Fujifilm updated their flagship lineup, and replaced their GFX 100 with the GFX 100 II. We spent a fortnight using the camera on our watch shoots and in conjunction with their two tilt shift lenses. And for TGIFriday, here are our thoughts on the new camera.
We are grateful to Fujifilm Singapore for the loan of the GFX 100 II as well as the GF 30mm/f5.6 T/S and GF 110mm/f5.6 T/S Macro lenses.
Review: Fujifilm GFX 100 II – the return of the King
The Fujifilm GFX 100 II has a retail price of SGD 11,199 inclusive of GST. B&H price in the US is USD 7,500 before taxes.
The king is dead. Long live the king!
We have reviewed the Fujifilm GFX 100 flagship camera when we had it on an extended loan during the COVID lockdown. And have given our thoughts on the GFX 100 and shared and discussed the images here. Our view then was that was the King of the crop medium format camera market. And certainly threw the gauntlet to surprised competitors with the aggressive pricing. The SGD 15k price then may seem to be a high ransom, but back in 2018, the were only two competors in the 100Mp digital medium format cameras. Namely Hasselblad H6D-100C and Phase One XF/IQ4 100 which were considerably more expensive (more than SGD 50k). Both are traditional DSLRs with mirror mechanisms, while the GFX 100 was mirrorless. Though, as noted, the GFX is a crop sensor medium format sensor (44mm x 33mm), and the H6D and IQ4 are both feature the larger full frame medium format sensors (54mm x 40mm). It has a BSI sensor and the first medium format digital camera to feature IBIS. It was extremely capable, handled well, and was ahead of its time. So we dubbed it the King. This was back in 2018 when it was released.
With the 2023 release, Fujifilm upped the ante once again. The GFX 100 II retail price is even lower than the model it replaced. The GFX 100 retailed for SGD 15k and the GFX 100 II which replaces it carries a retail price of SGD 11.2k. A new standard for the 100Mp market. Its closest competitor, the Hasselblad X2D has a retail price of SGD 13.6k. We did a quick physical comparison between the GFX 100S II and the Hasselblad X2D two weeks ago, but more on the X2D in the coming weeks.
The GFX 100 II is not to be confused as the replacement for the GFX 100S (review here with image discussion here), which is still currently available and discounted!). The 100S, like the 50S II is a new lineup with slightly reduced functionality. Both lack the ability to be able to remove the EVF, and both are not able to have a battery grip attachment.
What has Fujifilm improved from GFX 100 to GFX 100 II
Form factor
The immediate change that one notices is the GFX 100 II has now a regular shape instead of the large body with integrated vertical grip on the GFX 100. The integrated vertical grip was an oddity on the first camera. While it served its purpose of having additional battery capacity and as a vertical grip, it was neither ergonomic nor a pretty sight. The GFX 100 II has the option to fit a vertical grip which makes a convenient hold when the camera is turned for portrait mode, and also hold two batteries/ But this is added on to the bottom of the camera as an accessory (USD 499). It also look more ergonomically designed and feels more like and extension of the grip on the body. We did not try this grip accessory.
EVF
Hands down the best EVF in the business. The GFX 100 II EVF is OLED and has 9.44 million dots. Not only is the resolution impressive, it also covers 100% of the image area, and with the boost on, it can refresh at 120 frames a second. Looking through the viewfinder is a pleasure. The image is clear, bright, and feels like looking through an optical view finder. With the added bonus that there is the capability to zoom in to ensure critical focus. On the GFX 100 II, 5 levels of zoom is available.
I found EVF lag is not noticeable, even in low light. And the frame blackout also not bothersome. In the sense that it is there if you look out for it, but hardly noticeable in day to day use.
The excellent EVF is one strong reason why one should consider an upgrade to the GFX 100 II, especially if one is already within the GFX ecosystem. BTW, the EVF is included in the price for the body, can be removed if not required. The camera can be operated using only the rear LCD . An accessory tilt adapter (USD 569) is also available for the GFX 100 II, as it was for the original flagship. We also did not try this tilt adapter.
Auto Focus
AF speed and accuracy is improved. Focus acquisition is almost as fast as many top grade full frame cameras. The focus with selected lenses are very fast. On the GF 50, it is fast enough that it seems almost instantaneous. The autofocus system is capable, and acquires focus accurately even in low light conditions, with little hunting. The face detect and eye detect works well. There is an AI mode to detect animals, birds, cars, motorcycles, bicycles, airplanes, and trains, but we did not try out this feature as it is not our typical use case.
The autofocus only feels slightly sluggish when directly compared to the ultra fast, full frame cameras like the Sony A7RV or the Canon EOS R5. But in the realm of medium format, it handily beats all its GFX brethren, Hasselblad X2D and the Phase One XF in terms of speed and accuracy. Technically, the Autofocus is a hybrid phase detect and contrast detect system, and is dependable.
Burst rate
The camera is now able to do 8 frames per second. This is a first for a medium format camera. True, to achieve this blinding speed, it switches to 14 bit files instead of 16 bit, but this feat is still rather impressive. This is an improvement over the 5 frames a second that the GFX 100 and GFX 100S is capable of. And the burst performance is very fast compared to its nearest competition with 100Mp- the Hasselblad X2D is only capable of only 3.3 frames a second.
IBIS
IBIS is now 8 stops instead of 5.5 stops. In comparison the X2d does 7 stops. Typically, manufacturers request for IBIS to be turned off when the camera is mounted on a tripod, but we found no difference if it were left on.
Connectivity
Connectivity is improved over the outgoing GFX 100. The GFX 100 II now sports USB-C (data and charging capability), Wifi5, Bluetooth 4.2, RJ45 and a full sized HDMI port. The camera has two media slots. Slot 1: SD/SDHC/SDXC (UHS-II) and Slot 2: CFexpress Type B. This is the first Fujifilm camera to support the fast CFexpress Type B, the previous GFX versions all feature dual SD card slots. In a quick comparison, this is lags behind the X2D, which has a built in 1TB SSD as well as a CFexpress slot.
We tested the wireless connectivity via the X-App (free), and it works flawlessly on our iOS 15 iPhone 15 and iPad Air 4. Files transfer is smooth and easy, though ultimately lacking the user friendliness of the Phocus II app used with the Hasselblad systems (both X2D and 907X/CFV 100C). We also tried this on a MacBook Pro via USB-C running Capture One 23, and was able to shoot tethered without any issues. Tethered shooting is an important feature, especially in the studio. And enables full control of the camera from Capture One.
Video
We did not shoot video with the GFX 100 II, but the specifications is very impressive. The camera is capable of shooting H.264/H.265/MPEG-4 AVC/ProRes 422/ProRes 422 HQ/ProRes 422LT at 8192 x 4320 at 23.98/24.00 fps [50 to 720 Mb/s] internally, and 4:2:2 10-Bit via HDMI at 7680 x 4320 at 3.98/24.00/25/29.97 fps or 8192 x 4320 at 23.98/24.00 fps. This is impressive! 8k from a hybrid camera with a huge sensor larger than the size of the one in the Arri Alexa 65. The Alexa 65 is a professional “large format” video camera and it has a sensor measuring 54.12 mm × 25.59 mm of active imaging area, providing up to 6560×3102 resolution.
What remains the same
With all these improvements, what remains? Well, the most obvious is the 100 Mp sensor. This is a sensor which is based on Sony based BSI silicon measuring 44mm x 33mm, and customised to Fujifilm specifications. And while the sensor silicon remains the same, the electronics driving the sensor has been improved. The new X Processor 5 now handles all the processing, and heavy lifting. With the new processor, the camera behaves noticeably faster.
Nit picks
There are a couple of nit picks with the GFX 100 II. First, the camera profile is not currently available on any software platform other than on Capture One. We assume it will be available soon on Lightroom and Adobe Camera Raw, but as we write this review (some 6 months after the launch), this is not yet available. This lack of support other than on Capture One, is also the same for the two tilt shift lenses we had on loan.
Another nit pick is that the GFX 100 II does not work with flash when used with the H Adapter G and our Hasselblad HC and HCD lenses. The flash does not fire most all the time,. It does trigger occassionally, but the flash is not in sync with the shutter and the camera records a black frame. I have tried this both using the in-lens shutter as well as the in-body shutter, and with many different flash systems. Firmware of the GFX 100 II is V2.0 and the H Adapter G is V1.2, both the latest version available at time of testing. Our trouble shooting narrows the fault to lie within the GFX 100 II, as just swapping the body for our own GFX 50S II works fine. No doubt this is something that Fujifilm can fix via a firmware upgrade. We have reported this to Fujifilm Singapore, and some of our colleagues have reported this to Fujifilm France and Fujifilm USA.
Concluding thoughts
Overall the GFX 100 II is a worthy successor to the GFX 100. It is still the least expensive option for a 100 Mp sensor. It has excellent autofocus, superb in body image stabilisation, and great connectivity. It even does 8k video, though 4k is probably more practical for most of us. The form factor is just nice, it fits the hand beautifully. Build quality is excellent. This camera is built like a tank. And with the selection of the lenses in its ecosystem it is a very good value proposition. The lens ecosystem of native lenses is rather complete in all focal lengths, and the GFX has the ability to easily adapt vintage lenses as long as the lens has an image circle sufficient to cover the sensor dimensions. But in particular, within the ecosystem, Fujifilm has the two exceptional tilt shift lenses (reviews coming) which are not otherwise available to any other medium format digital cameras natively.
Next, we will discuss image quality with sample images. Till then, we have no reservations to recommend this as the new King. The King is dead. Long live the King!
