Fujifilm’s original GFX100S was a well-liked different to the GFX100, because it supplied the identical image high quality in a slimmer physique at a a lot cheaper price. It did have some flaws, although, most notably its autofocus that didn’t all the time sustain with the topic. In the same vein, the corporate not too long ago launched the $5,000 GFX100S II as a smaller and cheaper different to the $7,500 flagship GFX100 II. It seems to be a lot the identical as earlier than, however has an up to date sensor, processor, autofocus and extra.
Each cameras are clearly aimed toward professionals, however is the GFX100 II value the additional $2,500, or is the S mannequin fantastic for many?
Fujifilm
Fujifilm’s GFX100S II is a giant enchancment over the unique and provides the identical image high quality because the GFX100 II for $2,500 much less.
- Excellent picture high quality
- Improved autofocus
- Good dealing with
- Respectable battery life
- Weak video capabilities
- High quality decreased for burst capturing
Physique
At 1.9 kilos, the GFX100S II weighs an oz lower than its predecessor and its physique’s design and controls are practically the identical. As earlier than, it comes with a mode dial and focus selector swap, twin management dials, drive choose buttons and a fast menu. On prime is a small, always-on show that reveals settings, simulated mode dials and a histogram. That approach, you’ll be able to see all of your key settings when capturing at hip stage.
It feels much more like a mirrorless than a basic medium format digicam. It handles effectively, however after spending time with each fashions, I favor the GFX100 II’s bigger physique and additional controls, though it is 5 ounces heavier.
The rear 3.2-inch, 2.36-million-dot-display is unchanged, tilting up, down and to the best, but it surely would not flip out. Nonetheless, Fujifilm boosted the viewfinder’s decision to five.76 million dots, so it’s noticeably sharper than the final mannequin’s 3.69-million-dot EVF.
The GFX100S II contains twin SD UHS-II card slots however lacks a high-speed CFexpress port just like the GFX100 II. Although it makes use of the identical battery as earlier than, it may possibly now shoot 540 photographs on a cost, up from 530. Different options embrace USB-C, mic and headphone ports, together with a micro HDMI connection. A brand new function is USB-SSD connectivity that permits for quicker burst capturing and ProRes video seize.
Efficiency
The GFX100S II does shoot quicker than its predecessor at as much as 7 fps in comparison with 5 fps in mechanical shutter mode. With out a quick CFexpress card, although, you’ll be able to solely seize about 30 compressed RAW frames earlier than the buffer fills. There’s additionally a slight picture high quality penalty because the digicam downshifts from 16- to 14-bit RAW photographs when capturing bursts. Fortuitously, many of the frames are prone to be sharp due to some huge autofocus enhancements. Even with the quicker burst speeds, I observed a big enhance within the share of sharp photographs when capturing fast transferring topics.
The AF enhancements don’t finish there. AI face and eye monitoring is smarter and extra correct, that means your topic’s eye and never their eyelash is extra prone to be in focus — one thing that’s crucial with 100 megapixels of decision. Fujifilm additionally launched new topic monitoring modes for animals, birds, vehicles, bikes, bicycles, airplanes and trains.
In-body stabilization additionally will get an improve, with eight stops in shake discount in comparison with six earlier than. That lets you seize dimly lit scenes or blur motion at shutter speeds as little as a half second, with out the necessity for a tripod. As with the earlier mannequin, rolling shutter distortion is an actual downside with this digicam in digital mode, so neither you nor your topic can transfer a lot when utilizing it. In any other case, you’ll get some nasty skewing that can wreck your photograph.
Picture high quality
For professional photographers who can afford it, the GFX100S II provides unmatched picture high quality. The 100-megapixel sensor delivers pin-sharp photographs and 16-bit RAW pixel depth that delivers 14 stops of dynamic vary, beating most different mirrorless cameras. Which means you’ll be able to shoot in very darkish, vivid or contrasty situations and retain element in all components of the photograph.
Fujifilm’s colour science is good for portrait work, with correct and pleasing pores and skin tones. The extent of element means prints may be blown as much as very giant sizes, practically 40 x 30 inches at 300 pixels per inch (PPI). The decision and precision colour rendering additionally makes it ideally suited for panorama images, artwork archival work and extra.
The excellent RAW high quality lets photographers carry out detailed post-production work with out hurting picture high quality, even on photographs not uncovered accurately. In low-light, you’ll begin to see a good quantity of noise above ISO 8000 or so. Nonetheless, quite a lot of that grain disappears whenever you shrink these 100-megapixel photographs all the way down to a extra cheap measurement.
On the identical time, JPEG photographs are excellent straight out of the digicam. Like different Fuji fashions, the GFX100S II comes with an array of movie simulations, from the brand new Reala Ace to Velvia, Acros and others. Most professional photographers wish to tweak their photographs, however many could shoot each RAW and JPEG with movie simulations to allow them to present their shoppers one thing instantly and make detailed changes afterward.
Video
Not like the dearer GFX100 II, video is a weak level with this digicam. Decision is restricted to 4K 10-bit, and whereas there’s no cropping, there’s appreciable pixel binning that reduces sharpness. You may seize 10-bit 4:2:2 ProRes video at as much as 30fps, although that entails hooking up an SSD drive. There aren’t actually any slo-mo modes, as each 4K and 1080p recording are restricted to 60fps.
Whereas video lacks the sharpness seen on different mirrorless cameras just like the Sony A1, colour rendering is superb. It’s also possible to enhance dynamic vary by capturing in Fujifilm’s FLog or FLog2 modes and making use of a LUT afterward in put up.
Rolling shutter in video mode is decreased in comparison with photographs due to the pixel binning, however you continue to must be cautious to not transfer the digicam an excessive amount of to keep away from extreme wobble and skewing. The in-body stabilization is simply efficient for handheld capturing with out a lot motion. Should you attempt to stroll whereas vlogging, you’ll see some extreme jolts. All informed, I’d say the Fujifilm GFX100S II is generally a photograph digicam, with video accessible for emergency use solely.
Wrap-up
The $5,000 Fujifilm GFX100S II provides professionals excellent image high quality at a considerably decreased worth over the $7,500 flagship GFX100 II. It even goes past what patrons would possibly anticipate by providing pretty fast burst capturing with autofocus that’s far more dependable than on the unique GFX100S. Video isn’t a robust level, however that received’t be necessary for its goal market.
The GFX100S II can also be the most affordable digicam within the mainstream medium format area, with its main competitors being both the GFX100 II or Hasselblad’s $8,200 X2D100C. I’d extremely suggest it for portraits and different varieties of capturing the place element is vital. Nonetheless, burst speeds and autofocus nonetheless aren’t fairly adequate in fast-paced situations.
Those that want extra velocity and reliability for issues like weddings or reside occasions can be higher off with high-resolution full-frame fashions just like the $3,700 Nikon Z8, $6,500 Sony A1 or Canon’s new $4,300 EOS R5 II.
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