Fujifilm XF 18mm f/2 R
Announced January 10, 2012
PixelMeter The PixelMeter is our 1–100 aggregate of reviewer scores from trusted publications and creators. Weighted by source tier — not a raw average, and not PetaPixel’s own review.
Reviewer Consensus
Good
The Fujifilm XF 18mm f/2 R is a compact and lightweight prime lens that serves as a versatile tool for documentary and street photography. While it offers a portable form factor and decent central sharpness, the lens shows its age through noisy, slow autofocus and underwhelming corner performance.
Weighted from 16 reviewer scores
Pros
- Highly portable and lightweight pancake-style design
- Strong central sharpness and contrast
- Versatile wide-angle focal length with a fast f/2 aperture
- Solid, well-built construction featuring a metal body and mount
- Close minimum focusing distance
Cons
- Slow, noisy, and prone to hunting autofocus
- Soft corner sharpness and edge performance
- Issues with chromatic aberration and color fringing
- Lacks weather sealing and modern build refinements
- Unpleasant focus-by-wire manual focus experience
- Launch price $599 (USD)
- Focal length & aperture 18mm f/2
- Mount & coverage Fujifilm X APS-C
- Stabilization None
- Close focus 18 cm (0.14x)
- Filter thread 52mm
- Weight & size 116g (4.1 oz) · 64.5 x 40.6 mm (2.54 x 1.60 in)
What the Reviewers Say
All 16 expert reviews, weighted into the PixelMeter score.
Is this product missing a reputable review? Share a link to a review article or YouTube video for consideration.
-
The Fujinon has a quite decent resolution characteristic but it is not flawless here. The center quality is very good at f/2 and the borders are also fine but the corners are very soft at this setting.
-
[T]he Fujinon XF 18 mm f/2R is a well done lens, fully recommendable to those users who understand what they are buying and what the limits of such a purchase are.
-
Even with this lens' imperfections, it is a pleasure to use, so long as its weaknesses are taken into consideration.
-
It [...] suffers from relatively slow auto-focus speeds when compared to its stable-mates, especially in low-light.
-
The Fujifilm Fujinon XF 18mm F2 R is showing its age, but is still a good choice for X shooters who prefer lightweight lenses.
-
Corner sharpness isn't great and colour fringing is worse than average but the overall image quality of the Fuji XF 18mm f/2 R is pretty good.
- Photo Review 8.6/10
The compact size and moderately wide field of view make this lens well-suited to everyday shooting.
-
Paired with the high ISO capability of the X-Pro 1, this lens makes for a great 27mm equivalent lens which makes for a great normal wide angle.
-
If you can find one for a good price, it might be worth owning. Otherwise, there are better options to consider, including the 14mm f/2.8, 16mm f/2.8, 16mm f/1.4, 8-16mm f/2.8, 10-24mm f/4, 16-55mm f/2.8, 18-55mm f/2.8-f/4, 16-80mm f/4, and 18-135mm f/3.5-f/5.6.
-
What does the Fujifilm XF 18mm f/2 R bring to the table? Well, one, it's a very cool compact size compared to like the larger 16 or even the 23 1.4.
-
I don't have a lot to say about this lens because, well, it's fairly simple and basic.
-
[T]his lens is a lens that you really have no excuse to not bring with you. It's that small, it's that good, and it's that versatile, and that's something that I want everyone to remember.
-
Until, or perhaps even after, Fujifilm updates the 18mm I’ll be using it at all my weddings and for a good deal of my personal work. It’s just so light, compact, and full of character, I can forgive its flaws.
-
I was excited to try the XF 18mm but it didn’t quite live up to my expectations. Despite the lightweight portable form factor, it is not a must-have lens in my case.
-
For like the ultimate kind of like nicer personal use budget setup, I do think that this, even in 2022 and beyond, is still a great little lens, especially for the cost, the size, all that kind of stuff.
-
This is a lens for down-in-the-trenches documentary storytellers, and there's definitely a place for this in my kit bag.
