The Fujifilm X100VI—the most in-demand camera of 2024—has a fixed 23mm (35mm full-frame equivalent) f/2 lens. It’s not an interchangeable-lens camera, which limits its versatility; however, Fujifilm has provided a couple of options to increase its flexibility. First is the built-in Digital Teleconverter, which is a zoom-by-cropping. Second, Fujifilm offers two conversion lenses—a wide-angle and telephoto—that screw onto the end of the fixed-lens. We’ll talk a bit about both of these solutions in this article, but mostly we’ll focus on the two conversion lenses. Specifically, I will answer this question: is the Fujifilm X100VI combined with the WCL-X100 II and TCL-X100 II conversion lenses a practical small kit for travel photography?
MPB is the sponsor of this article. They loaned me a Fujinon WCL-X100 II Wide Conversion Lens and Fujinon TCL-X100 II Tele Conversion Lens to try out for a couple of weeks. For those who don’t know, MPB is an online platform where you can buy, sell, or trade used photo and video gear. “At MPB, there’s something for everyone who wants to try something new, hone their skills, or pursue their passion—and it won’t cost the earth.” If you’re in the market for used camera gear, be sure to check out their platform—you can learn more about MPB here. Thank you, MPB, for making this article possible!
One thing that I love about the Fujifilm X100VI is its compactness. The camera is small enough to fit into a large pocket, and its lightweight enough to carry around all day without being burdensome. The photographs that the X100VI produces straight-out-of-camera are incredible, and can be very film-like. I’ve said many times that this is my desert-island camera—if I could only ever have one for the rest of my life, it would be the X100VI. But, the fixed-focal-length lens is somewhat limiting, so I often suggest that it pairs well with an interchangeable-lens body. I will always bring the X100VI along with me when I travel, but I will almost always have another camera, too.
The Digital Teleconverter helps to make the X100VI more versatile. The 50mm (full-frame equivalent) Digital Teleconverter produces a very usable 20mp image, while the 70mm (full-frame equivalent) Digital Teleconverter produces a much less usable (but still usable for social media) 10mp image. I use the 50mm option somewhat regularly and don’t think twice about it, but I rarely use the 70mm Digital Teleconverter because it is more for emergency-use-only. This does add some versatility, but only a little.
By screwing one of the two conversion lenses—WCL-X100 II and TCL-X100 II—onto the end of the fixed-lens (where the filter adapter attaches), you essentially turn the X100VI (and the older X100 series models, too) into an interchangeable-lens camera. The WCL-X100 II has 0.8x magnification, turning the 23mm lens into 18mm (28mm full-frame equivalent). The TCL-X100 II has 1.4x magnification, turning the 23mm lens into 50mm (full-frame equivalent). Interestingly, there is actually a small focal-length difference between the TCL-X100 II and the Digital Teleconverter, despite that they are both supposedly 50mm equivalent—the TCL-X100 II is actually slightly more telephoto than using the 50mm Digital Teleconverter. I didn’t notice any reduction in image quality when using either conversion lens (amazing!); however, the distortion can do some weird things, which you are likely to only notice when photographing brick or tile walls.
Probably the largest drawback to the two conversion lenses is that they add noticeable size and weight to the camera. The WCL-X100 II is 1.5″ (long) x 2.2″ (diameter), and weighs 0.33 pounds, which isn’t terrible. The TCL-X100 II is a little larger and heavier: 1.8″ (long) x 2.8″ (diameter), and weighs 0.39 pounds. While the WCL-X100 II is a little less inconvenient to have attached, I personally liked the TCL-X100 II a little more. I feel like the conversion lenses contradict the camera’s philosophy (one-camera-one-lens; small/lightweight) to a degree, but at the same time, they do make for an extremely small and lightweight kit. I carried both conversion lenses and the X100VI in a Peak Design Sling, which was an amazingly compact kit for travel!
You can combine the Digital Teleconverter with the conversion lenses to increase the versatility even further, achieving 28mm, 35mm, 40mm, 50mm, and 70mm (full-frame equivalent) focal-lengths without resorting to the 10mp crop. I didn’t find the Digital Teleconverter combined with the WCL-X100 II lens particularly useful, personally; however, I did utilize the Digital Teleconverter a handful of times with the TCL-X100 II lens. I think it would be interesting if Fujifilm offered a 0.7x magnification (24mm full-frame equivalent) WCL option and a 2x magnification (70mm full-frame equivalent) TCL option in addition to the two they already have—I think this four lens (plus the 23mm fixed lens) kit would be extremely compelling for travel photography, if it were available.
I was invited to be a part of Fujifilm’s Create With Us event in Austin, Texas, last month. It was such a great time, and it was wonderful to meet many of you in-person. The only camera that I brought along with me was my Fujifilm X100VI, plus I had the WCL-X100 II and TCL-X100 II conversion lenses. I left the interchangeable-lens models at home. It was so nice to have a compact three lens kit—which stretched into a faux four lens kit utilizing the Digital Teleconverter—that all fit into a small sling bag. When you travel, oftentimes less is more, as space is a premium.
It was good to have three lens options available: the fixed lens (23mm), WCL-X100 II (18mm), and TCL-X100 II (32mm). There were definitely times when each came in handy. While the WCL-X100 II was a little less detrimental to the X100VI experience than the TCL-X100 II, I found myself using the TCL-X100 II more. I don’t know that either of the two are essential. For the most part, one can take a couple steps backwards instead of using WCL-X100 II, and one can take a few steps forward (or utilize the Digital Teleconverter) instead of using the TCL-X100 II. Obviously that’s not always practical (or the same result), so having the conversion lenses available was appreciated.
I think the conversion lenses are an interesting concept. Having used them on this one trip, I was left both impressed and confused simultaneously. I utilized them a lot more than I think I would have if I had not been testing them out for this article. If someday I did buy them, they’d likely only get occasional use; however, for those occasions when they do come in handy, it’s great to have them available, as they’re pretty darn good. More than anything, I think if you’re a bit nervous to pack light for fear that you’ll miss out due to not having the “right” lenses available, the two conversion lenses will give you a bit more confidence. Even if they’re largely left unused in your sling, it’s probably still better than lugging around a bigger and heavier bag with a larger body and a couple lenses to go with it. In that sense, the two conversion lenses are completely worthwhile accessories to go along with your X100VI camera.
The above photographs are all camera-made JPEGs captured using my Fujifilm X100VI, utilizing a Fujinon WCL-X100 II Wide Conversion Lens and Fujinon TCL-X100 II Tele Conversion Lens for many, while traveling to Austin, TX, last month.
Previously in this series:
Fujifilm X-Pro2 — The camera that got away (again)
Fujifilm X-T50 + Fujinon 23mm F/2 = Interchangeable-Lens Fujifilm X100VI??
Leica Q2 from the perspective of a Fujifilm photographer
Fujifilm X30 — Fujifilm’s Forgotten Retro Compact Zoom
Close Up with the Fujinon XF 30mm F/2.8 R LM WR Macro
Hi Ritchie, quick question, would you prefer the setup you used in this article or an X-M5 with a small compact zoom such as the XC 15-45?
Definitely the setup in the article. I don’t have much of an interest in the X-M5 or 15-45mm, personally. But… the X-M5 and zoom is a whole lot cheaper and easier to get, which I guess would be the big advantage of it.
My frustration in finding an X100VI led me down another route. The X-S20 is fairly small… not X-M5 small, but smaller than my X-T5. I had the X70 with the WCL for it, and it was legit heavy for such a small camera. So, I traded it and an old X-E1 I had lying around (the crowd gasps!) for the X-S20. Then I paired that new camera with the 18mm and 27mm lenses. It’s easily portable enough to carry in a small/medium cross body sling – which is exactly what I was looking for.
I know a couple (highly talented and successful) creators who call the X-S20 their favorite Fujifilm camera (and they have more expensive models…). It’s not my favorite, personally, due to PASM, but it is definitely solid camera, and the pancakes make it highly portable. I appreciate the comment!
Can you expound a little more on the distortion you’ve noticed on the TCL? I have the WCL for my X100V and I love it, but I held off on getting the TCL for two reasons: (1) while I can’t go wider digitally, I can go to 50mm (even though with the X-Trans IV that really cuts down the resolution); and (2) I heard that it has wicked corner distortion. I’m sure this is corrected in-camera, but I don’t know how successful it is and whether there’s any reduction in corner sharpness as a result. Also I’m not sure whether Lightroom supports the X100 + TCL combo out of the box when editing RAW files, or whether I need to create my own lens profile. Do you have any insights about this?
I mean barrel distortion.
I meant barrel distorion on the TCL.
It’s hard to tell exactly what distortion it has because you’re always looking at it through the distortion of the 23mm lens. It clearly has some sort of distortion because the results are different than without it, but what precisely that equals to is difficult to quantify.
I included the tile photo to give an idea of the barrel distortion. The 23mm lens has its own distortion, and the conversion lenses have their own, and when combining them together things can get interesting, which I don’t think matters in most circumstances. I’m sure the camera does some sort of in-camera correction, but I’m not sure to what degree. I don’t spot corner softness, but that could possibly be in-camera corrected, too. I don’t edit RAW anymore (or in a long time now), so I cannot offer insights if Lightroom has a profile for it or not. Sorry. I’m sure this isn’t as helpful as you were hoping.
I am so glad I couldn’t get the X100VI because of the long back-order time. I got an X-T50 instead and I love this little camera. I can use any of my Fuji lenses, and the X-T50 has a built-in teleconverter also. Win-Win
The X-T50 is a nice camera for sure. I’ve enjoyed it immensely.
Hi Ritchie,
This was a most informative article. I have a 100V with both conversion lenses and am interested in the Peak Design Slimg which you mentioned. However, whenever I click on the link I get an error message. Could you please give me the model number? Thanks
Here’s the link to used slings at MPB:
https://www.mpb.com/en-us/product/peak-design-everyday-sling-6l-v2
The specific one I own was given to me from Fujifilm (it’s a Fuji x Peak Design collab), and I’m not sure if it can be purchased. But, any of those slings should work similarly.
I hope that helps!
Thank you very much. The link is now working!
Great article. I like very much to use my WCL and TCL when I’m using my X100. I started with them right when they brought by Fujifilm. Now using version II for my X100VI.
Very nice and handy ‘light’ kit ‘lenses’ indeed when wanting to bring only 1 camera and selecting the X100.
Just perfect like you experienced Ritchie over a short city trip for exemple.
But indeed too, having them along many other Fujifilm cameras and lenses, I tend not to use those 2 converters a lot.
It is a nice option to have for travel and/or when having only a X100, main points of those 2 converters.
Yeah, that’s how I feel: certainly nice to have, especially for travel, but not always used. Perhaps used enough to justify owning, but I’m not fully sure of that.
I have the WCL and all software I have reads the exif data as being 19mm. Like the x70 was an 18.5mm lens.
I don’t feel it makes a huge difference over the 23 that I couldn’t still get an interesting shot at 23mm. And given the inconvenience in changing the lens I don’t regard it as a set up to change on the fly.
I like the WCL a lot, but if I put it on it’s because I have decided consciously to use that primarily. It will stay mounted and if I need 23 for the odd shot, I use the digital teleconverter.
But really for a compact wide option, the x-T5 + my 16 2.8 offers more for a similar footprint.
I consider the digital TC to always be an emergency option whether at 50mm or 70mm. The files can take the cropping for sure, but the loss of compression and separation compared to a dedicated lens makes it feel like I’m using a much slower aperture lens – I wonder what f-stop it becomes equivalent to, it feels flatter than f2.8.
I think I read somewhere that f/2 becomes “equivalent” (not full-frame equivalent) to f/3.5 at 50mm, but 1) it was awhile ago that I read it, so I might be quoting wrong, 2) I have no idea if that is accurate or not (I’ve not done the math, nor am I good enough at math to do it 🤣), and 3) it’s definitely a bit of apples-to-oranges. But I get what you are saying: the “50mm” digital teleconverter is not the same as shooting on a 33mm f/2 lens.
Great article + review Ritchie. I have the wcl ii on my vi most of the time.. it’s a little heavier but I don’t really notice it once the camera is in hand. I feel it gives a lot more flexibility when shooting city streets etc.
As for the size… I think this is over blown somewhat when lots of people fit the Leica style lens hoods which then makes the size very similar to having the wcl fitted !!
The biggest drawback to the wcl ii is actually obtaining one at a reasonable price. It’s a very useful bit of glass to have in your bag.
I appreciate the feedback. I could see leaving the WCL more or less permanently attached. I wouldn’t do that, personally, because (for me) oftentimes less is more and smaller/lighter is preferable, but it is certainly understandable, and I imagine that a number of people do that. In fact, if I’m not mistaken, I believe Rob Morgan (of Owl City fame) oftentimes uses the WCL for his concert/behind-the-scenes photos.