Fuji 16-55mm f/2.8 long term review
Long term review of the 16-55mm f/2.8 Fuji
Is this Fuji’s best zoom?
Yes, it is.
There it is! The holy grail of the Fuji zoom lens!
What a lens!
This is a zoom lens, in the sense that it will let you zoom from 16mm to 55mm in a twist motion: but it is so sharp across the board that I am tempted to call it a prime lens that can zoom (term borrowed from this article).
The lens is found at $999 USD or $1300 CAD. Get it here.
It’s not a light lens, but it is lighter than the Canon or Nikon 24-70mm f/2.8 equivalent. On full-frame, the 16-55mm becomes a 24-85mm f/2.8 (f/4 for bokeh, f/2.8 for light transmission). It’s my new favourite travel lens.
I’m a prime lens guy, but sometimes… having a prime that can zoom is great to relax. Don’t worry about the sharpness of this lens: it’s sharper than the 27mm f/2.8 prime and on par with the 23mm, 35mm and 50mm f/2 lens. That good, I guarantee.
Autofocus:
Super fast.
It’s as fast as a 24-70mm f/2.8 AF-S Nikon, a lens that I used for a few weddings a decade ago. It nails the focus 98% of the time. I picked up this lens thinking it would be a lens to do vlogging in 2020 –I had in mind to use it more for videos than photos– not caring too much about the autofocus speed. I was blown away by its sharpness and its autofocus speed.
I am not one to praise a manufacturer on their gear: I buy all of my gear with my own money and I am anti-loyal to any brand. At the moment, I shoot with Canon, Nikon and Fuji.
It takes a lot for me to be blown away now by a piece of gear: the 16-55mm f/2.8 Fuji is a pleasant surprise.
The autofocus is faster than the 90mm f/2.0 and on par with the 23mm f/2.0 prime lens. It’s quick, instant, and never hunts (on X-Pro2 or X-H1) in good light, that was expected. It is as good as it gets in the Fuji ecosystem. I’m tempted to say that it is even faster than the 23mm f/2.0, but I haven’t shot with that lens for the last 8 months so I can’t tell at the moment.
I was not expecting the lens to actually be that fast in dark alley: but it was, and well, that’s awesome.
It focuses close! There is no macro mode per se, but it’s way closer than you’ll ever need. At 55mm, you can almost get some decent macro shot.
16-55mm f/2.8 Fuji with X-Pro2
The micro-contrast is top-notch; the sharpness is exceptional; the built quality is great; oh and it is weather-sealed.
Fort de Chambly, in southern Quebec, Canada. Notice the minimal amount of distortion.
Bokeh:
Get close.
Then zoom all the way in at 55mm.
Open at f/2.8.
Choose a close subject…and voila!
Bokeh is actually decent! It is equivalent to f/4 on a full frame sensor.
Bokeh on the 16-55mm f/2.8 – I hold the camera in my lens and the can in the other. That’s how close it focuses! Bravo!
You can see some flair, but it is the pretty sort of flair.
Build quality:
It is a very robust and well made lens, it feels solid in hand and it will last a lifetime. I don’t like the zoom getting out of the body (the Canon or Nikon equivalent are hidden by the lens hood) but what the hell, it keeps it somewhat compact when travelling.
The lens is weather-sealed and supposed to work down to minus 10 degree celcius. I never had a problem with a lens at -40ºC so it is a bit of a marketing gimmick.
Below is an example at 16mm and 55mm, you’ll see what I mean.
Fuji 16-55mm f/2.8 on Fuji X-E1. Look at those colours! Review of the X-E1 here.
Minimal lens flare, great.
Bottom line
It’s one of those lens that overdelivered. Where the 27mm f/2.8 was a terrible lens (sharpness, bokeh, autofocus), the 16-55mm f/2.8 kills it. It is Fuji’s best zoom, way better than the slow and old 18-55mm f/2.8-f/4.
If you can afford it, and you should find a way to be able to afford it, get it if you plan to travel the world. This lens combined with a 35mm f/1.4 is all you would ever need as a travel photographer.
The lens is stabilized when used with the excellent Fuji X-H1 (reviewed here). It does not get any better than this, really doesn’t.
Or the travel photographer could get a 16mm f/2.8 prime, a 35mm f/1.4 lens and the 50-140mm f/2.8 and that should be enough. The red Fuji badge on the holy trinity (8-16mm f/2.8, 16-55mm f/2.8 and 50-140mm f/2.8) out performs (in term of sharpness) every other lens made by the competition.
EDIT: I’ll add one point: If I had to choose between a Nikon D5 with a 24-70mm f/2.8 VR ED and a Fuji X-H1 with a 16-55mm f/2.8, I would take the Nikon if I’d shoot wars and protests: but I would take the X-H1 one if I’d shoot weddings. Every camera has a tool.
Thank you!
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List below: Yes – affiliate Amazon Canada store, I get a small percentage from Amazon whenever you purchase something using those links, and it doesn’t cost you a penny more! More than that, this is not random gear: this is what I used or using. It is a no-bullshit list, simply gear that works.