Fujifilm GFX 50S review

Before we launch into how it performs, let’s first remind ourselves why the Fujifilm GFX 50S has created such a stir. The primary reason is that inside its weather-sealed magnesium alloy body is a 51.4million-pixel CMOS sensor that measures 43.8 x 32.9mm. That’s about 1.7x the size of the sensors in ‘full-frame’ 35mm format cameras like the Nikon D810 and Canon 5DS. It means that the pixels are larger than on the 5DS’s sensor and that’s a recipe for high-quality images.

Another cause for excitement is that, just like Fuji’s X-series cameras, the GFX has a mirrorless design and that enables it be a compact 147.5 x 94.2 x 91.4mm (5.81 x 3.71 x 3.6 inches). It also means that instead of an optical viewfinder there’s a 0.5-inch electronic viewfinder (EVF) with 3.69 million dots. It shows images as they will be captured, taking factors such as the exposure, white balance and Film Simulation mode into account.

Further good news about the viewfinder is that can be removed to make the camera even smaller, and images are composed on the 3.2inch 2,360,000-dot dual-tilting, touch-screen. Alternatively, you can fit Fuji’s EVF-TL1 Tilt Adaptor between the camera and the viewfinder to enable the EVF to be moved from 0° to 90° when shooting in landscape format and -45° to +45° when shooting in portrait format, making it much easier and more comfortable to use the viewfinder when shooting from range of angles.

Build and Handling

If you’re familiar with the Fujifilm X-T2, imagine it after it’s been working out and you won't be too far off picturing the GFX. It’s larger, but not exactly huge and it’s light enough (920g including EVF) to use hand-held for long periods of time. The front grip is also large and ergonomically shaped so you’ll find it a comfortable experience.

On the top of the camera, there’s a sensitivity (ISO) dial on the left and a shutter speed dial on the right. Unlike the X-T2 there’s no exposure compensation dial, but there’s a button near the shutter release that can be depressed and then one of the two command dials rotated to set exposure compensation.

The sensitivity dial has settings running from ISO 100-12,800 in 1/3 stops but you can set the GFX to an extended range of ISO 50-102,400 via the menu. Setting the dial to C lets you select the setting you want by pressing then turning the front command dial.  

There are also three automatic sensitivity options that can be assigned for use once the dial is set to the ‘A’ setting. These automatic options let you define the default and maximum sensitivity value along with the minimum shutter speed. We found this was a great way of working and tended to stick with the automatic setting during much of our time with the camera.

Meanwhile, the shutter speed dial has settings running from 1 second to 1/4000 second, with 1/125sec being clearly shown as the maximum flash sync speed. There are also B and T (Bulb and Time) options for shooting long exposures. Turning the dial to the red ‘A’ tells the camera to set shutter speed automatically.

Fujifilm’s new G-mount lenses which are designed for use with the GFX have an aperture ring. This allows you set a specific aperture value or when it’s set to ‘A’ the camera will set aperture automatically for you. If both the shutter speed dial and the aperture ring are set to ‘A’, the camera is in program mode. If only one is set to ‘A’ the camera is in aperture priority or shutter priority mode.

Although there’s sometimes a slight shimmer to remind you that the viewfinder is electronic, it generally provides a really nice clear view so that should you need to focus manually, you can. There’s also focus peaking available should you need it.

If you want to travel light and go without the viewfinder, or if you’re shooting from an awkward angle, the tilting screen gives a clear view and doesn’t suffer badly from reflections or ghosting. The dual tilting mechanism is like the one on the X-T2, with a clip at the bottom and left side of the screen to release it. It takes a little while to get used to but it won’t be long before you find you’re able to get the screen at just the angle you need.

The screen is touch-sensitive allowing you to zoom quickly in and out of images with a double tap to check sharpness. You can set the focus point by tapping on the screen but there’s also a mini-joystick style controller to shift focus point just like on the X-T2 and X-Pro2 and it works a treat.

Performance

We’ve shot quite a lot with the GFX now and it still continues to impress us when we check the sharpness of images. There’s an impressive level of detail and it seems to emphasise the desired fall-off in sharpness when you shoot at wide apertures to restrict depth of field and isolate your subject. The large sensor ensures that you can really blur backgrounds when you want to.

Those large pixels on the sensor do a great job with helping to keep noise levels down and although it makes sense to try to stick to the lower sensitivity values if you can, the results at the standard maximum, ISO 12,800, are very good indeed. As you’d expect, raw files have a little more detail than simultaneously captured jpegs, but the jpegs still look very good.

The GFX isn’t intended to compete with cameras like the Canon EOS-1DX Mark II or Nikon D5 for speed but the autofocusing is fast for a medium format camera. It may start to hunt a bit when light levels fall but it usually finds its target if there’s some contrast. If it struggles, try increasing the size of the active AF area to give it more chance of latching on.

Like the X-Pro2 and X-T2, the GFX has Film Simulation modes that enable it to capture attractive looking images with a range of different styles. The automatic white balance system can also be relied upon in most situations to capture natural looking colours.

While the GFX’s 256-zone metering system does a good job with exposures in its Multi setting, raw files have enough dynamic range to allow you to underexpose a little to ensure all the highlight detail is captured if you need to. We found that we could successfully brighten shadows by 2EV, but some scenes may allow for even more brightening.

The GFX 50S is mainly intended as a stills camera but it’s still possible to shoot Full HD video with and the results look very good with footage generally resembling the camera’s images.

Verdict

While it understandably isn’t quite as fast, the GFX is as easy to use as one of Fujifilm's APS-C format X-Series cameras yet it delivers images that make its larger sensor and high pixel count clearly evident. There’s bags of detail, excellent dynamic range and attractive colours.

Thanks to Fuji’s traditional control arrangement and the sensible user interface it’s also a very enjoyable camera to use, so while a professional photographer might want it for a particular job, an amateur photographer may like to hire it for a treat or a special occasion.

The Fujifilm GFX 50S and the full range of GF lenses are available to hire now. 

Sample images