A Quick Stay In Yufuin Japan | X-Pro2 / X-T2

Fujifilm X-T2 – XF 35mm f2 – ISO 500, f2, 1/80

We took the train from Fukuoka to Yufuin Japan. The ride is a few hours through Japan’s countryside, carved out by rivers and rice fields hidden between volcanic peaks, the landscape here is amazing and is one of Kyushu’s must see spots. It’s also a great place to relax, or to just shoot some travel photography.

A Little About Yufuin Japan – Fujifilm X-Pro 2 / X-T2

Yufuin is one of the many volcanic areas in Japan and is well known for its hot springs. The main street here is filled with Japanese shops and amazing places to eat. They even have shops that have those little fish that eat the dead skin off your feet. 

You can also buy a four bedroom house here for around $100,000. Japan for the most part is actually extremely cheap once you leave Tokyo. Even Tokyo is reasonable in my opinion as long as you’re not in the heart of the city, but of course I’m use to paying close to $2,000 a month for a crappy one bedroom apartment and $15 for a salad in Los Angeles. It’s refreshing to be able to buy an amazing lunch for under $5. 

Outside the main stretch, where you’re surrounded by volcanic peaks and rice fields, here you can get a concentrated taste of the Japanese countryside. It was in this place where I dropped my X-Pro 2 for the first time, on concrete of course. Luckily, there was almost no damage, just some paint scuffs on the bottom. Maybe I got lucky, maybe the X-Pro2 is just a tank.

Fujifilm X-T2 – XF 16mm f1.4 – ISO 200, f8, 0.3s

The Lenses – XF16mm + XF35mm

Since I had two cameras with me, the X-T2 and the X-Pro 2, I mainly only used two lenses. The XF 16mm f1.4 and the XF35mm f2. Although, I did have a Rokinon 12mm f2.8 with me that I used here and there for some landscape shots. But I wasn’t really here to shoot anything serious so I left everything else back at the house, except of course my GoPro Hero5 – man I love that thing!

Why the 16mm f1.4 and the 35mm f2? 

One reason really and it’s simple. I’m working on my reviews for them, they create a different enough look from each other that it makes a great combo when running a dual camera setup.

I also learned something kind of interesting when running with the X-T2 and the X-Pro 2. Because of the tilt-screen on the X-T2, it just seems to go a little nicer with the 16mm. Because of the wide angle, you can get away with more extreme angles while using that tilt-screen, plus the 16mm tends to block the OVF on the X-Pro 2. So in this case, having the X-Pro 2 and the X-T2 was a perfect combo although I still think I prefer shooting and holding the X-Pro 2 even though the X-T2 is a more sensible choice. But I donno, I’m still on the fence, I love them both.

Fujifilm X-T2 – XF 16mm f1.4 – ISO 200, f11, 2.3s

I’ll have the complete reviews up for these lenses one day. I’ve had them for months now and just keep getting side tracked. But I’ll quickly share my thoughts on each lens.

Fujifilm XF 35mm f2 – This lens is amazing and a lot of fun to work with. Optically it’s not perfect, but for its size, weight and price, its performance is very rewarding. If I didn’t own any primes, this might be my first choice hands down.

Fujifilm XF 16mm f1.4 – This lens is fun once you get use to this angle. It’s wide enough for landscapes and great for interior group shots, making this a great “hanging out with friends” lens, or just a good “going on vacation” lens. Outside of that, I’m not really sure how I would use it. It works fine as a landscape lens since it is weather sealed, but I think I’d still prefer the wider 14mm for that.

This lens is sharp and fast but only ‘meh’ wide open, but definitely not terrible like the XF23mm f1.4 is wide open. This means it could potentially be a fun astrophotography lens, although I would still probably try to stop down to f1.8 or f2 to get a little sharper. (update: my 23mm f1.4 was broken, I got it fixed)

Fujifilm X-Pro 2 – XF 35mm f2 – ISO 200, f5.6, 1/900

You can also check out my X-Pro 2 Review and my X-T2 Review. I’ll be updating them soon since new firmware has dropped and since I have even more experience with each one. Also, check out the Fujifilm 27mm f2.8 Review, which is probably my favorite travel lens so far.