Introduction

Ease of Use

The Fujifilm XF 23mm F2.8 R WR is a very compact "pancake" prime, weighing just 90g (3.17oz) and measuring 23mm (0.9in) in length, which is pretty much identical to the equivalent 27mm lens.

This is pretty remarkable given that this lens is weather-resistant, as denoted by the "WR" abbreviation in the product name, and also has an aperture ring as well as a focusing ring.

Weather-resistance has been built-in at seven different locations to help protect it against water and dust and allow it to fully operate in temperatures down to -10°C (14°F).

It complements the new Fujifilm X-E5 camera that we tested it with very well, forming a very slim and lightweight package and more than matching the body in terms of its build quality.

The Fujifilm 23mm f/2.8 lens boasts a metal mount and focusing and aperture rings, high-grade plastic barrel and non-rotating 39mm filter thread.

It has a traditional aperture ring on the lens barrel, which allows you to set the aperture in 1/3 steps, complete with full aperture markings running from f/2.8 to f/16.

The aperture is also shown in the camera's viewfinder or on the LCD screen as you turn the ring.

The aperture ring is nicely damped and makes a distinctive click as you change the setting, and it's stiff enough to prevent it from being accidentally turned when stored in a camera bag.

It toggles between auto aperture control (the ring is set to A) or manual aperture control (the switch is set to one of the aperture values).

Fujifilm have even found enough room for an A (Auto) Position Lock button. When the aperture ring is set to the A position, it's automatically locked into place until you hold down the A (Auto) Position Lock button and turn the ring to select one of the aperture values.

The focus ring is smooth in action without being loose. It has no “hard stops” at either end of the focus range.

In order to fit in the aperture ring, the focusing ring is very narrow and the A (Auto) Position Lock button gets in the way too as you rotate the focusing ring, so manual focusing isn't quite as enjoyable as using auto-focus.

The Fujifilm XF 23mm F2.8 R WR lens has an internal focusing (IF) system that uses the same audible high-torque coreless DC motor as on the 27mm lens.

In practice, we found the auto-focus to be quite fast and accurate, but it is noisy enough to be heard when recording video, making this lens best suited to stills photography.

Thanks to the IF mechanism the front of the lens does not rotate on focus, which is very good news for anyone looking to use the lens in conjunction with a polariser or graduated neutral density filter.

In terms of accessories, the Fujifilm XF 23mm F2.8 R WR ships with standard lens and mount caps.

Additionally, a tiny metal dome-shaped lens hood (LH-XF27) is also included in the box which screws into the 39mm filter threads on the front of the lens.

There is also a plastic hood cap (LHCP-27)) that pushes onto the lens hood, so you really need to leave the hood fitted all of the time or use the standard lens cap instead.

Removing the hood cap also proved to be a little tricky as it has quite a tight fit on the hood, something that may loosen in time.

Also, in order to use a screw-in filter, you first have to remove the lens hood, and then replace it again afterwards, or just use the the standard lens cap instead - you can't use a filter in conjunction with the screw-in lens hood as there are no threads on the front of the hood.

There is no bag or case included with this lens.

Focal Range

The 23mm focal length provides an angle of view of 63.4 degrees.

Chromatic Aberrations

Chromatic aberrations, typically seen as purple or blue fringes along contrasty edges, are not really a problem with the Fujifilm XF 23mm F2.8 R WR lens, except in areas of very high contrast.

Vignetting

With the lens set to its maximum aperture of f/2.8, there is some light fall-off in the corners, requiring you to stop down by at least 2 f-stops to completely prevent it.

Distortion

The Fujifilm XF 8-16mm F2.8 R LM WR doesn't exhibit any barrel distortion, as you can see in the photo below.

Sunstars and Flare

The Fujifilm XF 23mm F2.8 R WR is capable of producing quite nice sunstars when stopped-down to f/16 and flare is fairly well controlled even when shooting straight into the sun.

Macro

The Fujifilm XF 23mm F2.8 R WR is not really a macro lens, but it does offer a usefully close-focus point of 20cm / 7.87in from the sensor plane and a maximum magnification of 0.15x.

Bokeh

Bokeh is a word used for the out-of-focus areas of a photograph, and is usually described in qualitative terms, such as smooth / creamy / harsh etc.

Fujifilm have paid close attention to this aspect of lens use, employing an 11-segment diaphragm with rounded blades for more pleasing bokeh.

In our view, their efforts have been successful for a moderate wide-angle prime lens - see the examples below to judge for yourself.

Sharpness

In order to show you how sharp the Fujifilm XF 23mm F2.8 R WR lens is, we are providing 100% crops on the following page.