On the flip side however, they tend to have a slower maximum aperture than most portrait glass – f/2.8 at the very brightest – and sometimes that extreme detail rendering can reveal too many imperfections on a person’s face. quote]As regards the macro capability, it is of course so much more and can cover all the other short telephoto applications. [/quote] So long as you don't need to get closer than 2 feet (0.6 meters) or need stabilization, the 90mm f/2 is a better lens.

Although some lenses are labelled ‘macro’ lenses, not all are considered to be true to form because they’re unable to reproduce an image of a subject at true-life size. One such example is Fujifilm’s XF 60mm f/2.4 R Macro lens, which delivers a maximum magnification of half-life size (0.5x). The Fujifilm XF 30mm f/2.8 R LM W Macro is the latest addition to the X-mount macro lenses, released in January 2023. This lens follows the popular Fujifilm 80mm macro lens and the “fake macro” Fujifilm 60mm macro lens, which are both detailed below. The XF 30mm is the first macro lens from Fujifilm with such a short focal length (30mm). Despite its compact design, weighing only 195g and measuring 7cm in length, the lens has an ultra-short focusing distance of 10cm, which makes it less suitable for live insect photography. It has a 43mm filter size and does not extend, and comes with a simple plastic lens hood. If you do not know that one of the reasons for putting OIS in a macro is to make hand holding feasible when a tripod is not you are perhaps not very knowledgeable about the flexibility of modern macros with OIS/IS/VR, especially with a crop sensor body with more depth of field for any given magnification than 24x36. They get similar resolution figures centre of the lens, but Fuji is much more planar, nothwithstanding the fact Fuji is working on a 24MP APS-C sensor and Sony is working on a 42MP FF sensor. Fuji claims a 5 stop advantage for their OIS system and tests indicate that this is realistic. Razor sharp images could be achieved at ridiculously low shutter speeds. However, for precise framing and some static subjects, switching the OIS off and using a tripod is still a useful technique. It is also true that OIS will do nothing for subject movement, such as wildlife.

The 80 2.8 macro offers super fast autofocus and virtually perfect optics which are especially free from spherochromatism often seen in other lenses. XF80 - IF, AF, sealed, big, heavy and expensive. 1:1. Excellent optics. OIS. Working distances no better than the 60mm despite the extra FL. The 80mm continues to be sharper than the 90mm even at f/2.8 and f/4 but the differences are definitely more subtle at f/4. Regardless, with a little patience and some trial and error, I was able to capture bees landing on flowers that were swaying gently in the wind and still obtain sharp focus. The lens is rectilinear. It is possible to measure +0.01% pincushion distortion, but that is quibbling in the extreme.

As any great macro photographer will tell you, a great deal of patience and finesse is required to get sensational macro shots at life size. By utilising focusing aids such as Live View, focus peaking and Fujifilm’s split image manual focusing feature, pin-sharp macro shots have never been easier to take. By f/5.6, the 90mm catches up with the 80mm, making it very difficult to tell the difference between the two. In terms of accessories, the lens ships with a very large plastic round-shaped lens hood and a lens wrapping cloth, rather than a case. Focal RangeWith the XF80mm f/2.8 Fujifilm adresses the macro photographers, but they also included all the knowledge of the past 3 years of designing the great X-series lenses into this lens. You can even use the tele converters with this lens, to further enhance its functionality. With a 9-blade rounded diaphragm, I get 18-pointed sunstars on brilliant points of light mostly at the smallest apertures. XF30/2.8 - Fuji's newest model. IF, AF, small, light and sealed. The LM AF is very fast and silent. Focuses to 1:1, but features very, very short working distances - making it too easy to shadow the subject and insufficient to be good at living moving critters at 1:1. Impractical with extension tubes. Very flare resistant and very low CAs. Makes a nice standard lens with some closer focusing capability. This is a 1:1 macro lens. 1:1 macro means that the image at the sensor is the same size as the subject, which means that something 0.6 x 1" (16 x 24mm) can fill the frame. f/2.8 The Fujifilm XF 60mm f/2.4 is much less lens. It only gets to half life size, not life size (1:1) as this lens does, and the 60mm focal length doesn't give you as much working room between the lens and your subject. Working room is important to let you get light on your subject and not to disturb living subjects.