Behind The X-Gear: Meet Quincy, the X-shooter, who Made me Drop my Coffee with his Amazing #1 Forum post!
X-shooter quincy’s Scandinavian Wolf – X-T1 + 55-200
_ _ _
The first of September was just an ordinary day for me. Wake up very early, make a coffee, pet my dog, switch on my notebook and start my daily web-check.
So, as usual, I opened also the Fuji X Forum… but what I saw made me almost drop my coffee!
A new Forum Member called quincy joined the Forum, and his very first entry was nothing else then a very clear & well structured list with the complete overview over all existing and upcoming Fuji X mount lenses. The list included all the names of the lenses, the price in $/€, link to reviews, main specs, a short comment and even a lens chart!
A terrific work, and very useful for the entire X-shooter community. That’s why quincy’s first post ever is now permanently pinned to the top of the Fuji X Lenses Forum section.
Congratulations quincy, and thanks so much also for keeping the list continously updated.
If you also want to have the opportunity to be interviewed & featured on FujiRumors, all you have to do is to join our Fuji X Forum Community, share your pics & thoughts there, and you might be the next one :) .
Previous “Behind the X-gear” Episodes:
Episode 1 – Milandro: A talk with X-shooters around the World… and about the X-series SOUL
Episode 2 – Trenton: A talk with “photoholic” X-shooter Trenton… and why the X-T1 is perfect for Lord Voldemort
Episode 3 – Mehrdad: A talk with Fuji X Forum member & official Fujifilm X-photographer Mehrdad
Episode 4 – Tom H: Meet Tom H, the X-shooter with the Coolest Office in the World
X-Shooter QUINCY
Why did you do that. What brought you to start to collect all the X-mount lenses into a single thread?
It was a pretty selfish reason, actually: Someday while looking through my images, I realized that some things I want to take pictures of never end up in my favourites-folder. Stars, Milkyway, certain Landscapes. So I knew I needed another lens, probably a fast wide-angle, but I did not know which one.
Searching the internet brought up a lot of individual reviews and some few compilations of several lenses, but never a complete overview over all existing options. Since I don’t like spending money on things just to try them out I usually want to be pretty sure the potential new acquisition is the right thing for me before buying it. For example, it took me about two years to choose my camera system.
Thus I decided to do it myself, and instead of stopping at wide-angle lenses, I went all the way for future reference. When I saw the whole list, I thought I might as well share it, perhaps someone else might find it useful.
And for myself, it brought me the wonderful little Samyang 12mm F2.0 NCS CS, a lens I otherwise never would have considered buying.
Did you expect to find so many lenses, when you started with it?
Absolutely not!
When I started collecting the data, I had only Fujinon’s own lenses, the three Zeiss Touits and a hand full of Samyangs in my mind. From there on, it seemed to explode.
Meyer Optik Görlitz, HandeVision, Lensbaby, SLR Magic and Zhongyi, if I recall it right, joined the party before I published the original version of the overview. And since then, it feels to me like there is a new lens every week, at least. At this rate, the chart will soon burst at the seams.
Tell us something about you
Professional Photographer or Amateur or something in between?
Definitely an amateur. Although I have used several DSLR systems (Canon and Nikon) at the University for pure technical photography with deep focus and straight angles, which is neither artistic nor fun, I would not consider photography my job, my profession. Apart from taking photos of test rigs and prototypes, photography is my hobby, and the pictures I take, I take them for me.
What is your kind of photography? (Motives, Approach …)
In general I prefer shooting nature and wildlife. But I almost always have a camera with me, and if I see something that is beautiful, I try to capture it.
Where can we find more about you on the web (website, Flickr, Facebook, portfolio)
I’m no social media person, so there is not much to see, I’m afraid. However, recent comments on my images from family, friends, and even strangers, and the opportunity for this interview convinced me to revive a very old flickr-account that was used for exchanging images years ago.
I’m a bit excited about that, to be honest.
What’s your favorite image taken with a Fuji?
It’s always hard to name just one single favourite thing, so please pardon my digression about this. I like people shots, but I’m not good with people, so I probably won’t ever do portraiture. My ‘favourite image’ is therefore a split between two portraits: One from Tom H., the other from Kirill Sokolov.
From my own pictures, I’d say a wildlife shot I took recently. It’s a scandinavian wolf , backlit by the rising sun [admin: see image at the top].
Your Move to Fuji
What’s the main reason for you to own a Fuji?
Their ‘philosophy’, if you want to call it like that, is what got my attention. To make cameras that are not bigger than they need to be, with direct controls for all important settings (Shutter Speed, Aperture, ISO) without the unnecessary PASM-Modes, without optical low pass filters and with competitive image quality.
The quality of their lenses, as well as the range of the line-up, was what finally convinced me to get into the system. When you look at their lenses, you can see that they have a strong background in lens design from their cine lens division as well as a clear vision. And they keep getting better and better with every new release!
Is there something you miss from your previous system?
My previous system was a Canon SLR, and while I liked the optical viewfinder with split screen indicator and thought I could never live without it, the moment I looked through the EVF of the X-T1 I knew this was for me and I would not go back. I had tried several other EVFs prior to that, and none was even close to convincing me.
So if I still miss something it’s probably the Film itself, and the procedure of loading it into the camera. But for sure I do not miss the limitation to 36 exposures per roll.
What’s your favorite lens?
My choice might surprise you. At the moment, it is a lens that has neither seen a lot of exposure nor love from the community since its introduction. Zack Arias even made fun of it. It’s the XF 55-200mm F3.5-4.8 R LM OIS.
Despite its non-existent publicity, I found it to be sharp at 200mm and at maximum aperture. And while it is not as fast focussing as the XF 50-140mm F2.8 R LM OIS WR and is two thirds to one and a third stops slower throughout the mutual focal range, it is a good bit longer. It’s a light, compact lens for what it is, and it gives me reliably good results. I just really like it, and most of my images are shot with this lens!
What’s your favorite camera bag?
To date, I have not found one that fits me. I thought the Peak Design Everyday Messenger that is on kickstarter right now might be the one, but after I saw how huge this thing is in reality, it is no longer an option.
When I bought the X-T1, I made an insert from cardboard and cloth for a small messenger bag that I got at a conference for free. The bag is not much wider than the X-T1s height, and not much higher than the X-T1 with the XF 55-200mm F3.5-4.8 R LM OIS attached is long. I wanted to use this bag on an interim basis until I found a real camera bag that fits me, but I still use it.
What’s in your bag?
Of course my X-T1, and depending on what I’m up to, one or more of the following lenses:
– Samyang 12mm F2.0 NCS CS
– XF 27mm F2.8
– XF 18-55mm F2.8-4.0 R LM OIS
– XF 55-200mm F3.5-4.8 R LM OIS
And a few accessories:
– EF-X8 and sometimes the Viltrox JY-670 ring flash
– 3x NP-W126
– 3x 32 GB SD card (Transcend & Sandisk)
– Marumi Achromatic Close-up lens (3 Diopters)
– Marumi Circular Polarizer
– Marumi ND8 Filter
– NiSi ND1000 Filter
– Several step-down rings to fit the filters on the lenses
– My trusty Rocket Blower
And it all fits in my small messenger bag!
Your Advice to Fuji
Which lens, that is not yet in the roadmap, would you like Fuji to make?
This question is a tough one, to be honest. The reason being, the lenses I desire the most are exactly the next two on the roadmap: The XF 100-400mm F4.5-5.6 R LM OIS and the XF 120mm F/2.8 R LM OIS WR Macro. And the fact that they were on the roadmap was a deciding factor for me to get into the X-System.
So, if I’m allowed to express one wish to Fujifilm, I’d like to have a medium sized, moderately fast long telephoto prime lens next. Something like a XF 400mm F5.6 R LM. Or, if they really want to please me, a XF 400mm F5.0 R LM OIS WR.
Tell Fujifilm what’s the main thing they should still improve in the X-series system via Firmware and/or Hardware
Like with most mirrorless cameras to date, there is a plethora of smaller and larger quirks and flaws, from quickly changing the autofocus point (for which they gave us the directional buttons on the X-T1 in an update) to the autofocus performance itself (good, but not where e.g. the Canon 7D is) to missing focal length dependent auto ISO to jpeg-only histogram to different stabilizing modes for panning and so on.
But considering that the X-System is just celebrating its 5th birthday right now, I’m sure those problems will be eliminated one after the other as new iterations of camera bodies get released.
What I’d really want from Fujifilm would simply be “staying on course”. Their cameras and lenses are beautiful in so many ways. They should not lose that spirit.
Decisive Questions
OVF, EVF or Display?
It depends on the situation, but for normal shooting definitely EVF since I have the X-T1. Having the camera up to the eye greatly enhances the overall stability, and seeing what you get, together with all the additional information (shutter speed, ISO, aperture, artificial horizon, etc.) is invaluable.
For landscape shots from a tripod or macro stuff, I also use the display. The tilt screen is especially useful when shooting low on the ground.
Rangefinder style or DSLR shape?
100% DSLR-shape.
The dual parallax error of rangefinders as well as the imprecise framing always killed my brain, and although cameras with EVF like the X-E2 essentially look “through the lens”, I still want to hold my camera in front of my head, not next to it. When I bring my X-T1 up to the eye, I know that the lens is (at least vertically) in line with what I see.
RAW or JPEG?
I always shoot JPEG FINE + RAW. The Fujifilm JPEGs are really great, and sometimes I just keep them as they are, but usually I load the RAW files into Capture One for culling and developing.
When Scottie Wang brought us the Fujifilm film simulations for Capture One it became even more fun, since I can now compare the film simulations directly while developing the images.
Curiosity & Customize you X
You most & you least used feature in Fujifilm cameras (like film simulations, build-in RAW converter, Extended DR(100-200-400), advanced filters, panorama, digital split image etc…)
I like the digital split image very much because it reminds me of my SLR, but the magnification is just not high enough for me to focus precisely, so I use the focus peaking a lot for manual focus.
I don’t use the advanced filters at all.
Which functions did you place on the FN-buttons of your camera?
On the front button is the depth of field preview. The top button is used for preview exposure / white balance. And with the new firmware update ‘AF Mode’ moved from the top FN button to the video button. The directional buttons are used for autofocus point selection.
What’s Your favorite film simulation
Provia! It gives me the most accurate representation of the scene that was photographed and makes it easy to evaluate if the image came out like I wanted it. And it also helps while photographing, thanks to the EVF. For post processing, I absolutely love the look of Classic Chrome.
Your favorite photography quote.
It’s an L-Lens. Last one we looked at, we turned into a cup. – Kai Man Wong