Review of 16-80mm on XM5
After asking for some advice in a previous post, I've traded the fujifilm 27mm f2.8 + some money for the fujifilm 16-80mm f4 and I would like to share my thoughts about this lens.
I've took it with me during the trip in Italy, together with the 25mm f1.8 SG Image. In 98% of the time, the 16-80 was glued to my camera, despite the fact that some people commented it's too heavy / large for such a tiny body.
https://preview.redd.it/v6aw5xx8c2nh1.jpg?width=6048&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=34f0c1000c8c137183946c2a3898072a54d41c3e
I use the smallrig grip together with the thumb grip, but after using the lens I came to conclusion that the thumb grip is not really necessary since the camera is very balanced.
I've also bought the falcam backpack plate and camera was either attached to my backpack or to a body strap with the same falcam quick plate. (i hate dangling straps)
Now for the actual review: the lens in quite balanced but sometimes it extends on it's own weight. Definitely with such a zoom range it's a two handed operation, but on the opposite side, I did not feel the need for something longer than 80mm (120mm FF equivalent) for most scenarios.
Another positive thing is the aperture ring (since i'm mostly using the aperture priority, it was super useful to manually set aperture and remap one of the wheel to set the iso and one for exp compensation).
Now, my only concern (besides the weight) was the f-stop, since it's an f4, I thought that I will have issues in low-light, due to the lack of IBIS, but in reality, the 6 stops OIS did an outstanding job. I was able to shoot hand held at 1/5s (even at 0.8s) with minimum camera shake.
In conclusion: sure, it's a heavier lens (comparing with a prime or the 15-45mm kit lens) and I don't think I would take it with me when going in a park (without having a some sort of a bag) but for a travel lens I think it's the perfect balance between weight / zoom length / performance and price (used).
I've attached some photos, all are SOOC. If you want, I can also share my recipes / shutter speed / iso settings.
