Fujifilm unveils GFX100S II and new GF500mm lens

Front view of the new GFX100S II medium format camera with no lens fitted. (Source: Fujifilm.)

The new GFX100S II camera is designed for professionals and serious enthusiast photographers and features a lightweight body plus a newly developed 102-megapixel CMOS II sensor and the latest X-Processor 5 high-speed image processing engine. Weighing approximately 883 grams, the GFX100S II is the lightest model in the GFX System. Key features include updates to the autofocusing system with AI-based subject detection plus an improved continuous shooting speed of up to 7.0 frames per second. The 5 five-axis In Body Image Stabilisation (IBIS) function has also been improved and supports up to eight-stops of shake correction, the best in its series. The Pixel Shift Multi-Shot function can record 16 raw files, shifting the image sensor by 0.5 pixels between shots. Using the dedicated Pixel Shift Combiner software, these can be combined to generate an image with approximately 400 million pixels. Additionally, in the Real Colour mode, which captures four raw files with a one-pixel shift for each shot, it is possible to generate images with a resolution of 102 million pixels while suppressing false colours, in only one-fourth of the shooting time and data volume compared to the previous model.

The GFX100S II also boasts a high-magnification, high-resolution electronic viewfinder (EVF) with a magnification of 0.84x and 5.76 million dots. The camera can also record 4K/30p 4:2:2 10-bit videos on the camera’s SD card, allowing it to cater for a wide range of users. The new sensor makes the standard ISO100 available in the video mode to deliver higher image quality in video footage. F-log2 recording offers a wide dynamic range of 13+ stops provides increased flexibility in post-production. The GFX100S II is scheduled for release on 17 June at an RRP of AU$8,699.

Angled view of the Fujinon GF500mm f/5.6 R LM OIS WR super-telephoto prime lens. (Source: Fujifilm.)

The new Fujinon GF500mm f/5.6 R LM OIS WR lens, which will be released concurrently with the GFX100S II, covers a 35mm equivalent focal length of 396mm and is the longest in the Fujinon GF line-up. Weighing approximately 1,375 grams, it is compatible with the Fujinon  Teleconverter GF1.4X TC WR, which can extend the effective focal length to the equivalent of 700mm. The optical design contains 21 elements in 14 groups and includes two Super ED lenses and five ED lenses, which are arranged to minimise chromatic aberration. The lens barrel is weather-sealed and the front element of the lens is coated with fluorine, providing water-repellent and anti-smudge capabilities. Built-in optical stabilisation provides up to six stops of shake correction, while internal focusing enables fast and silent autofocusing.  The lens also features a Focus Preset function that allows focus to be shifted to a pre-defined location as well as a Focus Limiter for restricting the focus range. The RRP for the new lens is AU$6,099.

Details of both products can be found at http://www.fujifilm.com/au.

Fujifilm has also announced it is joining the  Coalition for Content Provenance and Authenticity (C2PA) and the Content Authenticity Initiative (CAI) with the intention of developing a system to provide context and history of digital content by providing valuable information, such as the origin and record of content, to the image file. Content Credentials are essentially a “nutrition label” for digital content that attach secure tamper-evident metadata to digital content, which can include important information such as the creator’s name, the date an image was created, what tools were used to create an image and any edits that were made along the way. These capabilities will be increasingly integrated into its GFX and X series products, including the GFX100S II, through firmware updates.