FUJIFILM PACKS 102MP INTO A SMALLER MF BODY
THE FOURTH DIGITAL medium format mirrorless camera from Fujifilm, the GFX 100S combines the 102MP sensor from the GFX 100 with a more compact and lighter body similar to that of the GFX 50S. In fact, the GFX 100S weighs in at a modest 900g (500g lighter than the GFX 100) and measures a very manageable 150x104x87 mm (WxHxD) – yet it still incorporates in-body image stabilisation, a 3-inch rear screen with three-way tilt adjustments, and full weather protection including for shooting in subzero temperatures down to -10 degrees Celsius. Notably too, the GFX 100S brings in 100MP resolution at under $10,000 – nearly $500 under – and, consequently, is cheaper than Sony’s new full-frame Alpha 1.
The all-new IBIS module has five-axis movements and gives correction for camera shake of up to six stops. The LCD monitor has a resolution of 2.36 million dots and has full touchscreen controls. Unlike the GFX 50S, the GFX 100S has a fixed electronic viewfinder that uses an OLED panel with a resolution of 3.68 million dots and a magnification of 0.77x (35mm equivalent).
The sensor is a backside-illuminated (BSI) type CMOS with dual-gain circuitry and delivers a maximum image size of 11,648x8736 pixels with the option of capturing 14- or 16-bit RAW files. JPEGs can be captured at one of three compression levels and with a choice of three image sizes. For the record, the sensor size of 43.8x32.9mm is 1.7x bigger than full-35mm and 4x bigger than APS-C. The sensitivity range spans ISO 100 to 12,800 with extensions to
ISO 50 and 102,400. The sensor has 3.76 million PDAF pixels as part of the camera’s hybrid autofocusing system which employs 425 measuring points to give close to 100% frame coverage.
The X Processor 4 engine delivers continuous shooting at up to 5fps and 4K video recording in both the DCI and UHD resolutions at 30 or 25fps with a bit rate of up to 400 Mbps. There’s also F-Log and HLG recording with 10-bit 4:2:2 colour to the HDMI output and 10-bit 4:2:0 internally. Additionally, 16-bit RAW video is available via HDMI for recording to the latest Atomos Ninja V recorder. There’s also the choice of H.264 or H.265 encoding and either All-Intra or Long GOP compression. There's dual memory card slots for the SD format, both with UHS-II support.
The GFX cameras share a lot with the X-series line, including the famed Film Simulation profiles, and the GFX 100S gets a new one – bringing the total to 19 – called Nostalgic Neg. According to the Fujifilm press release, here’s what it does: “Its unique tonality adds an amber tone to highlights for a softer look and boosts saturations to shadows, while preserving details, to give a lyrical feel to images”. In a nutshell, what you’re getting is 1970s colour repro.
Released along with the GFX 100S is a new and faster GF mount standard lens, the 80mm f/1.7 R WR (equivalent to 63mm in the 35mm format). This is the fastest GF mount lens and also the first medium format system lens to combine autofocusing with such a fast maximum aperture. It has a compact design
(the weight is just 795g) with a weather-sealed construction. The weather protection allows for shooting at sub-zero temperatures and also includes a fluorine coating on the exposed surface of the front element. The optical design comprises 12 elements in nine groups which includes two with extra-low dispersion characteristics and one aspherical type.
The GFX 100S is available in Australia now and priced at $9,499 body only. The new GF 80mm f/1.7 is also available now, priced at $3,499. For more information visit www.fujfilm.com.au.