gdanmitchell Offline Upload & Sell: Off
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Hi:
In fact, I use my X-Pro2 (and formerly my XE1) a lot, since a Fujifilm system is my main setup for street and travel photography these days. I haven't used the 100-400, so I'm interested in reading about folks' experiences with it. (It probably isn't a lens I'll get, since I tend to do my long lens photography with my Canon system. On the other hand, I did just pick up the 50-140 for a particular purpose...)
You are right to point out the issues with long lenses and atmospheric conditions. I don't know if that figured into your issues, but a lot of people are not away of just how much "heat waves" and other dust and other kinds of interference will diminish the potential resolution of long lenses.
Thanks for your points about the two IS modes. Since I now have one IS Fujifilm lens, I'm going to play with that.
Dan
Rand47 wrote:
Hello, all . . .
First, my thanks to G. Dan Mitchell for contributing to this thread. Dan, I didn't realize you had any Fuji gear!
All... my rental lens arrived today and I shot the two copies side by side. They are pretty much identical. The only variability I see is in hand held shots at 400 mm where it is to be expected, and it is random and surely caused by the me.
On tripod mounted shots they are identical in performance when carefully inspected at 100%.
So, bottom line for me is thee-fold:
1. Using IS Mode 1 is suboptimal for this lens, IMO. At least on my two X-T1 bodies. IS Mode 2 produces much sharper images hand-held, and better AF accuracy (for whatever reason).
2. The AF of this lens needs something "definitive" in terms of contrast in order to get a really solid, accurate focus lock. Especially at 400 mm and focus distances out beyond 30-40'.
3. After being used to my 50-140, which is bitingly sharp, the 100-400 is very good but not in the same league, especially at 400 mm. It lacks the very snappy contrast of the 50-140 as well.
General comments. Using an equivalent 600 mm lens takes the kind of care and forethought reflected in Dan's comments above, and I believe some of my initial issues were exacerbated by less than optimum technique.
Living in Southern CA in the Inland Empire (high desert) using a 600 mm equivalent lens is dicey in warm/hot weather. There's enough perspective compression to see very pronounced atmospheric distortion in the images. Fine if one is a fan of Cezanne, not so much otherwise. (This is an attempt at humor, but nevertheless something to be considered for long lens landscape work.)
I would not be surprised to see Fuji work to improve AF accuracy. I think it sometimes will give a positive "AF lock" when it hasn't really locked on anything precisely, especially hand held in IS Mode 1. I have no idea how there can be a relationship between IS Mode and AF accuracy, but that's my anecdotal experience.
Thanks everyone, for your comments, assistance. Renting a second copy of this lens convinces me that my copy is fine and that a combination of suboptimal camera settings and "less than thoughtful" user technique was the cause of my initial issues with this lens.
Rand
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