Fujifilm XF 500mm F5.6 R LM OIS WR Review – Real-World Impressions After Months of Use
Let me start with a quick disclaimer: I bought this lens with my own money. I’m not sponsored by Fujifilm or anyone else. Everything you’ll read below comes from months of actual use in the field — no spec-sheet parroting, just hands-on experience.
Fujifilm XF500mm f5.6 R LM OIS WR lens
Build Quality
The moment you take the XF 500mm F5.6 out of the box, it’s clear you’re dealing with a premium lens. The materials feel solid, the rings turn smoothly with reassuring feedback, and everything about it screams professional-grade.
That said, I do have two minor complaints.
First, the lens hood. While it has a nice rubberized front edge, the overall build feels a little flimsy for a lens in this price range. It works, but I expected something sturdier.
Second, the Arca-Swiss compatible tripod foot — or rather, partially Arca-Swiss. The dovetail doesn’t run across the full length of the foot. In practice, that means when balancing the lens on a gimbal or video head, especially with a battery grip attached, there isn’t enough fore/aft adjustment. You end up having to mount your own longer plate, which defeats the purpose of having Arca built-in. A missed opportunity.
Fujifilm XF500mm f5.6 R LM OIS WR arca swiss lensfoot
Aside from those two points, the construction is excellent. This lens is clearly built for professional use.
Handling & Ergonomics
Thanks to its low weight — just 1335 grams — the balance in hand is fantastic. Most of the mass sits close to the mount, making handheld shooting, even for video, surprisingly easy.
Fujifilm XF500mm f5.6 R LM OIS WR lens
The lens hood, despite its mediocre build, is very well designed functionally. The interior has ribbed anti-reflective rings for better contrast, and there’s a clever little access door for filters like CPLs. No more poking your fingers inside the hood and risking fingerprints — just flip the door open and make your adjustment. Brilliant.
Fujifilm XF500mm f5.6 R LM OIS WR lens
There are four customizable buttons around the barrel, one every 90 degrees. On a lens this light, they’re incredibly practical. I set mine to AF-ON so I can trigger focus no matter how I’m holding the camera.
Fujifilm XF500mm f5.6 R LM OIS WR lens
The focus ring is wide, rubberized, and easy to find without looking. It turns smoothly, but here I have to mention a broader Fujifilm issue: manual focus response can be a bit jumpy. A tiny adjustment sometimes overshoots the subject. Nothing to do with the lens itself — more of a system-level firmware thing that I hope Fuji improves.
Next comes the aperture ring. Most Fuji shooters love these, but personally I leave it locked and use the front command dial on the camera. The reason? The ring is a bit too loose — I found myself accidentally shooting at F8 without realising it. That’s the kind of surprise you don’t want when a special moment happens.
Behind that you’ll find two strap lugs — a fantastic addition. Long telephoto lenses should always be carried by the lens, not the camera body, to avoid stress on the mount. Fuji made the right call including proper mounting points here.
The tripod collar deserves praise too. It rotates smoothly without the wobble I’ve found on lenses like the Nikon 180-600mm. There are no 90-degree click stops — some might miss them, but for video shooters like me, that’s actually a blessing. No sudden jolts when making small adjustments.
The foot itself is removable with a simple release button, though unlike Nikon’s system, you can’t remove the entire collar to save weight. Still, overall a well-executed design.
Switches & Extra Features
Despite its compact size, Fuji crammed in a lot of functionality:
AF Limiter — Two positions: Full (2.75m to infinity) or 5m to infinity. Speeds up autofocus considerably when tracking distant subjects like birds in flight.
OIS Switch — Simple on/off. I leave stabilization on 99% of the time; it handles panning beautifully.
AF Preset Button — Hugely underrated feature. You can pre-set a focus distance, then instantly snap back to it with a touch. Perfect when you know your subject (e.g. a bird) keeps returning to the same perch.
Fujifilm XF500mm f5.6 R LM OIS WR lens
All in all, the usability of this lens is outstanding.
Image Quality
This part is easy — it’s phenomenal.
Fujifilm XF500mm f5.6 R LM OIS WR lens photo made by Maikel Lonis
Sharpness is excellent from edge to edge, colour and microcontrast are superb, but what really surprised me was the unique look of the images. There’s a subtle roundness, almost a 3D pop, that gives subjects a sense of depth rarely seen in modern lenses.
Whether on my X-H2 or X-H2S, the results are consistently stunning.
Fujifilm XF500mm f5.6 R LM OIS WR lens
Fujifilm XF500mm f5.6 R LM OIS WR lens photo made by Maikel Lonis
Autofocus Performance
With the latest Fujifilm bodies, autofocus is impressively fast and reliable. The linear motor drives focus smoothly and quietly. That said, I’d estimate the current combination (X-H2S + XF 500mm) achieves around 70% of the AF tracking speed and consistency you might get with a Nikon Z8 + 180-600mm setup.
But that’s not a criticism of the lens — it’s more about the current generation of Fuji bodies. I genuinely believe that future firmware updates and next-gen cameras will unlock even more potential from this optic. Even so, it’s already a very capable system. With Fujifilm, understanding your camera and focus settings is crucial. If you take this combo straight out of the box and spend some time dialing in the settings in the field, you’ll see a significant boost in performance — it really makes a noticeable difference.
Fujifilm XF500mm f5.6 R LM OIS WR lens photo made by Maikel Lonis
Final Verdict
The Fujifilm XF 500mm F5.6 R LM OIS WR is an exceptional lens with just a few minor quirks. Optically outstanding, brilliantly designed for field use, lightweight yet professional in build. The hood and tripod foot could be better, but they don’t overshadow the overall experience.
This lens delivers — and it’s made me genuinely excited to see where Fujifilm takes their telephoto lineup next.
All made with the Fujifilm XH2s and XH2 with the Fujifilm XF500mm f5.6 R LM OIS WR lens.
Maikel Lonis wildlife photographer photo made by Jelle Schutte
After three months of switching from Nikon to Fujifilm, I’m finally sharing my honest thoughts on the Fujifilm 500mm f/5.6 R LM OIS WR lens. In this video, I dive deep into this super-telephoto lens, showing its performance, sharpness, and versatility in real-world nature and wildlife photography. You’ll also see stunning nature footage captured with this lens, giving you a clear idea of what it can do. Whether you’re a wildlife photographer, birdwatcher, or just curious about Fujifilm lenses, this review provides insights and real-life examples to help you decide if this lens is right for you. Don’t forget to like, comment, and subscribe for more Fujifilm gear reviews and nature photography content.
