The great thing about interchangeable-lens cameras is well, interchanging lenses. In particular while kicking back in Cottage-life mode.
Fujifilm X-T1 + 400mm · I already wrote about getting a Fotodiox PK-FX adapter, and finally couldn’t resist clamping the antique Tokina SL-400 F5.6 onto my Fujifilm X-T1. The combo looks absolutely ridiculous.
It’s perfectly hand-wieldable without a tripod, by the way. It lets you take arty stuff like this:
Those are big mountains in the background.
But I think the design goal is this sort of thing, a half-grown eaglet in its nest.
· · ·
1/180sec at F8, hand-braced against a tree. Have I mentioned that the X-T1 manual-focus assist is beyond awesome?
His or her parents visit regularly to supply food; these occasions are accompanied by much screaming and flapping. But they never happen when I have my camera.
For scale, and to show what the lens can do, here’s a Nexus 5 shot of the tree; the arrow points to where the nest is.
The “kit” lens · I’m talking about the XF 18-55mm F2.8-4.0 zoom, one of Fuji’s oldest and cheapest X’s. The thing is, I’m using it more and more. The X-T1’s auto-focus system works with it astonishingly well, as in instantly; the first few times I tried the combo I was irritated when I pushed the button that auto-focus wasn’t happening; because it already had.
This kind of lens turns out to be a landscape champ.
Got infinite depth-of-field if ya want it.
But it can do lots of other things too.
…and others · I still love the 35mm F1.4, but these days its autofocus feels klunky by comparison. I reserve it pretty well for street scenes and low-light applications. Until recently I would have said “…and faces” but lately I’ve been bolting on a 1990-or-so vintage Pentax-A SMC 50mm F/2.
Glen, a friend since 1975.
Fun with lenses! I recommend it.
