Fujifilm GFX100 II Pre-Orders Exceed Fujifilm’s Expectations

Fujifilm has just released an official notice where they inform customers that pre-orders for the Fujifilm GFX100 II are higher than what they expected and that “it may take some time” for the product to be delivered.

Fujifilm is currently manufacturing 1,500 samples monthly. Apparently not really enough to satisfy the initial demand.

I have quickly tested the Fujifilm GFX100 II and the GF55mm f/1.7 and you can read my first impressions below:

Notice regarding supply of mirrorless digital camera “FUJIFILM GFX100 II”

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My Experience with the Fujinon GF55mm f/1.7 – Crafted to Trigger GAS

On Saturday, Fujifilm had one of its Italian Roadshow gear presentation in the lovely town of Trento just 30 minutes car drive away from my home.

Much to my surprise, they already had the Fujifilm GFX100II and the Fujinon GF55mm f/1.7 R WR there for testing. And I could test it for about 30 minutes only.

Now, initially I wrote an article that contained both, my GFX100II and my GF55mmF1.7 first impressions.

But I decided to split it up in two parts for one reason: the launch of the Fujifilm GFX100II has overshadowed what I believe is a true gem of a lens: the Fujinon GF55mm f/1.7.

So much so, that I believe Fujifilm should have given this lens a separate launch date.

But that’s how it is.

And that’s why FujiRumors wants to bring the GFX system world into the right balance again by giving the wonderful Fujinon GF55mmF1.7 the space it deserves.

So, here are my first impressions without GFX100II distraction.

Fujinon GF55mmF1.7 R WR – Perfection Achieved

INSANE!

I shot everything at f/1.7.

The reason?

It was so sharp wide open, that I was scared to stop down and to hurt my eyes with even sharper images (if that is even possible).

The good thing?

If you need to take a rest from all that sharpness, then just look at the background of the image and enjoy a massive relaxation for your eyes thanks to a wonderful, dreamy-creamy and buttery-smooth bokeh.

And the autofocus?

Surprisingly fast autofocus for a lens without linear motor in it. I mean, I used it initially on my Fujifilm GFX100S, and my first reaction was to read on the lens front element if there is really not “LM” (linear motor) written on it. I was very positively surprised. Having had experience with the GF80mmF1.7, I can say the GF55mmF1.7 is a significant step up compared to it.

Sure, Linear Motor lenses might still be faster. But shooting with the GF55mmF1.7 won’t be a frustrating experience in terms of autofocus. Actually quite a pleasing one it was for me.

I have also made a tracking test using the Fujifilm GFX100II and GF55mmF1.7. I will share the results in the second part of the review where I talk about the Fujifilm GFX100II, because I need to talk about settings, test conditions to put the results in proper context. So watch out for that one coming soon.

Two problems!

  1. The depth of field is very shallow. Used on my GFX100S, I had images where the top of the eyelash was in focus and the eye pupil itself not (see sample below). If you are going to shoot it wide open it certainly will help to have the best autofocus possible. And the best autofocus possible you get is with the GFX100II.
  2. True story: after my third “wow” while I was testing it and reviewing the images, my wife said: “but you are not going to buy it, right?” So now we have a problem. A problem that hopefully a nice dinner in a fancy restaurant and a couple of flowers will be able to solve.

Overall Conclusion

Not the lightest lens on the world, but it is also not too big for an f/1.7 lens. Well balanced overall with my GFX100S.

At f/1.7 it is so sharp that, true story, my wife complaint when she saw the images because she could notice every single little imperfection of her skin.

They say Bokeh is subjective, but this one is objectively very good.

Fujifilm said during X Summit that they use the aspherical lens manufactured with ultra precision resulting in the reduction of axial chromatic aberration and onion ring effect. it is also their first GF lens with 11 aperture blades for near perfect circular aperture.

If you love the versatility of the 40mm-ish full frame equivalent focal length, then this is the one!

And look, I own the Fujinon GF50mm f/3.5 and love it for its fantastic portability. But versatility comes not only from size, but also from speed. And at f/1.7 the GF55mmF1.7 opens up other possibilities in terms of low light performance and subject separation that make it just more suitable and flexible for more use cases.

I can totally recommend this lens if all you want in your life is the humble need for optical perfection in your images :D.

That’s at least my impression after 30 minutes of use. I had no time to test chromatic aberration, focus breathing and what not. So if those are critically important things for you wait for further reviews. Although what I’ve read so far is that also chromatic aberration is well controlled and Fujifilm actually emphasised during launch at the X summit the “reduction of axial chromatic aberration” and “less color fringe“.

Samples

Down below I will share three samples. All taken at f/1.7 using the Fujifilm GFX100S.

  • Sample 1 + Crop = shows how impressively sharp the performance is at f/1.7
  • Sample 2 + Crop = shows how shallow the DOF is and how that can lead to slightly out of focus images
  • Sample 3 = enjoy the smooth bokeh background

Get Yours

And the Rest of the New Gear

Capture One 23 (16.2.4) Adds Fujifilm GFX100 II and Latest GF lens Support

Capture One 23 (16.2.4) has added support for the Fujifilm GFX100 II and for the following G mount lenses:

The latest Gear

Fujifilm GFX100 II has 21% Better Autofocus Tracking Accuracy than GFX100S and We are All saying it Wrong!

Autofocus Boost

Fujifilm USA manager Michael Bulbenko has shared a video called “Understanding Fujifilm GFX100II“.

Now, I will let you watch the video below, where he runs over the specs.

But there is one thing that Michael Bulbenko says that I’d like to hightlight because I haven’t seen it mentioned anywhere else:

  • better autofocus accuracy: “the GFX100II has a 21% improvement in the hit rate of locking on to focus compared to GFX100S“

That’s of course a welcome improvement if you shoot in autofocus continous.

More accuracy combined with higher frames per second (8fps on GFX100II vs 5fps on GFX100S) will lead to more keepers.

But I dare to say that, if you are like me and shoot with your GFX in single AF or max 3 fps, then the 21% improvement are welcome, but not crucial.

What’s more important , for my shooting style, is the new autofocus algorithm and how reliable it is in tracking eyes/faces/subjects before I even press the shutter button.

My X-T5 is a huge step forward in this regard compared to anything else I owned before in the X series.

If the GFX100II has the same “confidence”, then this would be a big deal for me.

We are Saying it Wrong

Also curious: throughout the entire video Michael calls the GFX100II “the second” and not “two“.

And just today, Fujifilm USA released one of their fun product launch videos where they underline again that it’s “the second” and not “two”.

I guess the memo did not arrive to Fujifilm Japan, because during the Fujifilm X Summit, the Japanese managers kept calling it Fujifilm GFX100 “two” ;).

With that said, you can enjoy both videos down below.

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