Who Needs 102 MP?

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Mike Farley
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Who Needs 102 MP?

Postby Mike Farley » Thu 23 May 2019, 08:24

Not many, I suspect, but that is what Fuji is offering with its new GFX 100 model. And are bragging rights really worth the hassle of having to deal with such large files? Having spoken earlier this year to an architectural photographer who uses a top end Hasselblad, the dynamic range and high ISO performance that is probably available from the sensor is more important. It means that it is easier to get the shot in one exposure rather than having to blend them afterwards. Wheraes with the previous model he was limited to ISO 100, he can now shoot at up to ISO 800. None of his work was being used to create large images. Mostly the photographs he produces appear in appear brochures or online.

https://www.dpreview.com/news/117936837 ... 00-dollars
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Mike Farley
(Visit my website and blog - www.mikefarley.net)
Mike Farley
Posts: 7316
Joined: Tue 11 Sep 2012, 16:38
Contact:

Re: Who Needs 102 MP?

Postby Mike Farley » Tue 28 May 2019, 09:12

For me, the most interesting thing about this camera is not the 102 MP sensor, but the new control interface. Since the launch of the X100, Fuji has implemented traditional controls based on physical dials. That has all changed with the introduction of the GFX 100. There is a simplified control on the left of the top plate which sets the drive mode, but the dials on the right have gone. Instead, there is a status LCD reminiscent of the one on the X-H1 but which does far more since it allows the missing dials to be replicated virtually. There is also a new below the main rear LCD which shows the status of the camera. Somehow, the previews* have not made much of this but I expect it to generate a lot of excitement when reviewers get their hands on the final production models.

It is easier to see than describe and the best one I have found is at Imaging Resource: https://www.imaging-resource.com/PRODS/ ... x-100A.HTM.

Fuji is not the first manufacturer to have a radical rethink about the camera interface. For some years since the launch of its S model, on a number of its new cameras Leica has implemented unlabelled buttons which change function. I have shot extensively over the period of a few days with a Leica S, so have some experience of it. While it works, I did not find the interface intuitive and never really got used to it. Without having the camera in hand it is difficult to know, but superficially the Fuji control paradigm appears to be an improvement.

One thing which has puzzled me is that following the launch of the X-T3 last year and more recently the X-T30, both of which share the new sensor and and AF improvements, Fuji has not launched a replacement for the X-H1. If the rumour sites are to be believed, the X-H2 is unlikely to appear this year. Similarly, there is no indication of when the X-E4 will be launched, nor the X-Pro3 for that matter. The significance of the GFX 100 is not the massive sensor, but that it could indicate an innovative new direction for how Fuji implements the controls for new cameras in the rest of its range.

* To my surprise, the usually reliable DPReview website makes no mention of the virtual controls in its hands on article.
Regards

Mike Farley
(Visit my website and blog - www.mikefarley.net)

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