FUJIFILM GFX 50S II
Fujifilm continues to make its mirrorless medium format more mainstream and the GFX 50S II is now sufficiently competitively priced to be considered a rival to top-end full-frame mirrorless. It’s also a lot more compact than the previous model and so just as easy to handle as a full-frame camera too.
If money has been your main reason for avoiding medium format photography, you’re running out of excuses as Fujifilm pitches its latest GFX model right in the middle of the top-end full-frame field. The GFX 50S II is the most affordable digital medium format camera ever.
Right from the start Fujifilm has considered its mirrorless medium format system its answer to full frame… only bigger. Early on, it used the term ‘super full-frame’ for its 33x44 mm sensor size before trumping everything and adopting ‘large format’… which, of course, it isn’t, but it emphasises the message that bigger is better. Big sensors cost big money, so it’s taken a while for Fujifilm to get a GFX series body into the ballpark in terms of competing with the top-end full-frame mirrorless cameras on price. This has always been an important objective because, in reality, for anybody spending upwards of $5,000 on a new camera, sensor size probably isn’t everything. The GFX 100S makes it mark because it has 102MP on tap, which is something no full-frame camera can match, so it’s easier to justify a price tag that’s close to five figures.
Fifty megapixels is still impressive, but it puts the GFX 50S II up against around eight full-frame models with resolutions in the range of 45MP to 61MP, which means pricing becomes more critical. Launched at $6,499, the 50S II is cheaper than four of the current full-frame bodies (the Nikon Z 9 will also likely be more expensive) and about the same money as the Canon EOS R5, ignoring any discounting.
Here then, it really can compete
on sensor size – and hence pixel size, which is really what’s more important – as the counter to the areas where full-frame cameras are ahead (chiefly in shooting speeds and AF capabilities). It’s also telling that, for the first time in digital medium format, there’s a ‘kit’ lens offering – the also new GF 35-70mm f/4.5-5.6 WR zoom – which indicates Fujifilm is gearing up its attempts to seduce potential converts to mirrorless away from full frame. The kit price values the GF 35-70mm at a mere $800 (Fujifilm Australia has yet announced a standalone price, but it’s hard to see it being this cheap), so this really is a bargain entry point to digital medium format photography. There are run-out deals going around on the GFX 50R – which uses the same sensor – that represent a bit more of a saving, but this model is now over three years old so it doesn’t have all the later goodies that are packed into the GFX 50S II. That said, it does have even better compactness on its side, so it’s still worth considering if you’re contemplating a step (or maybe two) up in sensor size.
However, you won’t be surprised to learn, it isn’t quite all a free lunch as far as the 50S II is concerned. The biggest tick is that it’s essentially the 50MP version of the GFX 100S, so it has the same body – that’s both smaller and lighter than the original GFX 50S – and inherits many of the features and functions, including in-body image stabilisation. The downside is that it has the same sensor as the original – now over five years old – which means contrast-detection autofocusing only and no 4K video. Issues? Well, maybe and maybe not. The AF system is still capable, but doesn’t have the speed of hybrid phase/ contrast detection and nowhere near the same tracking smarts. It’s no sports camera though, so it’s likely many users will get by with what they’ve got. And, similarly, it’s likely many of these users won’t be buying the 50S II to shoot video, so the Full HD resolution will be adequate if, or when, they want to record the occasional clip (which could be never). You’ll be primarily buying this camera for the bigger sensor size and all the photographic benefits this can deliver, along with lenses designed for larger imaging circles.
While both the 100MP GFX bodies are really more like the typical higher-end mirrorless camera in their usability, the
50S II is more the traditional medium format camera – you slow down, deliberate and enjoy the experience rather than always rushing to grab a result. However, it’s definitely not a pared-back, in-the-RAW experience as, like the 100S, the 50S II has a lot of what Fujifilm offers in its X-mount flagship, the X-T4, so you can have as much fun with JPEGs.
PACKING ROOM
As we noted with the GFX 100S, the 50S II is a remarkably compact package for a medium format camera with sensor-shifting IBIS and features such as a tiltable rear screen. Of course, the mirrorless configuration helps, but Fujifilm has done well to shoehorn everything into a body that’s quite a bit smaller than either the Canon EOS-1D X Mark III or the Nikon D6 pro-level DSLRs, as well as both the EOS R3 and Z 9 pro full-frame mirrorless cameras. It’s marginally smaller than Panasonic’s Lumix S1-series models and, believe it or not, a lot smaller than the Olympus OM-D E-M1X with its titchy Micro Four Thirds sensor.
The 50S II’s sensor is, of course, a version of Sony’s ubiquitous 51.4MP ‘33x44’ imager also used by Hasselblad and Pentax, and has an imaging area that’s 1.7x bigger than full frame. As before, Fujifilm has designed the microlenses to optimise sensitivity and further enhance the signal-to-noise ratio. The pixel size is 5.3 microns, giving a claimed dynamic range of 14 stops. The native sensitivity range is equivalent to ISO 100 to 12,800 with extensions down to ISO 50 and up to ISO 102,400. In the Mark II camera, the sensor is mated with Fujifilm’s current X-Processor 4 quad-core engine which is a bit hobbled here speed-wise by the sensor’s vintage, but delivers a number of improvements in key areas like colour reproduction and noise reduction. The maximum continuous shooting speed is
3fps – which is 2fps slower than the 100S – but the burst lengths are longer than were the case with the original 50S. Additionally, the new camera adds the option of capturing compressed RAW files that yields burst lengths similar to those for best-quality JPEGs. As before, RAW files can also be captured with lossless compression or uncompressed. JPEGs can be captured in one of two image sizes with a choice of three compression levels and a total of seven aspect ratios. RAW
THE GFX 50S
II IS MORE THE TRADITIONAL
MEDIUM FORMAT CAMERA – YOU SLOW DOWN, DELIBERATE AND ENJOY THE EXPERIENCE RATHER THAN ALWAYS RUSHING TO GRAB A RESULT.”
files can be converted in-camera to JPEGs or 8-bit TIFFs. The camera’s dual memory card slots are both for SD devices, both with UHS-II and Video Speed Class V90 support – neither will be challenged by the camera’s frame rate specs.
The provision of IBIS is a big plus over the 50S and it operates over five axes to give up to 6.5 stops of correction for camera shake, particularly welcome since currently only four GF-mount lenses have OIS. As an aside, the new 35-70mm zoom brings the number of G-mount lenses to 13, with another three coming over the next year or so, including a much anticipated tilt/shift lens.
As on the 100S, the 50S II also employs sensor shifting to drive a Pixel Shift Multi Shot function to capture a total of 16 RAW frames with half-pixel shifts between each. This quadruples the resolution to 205MP and also records full RGGB colour at each pixel. It requires subjects to be static and the camera mounted on a tripod to avoid any blurring caused by movement. The images are merged post-camera using Fujifilm’s free Pixel Shift Combiner software to creates a DNG file. The latest version will detect issues with camera shake or subject movement, so you don’t go ahead with generating a dud image, but it won’t correct for them.
EXTRA INGREDIENTS
The GFX 50S II inherits all the incamera processing functions of the 100S, which means there are quite a few new additions compared to the first 50S model. The number of Film Simulation profiles increases to 19 (versus 15 previously), and there’s also the additional processing parameter for Clarity and the unified Highlight/Shadow Tone Curve adjustment (both of which were introduced on the X-Pro3). The two B&W profiles – Monochrome and ACROS (named after Fujifilm’s fine-grained B&W film) – have the new ‘Monochromatic Colour’ adjustment that tints in either the warm-to-cool or magenta-to-green ranges (plus there are the usual B&W contrast control filters in yellow, red and green).
The most recent Film Simulation profiles are Nostalgic Neg – designed to replicate the look of colour prints in old photo
THE IMAGE QUALITY IS WHERE THE
GFX 50S II MAKES A COMPELLING STATEMENT
ABOUT ITS BIGGER SENSOR.”
albums – and Eterna Bleach
Bypass (introduced with the X-T4) to simulate the bleach bypass film processing technique for a lower colour saturation, but with higher contrast. There’s now the full complement of Effects processes – Grain, Smooth Skin, Colour Chrome and Colour Chrome Blue – plus a proper multiple exposure facility (for up to nine shots rather than just two, and with various exposure adjustment options) and flicker detection/correction. As you may have guessed, ‘Colour Chrome Effect Blue’ differs from the standard ‘Colour Chrome Effect’ by only adding contrast and saturation to the blue tones rather than to all colours.
In addition to the standard Fujifilm dynamic range expansion processing options, there’s also Dynamic Range Priority processing designed to adjust the contrast to give more detailing in both the highlights and the shadows. There are three settings – Auto, Weak and Strong – with the latter two based on the selected dynamic range expansion setting, which means the minimum ISO is also raised (to 320 and 640 respectively) in order to give more ‘headroom’ for adjustments. The Auto setting selects either one or the other, according to the contrast range present in a scene.
Carried over from the previous model are the Lens Modulation Optimiser – to correct for diffraction blur when using smallest aperture settings – an intervalometer (with the option of exposure smoothing), and noise reduction for both high ISO and long exposures. Finally, the 50S II adds focus to its list of auto bracketing modes, joining those for exposure (across two, three, five, seven or nine frames), the Film Simulation profiles, dynamic range, ISO and white balance. Focus bracketing can be set to record up to 999 frames over intervals of up to 10 seconds and with the amount of focus shift adjusted from between one to 10 steps.
EASY WORK
Back in the days of 120/220 rollfilm, medium format cameras tended to be largely manual in operation, but both Fujifilm and Pentax pursued the idea that they could have the same level of automation as 35mm models to increase the appeal beyond pro photographers. Fujifilm went the furthest, culminating in some very interesting compact 6x4.5cm format cameras with fixed lenses, built-in flashes and full automation, including focusing… part of the ‘G’ series heritage that’s undoubtedly in the digital era system’s DNA.
The GFX 50S II is an even more concerted effort to target enthusiast-level shooters and they’ll find that, operationally, it’s no different from using a fullframe or crop sensor mirrorless camera. Exposure control is via 256-segment TTL metering using the imaging sensor and with the options of multi-zone, centreweighted average, fully averaged or spot measurements. The spot metering can also be linked to the active focusing point or zone. The mechanical shutter is, not surprisingly, the same new, more compact unit that Fujifilm developed for the 100S and which includes a dedicated shock absorber arrangement to minimise vibrations. It’s rated to 150,000 cycles and has a speed range of 60-1/4000 second with flash sync up to 1/125 second. As usual, it’s supplemented by an electronic shutter that increases the fastest speed to 1/16,000 second, and obviously operates both silently and without vibrations. There’s also the option of the hybrid
‘first curtain electronic shutter’ that also uses the sensor, but ends the exposure with the mechanical shutter’s second set of blades, primarily to enable the use of electronic flash while also reducing noise and vibrations.
The auto exposure modes are supplemented by an AE lock, up to +/-5.0 EV of compensation and the auto bracketing mentioned earlier.
The white balance control options include the additional White Priority and Ambience Priority auto modes that debuted in the X-T4 and are available on the 100S. These supplement the standard auto correction and are designed for shooting under incandescent (a.k.a. tungstentype) lighting, to either correct for, or preserve, the warmer tones. Alternatively, there’s a choice of seven presets (including one for underwater), and up to three
custom measurements can be made. Fine-tuning is available along with manual colour temperature setting over a range of 2,500 to 10,000 degrees Kelvin and, again, auto bracketing.
As noted at the beginning, as it’s also sensor-based, the autofocusing system is carried over from the original 50S, which means it uses contrastdetection exclusively and isn’t in the same league as the latest hybrid speedsters when it comes to tracking. However, the latergen processor delivers new AF algorithms (borrowed from the 100S and optimised to include the more recent G-mount lenses), so the Mark II camera’s system is faster than before and has improved performance in a number of areas.
There’s a total of 425 measuring points, arranged in a 17x25 pattern to give reasonable frame coverage, but you can opt for a 9x13 points pattern
(i.e. 117 points) that makes for faster selection. The area modes start with single point – which is adjustable to one of six sizes – and work up to Zone AF (in clusters of 3x3, 5x5 or 7x7 points) and finally Wide, which uses the whole AF detection area. There’s also an
‘All’ setting for you to quickly cycle through the three area modes using the rear input wheel. Face/ eye detection and auto tracking are provided, the latter working from a nine-point zone so it can detect when a subject moves. Eye-detection can be set to either left or right eye priority, but you don’t get the 100S’s AF-C Custom menu that allows for focus tracking to be better matched to the type of subject movement. Also missing are Fujifilm’s fancy digital versions of the traditional split-image rangefinder and the microprism collar to assist with manual focusing. These are fun, but the conventional magnified image and focus peaking display (now with an additional colour – yellow) work just as well. Low-light sensitivity now extends down to -3.5 EV at ISO 100 and f/1.7.
IN THE HAND
Many rollfilm medium format cameras were real clunkers – especially the SLRs with their big and noisy reflex mirrors – but the GFX 50S II, like the 100S, handles pretty much like a scaled-up version of Fujifilm’s X-T3 or X-T4. The handgrip is comfortable to hold and it feels well balanced even with a fairly heavy lens like the GF 120mm f/4.0 Macro that came with our test camera.
Given the newer, more compact and lighter body, there are quite a few differences compared to the previous model, which make it much more conventional in both its handling and operation. For example, housing the battery in the handgrip – rather than at the camera’s rear – helps with both the balance and the shedding of bulk, but the biggest change is the abandoning of the interchangeable viewfinder arrangement. The smaller body certainly eliminates the need for it in terms of creating a more compact package for storage, but the extra engineering required no doubt added a manufacturing cost that’s become harder to justify over time… especially as it’s likely very few users ever removed the standard EVF module. Nice idea, but…
The 50S II’s fixed EVF, however, has all the same basic specs as the detachable unit, so it has a 1.3cm OLED-type EVF with 3.69 million dots resolution and 100% vertical/horizontal scene coverage. The magnification is 0.77x (35mm equivalent) and refreshes at 85fps.
The monitor is the same 3.2inch TFT LCD panel as on the
GFX 100S with 2.36 million dots resolution and Fujifilm’s threeway tilt adjustment to facilitate an upward tilt when the camera is in the vertical position. It has some touchscreen capabilities, but not a full implementation. However, what’s provided is undoubtedly useful – AF point/ area selection (with or without auto shutter release), ‘touchpad’ AF point selection when using the EVF, the replay/review functions, and the Quick Menu screen. The
Native sensitivity range spans ISO 100 to 12,800 and is fully usable thanks to very low inherent noise levels and well-balanced noise reduction algorithms. Image quality still holds together well at ISO 25,600 too. These images are JPEG/large files taken in the aperture-priority auto mode with the aperture set to f/11, so the exposure time varies to compensate for the ISO adjustments.
Quick Menu can be configured with up to 16 function tiles, with a quick tap taking you there in an instant. There’s also the option of four ‘Touch Function’ actions on the monitor’s touchscreen that are then executed by up, down, left or right swipes. The defaults for these are a full set of histograms (up), a dual-axis level indicator (down), white balance settings (right) and the Film Simulation profiles (left)… otherwise, you can select alternatives from a total of seven menu pages. A total of eight external controls are customisable and, again, there’s a very long list of assignable functions.
The 50S II’s external control layout centres on a main mode dial with front and rear input wheels, a joystick navigator and an extralarge (1.7 inches to be precise) top panel display that Fujifilm calls the “sub monitor”. It can be set to display black-on-white or white-on-black and has built-in illumination. You can cycle between an info display (mostly showing the exposure settings), a pair of nifty ‘virtual’ dials and a real-time histogram. The virtual dials are for shutter speeds and ISO – adjusted via the rear and front input wheels
respectively – and this display also includes the exposure compensation scale and the fitted lens’s maximum aperture. It works pretty well in practice, although traditionalists may still prefer the real ones on the original 50S. Alternatively, you can assign ISO settings to one of the multi-function buttons or use the Quick Menu which is, well, quicker. There’s a dedicated button for engaging exposure compensation so, overall, whatever you’re graduating from, you really shouldn’t have too much difficulty getting to grips with the 50S II. And, if you’re stepping up from an X-T series APS-C camera (or even an X-Pro body), you’ll feel right at home.
The displays are also largely borrowed straight from the current X-mount cameras, so the live view screen can be extensively customised, checking items from a list that runs to 30 in all. These include status icons and read-outs, a level indicator, a guide grid (either 3x3 or 6x4), a real-time histogram, a highlight warning, a focusing distance scale, an exposure compensation scale and the audio channel level meters. You can also designate a number of key icons to be displayed in a larger size, and independently in the EVF or the monitor. When focusing manually, there’s an additional Dual Display option comprising the live view screen accompanied by a small additional panel at the lower right of the finder to show the manual focus assists separately (or, if you prefer, they can be switched around). The image replay/review screen cycles through displays comprising the main image alone, or accompanied by the basic capture date, or with an overlay of RGB/ brightness histograms and a highlight warning. From here you can also access a thumbnail display accompanied by much more capture info plus a brightness histogram, and then a page overlaid by yet more capture details, including the basic lens specs. The main thumbnail page also provides a highlight warning and a focus point indication. Pressing the rear command dial instantly zooms in on this point for checking focus and it’s then possible to scroll around the image using the joystick controller.
The body is a magnesium alloy casting with weather sealing at 60 points and insulation to allow for operation in subzero temperatures down to -10º Celsius. Additionally, the body is a full one millimetre thick around the lens mount to deal with the stresses and strains created by the bigger and heavier G-mount lenses (of which there are a few). The 50S II uses the same 2,200 mAh NP-W235 battery pack as the 100S, which is also shared with the X-T4, and is good for around 455 shots. In-camera recharging is available via the camera’s USB-C port – another convenience over the original model, as is the addition of Bluetooth LE wireless connectivity to supplement Wi-Fi (it arrived on GFX cameras in late 2018 with the 50R).
SPEED AND PERFORMANCE
Using a Panasonic 64GB SDXC UHS-II V90 speed memory card, the GFX 50S II captured a sequence of 61 JPEG/large/superfine files in 20.250 seconds, which equates to a shooting speed of 3.01fps. The camera would have gone on shooting at this speed, but we simply chose to stop the time test arbitrarily. The test files wer sized at around 30MB.
While the contrast-detection autofocus system may be a bit whiskery, it still works well enough in the context of how the 50S
II will most likely be used… it certainly isn’t designed to be a sports camera. Fujifilm is really competing with itself here because it’s been setting the standards for autofocusing performance in digital medium format cameras since the 50S. The 50S II is faster than the previous model and certainly very responsive. The coverage allows for reliable tracking across the frame, provided the subject isn’t moving too erratically. Likewise the eye/face detection, which is also pretty reliable as long as it isn’t challenged by the subject looking away or being blocked, and it only works in the single-shot AF mode. OK, so that’s a few limitations compared to the latest systems in the smaller-format mirrorless cameras, but it can be worked around especially with the more formal styles of portraiture.
However, the image quality is what makes any of the AF shortcomings much easier to forgive, and is where the GFX 50S II makes a compelling statement about its bigger sensor. The level of detailing is simply sublime thanks to exceptional sharpness, but it’s matched by the smoother and cleaner tonality that’s derived from having a higher signal-to-noise ratio and a dynamic range in the order of 14 stops. The dynamic range also delivers exceptional exposure latitude so you can choose to shoot at a lower ISO and underexpose
– to gain even more highlight detail – without any concerns that post-camera brightening will create unacceptable noise in the shadow areas. There’s more of a medium format ‘look’ than you get with the 100 megapixels as it’s not just about the number of pixels but their size, which results in both definition and depth.
As with the X-mount cameras, Fujifilm’s medium format models deliver exceptional JPEG quality straight out of the camera – a key philosophical difference between it and Hasselblad – with all the scope for fine-tuning saturation, contrast and sharpness provided by the
Film Simulation profiles. And as these are proper profiles, the parameters can be adjusted postcapture when shooting RAW files.
Both the 100S and the 50S II have the same native sensitivity range, which is a product of the former’s much newer sensor, but we’re still talking about bigger pixels with better sensitivity here. Consequently, the full native range is usable with images captured at ISO 12,800 still maintaining very good definition and saturation, but obviously both are a whole lot better at the lower sensitivity settings up to ISO 3200 when less noise reduction processing is involved. Everything holds together well at the one-stop ‘push’ to ISO 25,600, so it’s definitely also in your armoury, although the very fine details start to blur. Beyond this setting, though, things deteriorate markedly, but then this territory is pretty much pie-in-thesky on any camera, even those with newer-generation sensors.
Overall, the imaging quality is stunning and it tops the list of why you’d consider buying the
GFX 50S II in preference to a fullframe mirrorless camera. It’s also worth pointing out that the high resolution provides more scope for cropping in-camera – even the 35mm format mode still gives you 30.5 megapixels resolution – while the larger sensor has an inherently shallower depth-of-field, which has implications in many areas of photography where selective focus is a useful creative tool.
THE VERDICT
Medium format cameras priced to appeal to non-professional users were traditionally stripped down to the barest of basics – some even lacked built-in metering – which made the differences with 35mm equipment even more stark. The GFX 50S II has still essentially been built to a price, but you really don’t lose very much at all as a result. It uses the same smaller, all-metal, weather-proofed and ergonomic body has the 100S, and inherits pretty much all the same systems, which means functionality and capability are on a level with the top-end X-mount cameras. Fujifilm’s customised 51.4MP sensor is already proven in the original 50S and the RF-style 50R, and delivers its high resolution with all the added benefits of its bigger pixels… the physics of a larger sensor remain inescapable.
Superior IQ is the primary reason you’ll be buying this camera – for applications such as landscapes, architecture, portraiture and macro photography
– so speed isn’t going to be a primary requirement. More generally though, never has a digital medium format camera been so accessible and affordable… to the point that it simply can’t be ignored. If you’re thinking of moving up to a high-end mirrorless camera – or upgrading an existing one – the GFX 50S II just has to be in the mix, the particular merits of its sensor size evaluated just like any other. Fujifilm has undoubtedly succeeded at making medium format mainstream.