These are all shot hand-held as NORMAL JPGs; no RAW files or FINE JPGs or tripods were used or needed.

The bokeh is pleasing, with no nervous edges or tearing. With the lens' minimum focus distance at 39 centimeters, it also allows for some extremely narrow depth of field, even with the maximum aperture of f/2. This is significantly closer than its big brother, the 56mm, which focuses only down to 70 centimeters. The Focal LengthHowever, for me, the only need I have now for the 56mm is when I need that extra stop of light. I can't see me using the 56mm 1.2 at all during weddings before the first dance. At its widest point by the lens mount, the XF 50mm f2 has a maximum diameter of 60mm, but again this tapers beyond the aperture ring to a little over 50mm by the time you reach the 46mm filter thread at the end. Meanwhile the lens barrel measures 60mm in length, making it the longest in the f2 threesome so far, albeit still compact compared to most of its alternatives. When the XF 50mm F/2 is attached to any Fujifilm X Series camera body, it instantly feels at home. Fujifilm X Series camera bodies are neat and more compact than most camera brands. Placing a small lens like the XF 50mm F/2 on such a camera just makes sense. and 45 cycles per millimeter on APS-C is the same as 10 and 30 cycles per millimeter on full frame. When I was testing the Fujifilm 23mm f2 lens, I took it into a super hard rainfall. And so during the 2017 Mermaid day parade, I did pretty much the same thing with the 50 after attaching it to the Fujifilm X Pro 2. This time, it was much more of a torture test. From around 11AM to 1:30PM, it rained. Then it was intermittent throughout the rest of the day until 7pm.

I, like many others it would seem, was a bit confused by the 50mm focal length. This would be approximately 76mm on a full-frame 35mm sensor, which is not a common focal length for a prime lens. However, I was pleasantly surprised to find that it fit right into my shooting style and fixed a problem I didn't know I had. So what difference can you expect between the XF 50mm f2 and the XF 56mm f1.2 in practice? I’ll start with a portrait shot at their maximum apertures, with the XF 50mm f2 version taken a tad closer to roughly match the subject size on the frame. Once again both lenses have delivered attractive blurring effects without any harsh edges, but again the larger aperture of the XF 56mm f1.2 above right is noticeably blurrier and creamier. Even the bottles immediately behind the main subject are nicely blurred, and by the time you reach the Delerium bottle in pale yellow in the middle distance, the difference in their rendering capabilities is quite obvious. But once again I have no complaints about the XF 50mm f2, it’s just that the XF 56mm f1.2 is unsurprisingly more capable at shallower depth-of-field effects. The Fuji 50 2 has no visible distortion, at least as shot on Fujifilm's cameras which correct any that might be there. In last place we find the 56mm, which won’t let you get any closer than 70cm. It has a rather poor maximum magnification of 0.09x. 56mm f1.2 Chromatic Aberration

You won’t find a depth of field or distance scale on any of the lenses, so the only option is to rely on the camera’s on-screen manual assists. Although the lens is slower than the Fujifilm XF 56mm f/1.2 R, there are benefits to be had from manufacturing a smaller front element and limiting the maximum aperture to f/2. This is where this series of lenses really shines. The 23mm f/2 WR and and 35mm f/2 WR have both had some of the best autofocus performance on the Fuji X System, and the 50mm f/2 is on par, if not faster. In good light, you will see focusing that outperforms some DSLR lenses. Tested against my Nikkor 58mm f/1.4 on the D750, I couldn't notice any difference in focusing speed. If anything, the Fujifilm was a touch faster. You can see videos of those compared through the viewfinder in my article from last week. Flare is not a problem either, images shot against the light showing no sign of loss of sharpness or contrast. And it's also very sharp wide-open at f/2 where many lenses get softer at macro distances. This is better than average performance:

As you can see, the XF 50mm f2 and XF 56mm f1.2 have delivered 18 and 14 spikes respectively as expected from their nine and seven aperture blades. But in the crop above it’s clear how much better-defined the spikes are from the XF 56mm f1.2. This is most likely down to the actual shape of the blades themselves, and when it comes to rendering blobs at different apertures, the XF 50mm f2 may be less geometrical. But when it comes to diffraction spikes, the XF 56mm f1.2 is clearly superior in my first example.Chromatic aberration is handled reasonably well by the lens, with only minor fringes of colour being observed along some high-contrast edges at wide apertures.

At its minimum focus distance of 26.7cm, it delivers a maximum magnification of 0.5x (1:2). Note that the miniature violin in this example is 9cm in length. 60mm f/2.4

Fuji XF 50mm f/2 R WR Review: Introduction

X-series users aren’t short of choice when it comes to buying a fast mid-telephoto prime, but this lens has some key advantages. It’s a convenient size for travelling and feels just as good on smaller X-series camera bodies such as the Fujifilm X-T20 as it does with the more advanced Fujifilm X-T2 and Fujifilm X-Pro2 models. The only plastic elements of this lens are the lens cap and hood. The lens cap uses a pinch-release system, but given its size can feel a little clumsy to attach it securely. Especially if you have big fingers like mine.