When mirrorless systems first appeared, one of the main attractions was always supposed to be smaller cameras and lenses. In practice, though, this hasn’t always panned out, with many lens designs instead getting larger in a search for ever-increasing resolution. Thankfully, though, most systems offer at least one ultra-compact ‘pancake’ lens. The Fujifilm XF 27mm F2.8 R WR is a prime example: at just 23mm long and a mere 84g, it’s by far the smallest in the firm’s line-up.
This lens has been around a while now, having been announced in early 2021 to accompany the sadly discontinued X-E4. But it can trace its roots back much further, to the original XF 27mm F2.8 from 2013. That lens never really got much love, especially once Fujifilm started releasing a range of compact, affordable f/2 primes shortly afterwards. But the revised version that we’re looking at here has gained an aperture ring and weather-resistant construction, making it a much