Can’t say this is a complete review as I’ve never used a medium format camera, don’t know much about their history and didn’t really use it to its full capabilities. Such as studio work, or headshots/people photography. I used it primarily for landscape photography but did sneak in a few people shots, including a shameless selfie.
But what I can say, is that I had it long enough to fall in love with it. Which is pretty much the case for every Fujifilm camera I use. The X100F, the XT3 and even the X100V. I say it like that because I feel like I shot down the X100V in my YouTube reviews and blog post here. But really I just stated that it wasn’t enough for me to want to upgrade from my X100F (affiliate link).
Since this isn’t a review, what I’m doing is listing the things that got me hooked. And if the camera wasn’t so expensive and niche, I’d be trading in my other cameras in to buy it.
The Colors
The colors, simply beautiful. They pop! More so than normal with Fuji colors. Sunset purples and pinks are breathtaking.
The colors looked so good, I didn’t even want to convert to Acros (Black/White) Which is something I do a lot of with my other Fuji cameras. It’s such a sweet looking simulation.
For the past 2 weeks or so, I’ve been posting nothing but Fujifilm GRX 50R photos on my Instagram. I can see a drastic difference and don’t really want to go back to my ‘normal’ cameras.
Even though I know the fall back down to earth is coming.
Image Quality
It’s dynamic range and ability to capture contrasty situations is insane!
On day 1, it happened to be really cloudy but still a sunny and overall nice day. I took a walk on Richmond’s T Tyler Potterfield Memorial bridge, got a few shots of the cityscape but nothing quite blew me away.
Until I got to the backend of the walking path. Lots of shadows, sun bursting through the trees and the clouds. The GFX 50R crushed the scene and I was hooked.
Size
Still relatively compact for as much power as it has.
I rented it with one of the smallest primes available for this camera(50mm f/3.5) so I’m sure that didn’t hurt its case. It’s not gonna fit in my pocket like my X100F does, but it’s not supposed to.
And compared to other medium format cameras that I’ve seen online, this is not as bricky. (Is that a word?)
Editing in Post
Editing in post was incredible!
There were so many details I could pull from the shadows. And stops I could increase the exposure by without hurting the image quality.
I used simple Fujifilm’s Provia film simulation the most, with the occasional Classic Chrome.
The Colors
And did I mention the colors! Can’t get over them. So get thrown in here twice.
The Prints OMG!
Last but least, the images look so good in physical form! I got one of my images printed by a local camera shop and was blown away by the image quality. Even at 30x40in.
Check out my reaction/reveal to the print here.
I’ll eventually get the print matted, framed and possibly try to sell it. Or just keep for my own wall. We’ll see.
Wrapping Up and More Sample Photos!
There’s part of me that wants to say the camera wasn’t amazing in low light, but I only had a f/3.5 lens so that may not have helped paint a complete picture. The amount of flexibility the RAW files have also helped make up for this, as details were still able to be brought out from the shadows.
I did have a pretty good understanding of what type of camera I was getting into when I rented it. I knew I wasn’t going to be shooting fast moving objects or capturing video for a client.
This was solely to capture beautiful scenery in a very slow setting. And boy did it impress. If I had an extra $6,000 sitting around, I’d buy this setup in a heartbeat!
I may rent it again though Lensrentals. Maybe when I can get some solid traveling in. This camera would be sweet on my goal trip to Seattle WA/Portland OR. Or maybe even the Big Apple. That classic image of the New York City skyline from Brooklyn would be insane with this camera.
If you have any interest in renting this camera use my discount code “DAP15” and affiliate link here to get 15% off your next rental. Or if you have any interest purchasing the FujiFilm GFX 50R check it out here. I’ll receive a small commission if anything is ordered from either of those links, that’ll help me continue running this website. Cheers!
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