USER REVI EW | FUJ I F I LM GFX1 00
“SUBJECTIVELY, IMAGES FROM THE GFX100 ARE REALLY EXCELLENT”
IMAGES The sensor window is slightly smaller than that of the Alexa 65 camera
DCI4K 43.8 x 23.2mm
35mm FORMAT [ FULL FRAME ] DCI4K
SUPER 35mm FORMAT
shadows and rich detail in highlights, so it’s a real-world value that is useful once you get into the grade. Twelve stops is very impressive – up with the best cameras out there – and usually equates to around 15 stops in manufacturers’ tests. Interestingly, the camera features in-body image stabilisation, so it’ll work with your PL mount lenses! It works very well, making the GFX100 perfectly usable handheld. TIMECODE WORKAROUND There is an onboard microphone, and a mode that disables all the physical controls and maps them onto the touchscreen LCD to prevent clunks when changing settings. Of course, you aren’t going to use the onboard mic (are you?), so there’s a 3.5mm jack for an external mic, as well as a headphone jack. There is limited time code support (you can set a time code and use record-run or TOD) but I simply used Timecode Systems’ excellent UltraSync units to record LTC to that microphone input, which kept an external audio recorder in perfect sync. IMAGE QUALITY So much for all the objective tests. Subjectively, the images from the
This is a beautiful camera. It’s well made – built for the professional market – handles well for a DSLR and produces excellent images. I did manage to get it to crash once – rebooting involved removing the battery sled. I was recording very short clips and changing aperture manually between each (for the dynamic range tests). This was using the latest firmware (v1.01), but I couldn’t repeat the crash. The only real problem I see is the price. DOPs may keep a DSLR in their bag for grabbing B roll or to give to an assistant as a second camera, but at £10,000, the GFX100 is too expensive for that role. However, it may find a place in higher-end productions, for example as a second camera to an Arri Alexa 65 – where the large sensor and good dynamic range should match Arri’s flagship well. Similarly, there’s a growing market for photographers capturing a mix of still and moving images, for which this camera would be an excellent tool.
43.8 x 32.9mm
GFX100 are really excellent. Native ISO for video is 800, and there is little to no noise visible. Of course, noise increases up to the maximum ISO of 12,800, but it’s quite usable at a pinch. There is, of course, excellent image sharpness at all recording resolutions. By sticking to the higher bit rates, and 10-bit HEVC, the camera produced lovely, creamy images with good shadow and highlight detail. Colour rendition was also excellent, though I found that reds can be a little flat with that Eterna emulsion simulation. It was easily fixed in the grade, and the rendition of other colours and tones was so lovely, I stuck to this setting. I am sure the footage from the GFX100 would cut with any ‘real’ video camera perfectly well. It’s very hard to believe that you are seeing pictures from a DSLR.
98 DEF I N I T ION | SEPTEMBER 20 1 9
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