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Yes, The Fujifilm GFX 50R Survived 45 Minutes in the Rain and Kept Working

Chris Gampat
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12/05/2018
3 Mins read
Processed with RNI Films. Preset 'Fuji Astia 100F v.5'

Last Updated on 12/05/2018 by Mark Beckenbach

We took the Fujifilm GFX 50R for walk in the rain; it survived the downpour without any fail.

As part of our recently announced review testing parameters change, we decided to hold the Fujifilm GFX 50R to the claims of weather sealing; specifically with rain and dust resistance. Over the past weekend, we walked around Brooklyn in pretty heavy downpours with it that otherwise left our jackets most moist. The results? Not only did the Fujifilm GFX 50R perform very well on its weather sealing test, but it also excelled in a number of other areas too.

Speaking very candidly as a Rangefinder camera lover, this could very well be my favorite camera since the Canon 5D Mk II.

Here’s a video in this Instagram post showing the camera surviving the elements!

First off, you’re probably going to ask yourself, “Who the hell is going to use this camera in the rain? Ugh!! WTF GAMPAT WHY DON’T YOU DO SOMETHING USEFUL LIKE PHOTOGRAPH CATS!!!” Well, if you’re doing this, I’m going to respectfully disagree. The Fujifilm GFX 50R is designed for photojournalists, wedding photographers, documentary shooters, street photographers, landscape shooters, studio shooters, etc. A recent new trend in street photography has been to go out and shoot in the rain because you get a completely different world that’s painterly, nigh-ethereal, and almost romantic. So in that case, shouldn’t the camera be able to withstand conditions where these photographers may use the camera? I mean, why pixel peep if you’re never going to upload your images in full resolution online? At least this is significantly more practical!

Just take a look at this video we shot!

I digress though! The Fujifilm GFX 50R was not only capable of holding its own against some very heavy rains here in NYC, but it also autofocused on scenes with no fail. I’ve been using it with the 45mm f2.8 GF lens which is equally as weather sealed. To make things even more difficult, I went out shooting during a very dark time of night and then again during the early morning. While the Fujifilm GFX 50R is pretty big, it’s not heavy at all. (The camera and lens combo feels lighter than the Fujifilm X-T3 and the 8-16mm f2.8 R WR LM that we’re testing right now.) With this camera slung around my chest, it feels almost like I’m holding a modern, beefier, digital version of a Fujifilm GW690 III or a Mamiya 6. I own both of those cameras and they’re still my favorite medium format film cameras.

What’s even nicer is the controls. I thought that the dial around the shutter release (which is by default set to ISO control) would turn a bit too easily in the way that it happens sometimes with both Sony and Canon. But I was pleasantly surprised to learn it didn’t at all. The shutter dial stays where it needs to and the aperture ring also holds its own. By far, the Fujifilm GFX 50R is shaping up to be the single best rangefinder style digital camera that I’ve ever used.

Here are some image samples with EXIF data in tact. We’re still working on our review, but stay tuned.

autofocus camera Fujifilm GFX 50R photojournalism rain rangefinder review test weather sealing weather-sealed
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Chris Gampat is the Editor in Chief, Founder, and Publisher of the Phoblographer. He provides oversight to all of the daily tasks, including editorial, administrative, and advertising work. Chris's editorial work includes not only editing and scheduling articles but also writing them himself. He's the author of various product guides, educational pieces, product reviews, and interviews with photographers. He's fascinated by how photographers create, considering the fact that he's legally blind./ HIGHLIGHTS: Chris used to work in Men's lifestyle and tech. He's a veteran technology writer, editor, and reviewer with more than 15 years experience. He's also a Photographer that has had his share of bylines and viral projects like "Secret Order of the Slice." PAST BYLINES: Gear Patrol, PC Mag, Geek.com, Digital Photo Pro, Resource Magazine, Yahoo! News, Yahoo! Finance, IGN, PDN, and others. EXPERIENCE: Chris Gampat began working in tech and art journalism both in 2008. He started at PCMag, Magnum Photos, and Geek.com. He founded the Phoblographer in 2009 after working at places like PDN and Photography Bay. He left his day job as the Social Media Content Developer at B&H Photo in the early 2010s. Since then, he's evolved as a publisher using AI ethically, coming up with ethical ways to bring in affiliate income, and preaching the word of diversity in the photo industry. His background and work has spread to non-profits like American Photographic Arts where he's done work to get photographers various benefits. His skills are in SEO, app development, content planning, ethics management, photography, Wordpress, and other things. EDUCATION: Chris graduated Magna Cum Laude from Adelphi University with a degree in Communications in Journalism in 2009. Since then, he's learned and adapted to various things in the fields of social media, SEO, app development, e-commerce development, HTML, etc. FAVORITE SUBJECT TO PHOTOGRAPH: Chris enjoys creating conceptual work that makes people stare at his photos. But he doesn't get to do much of this because of the high demand of photography content. / BEST PHOTOGRAPHY TIP: Don't do it in post-production when you can do it in-camera.
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