Lumix TZ-20

This is like announcing a new birth to the world, with all the pride and excitement of a new father.

The new member of my camera family is the Fuji XF60mm macro lens, intended to widen the scope of my photography, and bring with it new possibilities.

It was quite an investment at £465, but a £100 cashback deal offered by Fuji UK – which runs until 16 January – helped lessen the blow.

This new acquisition is a secondary lens for my Fuji X-E1, the camera I use for most of my work. It should prove a useful addition, as the principal lens really struggles to do any meaningful close-up shots.

Ironically, it put up a fight when taking the photographs of the XF60mm shown here. I used to revert to my little compact Lumix TZ-20 for close-ups, including a collection of winter shots when London was blanketed in show last year.

The little Lumix is likely to sit on the shelf now, although it’s still a handy little camera you can slip into your pocket. And now with an extra member of the family, I’ve invested in a new kit bag, but the load is still quite light.

The next job is to attach the new lens and take it out for a spin. Favourable reviews promise very good performance on detailed nature shots, while I’d like to use it to create macro abstracts using texture. It’s also an effective portrait lens – an area I must venture into this coming year.

If any of you have any experience of the Fuji XF60mm, please let me know. And any other general tips for getting the most out of a macro lens would be greatly appreciated.

I’ll share my first results with you as soon as they are created.

For years I’ve been a loyal user of Lumix cameras and have become very familiar with their workings and have often been pleased with the results.

The time has come to graduate to a more sophisticated machine, and after considerable deliberation I’ve taken delivery of a Fujifilm X-E1 system, which is an exciting yet daunting move after knowing my trusty TZ-20 with its nifty Leica zoom so well. The Fuji has a range of available lenses with the zoom primed to manual operation.

After studying reviews and asking friends on Twitter, the Fuji prevailed with its excellent combination of old school styling encasing and up to the minute technology and features. You can set the shutter speed with a tactile metal knob, or perform this function with a digital menu.

There is a familiar small screen on the back of the camera and an electronic viewfinder which activates when you place your eye next to it. On the face of it, this is a sophisticated package which should expose the limitations of my old camera.

First impressions

I spent hours with my new camera simply trying to become accustomed with all the functions and their location. And today I went out for the first time to put the system through its paces.

Feeling physically comfortable with your camera is very important to me, and my first port of call was to buy a small shoulder bag for my Fuji to live in – having that amount of costly camera around my neck didn’t feel right. The Lumix slides straight into my coat pocket.

When it came to taking the first shots, I decided to use shutter selection mode, letting the camera choose the aperture. This felt familiar, having always used my Lumix in manual mode. Choosing other settings is handily available through a quick menu.

Having a viewfinder again is peculiar – my instinct is to use the back screen, but I’ll have to retrain myself. While I’m now used to handling the heft of my vintage Soviet camera, the Fuji is a bigger beast than the little Lumix. I kept catching one of the control buttons and was scared of dropping it. Turning the camera for lengthways shots will also require a little practice.

As for the first photographs, I’ve yet to edit them. I would expect punchier, clearer shots and have already found myself using higher ISO levels which the Lumix struggled with. I’ll share them soon and in the meantime show you some more pictures of the X-E1.