Outstanding performance at a reduced price

Fujifilm’s authentic GFX100S was a preferred various to the GFX100, because it supplied the identical image high quality in a slimmer physique at a a lot lower cost. 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 various to the $7,500 flagship GFX100 II. It appears 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 nice for many?

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 manner, you’ll be able to see all of your key settings when taking pictures at hip degree.

It feels much more like a mirrorless than a basic medium format digicam. It handles properly, however after spending time with each fashions, I want the GFX100 II’s bigger physique and additional controls, despite the fact that it is 5 ounces heavier.

The rear 3.2-inch, 2.36-million-dot-display is unchanged, tilting up, down and to the appropriate, however it would not flip out. Nevertheless, 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 consists of 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 pictures on a cost, up from 530. Different options embrace USB-C, mic and headphone ports, together with a micro HDMI connection. A brand new characteristic is USB-SSD connectivity that enables for quicker burst taking pictures 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. And not using 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 pictures when taking pictures bursts. Fortuitously, many of the frames are more likely to be sharp because of some huge autofocus enhancements. Even with the quicker burst speeds, I seen a big enhance within the proportion of sharp pictures when taking pictures fast transferring topics.

The AF enhancements don’t finish there. AI face and eye monitoring is smarter and extra correct, which means your topic’s eye and never their eyelash is extra more likely to be in focus — one thing that’s crucial with 100 megapixels of decision. Fujifilm additionally launched new topic monitoring modes for animals, birds, cars, 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 means that you can 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 drawback 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 may damage your photograph.

Picture high quality

For professional photographers who can afford it, the GFX100S II gives unmatched picture high quality. The 100-megapixel sensor delivers pin-sharp pictures and 16-bit RAW pixel depth that delivers 14 stops of dynamic vary, beating most different mirrorless cameras. Meaning you’ll be able to shoot in very darkish, vivid or contrasty circumstances and retain element in all components of the photograph.

Fujifilm’s coloration 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 coloration rendering additionally makes it superb for panorama pictures, 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 appropriately. In low-light, you’ll begin to see a good quantity of noise above ISO 8000 or so. Nevertheless, plenty of that grain disappears while you shrink these 100-megapixel pictures all the way down to a extra affordable dimension.

On the identical time, JPEG pictures 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 pictures, however many might shoot each RAW and JPEG with movie simulations to allow them to present their purchasers one thing instantly and make detailed changes afterward.

Video

In contrast to the dearer GFX100 II, video is a weak level with this digicam. Decision is proscribed 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, coloration rendering is superb. You can even enhance dynamic vary by taking pictures in Fujifilm’s FLog or FLog2 modes and making use of a LUT afterward in put up.

Rolling shutter in video mode is lowered in comparison with pictures due to the pixel binning, however you continue to have to 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 taking pictures with out a lot motion. Should you attempt to stroll whereas vlogging, you’ll see some extreme jolts. All advised, 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 offers professionals excellent image high quality at a considerably lowered worth over the $7,500 flagship GFX100 II. It even goes past what consumers may anticipate by providing pretty fast burst taking pictures with autofocus that’s far more dependable than on the unique GFX100S. Video isn’t a powerful level, however that received’t be vital for its goal market.

The GFX100S II can be the most cost effective digicam within the mainstream medium format area, with its major competitors being both the GFX100 II or Hasselblad’s $8,200 X2D100C. I’d extremely suggest it for portraits and different kinds of taking pictures the place element is essential. Nevertheless, burst speeds and autofocus nonetheless aren’t fairly ok in fast-paced eventualities.

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.