Fujifilm 10-24mm f/4 R Lens Review: Wide Is Wonderful

The Fujifilm 10-24mm f/4 R (the old one!) is one of the most affordable and quality wide-angle zooms on the market. It’s taken a while but we’re here now with my Fujifilm 10-24mm f/4 lens review!

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As with my long-awaited review of the Fujifilm 23mm f/2, we’re going to start at the end and work our way backwards. I sold the Fujifilm 10-24mm f/4 lens way back in 2019 ? after returning to the UK following ten glorious months of travelling through Australia and South East Asia. I owned the lens for about three years and it came with me absolutely everywhere for a good chunk of that time. Don’t ask me why on earth it’s taken five years or so to write this review and share some of my favourite photos taken with the lens but I’m here now and that’s all that matters!

I thought long and hard about sharing my thoughts on the Fujifilm 10-24mm f/4 lens given how long it’s been since I’ve used it but it’s still a lens that crops up when considering Fujifilm wide-angle lenses for travel photography. You can pick this lens up for a bargain in the used market especially since there is a newer version which adds weather resistance, removes the dedicated OIS button and sheds a bit of weight.

So, without further ado, let’s dive into my Fujifilm 10-24mm f/4 lens review.

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FUJIFILM 10-24MM F/4 R LENS REVIEW (THE OLD ONE)

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MY EXPERIENCE

When I first entered the world of Fujifilm, back in 2017, I purchased the Fujifilm 10-24mm f/4 lens as well the Fujifilm 23mm f/2 and the Fujifilm 55-200mm f/3.5-4.8 with a Fujifilm X-T2. Those three lenses were my pride and joy for a good number of years and accompanied me for over 16,000km and nine months in Australia followed by jaunts in Bali, Singapore, Phuket, Chiang Mai and Bangkok.

Whilst the Fujifilm 23mm f/2 was my most used lens across my lengthy travels, I loved shooting with the Fujifilm 10-24mm f/4 and soon developed an absolute love for ultra-wide angle shots. Whether it was architectural shots or cityscapes, it allowed me to create some unique photos ones that I still look back on now as some of my favourites ever taken. Even out under the billion stars of outback Australia, the lens still shone and captured insane images of the milky-way. Yes, even at f/4! I even found that I used it often for just everyday ordinary shots to add something a little different.

This version of the lens doesn’t have weather resistance but as you can imagine, I’ve been through dusty deserts, red hot nights and monsoon season in South East Asia and the lens managed absolutely fine. I didn’t take too many risks to be fair but I had no concerns about the lens holding up even after so long on the road; it’s definitely very well built.

As I mentioned straight off the bat, I sold this lens back in 2019 and used the funds to purchase the Fujifilm 56mm f/1.2 with a plan to work towards becoming a freelance photographer; shooting more weddings and more portraits. We weren’t planning on doing much travelling anyway but, looking back, Covid-19 put an end to all our travels for a good few years so it definitely made sense to sell the lens when I did.

For me, the Fujifilm 10-24mm f/4 lens is perfect for travel photography if you want to incorporate ultra-wide angle images. I rarely used the lens at anything but 10-16mm, perhaps 18mm at a push. My widest lens currently is the Fujifilm 16mm f/1.4 and I long for a return to much wider, more epic shots.

FOCAL LENGTH

The Fujifilm 10-24mm f/4 lens offers a focal length range ranging from ultra-wide at 10mm (16mm full frame equivalent) all the way through popular prime focal lengths (14mm, 16mm and 18mm) to a more standard 24mm (just over 35mm full frame equivalent). This is a lens that will allow you to get extremely creative and is well-suited for landscapes, travel (think streets, cityscapes and even food!) and interior real estate photography.

For me, I was immediately drawn to the ultra-wide focal length for travel photography and knew I had to take it with me across Australia and South East Asia.

F/4

One relative downside to the Fujifilm 10-24mm f/4 lens is the f/4 aperture meaning it’s really not that great in low-light but, to combat that, it has built-in OIS. I was able to get down to slow shutter speeds, about 1/20th of a second, and still get relatively sharp and not too grainy photos (for example in temples or out at night without a tripod). That was on the Fujifilm X-T2 too so I can only imagine how stable shooting at slow shutter speeds would be with a camera that has IBIS like the Fujifilm X-T5.

The f/4 aperture remains throughout the focal range which is a positive and, if you shoot around f/5.6-f/8, you can be sure that nearly everything will be in focus. Even at f/4 you’re still likely to nail a sharp image if you’re shooting wide enough.

One downside to this lens is that it doesn’t have aperture markings which can be a little frustrating if you’re used to simply glancing down and immediately seeing how your camera is set up. The dial also spins the full circumference of the lens so it’s impossible to truly set and forget or return simply to f/4 from any other aperture.

IMAGE QUALITY

If you’ve read any of my reviews before, you’ll know by now that I’m really not the kind of person to be talking about all the technical aspects of image quality. I don’t have the time to sit and study images as to whether there is too much chromatic aberration and distortion etc. I obviously care about image quality in terms of how an image looks as an end result and I can say that this lens really does produce stunning images. The colour rendering is beautiful as probably is expected with any Fujifilm lens.

In terms of bokeh, this lens isn’t really designed for that though you can still get some nice out of focus areas if you’re shooting up close and personal to your subject.

I didn’t really like shooting this lens at the longest end of it’s focal range as things really did seem to soften up. For me, the image quality really started to degrade by 24mm that I wouldn’t really recommend it, certainly not over having a comparable prime lens. It will get you out of a sticky situation say if something presents itself suddenly and don’t have time to switch lenses; if you even had that option. To be fair too, when going through my old photos, I can see that there isn’t the best edge to edge sharpness but I still would say the image quality is good to great.

ALTERNATIVE OPTIONS

Here are a few alternative options if you discover that this version of the Fujifilm 10-24mm f/4 is not for you. If you’re looking to cover the same focal range with prime lenses (which come with faster apertures, will be smaller and offer better image quality), you’re going to need quite a few. Given that the focal length range covers some of the most popular focal lengths out there for street photography and travel photography, I’d recommend picking one ultra-wide and then combine that with either the 16mm, 18mm or 23mm. I have all three of those focal lengths and currently use the Fujifilm 18mm f/1.4 the most. However, in my opinion, a zoom is much more useful is you’re looking for a one-stop convenient package that covers from ultra-wide to the more traditional focal lengths (with perhaps a trade-off in that the traditional focal lengths might not perform as well as you may wish). On paper, I love the look of the Sigma 10-18mm f/2.8 especially as it covers the ultra-wide angles which I’m after but looks a bit too plasticy for me and it’s still £649! If you look at the list of alternative options, the Fujifilm 10-24mm f/4 (whether the old or new version) looks like such a great option especially if you don’t have the budget for the Fujifilm 8-16mm f/2.8 (and note that despite the price, that lens can’t fit standard filters if you’re planning on using them).

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Prime Lenses

Fujifilm 8mm f/3.5
Samyang 12mm f/2
Viltrox 13mm f/1.4
Fujifilm 14mm f/2.8
Fujifilm 16mm f/1.4 or f/2.8
Fujifilm 18mm f/1.4 or f/2
Fujifilm 23mm f/2

Zoom Lenses

Fujifilm 8-16mm f/2.8
Fujifilm 10-24mm f/4 WR
Sigma 10-18mm f/2.8

OVERALL THOUGHTS

The Fujifilm 10-24mm f/4 is a wonderful lens and almost the perfect wide-angle lens for travel photography. There are a few flaws that do concern me of course but in the years since the lens left my camera bag, I’m yet to find a replacement for that ultra-wide angle point of view that I love so much. I was hoping that Fujifilm would release a 10mm f/2 prime, wishful thinking, but recently I’ve realised that in certain situations, travel for sure, a zoom lens is so beneficial and that’s why I’ve steered away from the Fujifilm 8mm f/3.5.

If you’re looking for a decent priced zoom wide-angle lens and don’t feel the need for weather resistance (though it probably is beneficial to be fair) then the Fujifilm 10-24mm f/4 R could be for you. It’s well-built, a good size, produces excellent and unique images (especially between the ranges of 10-16mm) and has OIS built-in too. I’m torn now whether to add this back into my camera bag or save up for the mighty Fujifilm 8-16mm f/2.8.

Watch this space.

SAMPLE PHOTOS FROM THE FUJIFILM 10-24MM F/4 R

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