Different Twins: “King of Bokeh” XF 56mm f/1.2 APD VS classic XF 56mm f/1.2 (PROS & CONS)

XF56 APD: USA: BHphoto / AmazonUS / Adorama / EUROPE: WexUK / WexDE / PCHstore / AUSTRALIA: CameraPro

Nathan Elson and Patrick La Roque tested the brand new XF 56mm f/1.2 APD lens. And what do they think about it? Did Fuji succeed in its difficult challange to improve a lens that is already almost perfect?

Keep in mind, both are testing prototypes… this means the overall performance of this lens can still be improved until its launch later this year.

Nathan Elson (first look) says in his first thoughts about this lens that “it’s not a huge leap […]  the original 56mm lens lets in roughly 1 stop of light more than the new APD version which could be a good or bad thing depending on the shooting situation […] the new APD version does have slightly more contrast […] slight improvement to an already awesome lens“.

Patrick La Roque (first look) thinks that “this filter [APD] adds a slight vignetting effect. And I do mean slight […] you’ll notice [with the APD] a bit more blurring breaking up the pattern. […] So given the slightly more pleasing bokeh, common wisdom would dictate that the APD is the better of the two right? Well, I’m sticking with different. Because there actually are trade-offs with the apodization process: Less light gathering capabilities & No phase detection AF, resulting in slower focusing. […] Does this mean you should immediately sell your 6 months-old standard 56mm? Well, I won’t — and I certainly won’t feel cheated. What this amounts to is choice, not replacement, upgrade or deprecation. As far as I’m concerned, neither can disappoint.”

Go for the 56mm f/1.2 APD if you need:
– improved bokeh
– slightly more contrast

Go for the 56mm f/1.2 if you need:
– faster AF (phase detection)
– more light gathering capabilities
– slightly less vignetting than the APD

This is just a very early PROS & CONS list. We will have to wait for more reviews and final production XF 56mm APD.

XF 56mm f/1.2 APD: USA: BHphoto / AmazonUS / Adorama / EUROPE: WexUK / WexDE / PCHstore / AUSTRALIA: CameraPro
XF 56mm f/1.2: [shopcountry 21554]