I'm hoping to do a shootout between the G9 and the X-H1 before the former goes the way of all things. (No, not death— eBay.) I also need to do a shootout between the Zeiss 12mm and the Fuji 14mm, because I'm not going to keep two ultra-wides—I don't do enough shooting with ultra-wide focal lengths to justify that. And I need to compare the fast and slow Fuji 35mms for the same reason—~50mm-e is not an often-used focal length for me any more (it was for a long time, but not lately) so I really can't see the sense in keeping both.
I have a nice post planned for tomorrow for "Sunday Support Group"—it's about a photography-related project instead of being off-topic. And then next week, something very unusual for TOP—a post about firearms! (This seems on topic to mention in a post called "Shootouts.") It's by a guest author, and features an interesting photograph.
Enjoy the rest of your Saturday—it's a very pretty day here in the Finger Lakes of Upstate New York, and it's peak season here—we are inundated with tourists and Summer vacationers. They picked the right time to visit.
Mike
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A very wet and dreary day here in the Northwest of England. Looking forward to your upcoming posts - glad that you're back. Enjoy your weekend, Mike!
Posted by: Mike Potter | Saturday, 10 August 2019 at 10:28 AM
Expecting the Zeiss 12 vs Fuji 14. I am going to buy an extreme wide for my XPRO2 sometime in the future.
Posted by: Gabriel Massip | Saturday, 10 August 2019 at 11:03 AM
On the Fuji 14mm and Zeiss 12mm Touit.
Go for the wider lens. The two mm do make a difference on the wide lenses.
Have had both and kept the Zeiss. Both perform well. No real difference there I could see from images in the field. Mainly landscape, interiors of buildings and night sky/Aurora work.
The Zeiss is more a work of art and the box it comes in - the same.
Posted by: Daniel | Saturday, 10 August 2019 at 11:58 AM
I presently own both the Fuji 14mm and Zeiss Touit 12mm, and can give you a spoiler alert for which is better. Hint: It's not even close. I bought the Zeiss after owning the Fuji because I needed a wider view for interior architectural shots. The Fuji - my copy at least - is better in every regard. I use my XT2, and now XT3, on a tripod with these lenses. The Fuji is not only sharper, but the Zeiss has a very nasty CA and flare issue. On a recent job I used them both interchangeably, shooting a kitchen interior. I regretted it later, after spending hours cleaning up the Zeiss flare from window edges. My copy of the Touit has CA that cannot be corrected no matter what Lightroom trickery is employed. After this last job I decided to sell the Touit. Your poste remins me to get off my duff and sell it.
Posted by: Kent Phelan | Saturday, 10 August 2019 at 12:12 PM
...a post about firearms!
My next planned gear purchase is a .17 HMR, or maybe a .22 WMR, handgun. I've always enjoyed target shooting. With several indoor pistol ranges near by, this is an easy-for-me hobby. Fifty rounds costs less than 36 shots developed and scanned, so it's affordable.
Posted by: c.d.embrey | Saturday, 10 August 2019 at 12:18 PM
Interesting mix of posts lately!
Did I miss the latest Bakers' Dozen or
is that still pending?
Posted by: Tom Judd | Saturday, 10 August 2019 at 12:29 PM
Looking forward to see your conclusions regarding the two 35's! I recently did the same. Even though the 50mm-e is my go to focal length I could not justify keeping both.
Inspired by photographers that master the 35 mm-e, I also have the 23 f2. I have wanted to try that focal length for a long time and finally bought it. But I find it very difficult to get good framing and keepers with it. Which was a bit disappointing as I sometimes find the 50 mm-e a little bit to tight, it is more of a 53 mm-e...
My first camera setup was a Nex 5n with a sigma 30 2.8. Looking back I think that it might have been my all time favorite focal length. Kind of a golden in-between focal length.
Posted by: Viktor | Saturday, 10 August 2019 at 12:58 PM
I had the tout 12 not once but twice and just never warmed up to it, keep the 14mm, it's wide enough for landscape and has better rendering, it's also a bit smaller and it doesn't look like a spaceship like the Zeiss.
Posted by: iran | Saturday, 10 August 2019 at 01:43 PM
Shootouts have taught me very little, as my preference will always be based on subjective stuff anyway. Some day I will reclaim about 1/3 of my hard-drive space by deleting them all.
And yet I still do them..
So enjoy your shootout! :+)
Posted by: longviewer | Saturday, 10 August 2019 at 02:04 PM
Looking forward to your comparison of the Fuji 14mm and the Zeiss 12mm. I have the 14mm and love it although it doesn't see a whole lot of use. One of the things I try to avoid is lens effects. Using a 21mm equivalent isn't unreasonable these days. It can look fairly normal. Having an 18mm equivalent just begs for pictures with those big foreground landscapes that are now looking hackneyed.
Posted by: Dogman | Saturday, 10 August 2019 at 02:11 PM
Very pretty day here in SE PA as well. Our local 53rd annual Goschenhoppen Folk Festival was very well attended, including a host of solo photographers, seemingly heedless of their burden of FF Nikons with monstrous lenses, a variety of lens bags strapped to their Think Tank holsters. I sported a G85 with a 25mm prime, circular polarizer, and a Leica-style screw on hood. (Please, drop a hint when your G9 goes up on eBay. I've been unloading a lot of unused gear the last couple of months, but would love an excuse to upgrade. )
Posted by: MikeR | Saturday, 10 August 2019 at 03:03 PM
Mike,
What's your ebay handle?
Posted by: Dan Meyers | Saturday, 10 August 2019 at 06:20 PM
How about flagging that G9 if it goes to Ebay so that any of your readers who are interested can bid on it, knowing its provenance.
Posted by: Michael Matthews | Saturday, 10 August 2019 at 07:47 PM
Depends of what and how you shoot.
Chasing children I found the 35mm f2 exponentially more reliable than f1.4.
As for ultra wides, for some reason the 14mm didn't seduce me enough to keep it. Having sold it recently, I'm considering the 10-24mm or a 12mm. Ideally I'd pick a Fuji 14-24mm f2.8 (I used to swear by the Nikon 20-35mm f2.8 afd) but that's wishful thinking. Looking forward to your review.
Posted by: Matt | Sunday, 11 August 2019 at 07:13 AM
Fujifilm 14mm - why not consider the 10-24 zoom ?
I am not a wide angle guy, rented one and used it for have used it for (among other things) highschool basketball standing just behind the baseline. Fantastically three dimensional photos. Its priced similarly to the 14mm and gives a lot more flexibility.
The imagequality is way good enough for my use.
Posted by: Jarle Vikshåland | Sunday, 11 August 2019 at 06:06 PM
Hi Mile,
Here a suggestion: sell the Zeiss 12mm and work with Fuji 14mm lens for a while. If you find that you don't need a wider lens, then all is fine. But if you do, there is the MF Samyang/Rokinon 12mm for about half of what you would have gotten for your Zeiss lens. But best of all, you'd be getting a great 12mm lens.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OlnlCjgaYQ4
Posted by: Andre Moreau | Sunday, 11 August 2019 at 06:26 PM