When compared to the GFX 100S, the GFX 100S II channels the energy of a high school diploma standing next to a GED. That’s to say that they can do the same things, but society will deem them still not capable enough to do the crazy tasks asked of them for meager pay. One probably also takes pride in how one performs in gym class. Sure, the newer one can find a subject faster—sort of. If you’re a photographer looking for jobs right now or a semi-professional looking for another full-time job, that sentence should hit hard. The GFX system is primarily targeting portrait, landscape, event, and wedding photographers. The newer camera is trying to dive into the birding world. To further this idea, Fujifilm introduced a phenomenal 500mm f5.6 lens. But to recap, I’m not sure it’s worth the upgrade for everyone — and I’m not so sure it will poach you away from your current camera system.
In our original news post, we took a look at some of the new things that Fujifilm pointed out. One of them was the new texture on the camera. Even though it appears to be completely new to us in pictures, I’ve got some sad news for you. It doesn’t feel any different in the hand for me to say that there is a stark difference. So, as it is, we’re not sure why they changed the structure.
I’ve been shooting with Fujifilm cameras since the X-series began. And truly, this doesn’t feel like what I’ve known from Fujifilm. It feels more like a DSLR made by Canon or Pentax. That’s not necessarily a bad thing — but it doesn’t quite have the elegance of something like the Canon 5D Mk II.
Is it capable of shooting great photos? Yes. But so is every single camera on the market. We reviewed the Fujifilm GFX 100S back in 2021. This feels like the same camera. Translated into more plain language, this feels like a now three-year-old camera. When I tested the 500mm f5.6, I really liked how the 100S felt in my hand. But that was the predecessor to this camera. And I’m not sure how this new one will fare in various shooting situations.
Fujifilm held an event in NYC where influencers, superfans, and some of the press were invited to play with their new wares. Quite honestly, I couldn’t really tell what was different about this camera vs so many of the others. I truly guess that it’s all just what’s on the side. But at the same time, I couldn’t test those specific differences on an NYC rooftop. Fujifilm set up several stations with models and Profoto lights — yet the lights malfunctioned for us. That’s because there were tons of them going off and I didn’t think to bring my own Profoto lights and Fuji transmitters from home.
I took one photo with the GFX 100S II partially because, well, it felt really odd. For ethical reasons, I’ve often set up my own lights, had my own concepts, etc. That’s how we test camera gear in general.
Typically, we never do tests at events like this as they don’t simulate real-life shooting situations. Lots of shoots these days are done in-studio with lots of off-camera strobe lighting. On the Glass app, I found lots of landscape images. In the Fujifilm GFX Facebook group, I don’t see anything like what was presented to us for testing either. Instagram’s #GFX hashtag has nothing like this either.
Truly, the situation we were presented with wasn’t good for testing — and the camera I used couldn’t necessarily find a face. But I’ll blame that on a pre-production issue.
Internally, I’ll confess that Fujifilm is doing a good job with giving photographers great image quality, a larger-than-full-frame sensor, and playing catch up to its own XH2 camera with film simulations. But I really want more. I use a ton of camera systems, and this wouldn’t make me want to leave any of them to come over to GFX. All of my friends who already own a 100S probably wouldn’t need to upgrade to this either as they’re photographing people or landscapes with those cameras.
Maybe my mood and understanding about this camera will completely change once I get the 55mm f1.7 on there, my own Profoto lights, and get to work shooting an assignment with the camera. I had so much fun using the Hasselblad 25V on an assignment. And I’m sure I’d like what the GFX can do as I have with every previous one that I’ve tested. Yet so far, I’m only leaving feeling luke warm about it.