I finally pulled the trigger on an X-S20 and I'm so stoked to start using it for a wildlife trip I have planned next month! I really need a telephoto lens but my budget is pretty tight, maybe 350 or 400 bucks tops since I spent so much on the body lol. I’ve been looking at the XC 50-230mm because it's so cheap and light which is great for hiking, but then I read some reviews saying the plastic mount is flimsy and it really struggles if the light isnt perfect. Then there's the XF 55-200mm which sounds way better built but it's stretching my budget even used... is the XF actually worth the extra cash for a beginner or should I just stick with the cheap one for now?
Man you are gonna love that X-S20! I remember my first big wildlife trip out to the Smokies, I was panicking about gear just like you are. I ended up grabbing the Fujifilm XC 50-230mm f/4.5-6.7 OIS II and honestly? It blew my mind how good the images were for such a cheap piece of glass. People get hung up on the plastic mount but unless you are swinging it like a hammer, its totally fine and helps keep the weight down during long hikes. Here is the technical reality of why the XC is a sleeper hit:
- The optical formula is actually very sophisticated. It has 13 elements in 10 groups, including one aspherical lens and one ED glass element. This means chromatic aberration is super well controlled even when you are zoomed all the way out.
- It is crazy light! At just 375g, my neck didnt hurt at all after 6 hours of trekking which is a huge deal for wildlife.
- That 230mm reach gives you an equivalent of 345mm on full frame. That is plenty for most deer or large birds. Tbh, if you can snag a used Fujifilm XF 55-200mm f/3.5-4.8 R LM OIS within your budget, do it because the dual linear motors make autofocus much faster for fast animals. But if you want to save money for extra batteries, the XC is fantastic. I once tracked a hawk with the XC and while it hunted a bit in the shadows, the sharpness was incredible once it locked on! Just watch your shutter speeds when the sun starts setting... that f/6.7 at the long end can be tricky.
