Fujifilm Australia Announces its Widest-Angle Prime Lens, the XF8mm
Fuji Australia has announced the upcoming launch of its Fujinon XFM8mm F/3.5 R WR Lens as part of its XF lineup of interchangeable optics.
This newest model offers several ideal characteristics for the lightweight, compact X Series cameras it’s built for. It also beefs up the already robust image quality of this Fuji camera line.
With the XFM8mm, Fuji has created an ultra-wide angle prime lens that delivers an 8mm focal length that’s equivalent to 12mm in a 35mm film format.
This makes it the widest-angle lens in the whole Fuji XF lineup and gives the optic a total viewing angle of 121 degrees diagonally and 112 degrees horizontally.
In other words, the XF8mm lets users capture twice the 60-degree visual field that can clearly be observed by the average human eye.
To boost this extremely wide field of view further, Fuji has designed the new lens with optical enhancement features that the company claims will deliver edge-to-edge visual sharpness and minimal distortion.
With these features, users can capture a rich range of intricate details even from the edges of the XF8mm’s field of view, making this optic ideal for landscape, street and architecture shooting.
On the other hand, despite these specs, the XF8mm f/3.5 lens is also quite compact with a length of only 52.8mm (2.07 inches) and a weight of just 215g (0.47 lbs).
Inside this small body, Fuji has packed 12 lens elements in nine groups that include three aspherical elements, 2 ED elements and the ability to resolve images with “exceptional” performance.
The newly announced lens comes with a filter thread size of 62mm despite its ultra-wide-angle status and is thus particularly versatile with a range of different filters for both long-exposure shooting and travel photography.
It’s also a great optic for immersive travel panoramic street shooting. Users can however find their own unique ways of cleverly using the XF8mm f/3.5 lens.
The XF8mm is also fairly rugged. Fuji has designed it to be weather-sealed along 10 different key points for a high level of resilience to dust and water. The lens can also operate smoothly in temperatures as low as -10 Celsius.
Another useful addition is a fluorine coating to its front glass, letting the lens repel water and avoid stain formation.
According to Shaun Mah, the GM for Electronic Imaging & Optical Devices Division at Fujifilm Australia,
“We’re proud to complement our XF Lens range with this ultra-wide lens. What makes the XF8mmF3.5 R WR special is how light it is and its ability to capture scenes in its entirety from beautiful landscapes to architecture”
Given the XF8mm’s extremely wide-angle shooting specs, its 8mm focal length and its other features, it’s likely going to be a superb performer.
Fuji will be releasing the FUJINON XF8mmF3.5 R WR as of June, 2023 for a pricey but not unreasonable suggested retail price of $1,419.
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Stephan Jukic is a technology and photography journalist and experimental photographer who spends his time living in both Canada and Mexico. He loves cross-cultural street photo exploration and creating fine art photo compositions.
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