XF500mmF5.6 R LM OIS WR: Sports Photography x Alessandro Volders
Alessandro Volders moves through the gears with the XF500mmF5.6 R LM OIS WR
Growing up next to the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium, Alessandro Volders has always been fascinated by both photography and racing. Drawn in by motorsports, his interest was later captured by one of Belgium’s most popular athletic pursuits – cycling.
Over time and through a committed approach, Alessandro managed to turn his passion for photographing cycling events into his dream job.
“I was going to every race I could by train, making pictures there and building a portfolio,” he recalls. “After some time trying to find clients, it eventually worked! I got more involved in both mountain biking and road cycling, and for five years now I’ve been working as a photographer and videographer for a cycling team, going to the biggest races in the world.”
Creating a mixed offering for his clients, Alessandro’s imaging requirements range from ultra wide-angle to super telephoto.
“Sometimes it’s close-ups with sharp details of the riders and sponsors, but I like to work in some street-style photography, where you can not only focus on the riders, but also the spectators and what’s happening on the side,” he explains.
Light heavyweight
Recently, Alessandro took the XF500mmF5.6 R LM OIS WR out to work on a photoshoot with professional cyclist Pierre de Froidmont.
“I decided to try the lens out with an athlete who had just come back from the summer game,” Alessandro describes. “He’s a mountain biker and I’ve been making a documentary about his season. I thought it was a nice opportunity to make some images with him – and try this lens in a quieter environment, rather than going straight into a race.”
On receiving the X Series super telephoto, Alessandro was immediately struck by its form.
“I was surprised at first by the weight,” he recalls. “When I got it from Fujifilm, I thought it was so light. I often use the XF50-140mmF2.8 R LM OIS WR – and it felt almost the same weight. Of course, this new lens is bigger because it’s a 500mm focal length, but the weight was really manageable.”
Indeed, weighing in at only 1335g and measuring just 255.5mm in length, the XF500mmF5.6 R LM OIS WR handles more like a mid-telephoto lens – which is a real boon for photographers who work on location. But with a 35mm equivalent focal length of 762mm, it’s a highly specialised tool, unlocking previously unimaginable images for a lens of this size and weight.
“I can imagine carrying this in my backpack all day long,” Alessandro continues.
“Lenses like this are normally super heavy and really big – you almost have to carry another bag just for that lens. But with the XF500mmF5.6 R LM OIS WR, it’s not like that at all.”
Think fast
“I put the lens straight onto the FUJIFILM X-H2S, and they worked together incredibly well,” describes Alessandro. “This is the Fujifilm camera that’s most accurate for sports photography, and I found the autofocus works extremely smoothly with the lens – it was very impressive.
“I tried working from the front, with Pierre coming towards me, and the pictures were consistently sharp. I was photographing on a long, straight road in the woods, where I could enjoy the lens’s capacity to see far, as well as the compression between layers.”
As Alessandro found out, the rapid autofocus of the X-H2S and the extreme reach offered by the XF500mmF5.6 R LM OIS WR provide a potent combination for photographing distant, moving subjects.
“The tracking was almost perfect,” he remarks. “Especially when I set the camera to Subject Detection, it was following well. That’s why I also tried it in video mode. I thought the tracking looked pretty smooth, so I wanted to see how it went and it worked brilliantly.”
With a fast, silent linear motor driving the XF500mmF5.6 R LM OIS WR’s autofocus mechanism, and on-lens features to limit the focusing range and reduce hunting, Alessandro could be sure of not missing a moment.
What’s more, the advanced lens construction – 21 elements in 14 groups, including five ED and two Super ED elements – enables the XF500mmF5.6 R LM OIS WR to resolve effectively for 40-megapixel X Series sensors, such as those found in the FUJIFILM X-T5, X-H2 and X-T50. Even for less megapixel-dense sensors, the kind of aberrations typically seen in super telephoto lenses are minimised: “I can crop in on the pictures later and still have great quality,” points out Alessandro.
Handheld performance
Happy with the lens’s performance, Alessandro went on to attempt some creative framings that would showcase the dynamism of his subject.
“Photographing side-on to Pierre, I worked with a slower shutter speed to use all these layers and create a nice composition around him. I didn’t bring a tripod or monopod or anything, I just used the stabilisation from the lens,” notes Alessandro. “It worked well – I can slow right down with the shutter speed and still enjoy good pictures while working handheld.”
The XF500mmF5.6 R LM OIS WR’s built-in Optical Image Stabilisation offers up to 5.5 stops of compensation while working handheld, enabling improved performance at slower shutter speeds.
“I like how those pictures came out – that was the image I was thinking about making before I even got the lens. The stabilisation allowed me to work at the shutter speed I wanted.”
Retaining the ability to work handheld is a dealbreaker for Alessandro, whose photography is defined by thinking on his feet and rapidly setting up his equipment.
“For sure, you would have more stabilisation if you used a tripod, but I almost never do because I’m always in a rush. I work with my camera handheld, and you can use this lens exactly in the way I like.”
Reliable kit
Fortunately for Alessandro, photographing cycling events is a year-round pursuit in Belgium.
“Cycling races run all through the year,” he explains. “In the summer, you have road cycling, but in the winter – and maybe it’s more famous in Belgium – you have cyclocross races. They happen between November and the end of January.”
Slightly less fortunately, Alessandro describes the winter weather as not particularly pleasant.
“At that time of year in Belgium, it’s only ever raining or snowing. So you need two things from your camera equipment: weather-resistance and lots of luminosity. Almost everywhere, you have to work in the mud and under heavy rain, so you need to trust your kit.”
With a weather-sealed body and maximum aperture of F5.6, XF500mmF5.6 R LM OIS WR hits the mark for both of these criteria. It’s resistant to moisture, dust and subzero temperatures, while the fast aperture can gather plenty of light even on gloomier outings.
“When we are creating content for the team and for brands, picking out details, this lens is very useful. And if I have to be more of a press photographer, standing at the finish line, it would be a nice addition to my backpack,” muses Alessandro.
Used in conjunction with X Series teleconverters like the FUJINON XF1.4X TC WR and XF2X TC WR, the reach of XF500mmF5.6 R LM OIS WR can be boosted to 700mm and 1000mm respectively – giving 35mm equivalents of 1067mm and 1524mm. In such a portable and usable form factor, this level of reach gives a serious advantage over other image makers.
“At the end of a cycling race, where you have to stand in a specific place with all the other photographers, this lens would be brilliant for getting close-ups of riders celebrating as they pass the line,” Alessandro concludes.
