Why I moved my entire system to Fujifilm (and what it changed)

The transition to the Fujifilm X-Series for professional work began years before the switch actually happened. At the time, I was still shooting with dSLR bodies, heavy telephotos and a kit that required two full bags to cover the range I needed. Some of the telephoto lenses I used for nature were so heavy they needed a monopod to stabilise them, making them pretty cumbersome to use in the field. I had always stayed loyal to one brand because when you get into investing in glass you feel a little bit like you’ve checked into Hotel California. Checked in but you can never leave… or at least this was how I’d always worked as a professional photographer, and I didn’t question it for a long time. That weight felt normal, but adding long days at my desk on top, left my hypermobile body aching, drained and sometimes injured.

Approaching forty, spending more time in wild edges and trusting more deeply in my long-term vision, I began questioning everything that no longer felt supportive. The dSLR era had shaped me, but it wasn’t built for longevity, freedom or the way I wanted to work moving forward.

What I didn’t realise was that a single lens would become the catalyst for reimagining my entire system.

The moment everything shifted: the XF150–600mm

When Fujifilm released the Fujinon XF150–600mm f5.6–8 R LM OIS WR in 2022, something in me recognised the possibility before I even held it. A telephoto with more than twice the reach of my dSLR 200–400mm and almost half the weight felt almost unreal. It opened up a new relationship with the landscapes and wildlife I wanted to work with. It offered range, clarity and portability that aligned perfectly with the growing importance of ocean and conservation storytelling in my work.

What started as “just trying the lens” quickly became a full system shift

I had already been using Fujifilm underwater with the X-T2, loving its intuitive nature and the way it handled colour. But seeing what was possible with the XF150–600mm for wildlife and ocean work changed everything. It became clear when the X-T5 came out that this system was deeply aligned to the kind of storytelling I was being drawn into. I quickly checked with Seafrogs Housing to see if they were making the underwater housing for it and they were, and so all of the ducks were in a like, so to speak.

The shift wasn’t just technical. It was energetic, creative, and it was a return to ease.

Why weight matters more than we admit

Anyone who has carried dSLR bodies and long telephotos along rugged clifftops, dunes, or on boats knows the toll it takes. For years, I pushed through the discomfort. Preparing for a future of chronic golf/tennis elbow and tight back muscles, because that was simply “the price of being a photographer”.

But hypermobility changes the conversation. My joints and connective tissue behave differently, and long-term sustainability became not just a preference but a requirement. If I wanted to continue working at the wild edges that define my practice for many years to come. I manage it well and know what is likely to trigger a flare up and I am fortunate that it doesn’t stop me from doing things, but more I need to be mindful of all the things I do so I move in a comfortable body.

The Fujifilm X-Series transformed how I was thinking about managing this instantly. It cut the weight of my kit by around a third, sometimes more. Suddenly, 16 – 600mm could fit into a single Shimoda Action X40 v2 – importantly designed ergonomically for women. Everything I needed in one bag to shoot anything in any moment. I could carry it in overhead lockers on flights, move across remote terrain without strain as the bag literally hugs your body and you don’t feel like you’re carrying it. This has meant I can shoot for longer with far more presence in my body.

That reduction in weight didn’t just protect my joints. It opened creative possibilities I had never had access to before with the diversity of kit I can carry in one bag.

Freedom, safety and sovereignty for women working outdoors

There is a truth that women working alone in remote places know intimately. We want our kit to be both capable but also it is imperitive it is also discreet. We need to be mobile, to blend in, to move safely without drawing unnecessary attention. Trust me when I say that, it is not with unchecked internalised misogyny, but a deep understanding of the realities of being a female photographer in the outdoor space.

Heavy dSLRs make us slower, more vulnerable and more visible.

The Fujifilm X-Series changed that for me. Smaller bodies. Lighter lenses. A single backpack. The ability to carry everything without looking like I’m carrying everything in a bag that isn’t masculine in design, black and almost stating ‘expensive gear in here’ – it looks more like an adventure pack, well because it is. As someone who works alone often at night, on coastlines, in unpredictable weather or on research boats, that matters deeply.

Portability becomes safety. Simplicity becomes sovereignty. Lightweight gear becomes liberation. It is a shift far beyond tech and finally threads of inclusion that are starting to weave through an industry.

The creative alchemy of carrying everything, everywhere

Being able to carry 16–600mm at once changed not just how I travelled, but how I saw.

When all focal lengths live in one place, I can choose instinctively. I can respond to fleeting light, wildlife behaviour, shifting weather or surprising moments without hesitation or compromise. It allowed me to rewild the way I shoot, to rewild the connection between earth, sea and sky seamlessly.

This agility directly shaped some of the most important images of my career: from award-winning conservation stories to intimate ocean storytelling work to documenting Whale Wise field research. None of these would have been possible without the versatility and weight distribution of the Fujifilm ecosystem.

The X-Series didn’t just support my work. It expanded it in ways I never thought possible.

Why Fujifilm fits the way I see the world

There is also something so many reasons why I could evangelise about the Fujifilm system.

The colour science aligns with how I feel light. Tactile dials feel intuitive to my sensory-seeking brain. The flip screen allows me extra room for creativity at the wild edges, and the entire system feels like an extension of how I sense the world.

This all matters when our work depends on noticing subtlety, intuition and the quiet signals of nature. The Fujifilm X-Series supports that in the most beautiful ways.

It lets me meet the landscape with presence and respond to it honestly.

What the shift made possible

Moving my entire system to Fujifilm opened the door to everything that defines my work today.

• Ocean conservation photography
• Underwater image-making and storytelling
• My voluntary role as President of the Board at Whale Wise
• Educator and speaker – sharing stories from the wild edges
• Lightweight expeditions in Arctic and sub-Arctic environments
• Visual storytelling across people, place and planet for purpose-led brands, visionaries and change-makers.

It allowed me to evolve into the multidimensional visual storyteller I always sensed I was becoming.

The shift didn’t just change my kit. It changed my life, my career and has allowed me to pursue my purpose.

Choosing the Fujifilm X-Series for professional work was never just a technical decision. It was an alignment decision. A sustainability decision. A creative sovereignty decision.

It enabled me to work in deeper connection with nature, to protect my body, to travel lightly, to feel safe, to expand my storytelling and to root my work in presence rather than endurance.

If you’re feeling the pull toward a lightweight, intuitive and creatively liberating system, this transition may be part of your evolution too.

→ Read my thoughts on primes, zooms and the myth of the ‘right lens’ here.
→ Read more about the positive disruptions Fujifilm had on my ocean photography here.

official fujifilm x-photographer 2026 – present