When I first placed my order for the 23mm lens, I thought it would become my secondary lens for travel photography when I needed something wider. I had the 35mm on the X-E4, but when I sold it and replaced it with the X-H2, I wanted at least one more lens. The 35mm was good, but I knew that when I travelled, I would like some choice, but at the same time, I didn’t want anything large.

Travelling to Barcelona, I wondered what and how I wanted to capture. First, I wanted to be able to capture everything as sharply as possible, and that meant I had to sacrifice something. As I wanted a minimum shutter speed in all conditions, the ISO would inevitably need to increase based on the lighting conditions. Second, I wanted to shoot “blind.” The X-H2 has an articulating screen that makes it easy to shoot without looking at your subject.

I visited Peggy’s Cove a few weeks ago, which was my first time being there in years. It was a brief visit, but I saw the changes since my last time there. Our last few weeks have been somewhat gloomy, and the sun had rarely appeared, but this night, the forecast called for clear skies. I knew it would still be quite cold with the wind around the lighthouse, which is typical.

Having experience with the 35mm f/2, I believe the 23mm f/2 fits well with what I like about a lens: compactness. I like small, discreet lenses, and I wanted something wider than the 35mm that would still fit the bill. I was considering one of two wider lenses, the 16mm f/1.4 and the 18mm f/1.4. After testing both, I found they were too wide, a bit larger than I hoped, and ultimately too expensive.