Tag: fujinon 16mm f/2.8

Mormon Tea and Mt. McLellan

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A bit of Mormon Tea against an out of focus view of Carson City and Mount McLellan. Captured with X-Pro3, 2026-01-26 14:25:43, 16mm, 1/8000sec, f/2.8, ISO-640, Acros-R film simulation (in-camera), SOOC.

Last week, I had The Girl outdoors for walkies/hiking at Silver Saddle Ranch, our favorite Winter haunt. The days are extraordinarily warm for now and so hiking is pleasant without the Winter Bite. We do need more snow, though.

I rented a Fujifilm X-Pro3 body from (a href=”https://lensrentals.com”>Lensrentals a couple of weeks ago and have been putting the camera through its paces. It has a relatively low shutter count (about 15K actuations) and the body is pretty clean, I would say very good with only a little paint lost here and there and a mark on the bottom plate from tripod use or something else. The hybrid optical viewfinder is interesting and I can see why the rangefinder-style body is so popular, especially with street shooters. I am liking what I see and this camera is probably good for a lot of my daily carry outings where I do not need to extra size of the X-T5 for larger lenses or the in-body stabilization for low-light.

I have been in something of a photographic rut, needing some inspiration or a photographic ass-kicking to restart my observational skills. So, I elected to mount a lens I do not often use, the Fujinon 16mm f/2.8 that is in my inventory. I tend to have a telephoto eye, so do not usually use a wide-angle lens. So, I thought mounting one might shake up my vision a little.

Well, it did make me look at things a little differently. I am really enjoying the in-camera Acros and Monochrome film simulations, and am playing with the Classic Chrome simulation as well. I have not programmed any of the film recipes into this camera. I will play with those Fuji provided for awhile first.

I noticed the juxtaposition of the Mormon Tea against the McLellan backdrop, so I open up the aperture to put the background somewhat out of focus, framed the shot, and made the capture. I rather like the contrast of the in- and out-of-focus areas. I did not post processing of the image other than resizing.

It was a good day in the field. I am having a lot of good days in the field. I love hiking with The Girl. I am grateful. Life is good.

Not Natural

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These remnants of trees are not natural in the sagelands. Nearby are the remains of a structure that has long been collapsed and slowly absorbing into the desert. Both deserve a memory. Captured with X-Pro3, 2026-01-27 12:01:27, 16mm, 1/750sec, f/8, ISO-640, Acros-R film simulation (in-camera), SOOC.

After watching Tatiana Hopper’s YT video about a Japanese photographer’s philosophical approach to photography, I have been thinking about beginner’s mind. I have not photographed everything there is to photograph when hiking with The Girl at Silver Saddle Ranch. I have, however, fallen into a rut of not seeing things other than those I have made images of before.

I decided to put a different lens on my rental Fujifilm X-Pro3 and selected the Fujinon 16mm f/2.8 for the exercise. This is a significantly wide angle lens (angle of acceptance approximating a 24mm on a 35mm frame — don’t get me started!) and quite different from what I usually use. I do not see frame lines in the OVF of the camera, so I [ahem] assume that the view in the OVF *is* what the camera will capture. I suppose I should test this with a swap to the EVF and will do that. But, my [ahem] assumption seems to work well enough.

I also used the Q Menu to set the in-camera film simulation to Acros-R (Acros film with a red filter) because I like to darken the sky a bit. The impact on scenes without sky is not very pronounced.

We also changed up our track. There are numerous side trails that connect the upper access road to the sand pit with the two-track that connects the ranch compound to Mexican Ditch. These side trails add distance and relief to the hike. They will not be usable for us in the warm months for the risk of rattlesnakes, but in the cool months they provide much needed resistance to work the old man.

They also provide different perspectives on the ranch. Add this to my general increase in awareness in practicing beginner’s mind as we hike.

I came across this triplet of downed trees. They must have been planted here decades ago. There is also the ruin of a structure not far from this location. So, I suspect they were part of whatever that was. In any event, they provided me with an interesting subject and something different from my normal captures when hiking with The Girl.

I have a few more that I will share. I was grateful for the change of mind, the change of perspective from using a different lens than usual, and for spending time outdoors with The Girl. Life is good.