of lens, so good for Fujifilm for coming out with this one!
Woot!
Hi Dan, it seems the XF100-400mmF3.5-5.6 R LM OIS WR is now deprecated. I had budgeted for the XF100-400mmF3.5-5.6 R LM OIS WR, but I think I’ll wait a few months more and buy the XF150-600mm f/5.6-8 R LM OIS WR.
Is BIF an idiolectal acronym, and what does it mean?
Khürt, yes the XF100-400mm lens is now on sale; I don’t know if it’s permanently discounted, but it’s certainly a great deal right now. While the 150-600 is surely a good lens, that in no way diminishes the 100-400, which is a fantastic optic with incredible performance and very fast AF. Again, both are great lenses, though.
BIF stand for Birds in Flight. It’s used when referring to the often very serious genre of bird photography, which can be quite challenging. Some people use BIF as THE reference for how well a certain piece of gear performs.