The Fujifilm X100F has a 23mm (35mm equivalent) focal length lens permanently attached to the front of it. The built-in Digital Teleconverter does a good job of increasing the camera’s versatility, with options for 50mm and 75mm. There’s also a 50mm (equivalent) teleconverter lens that you can buy. But what if 35mm isn’t wide enough for you? What are your wide angle options for the X100F?
Fujifilm makes a wide angle conversion lens for the X100 camera series called WCL-X100 (there is also a nearly identical new version called WCL-X100 II). It’s received much praise for optical quality, and it’s been called an essential accessory for X100 series cameras. But it’s also a bit on the expensive side, ranging from $250 to $350.
I like the dramatic results you can get from going really wide angle. I find it to be challenging yet rewarding. Occasionally I wish that the X100F was more wide angle than it is. So I thought it would be a good idea to buy a wide angle conversion lens for my camera.
Having an extra lens kind of defeats the purpose of the X100F. It becomes less pocket-sized and gains some weight. You move away from the one-camera-one-lens philosophy. I think it’s nice to have the option of going wider, but it’s not something that I would use frequently. I figured that the conversion lens would mostly sit on a shelf, seldom used. My suspicions were that I’d only dust it off occasionally when wanting to shoot more dramatic wide angle pictures.
The WCL-X100 also doesn’t change the focal length all that much. You go from 35mm to 28mm. I really liked the 18mm (equivalent) lens that I used to pair with my X-E1. The 28mm focal length of the wide angle conversion lens is a long ways off from 18mm, which is where I’d love to be if I could.
I decided that I couldn’t justify spending $250 or more on a lens that would mostly go unused and wasn’t what I really wanted anyway. I set the highest price that I’d be willing to pay at $150. Over the last few months I searched online for a WCL-X100 but the cheapest one I found was $200. I almost jumped on it, but talked myself out of the purchase because it was more than I wanted to spend.

Seattle Center – Seattle, WA – Fujifilm X100F – 24mm
A couple of weeks ago I began to look for alternatives to the WCL-X100 wide angle conversion lens, figuring that I’d never find one for $150. Surely there is a third-party option, I thought. I discovered that Vivitar (also sold under a couple other brand names) makes a wide angle conversion lens for the X100 camera series, and it can be found for as little as $30. That’s a bargain!
Having owned a few different Vivitar products over the years, I know that it’s hit-or-miss with that brand, and usually miss, so I looked for some product reviews to get an idea of the quality of their conversion lens. The most glowing reviews that I found said it was mediocre. The worst reviews said it was a piece of garbage, not worth even $30. I decided to pass, hoping for something of better quality.
Then I discovered an old blog post by photographer Noah Kavic, where he figured out how to use a Nikon wide angle conversion lens on his X100 camera, and it cost a fraction of the price of the WCL-X100. I also found a few other photographers who did this same thing. I decided to give it a try!

Fall Leaves, Wet Road – Richland, WA – Fujifilm X100F – 24mm
It takes a few different pieces to make it work, but I found it all online for about $60 (including shipping). I waited for everything to come in the mail, and the last item arrived the day before heading off on a road trip to Seattle. Perfect timing! It was pretty easy to figure out how it all pieced together.
Here’s the parts list:
- Nikon WC-E68 0.68x Wide Angle Conversion Lens
- Attachment Ring for Fujifilm X100F
- 49mm UV Filter
- 49mm-46mm step-down adapter
The Nikon WC-E68, which converts the focal length to 24mm on the X100F, is actually more wide angle than the Fujifilm WCL-X100, which is 28mm. While 24mm compared to 28mm may not seem significant, it is definitely closer to where I want to be, and it is something I’m quite happy about. Use caution when buying the conversion lens as Nikon has similar products that won’t work–make sure it is the WC-E68 that you are purchasing. I paid $50 for mine.

Up Towards Space – Seattle, WA – Fujifilm X100F – 24mm
You need an attachment ring for the X100F, which, if you buy a generic brand, can be found for under $10. Screw the 49mm UV filter (which was something that I already owned) onto the attachment ring. The UV filter is important because corner sharpness is improved when the conversion lens is placed slightly further away from the camera’s lens. The 49mm-46mm step-down adapter ring, which I found for $2, allows the WC-E68 to screw onto the camera. If you have a lens hood, it can be on or off, it doesn’t really matter.
I captured a number of photographs on my road trip using the Nikon WC-E68 wide angle conversion lens, putting it to the test, and I come to some conclusions. First, my suspicions about wanting to use the lens only occasionally was proved true. The camera is bulkier and heavier and less travel-friendly with the wide angle conversion lens attached. I found myself leaving it behind at the hotel room. With the conversion lens attached it barely fit into my jacket pocket.
Something I noticed is that there’s some obvious purple fringing in situations with a strong back-light. Lens flare is also more prevalent when using the conversion lens. I found it best to avoid shooting towards the sun, although the results aren’t horrible if you do. On a positive note, distortion is well controlled.

Seattle Grind – Seattle, WA – Fujifilm X100F – 24mm
I found that there is some significant corner softness when using large apertures. At f/4 it’s downright awful. At f/5.6 it’s not great but usable. By f/8 corner softness isn’t bad at all, but it is still there a little. Even though you won’t find corner-to-corner tack sharpness, corner sharpness is reasonably good when the aperture is f/8 or smaller. The WC-E68 is a lens to use when there is plenty of available light. If you crop the exposures to 28mm you are able to remove some of the corner softness, and I wonder if this is why Fujifilm doesn’t offer a wider conversion lens. The center is sharp no matter the aperture, and I didn’t notice any significant drop in center sharpness when using the conversion lens.
My opinion is that the Nikon WC-E68 wide angle conversion lens is a decent alternative to the Fujifilm WCL-X100 if you have a limited budget, don’t plan to use it often, when you do use it you do so carefully, and you prefer something more wide angle than 28mm. I do appreciate the 24mm focal length and the fact that I only paid $60 instead of $250. The WC-E68 does a reasonable job when the situation calls for something more wide angle than the 35mm focal length of the X100F, and I will happily pair it to my camera every once in awhile.
Below are ten photographs that I captured, all camera-made JPEGs, using the Fujifilm X100F with the Nikon WC-E68 wide angle conversion lens:

Starbucks Coffee – Riverdale, UT – Fujifilm X100F – 24mm

Oversize Potato – Burley, ID – Fujifilm X100F

Walk And Not Faint – Boise, ID – Fujifilm X100F – 24mm

No Parking That Way – Ellensburg, WA – Fujifilm X100F – 24mm

Puget Sound From Howarth Beach – Everett, WA – Fujifilm X100F – 24mm

Sticks In The Water – Everett, WA – Fujifilm X100F – 24mm

Puget Sound Vista – Seattle, WA – Fujifilm X100F – 24mm

Seattle’s Space Needle – Seattle, WA – Fujifilm X100F – 24mm

Bubble Hazard – Seattle, WA – Fujifilm X100F – 24mm

Autumn At Seattle Center – Seattle, WA – Fujifilm X100F – 24mm
Hey, any portrait shots with this Nikon wide adapter?
It’s not real great for portraits, but possible nonetheless. All of the pictures except for a few towards the end in this article were captured with the Nikon wide lens: https://fujixweekly.wordpress.com/2017/12/06/road-trip-seattle-with-a-fujifilm-x100f-part-3-downtown-seattle-1st-impression-seattle-center-day-4a/
I want to get an X100F for shooting home exteriors so I can tame the sun with it’s incredible sync speed. It looks like I may have to get the actual Fuji wide converter though. I don’t mind a little softness on the edges but that depends on just how soft it is. It’s hard to see from these images because they aren’t that large. I hate dealing with fringing though so that would probably be the deal breaker. In the scheme of things that WCL isn’t much more at all if I’m getting a fair amount of use out of it.
If you will be using it a lot, I’d definitely spend the extra money and get the Fujinon wide conversion lens.
Hey man, I love your posts! Very informative indeed! I have a question, is this possible with the yashica conversion lenses? Thanks
You are welcome! I have no idea if the Yashica lens would work. If you figure it out be sure to report back!
Finally I found a blog post with nice information about another wide angle converter for Fuji X100F. Thank you for this!
You are welcome!
Hi,
I have a couple of questions:
– How to determine the right distance for the conversion lens?
– Does it really need the UV filter in between, or can I use a similar sized extension ring / remove the glass from the filter? UV filters usually degrade the image quality more than they are helping.
– I’m wondering what requirements in general does an angle conversion lens need to fulfill to be compatible with the X100F. Can you use all Powershot conversion lenses, like the tele ones as well? Do they all work with the same distance to the camera lens or do I have to change the distance depending on the conversion lens?
Cheers
Magnus
I don’t think I have the answer to these questions. I used the Nikon lens for a time, but not in four or five years… I sold it awhile ago. I would say that if you’re worried about image quality, I’d stick with the Fujifilm wide-angle and tele conversion lenses—I think this Nikon trick, while it can save you a little money, just isn’t as good as the Fujinon options; however, in a pinch it does work.