Fujinon GF55mmF1.7 ePz Review: “A Superb Lens and Absolute Pleasure to Use”

ePhotoZine has published its technical review of the Fujinon GF55mmF1.7.

What a great lens to handle, and what fantastic results! Fujifilm have given us here a superb standard lens that will hold its head high amongst the very best. Handling is great as well, perhaps not something that we would pop into a pocket for a casual stroll, but definitely something that would be worth carrying to fulfill the quality requirements for landscapes with incredible detail or flawless architectural shots, even with the night lights of the city glaring at us from every angle.

So, be it weddings, advertising, landscape, architecture, heritage, portraits of any other subject that a standard lens could cover, the Fujifilm Fujinon 55mm f/1.7 R WR will deliver the goods and is an absolute pleasure to use. An Editor’s Choice award is duly given.

Pros

  • Superb sharpness and detail
  • Low CA
  • Virtually no distortion (rectilinear)
  • Constant f/1.7 open aperture value
  • Weather resistant
  • Excellent handling
  • Gorgeous bokeh
  • Modest vignetting

Cons

  • Focusing could be closer
  • Bulky
  • Fair but high cost

You can read the full review at ePhotozine here.

Latest GFX Gear

Fujifilm X100VI (vs X100V and Co) Dynamic Range Test Debunks Myth that Higher Megapixels Mean Lower Dynamic Range

There was one “negative” I’ve heard about the Fujifilm X100VI in several “thoughts” videos and blog posts about it: more megapixel means it will have worst dynamic range and high ISO noise performance over the X100V.

Sadly that’s a myth that is difficult to erase from the photography community, even if hardcore data shows that this is not the case. This is evident (again) in the data available to us today.

According to sensor measurement data of Bill Claff at Photons to Photos, the dynamic range performance of the Fujifilm X100VI is pretty much identical to the one of the X100V, even though it has 40MP as opposed to the 26MP of the X100V.

And if you’re concerned about high ISO noise, opt for the X100VI rather than the X100V. The higher megapixel count results in smaller color noise blocks compared to the X100V. This not only enhances the sharpness of your images but also allows for more effective noise reduction in post-processing, as discussed in detail here.

The real question is: why does the Fujifilm X-H2 have even better dynamic range than the X100VI at base ISO, despite using the same sensor, and why there are slight differences between various 40MP sensor cameras.

You can access the data and make your own comparisons at Photons to Photos.

Camera Model

Maximum PDR

Low Light ISO

Low Light EV
Fujifilm X100VI 10.44 3287 10.04
Fujifilm X100V 10.44 3728 10.22
Fujifilm X-H2 10.75 2854 9.83
Fujifilm X-T5 10.43 2230 9.48

Cosina Voigtlander COLOR-SKOPAR 18mm F2.8 Aspherical Lens Announced – First Look and Samples

Cosina has just announced the Voigtlander COLOR-SKOPAR 18mm F2.8 Aspherical lens, which will be released in February exclusively for Fujifilm X mount. It comes with electronic contacts (but no AF). Full product page below.

Definitely in line in terms of looks and feel with the lovely Voigtländer ULTRON 27mm F2.

Usually the first to get new Voigtländer lenses for shipping is Voigtlander USA Distributor CameraQuest, which should list this lens for sale soon at their Amazon Storefront page.

There is already a first look with sample images available at fujifanboys here.

Full Product Page + Compatible Fujifilm Cameras

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Fujifilm GFX100 II Autofocus Tests, GF55mmF1.7 and GF Tilt Shift Reviews – The Latest and Greatest GFX Roundup

This is a roundup about the latest and greatest Fujifilm GFX gear.

GFX100 II Blog Posts

  • zhuanlan (Chinese) – GFX100II test. Shows person running towards camera and they got “at least” 80% hit rate
  • benosaradzic – Fujifilm GFX100II, the best medium format camera just got better
  • peterziegler – Sabawald with GFX50R
  • blog.kasson – GFX100 II pixel shift
  • alikgriffin – Kipon Baveyes Contax 645-GFX AF 0.8X Adapter Review (used on GFX100 II)

GF Lenses Blog Posts

Videos (GFX100 II + latest GF Lenses)

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Lightroom vs Capture One for X-T5 files :: Film Simulation Prompts for AI Images :: RAW Power Fujifilm GFX100 II Support [ X-Trans Roundup & Beyond]

X-Trans Roundup and Beyond

Fujifilm colors are loved by many. And it looks like they can be useful also when you try to apply a certain look to your AI created images. Andrea, from SonyAlphaRumors, used Film Simulation names for his AI images and you can see the results in the video above (and also here).

Blog Posts & Info

  • keithwee – Luminar Neo review – my baby steps in embracing AI-enabled editing software.
  • echenique – heif: the new jpeg or raw?
  • petapixel – Photomator and Pixelmator Now Support Fujifilm Compressed RAW
  • FR-Readers that use the focus bracket feature for focus bracketing may be interested that Helicon version 8. A FR-reader has used it with GFX 50r files and Capture One. The transfer of file from C1 to Helicon still takes a while but the stacking process in Helicon appears to run a bit quicker.

RAW Power

RAW Power added support for Fujifilm GFX100 II. RAW Power is an App that brings Aperture style interface and functions to Mac Photos (it can also run as standalone). Above you can see an image I took and that I tweaked using RAW Power directly in my Photos App. You can open RAW power and edit within the Photos App by clicking “edit” in the Photos App, then click the three little dots and select RAW Power (image instruction here)

Videos

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