Earlier this year Fuji called me to put their 56mm f/1.2R through it's paces (link), and they've now created a new version of that lens, the 56mm f/1.2R APD, and once again called me up to give it a whirl . As per usual, I'll hit you guys with the photos first, gear talk to follow at the bottom. Also be sure to check out the images and opinions of fellow Canadian photographer Patrick La Roque who also took the new 56mm for a spin here.
Art Direction & Photography: Nathan Elson Model & Styling: Distance A. Bullock Assistants: Kevin Murray & Toni Nicole Location: Somewhere Awesome
{ GEAR TALK }
All of the portraits above were shot in RAW with the Fuji X-T1 body combined with the new 56mm f/1.2R APD lens and processed in LR5 with my own black & white presets. The lens itself was a prototype, so until a full production version of the lens is released I can't really give an opinion on things like the focus speed, manual focusing, etc.
In regards to the lens, what's new about it? Well, not a whole hell of a lot. It's the exact same lens on the outside in terms of size, build quality, filter size, etc. It's the insides that have changed, but as I said, it's not a huge leap. Below is a side by side, using straight out of camera JPG's using the in-camera black and white preset, with the exact same settings (ISO 200 - f/1.2 - 1/2000sec) with the image from the original 56mm being adjusted -1 stop in LR5 to keep the exposure consistent.
For those of you wondering why I had to adjust the exposure when using the exact same settings, it's because the original 56mm lens lets in roughly 1 stop of light more than the new APD version, so at the exact same settings the photo from the older version of the lens will come out a stop brighter. That loss of 1 stop of light could be a good or bad thing depending on the shooting situation, but its due to the APD filter they added within the lens.
As you can see, the new APD version does have slightly more contrast to it straight out of camera, which in turn does create better detail and a nicer background before any kind of post processing, but in this kind of shooting scenario it could be matched quite easily in post. I don't see anyone who shoots in the same kind of settings as I do selling their 56mm f/1.2R to get their hands on the APD version, but you could consider it to be a slight improvement to an already awesome lens for those who haven't yet picked up a Fuji 56mm f/1.2R, or often shoot in situations that would benefit more from the APD filter, whatever those situations might be.
Questions / Comments: you know what to do.
Thanks for reading.
Cheers -Nate