Luminous Landscape Forum

Equipment & Techniques => Medium Format / Film / Digital Backs – and Large Sensor Photography => Topic started by: Michael Erlewine on February 01, 2021, 12:03:12 pm

Title: Best Lenses for the New GFX 100mm S Camera
Post by: Michael Erlewine on February 01, 2021, 12:03:12 pm
I have decided to sell some stuff and order a GFX 100 S medium format camera. I won't have a tone of money for lenses at first. If any of you can,here are my questions?

What is the best all around best-corrected, sharpest, and fast lens for the GFX?

What is the best adapter for mounting NIkon F-mount lenses to the GFX?

Is there an adapter to mount Nikon Z7 lenses to the GFX?

Any other things I need to know?

Thanks.
Title: Re: Best Lenses for the New GFX 100mm S Camera
Post by: Paul2660 on February 01, 2021, 12:33:05 pm
Sharpest and fastest GF lens would be the 110mm. The soon to ship 80mm 1.7 may be its equal.

Best lenses I have used are the 30mm and 250mm. Stellar. 63mm very nice also.

Best zooms I feel are the 32-64 and 45-100. 

I know that Nikon G lenses will adapt with limited positive result (at least from my testing).

Not sure if there is a direct z lens adapter but it would be a nice addition since the z lenses have a larger opening.

Congratulations on the 100s. Should be a great camera.


Paul C
Title: Re: Best Lenses for the New GFX 100mm S Camera
Post by: alan_b on February 01, 2021, 02:49:38 pm
Is there an adapter to mount Nikon Z7 lenses to the GFX?

Z flange distance is only 16mm - not going to work.

It’d be great if someone would make a GFX lens -> Z body (shift) adapter though.
Title: Re: Best Lenses for the New GFX 100mm S Camera
Post by: kers on February 01, 2021, 03:23:46 pm
Z flange distance is only 16mm - not going to work.

It’d be great if someone would make a GFX lens -> Z body (shift) adapter though.
+1 make it TS
Title: Re: Best Lenses for the New GFX 100mm S Camera
Post by: Ken Schuster on February 01, 2021, 04:46:21 pm
While the GFX100S and lenses are being discussed, does anyone here know which of the Hasselblad V lens adapters is best? The price differences are extreme.
Title: Re: Best Lenses for the New GFX 100mm S Camera
Post by: Steve Hendrix on February 01, 2021, 05:01:17 pm
I have no personal experience or affilitation with it, but one of my clients who shoots excellent work happily uses the Steelsring adapter for the Nikon 19mm. Not necessarily recommending this lens for your type of work, Michael, but the adapter might be worth looking into.

http://www.steelsring.com/en/home/ (http://www.steelsring.com/en/home/)


Steve Hendrix/CI
Title: Re: Best Lenses for the New GFX 100mm S Camera
Post by: BernardLanguillier on February 02, 2021, 08:19:27 am
Z flange distance is only 16mm - not going to work.

It’d be great if someone would make a GFX lens -> Z body (shift) adapter though.

In my experience Z glass is overall superior to GFX lenses and the image circle isn't larger enough to make it worthwhile for shift I am afraid.

Cheers,
Bernard
Title: Re: Best Lenses for the New GFX 100mm S Camera
Post by: faberryman on February 02, 2021, 08:49:59 am
So there is this guy who goes down to the car dealership and buys a Ferrari. On the way home he stops by the auto parts store to pick up six or eight carburetors for different cars and some adapters because when he gets home he wants to test them to see if any of them work better than the one from Ferrari. He doesn't really drive the car that much, but he sure spends a lot of time out in his garage. So far, the carburetor for the Chevy Chevette can generate 2 more RPM than the one from Ferrari, so he is ecstatic. Twelve months later the guy trades in his Ferrari for the new year's model, and begins testing again. The search for the Holy Grail of carburetors continues. So many carburetors, so little time.
Title: Re: Best Lenses for the New GFX 100mm S Camera
Post by: Michael Erlewine on February 02, 2021, 08:57:30 am
In my experience Z glass is overall superior to GFX lenses and the image circle isn't larger enough to make it worthwhile for shift I am afraid.

Cheers,
Bernard


I agree. The best Nikon glass is really good, IMO, except of much of the glass in the last decade or so until we reached these last few years. The GFX glass, by reading about it and talking to some users is OK, maybe good, but not at the level of what I am used to and have carefully collected. That, and the need for a wider image circle finds me staying with the Nikon gear I have (which I planned to keep anyway), and I’ll just wait for Nikon to catch up, which they eventually (probably) will.
Title: Re: Best Lenses for the New GFX 100mm S Camera
Post by: alan_b on February 02, 2021, 11:17:23 am
In my experience Z glass is overall superior to GFX lenses and the image circle isn't larger enough to make it worthwhile for shift I am afraid.

I'm sure you're right!  Two things though:
1. I find it convenient at times for my different systems to have some interchangeability.
2. There are still gaps and weaknesses in T/S lines from all mfgs, so even if not the best theoretical solution, it can be better than other options.
Title: Re: Best Lenses for the New GFX 100mm S Camera
Post by: KLaban on February 02, 2021, 03:36:54 pm
Nuffin beats a good allegory.

Title: Re: Best Lenses for the New GFX 100mm S Camera
Post by: Ken Bennett on February 02, 2021, 05:30:38 pm
The 45mm and the 110mm GFX lenses are both excellent, and reasonably fast aperture. The 250mm f/4 is amazing, but rather specialized, as is the 23mm f/4.

I end up mostly using the 23, 32-64, and the 100-200 for landscapes, and the 110 for portraits. The zooms are also very good.

Recommending one lens is challenging since we don't know what you shoot. For me, it would be the 110mm and I would shoot nothing but portraits. For you, it might be the 45 and you would shoot nothing but street and candid.
Title: Re: Best Lenses for the New GFX 100mm S Camera
Post by: Paul2660 on February 02, 2021, 06:55:03 pm
I feel comparing a Z lens to the GFX 100 and GF glass is a bit of a moot point. The Z lens is resolving to 42MP and the GF glass 100MP. 

To be honest I own both, and mostly find that the GF glass is more than equal to the Z zooms I have (I don't own primes). 

I have never had an issue with any GF lens not resolving to the 100MP sensor, and most times the Z system stays at home as I can't really carry both in the field.

I have the 19mm Nikkor Tilt lens, but I have assumed that I have a so so example as even on the D850 at 12mm of shift it's having issues with corner sharpness, and thus have never considered it on the GFX, due to this and the fact that you have to fix the aperture at a set point and have no adjustments.  I tried some of my G glass on the GFX 50s and found that I had considerable vignetting (I assumed due to the massive difference in flange openings), so did not do much testing.

Paul C

Title: Re: Best Lenses for the New GFX 100mm S Camera
Post by: BernardLanguillier on February 02, 2021, 07:31:12 pm
I'm sure you're right!  Two things though:
1. I find it convenient at times for my different systems to have some interchangeability.
2. There are still gaps and weaknesses in T/S lines from all mfgs, so even if not the best theoretical solution, it can be better than other options.

Certainly. To answer your initial question, I have been using a Novoflex adapter to adapt F mount lenses on the GFX.

The only 2 lenses for which this has really been valuable are the 19mm T/S and the Zeiss Otus 100mm f1.4.

Cheers,
Bernard
Title: Re: Best Lenses for the New GFX 100mm S Camera
Post by: Eric Brody on February 02, 2021, 08:20:26 pm
Michael, no personal experience, but our friend Lloyd Chambers waxes eloquent about the 50mm f/3.5. In fact he liked it so much when he was testing the GFX100 that he bought one, the 50, even though he had no GFX camera. https://diglloyd.com/blog/2021/20210131_1900-FujifilmGFX100S-single-lens-system.html
Title: Re: Best Lenses for the New GFX 100mm S Camera
Post by: BernardLanguillier on February 03, 2021, 06:25:08 am
Yes, the 50mm is outstanding, especially when considering its size. It will be a great match with the GFX100s I would think.

Cheers,
Bernard
Title: Re: Best Lenses for the New GFX 100mm S Camera
Post by: ben730 on February 03, 2021, 05:27:11 pm
Certainly. To answer your initial question, I have been using a Novoflex adapter to adapt F mount lenses on the GFX.

The only 2 lenses for which this has really been valuable are the 19mm T/S and the Zeiss Otus 100mm f1.4.

Cheers,
Bernard

I had strong vignetting with the 19 mm and the Novoflex when shifting down.
It's caused by the electronic contact block inside the PC 19.
I can't recommend the Novoflex adapter with the 19 PC-E.

The Hcam DRS shift adapter solves this problem.
The lens is sharp and gives more than 10 mm of shift up or down.
But I find 19 mm on a 44 x 33 sensor very wide and when shifted the things in the corners can look really odd.
I think it should be used more as an "effect" combination or without "things" in the corners...
Regards,
Ben
Title: Re: Best Lenses for the New GFX 100mm S Camera
Post by: ben730 on February 03, 2021, 05:46:42 pm
I was very pleased by the announcement of the GF 80 mm 1.7, but then I saw strong CA in a preproduction sample gallery:

https://www.dpreview.com/sample-galleries/5476724199/fujifilm-gf-80mm-f1-7-r-wr-pre-production-sample-gallery/2993027691



Title: Re: Best Lenses for the New GFX 100mm S Camera
Post by: kers on February 04, 2021, 02:48:59 am
with the fuji 30mm lens i saw this kind of flare ... it that the bouncing effect of light on sensor to lens?

https://www.dpreview.com/files/p/articles/6977297246/DSCF9895.acr.jpeg
Title: Re: Best Lenses for the New GFX 100mm S Camera
Post by: Ken Schuster on February 04, 2021, 04:01:14 pm
I was very pleased by the announcement of the GF 80 mm 1.7, but then I saw strong CA in a preproduction sample gallery:

https://www.dpreview.com/sample-galleries/5476724199/fujifilm-gf-80mm-f1-7-r-wr-pre-production-sample-gallery/2993027691

Do you mean this, Ben, or do you see other areas as well? https://ln2.sync.com/dl/aabbf13c0/ss6juna8-4iqwkcui-zhhpubz5-jabrgdew

(I tried to include the image here, but was unable to get "Attach:" to work.) 
Title: Re: Best Lenses for the New GFX 100mm S Camera
Post by: Paul2660 on February 04, 2021, 04:26:37 pm
Rainbow spectrum flare is common with all mirrorless cameras. Very common on 50s and GFX100 and suspect it will be the same with 100s. Very hard if not impossible to remove. Due to reflection from sensor.


Paul C
Title: Re: Best Lenses for the New GFX 100mm S Camera
Post by: BernardLanguillier on February 04, 2021, 11:57:35 pm
I had strong vignetting with the 19 mm and the Novoflex when shifting down.
It's caused by the electronic contact block inside the PC 19.
I can't recommend the Novoflex adapter with the 19 PC-E.

The Hcam DRS shift adapter solves this problem.
The lens is sharp and gives more than 10 mm of shift up or down.
But I find 19 mm on a 44 x 33 sensor very wide and when shifted the things in the corners can look really odd.
I think it should be used more as an "effect" combination or without "things" in the corners...
Regards,
Ben

Thanks for the heads up, I didn't notice the issue in my limited testing.

Cheers,
Bernard
Title: Re: Best Lenses for the New GFX 100mm S Camera
Post by: ben730 on February 05, 2021, 03:34:05 am
Do you mean this, Ben, or do you see other areas as well? https://ln2.sync.com/dl/aabbf13c0/ss6juna8-4iqwkcui-zhhpubz5-jabrgdew

(I tried to include the image here, but was unable to get "Attach:" to work.)

Yes, Magenta in the (out of focus) foreground, green in the (out of focus) background.
The Sigma Art 50 1.4 and the Schneider P1 BR 80 MkI have the same problem.
With Capture One I can't correct it.
By the way, the GF 120mm Macro has also a little bit of this issue while the P1 BR 120 Macro not.


Title: Re: Best Lenses for the New GFX 100mm S Camera
Post by: ben730 on February 05, 2021, 06:13:22 am
Thanks for the heads up, I didn't notice the issue in my limited testing.

Cheers,
Bernard

For those who are interested:
I made a test shot with GFX 50R, HcamDRS, Nikkor 19PC-E, F11, 15 mm shift up.
The Nikkor performs very well. Sorry, I don't have a GFX 100.

https://www.dropbox.com/t/YspECzQPvgX5VvDh
Title: Re: Best Lenses for the New GFX 100mm S Camera
Post by: Rand47 on February 05, 2021, 07:54:44 am
I have decided to sell some stuff and order a GFX 100 S medium format camera. I won't have a tone of money for lenses at first. If any of you can,here are my questions?

What is the best all around best-corrected, sharpest, and fast lens for the GFX?

What is the best adapter for mounting NIkon F-mount lenses to the GFX?

Is there an adapter to mount Nikon Z7 lenses to the GFX?

Any other things I need to know?

Thanks.

Michael,

I am fortunate to own most of the GF lenses.  All are excellent and handle the 100 mp well.  The Fuji GF 45 f/2.8 is one of the best/sharpest across the frame, lenses I’ve ever used.  In terms of general utility, I’m finding that I use the GF 45-100 zoom most often.  Its sharpness rivals most prime lenses I’ve used, and the FOV range is very practical for general photography.  The 30mm is excellent, but isn’t enough “better” than 32mm on the 32-64 to warrant foregoing the versatility of the zoom.

I think you’d be very pleased with the quality of any of the GF lenses.  I’d make your purchase decision based on the use-case you envision for the camera.  Be aware that on some of the lenses the rear elements “float” until powered up on the camera.  This can be very disconcerting if you’re not familiar / aware.  Fuji doesn’t do a good job “informing” in the user manuals that this is the case.  Some poor chaps have actually sent lenses back (e.g. the 120 macro) because they thought they were broken.

Rand

Title: Re: Best Lenses for the New GFX 100mm S Camera
Post by: kdowie on October 16, 2021, 07:28:49 am
So there is this guy who goes down to the car dealership and buys a Ferrari. On the way home he stops by the auto parts store to pick up six or eight carburetors for different cars and some adapters because when he gets home he wants to test them to see if any of them work better than the one from Ferrari. He doesn't really drive the car that much, but he sure spends a lot of time out in his garage. So far, the carburetor for the Chevy Chevette can generate 2 more RPM than the one from Ferrari, so he is ecstatic. Twelve months later the guy trades in his Ferrari for the new year's model, and begins testing again. The search for the Holy Grail of carburetors continues. So many carburetors, so little time.
Now assume that the Ferrari carburettor costs almost as much as the Ferrari itself and the owner already has several functional carbs at home.  Then you have the right context.  :-)
Title: Re: Best Lenses for the New GFX 100mm S Camera
Post by: kers on October 16, 2021, 08:57:12 am
Is there no difference in sharpness using lenses with different systems due tot differences in sensorglass thickness?
I read it can make a good lens go rather bad.
Title: Re: Best Lenses for the New GFX 100mm S Camera
Post by: jkiefer2 on October 18, 2021, 01:56:02 am
I owned the 32-64, 23, 50, 110, 120 macro, and 250. All resolve very well with the 100mp sensor.

The 110 and 250 have some magic to their render, and were the lenses I derived the most joy from using - but they are bulky and can wear on you as the shoot unfolds. The 120 has great micro-contrast, but transitions were sometimes a bit hard. The 23 is the most uniformly sharp ultra wide across the frame I’ve owned and has a good bit of vibrancy to it. The two other lenses in my GFX kit were kind of perfunctorily sharp, but not very dimensional for a medium format kit. I never owned one, but I’ve seen a lot of great draws from the 45/2.8 - widely admired by GFX owners for its pleasing render.

Despite the jaw dropping file resolution, nice color, and amazing DR; I sold my GFX kit because minimum focus distance of all GF lenses except the macro was too often too far for me. I was frequently wishing to settle in a bit closer. And the haptics just never connected for me - like having an incompatible dance partner. For landscape, I really needed a closer-focusing more dimensionally rendering 30mm. I rented the 30mm and it put me to sleep, and that’s my favorite focal length.  Bland and flat. If Fuji had offered a better 30mm lens I’d probably still be a GFX owner. In hindsight I should have waited on that lens instead of becoming an early adopter. Oh well.

All-in-all I’d say the results were less exciting to me versus those drawn from my Mamiya 7. In terms of render not resolution. The resolution is outstanding. But to my eye, the GFX tends to draw more like a full frame system than a medium format one and the differences between my Nikon Z and Fuji GFX are less than anticipated.
Title: Re: Best Lenses for the New GFX 100mm S Camera
Post by: gkroeger on October 25, 2021, 01:33:34 pm
So there is this guy who goes down to the car dealership and buys a Ferrari. On the way home he stops by the auto parts store to pick up six or eight carburetors for different cars and some adapters because when he gets home he wants to test them to see if any of them work better than the one from Ferrari. He doesn't really drive the car that much, but he sure spends a lot of time out in his garage. So far, the carburetor for the Chevy Chevette can generate 2 more RPM than the one from Ferrari, so he is ecstatic. Twelve months later the guy trades in his Ferrari for the new year's model, and begins testing again. The search for the Holy Grail of carburetors continues. So many carburetors, so little time.

Not sure how I missed this post last winter, but it made my day today!
Title: Re: Best Lenses for the New GFX 100mm S Camera
Post by: bobfriedman on October 26, 2021, 07:45:10 am
Tried the Nikkor 200/2G VR with the GFX 100s, seems to cover quite well at around f/8.
Title: Re: Best Lenses for the New GFX 100mm S Camera
Post by: vulture on November 22, 2021, 06:07:05 am
Can anyone here give me the flange distance of the GFX 100s?
Thanks
Title: Re: Best Lenses for the New GFX 100mm S Camera
Post by: mcbroomf on November 22, 2021, 09:19:43 am
Can anyone here give me the flange distance of the GFX 100s?
Thanks

This is the resource I've always used.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flange_focal_distance
G-mount is listed as 26.7mm
Title: Re: Best Lenses for the New GFX 100mm S Camera
Post by: vulture on November 22, 2021, 03:48:36 pm
Thanks Mike!!