Fujifilm cameras and lenses have become the standard for any photographer. The company’s designs are popular, but so is the look and feel of the images produced by their devices. While the X series has various APS-C lenses, the one that shines the most is the 56mm f1.2 and its APD version. Here’s what makes both so great.
Both lenses were introduced in 2014, with the 56mm f1.2 being a standard version while the 56mm f1.2 R APD came with an apodized filter. For the uninitiated, the latter is an optical that helps users modify the bokeh and out-of-focus areas, rendering them smoother. Because it eventually gets dark, the filter also offers a nice vignette effect.
The standard 56mm f1.2 offers 7 blade aperture, 11 elements in 8 groups, including one aspherical and two extra low dispersion elements. Another excellent quality is the build, which is small and sturdy, with a nice clicky aperture ring. However, it lacks weather resistance.
The 56mm also offers a quick autofocus system, which managed to get the shots right 97% of the time. The only time we struggled was when the light was really low. The biggest green flag is that the 56mm works as fast as their 35mm f1.4, which is a much smaller lens.
Now speaking about the images themselves, the 56mm has very little to complain about. The lens is quite sharp and offers nice contrast when paired with the right colors and film profile. The lens is designed for portraiture, and it offers pretty weak skin tones. What is more interesting is that the like sharpness, you also get lots of lens character. In addition, the color rendition is great, but we found the 35mm version to offer it a tad bit better. As we said in our review:
If you’re looking for a gloriously bokehlicious lens for the X series, this is the best that you’re going to get your hands on. For starters, it renders a telephoto field of view and at an equivalent of f2 on a full frame camera when shot wide open. When you import than images into Lightroom, you’ll still realize that a lot will be in focus for an f1.2 lens–and that’s when it’ll hit you that you’re dealing with an APS-C sensor design.
In addition, the color rendition is great, but we found the 35mm version to offer it a tad bit better.
Overall, the 56mm is a lens that is ideal for many creatives photographing people in a studio, at weddings, or on the streets. If you want much softer bokeh, then the 56mm APD filter lens is what you must get. While we have not tested it, Fujifilm stated that the apodization filter helps to create a nice separation between the subject and the background. The built-in 3-stop ND filter also helps to control exposure.
However, it must be remembered that the Fujifilm 56mm is not the first to use an APD filter. Minolta’s 135mm STF lens did so, although it was made by Sony. Another major difference is its autofocus, with Minolta only sticking to manual focusing.
If you want a lens that delivers nice contrast and colors, opt for the 56mm f1.2. The results will surprise you.