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Author Topic: Fuji GX 680 III with digital back need info and help  (Read 29973 times)

Pics2

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Fuji GX 680 III with digital back need info and help
« on: December 13, 2011, 05:22:45 am »

This is my first post here.
I've been looking for digital solution with tilt and shift options (for product studio photography) for a long time (jumping from FF Dslr, so zero experience with digital backs).
Now, Fuji GX 680 III with digital back looks like good solution.
But, I would appreciate any info and experience on this set up.
I don't know how good Fujinon lenses are for digital sensors, how camera behaves during digital capture(since, it wasn't build with digital backs in mind). I'm little bit suspicious since the camera's price on the market is quite low.
Is there any option for adapters except this
http://www.kapturegroup.com/leaf/leaf.html#fujilink
which looks very expensive.
Thank you all in advance!
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Peter Devos

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Re: Fuji GX 680 III with digital back need info and help
« Reply #1 on: December 13, 2011, 06:09:49 am »

Hi, before i switched to the Hartbleicam HB1 i used the Fuji GX680 for all still live work in studio. I had the kapture group FujiGX to Hassie H adapterplate with new hasselblad style viewscreen. This works perfect. I think the Fuji is the best kept secret on the market. Peolple who have never serously worked with one will say that its viewfinder is to big, the camera is to clumsy, it is to heavy, lenses are bad........ all said by people who do not have ever used it an a serious level.
But, it is very importent to have your system aligned very wel: i used it with the hasselblad adapterplate and the standard view screen.... in one word horror! Not a single sharp picture. But after adjusting tolerances, it also produced top images. With the Kapture group H adapter it was perfect, better than any system i ever used, and i used about every camera set-up. To me, only the Hartbleicam HB1 tops the Fuji at this moment. Most lenses are excellent.
Kapture group adaptor plates are 50 percent cheaper at the moment, so almost for free :-)
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Pics2

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Re: Fuji GX 680 III with digital back need info and help
« Reply #2 on: December 13, 2011, 06:32:05 am »

Thank you for quick reply!
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Pics2

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Re: Fuji GX 680 III with digital back need info and help
« Reply #3 on: December 13, 2011, 06:51:08 am »

Peter,
one more question if you use tilt and shift for your work.
How do you find TS  movements with TS lenses on Hartbleicam, is it better or not than Fuji GX bellows movements?
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Peter Devos

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Re: Fuji GX 680 III with digital back need info and help
« Reply #4 on: December 13, 2011, 07:28:49 am »

on the HB cam i use various Tilt shift lenses, from the 17mm canon to the 135mm Super rotator. I also have a bellows to use. For fast telework, tabletop with lenses from 50mm up, nothing, simply nothing beats the Fuji GX... and you buy them for peanuts. Maybe because so many people who have never actually worked with one wrote so much negative things about it.
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Pics2

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Re: Fuji GX 680 III with digital back need info and help
« Reply #5 on: December 13, 2011, 09:52:20 am »

Great info.
Thanks once again!
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rquindry

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Re: Fuji GX 680 III with digital back need info and help
« Reply #6 on: December 13, 2011, 11:03:41 am »

I purchased a GX 680 III about six months ago and love it. It is very big and heavy, but that doesn't matter as it's always used in the studio for product work. I have it on a geared tripod head and thats' an exceleent combination.
I'm using a Kapture group - rotating / sliding adapter - Excellent.
Using a Hasselblad CFV digital back - work perfectly - in fact, the CFV backs are the best ones for this camera as they don't require any additional electrical boxes to work.

Fujinon lenses are excellent - I think better than Zeiss.

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Doug Peterson

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Re: Fuji GX 680 III with digital back need info and help
« Reply #7 on: December 13, 2011, 05:41:48 pm »

I'd steer you away from the 680 if used with a Phase One back. See here for an extensive troubleshooting guide indicating the number of things that can go wrong:
http://www.captureintegration.com/2008/04/18/procedure-to-setup-troubleshoot-fuji-680iii/

I've not personally used it with a Leaf back but I hear it's significantly less troublesome.

You can also check out the Cambo X-2 for tilt/swing. It is not directly comparable to the Fuji body - they are very different animals. 

Doug Peterson (e-mail Me)
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Pics2

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Re: Fuji GX 680 III with digital back need info and help
« Reply #8 on: December 14, 2011, 03:26:28 am »

I'm thinking about Hasselblad CFV 39, and I hope there would be less problems, since this back, as RQuindry mentioned, doesn't need additional electrical devices.
But, I'm still worried, since it looks like many things can go wrong putting all these different manufacturers parts together (back, adapter, body, lenses). It's still a lot of money for average Dslr user, and I live in a "remote" part of the world, where it's not easy to sell these stuff back or to fix. Still can't decide.
Thank you all for your input.
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Peter Devos

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Re: Fuji GX 680 III with digital back need info and help
« Reply #9 on: December 14, 2011, 04:37:07 am »

Hasselblad CFV is super. :) but you will need a special sync cable. it is a normal sync cable with a built is "thyristor" i believe. With a Hasselblad back you do not need the Kapturegroup control box but the sync cable for the GX680. As for the adapterplate, you can also try a cheap chinese one. I had one for my scanback and it worked perfect for $98,00.
« Last Edit: December 14, 2011, 05:44:40 am by Peter Devos »
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Pics2

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Re: Fuji GX 680 III with digital back need info and help
« Reply #10 on: December 14, 2011, 07:24:37 am »

Peter, that Chinese adapter is good solution, too. Kapture Group has clearance sale with 50% on all Fuji 680 adapters. It looks like they are not going to produce it anymore (Fuji 680 adapters).
Where can I find the sync cable you mentioned?
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rquindry

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Re: Fuji GX 680 III with digital back need info and help
« Reply #11 on: December 14, 2011, 08:20:02 am »

I'm using a CFV-16 back with no special cables - just the ones that came with the back.
There are two cables that come with the CFV backs - one plugs into the camera flash sync. the other comes out from the back, and your flash plugs into it.

Never a problem. Simple as can be.
Don't know about the quality of the Chinese backs, but the exact thickness of the back is critical so that when you are focusing in the finder you get the same focus on the back. My Kapture back is perfect.





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williamrohr

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Re: Fuji GX 680 III with digital back need info and help
« Reply #12 on: December 15, 2011, 12:49:16 am »

I have used the GX III with a betterlight back for several years and have had great results.  Betterlight makes the adapter but stopped producing them a couple of years ago (but may still have some in stock).  Of course, with the betterlight back you can use it with any 4 X 5 camera and have available even more swings, tilts, etc. and some wonderful examples of 4 X 5 cameras can be had for a song.  I've tried my MF backs but the betterlight back gives the best results (but of course the object can't be moving)..Bill
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tnabbott

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Re: Fuji GX 680 III with digital back need info and help
« Reply #13 on: December 15, 2011, 01:11:12 am »

I had a GX680 III with various lenses, which I am in the process of selling.  The GX680 lenses are the best I have encountered in Medium Format.  The next closest is the Mamiya RZ lenses.  Fujinon lenses have great coatings and are super sharp.  They remind me of Canon L glass in the way they draw with light.  I highly recommend the system and the lenses!
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Pics2

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Re: Fuji GX 680 III with digital back need info and help
« Reply #14 on: December 15, 2011, 05:16:52 am »

I'm very close to buying the set up with CFV 39 and Kapture group adapter. Maybe I'll post few pics here when I put all the parts together.
Thank you all!
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siebel

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Re: Fuji GX 680 III with digital back need info and help
« Reply #15 on: December 16, 2011, 11:46:57 pm »

I have a couple of GX680 II bodies and the 65, 125, 180 and 300mm lenses. I used this for many years with my P25 and a Kapture Group One Shot solution for wake-up and sync. This system rocked and was my go-to platform for my food and still life work.
When my batteries for the camera died and I discovered I could not buy new ones, I simply cut the base off one of the batteries, took the top off a Nikon charger, glued the two together and Viola! I now have a battery adapter that takes Nikon batteries (pinched from the D700 gathering dust in my cupboard).
Once I replaced my P25 with a P65+, and now the IQ180, I no longer need the Kapture Group One Shot solution. Using the backs in zero latency mode works fine. As I have also moved from V mount to M645 mount, I bought one of the Chinese adapters available on eBay and this works fine.
The 300 suffers from vibration issues due to the massive mirror, even when mounted on my massive Foba head and large camera stand. The other lenses are superb and have large image circles too. This is one of the most versatile systems around, but you have to get your head around the sheer bulk. I bought my system new in 1995 and it served in a high-volume studio environment for 7 years without missing a beat. For sheer ease and speed of use when using shifts, it's hard to beat. Full frontal movements with reflex viewing - what's not to love about that?
Cheers,
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Bryan Siebel

In the end, it's all about the image.
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Pics2

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Re: Fuji GX 680 III with digital back need info and help
« Reply #16 on: December 17, 2011, 09:39:08 am »

Thank you Siebel,
and fantastic work on your site.
Are these food pictures done with Fuji? It looks really good.
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siebel

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Re: Fuji GX 680 III with digital back need info and help
« Reply #17 on: December 17, 2011, 11:23:07 am »

Thanks for the kind words about my work.
Yes, all the food was shot on the GX680. So were many of the portraits. I often tilt focus through the eyes.
I should also mention that when working for extended periods in zero latency mode, it is important to switch off the back when not actually shooting. Leaving it on builds up heat and this eventually produces noise.
Cheers,
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Bryan Siebel

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hsteeves

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Re: Fuji GX 680 III with digital back need info and help
« Reply #18 on: December 18, 2011, 07:51:06 pm »

excuse me for interjecting myself into the conversation.  I have a 680III that I too want to put a digital back on.  Where do I find these Chinese adapters on ebay?  The battery conversion to take D700 batteries - was that an EN-EL3e complete battery or pieces? 
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siebel

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Bryan Siebel

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