FUJIFILM today announced the launch of the FUJINON XF 18-120mm F4 LM PZ WR lens that is truly a hybrid lens for both video and stills that is parfocal.
The new lens is the first collaboration between FUJINON Optics and FUJIFILM X Series engineers. Together they created a truly hybrid solution for motion production professionals and enthusiasts alike. Incorporating their inherent broadcast technology has allowed them to create a lens with both cinema and broadcast-style features that deliver smooth zoom, focus, and iris functionality.
XF18-120mmF4 LM PZ WR covers focal lengths ranging from the wide-angle 18mm to telephoto 120mm (equivalent to 27mm – 183mm in the 35mm film format). The 6.7x power zoom, with its compact design, enables a variety of shooting situations including landscape (wide angle) and portraiture (telephoto).
The lens offers a constant maximum aperture of F4.0 across the entire focal range from wide-angle to telephoto. It also has a maximum magnification ratio of x0.2, adding versatility to how the lens can be used to frame images when subjects are closer to the lens.
Thanks to FUJINON Optics engineers, XF 18-120mm F4 LM PZ WR has minimal focus breathing. As a result, changes in angle of view and variances in optical axis shift that can occur when focusing or zooming the lens are kept to a minimum. In addition to the regular zoom and focus rings, the lens is equipped with other versatile video features including a variable zoom/focus control ring and a custom Fn button.
XF 18-120mm F4 LM PZ WR comprises 15 lens elements in 12 groups, including three aspherical elements and three extra-low dispersion (ED) elements, to effectively suppress spherical aberration, distortion, and chromatic aberration.
The XF 18-120mm F4 LM PZ WR’s focus-tracking performance is dramatically improved when attached to the FUJIFILM X-H2S digital camera. The combination brings together X-H2S’s high-speed focus drive mechanism with XF18-120mmF4 LM PZ WR’s focus-tracking performance to easily track subjects, even while recording video.
Video functions
- The aperture drive control in the XF18-120mmF4 LM PZ WR has been updated from that of other XF lenses to successfully suppress exposure shift linked to aperture adjustments. When the level of luminosity changes, the aperture transitions smoothly so that exposure stays constant, even when light conditions are changing rapidly.
- The lens features a zoom/focus control ring, which allows users to control zooming or focusing at a variable speed.
- The lens also comes with a zoom feature, that drives zooming at a constant pace2, allowing users of all levels of expertise to master video production with zooming.
- Combine with FUJIFILM X-H2S digital camera and FT-XH file transmitter accessory to remotely record video on a single or multiple cameras, online through a web browser.
Compact Lightweight Design
- The aspherical and ED elements were designed for both size and weight efficiency, weighing just over one pound (460g), measuring approximately 4.9 inches (123.5mm) in length and with a filter thread diameter of 2.8 inches (72mm).
- The use of the Inner Zoom system means the lens barrel has a plain, non- extending structure, resulting in a lightweight lens that zooms easily with no shift in weight distribution. XF18-120mmF4 LM PZ WR also uses a smooth power zoom mechanism to drive the zoom lens group linearly with a stepping motor. This results in high-quality zooming with minimal optical axis shift across all focal lengths, from wide angle to telephoto.
Dust and Weather Resistant
The lens barrel is weather-sealed at 13 locations to ensure dust and weather- resistance and to provide the ability to operate at temperatures down to 14 degrees Fahrenheit (-10 degrees Celsius).
Pricing and Availability
FUJINON XF 18-120mm F4 LM PZ WR is expected to be available in or around September 2022 at a Manufacturer’s Suggested Retail Price of $899 USD and $1,150 CAD.
