The $500 Medium Format Zoom | Fujifilm GF 35-70mm f/4.5-5.6 | First Look 

100%, Alex! All they need to do is announce the digital GA645 equivalent and I’m putting my SL2-s fund towards that. 🥵

That's a weird reason to buy a lens. Cos it's light and cheap. I'd suggest you use your mobile phone instead. And it's not really a medium format either. The Fuji GFX is only a little bigger than full frame and nowhere near the Hassleblad. That said the GFX system is great.

@@MikeKleinsteuber From what I understand, the GFX MF sensor size vs. FF is 21% larger. So is that worth it? Well what is ever considered worth it until you do side by sides and weigh all the factors. So I think Fuji doing everyone a solid by giving people a camera smaller than the Lumix S1R and a lens smaller than many other FF options is kinda cool. Just means you have more of an excuse to actually take the camera out up a mountain than settling with your smartphone or apsc or whatever else compromise one with enough money has. 🤷‍♂️

@@AlexOnStreets Sure it's nice of Fuji as long as the lens can do the camera justice and not be compromised because of cost cutting. Otherwise you might as well just pocket the XF10 which punches well above it's weight. A great lens is more than 50% of image acquisition.

​@@MikeKleinsteuber Weird comparison between a phone and a GFX, but ok. It is not a weird reason because it's light and cheap. Actually a valid reason. It really is reeaaallyyy light compared to a 32-64mm and other lenses. This lens is a no-brainer, actually. That MF talk about the sensor size... Hasselblad had a few different MF sensor sizes in their H-lineup, with some almost the size of the GFX. Also, the Leica S series "Medium Format" cameras have a smaller Sensor than the GFX, and it was always considered as Medium Format. So about that "little bigger than FF", and Alex's comment with 21% is false. It's around 70% bigger than FF... Just saying. FF: 24mm x 36mm GFX/X1D: 43.8mm x 32.9mm

Ah thanks, it honestly doesn’t matter to me, it it’s definitely a requested topic.

@@benjhaisch Regardless, it is another data point that goes into one’s decision making. Thanks again, and please do make it a point to remark on this attribute in future videos. Cheers!

Yes my main system is also M43 (Panasonic) and I just got the GFX50SII as a complement . I have zero interest in this zoom despite the price promotion so I got the 3.5/50mm which is my favourite focal length anyway for normal focal length

@@Harold6643 That's probably how I also think, that 50mm F3.5 will be perfect for me, either with a used 50R, or a new 100S. I have Nikkor and Canon 24mm 3.5 T&S, an older Nikkor 28 / 3.5 Shift, an Olympus 35 / 2.8 Shift and even more nice optics. The GF 50 / 3.5 will be perfect due to AF, size and weight. I have lots of old Nikkor and Zuiko lenses, and Speedbooster to m43, and I can then use the same lenses on m43 and GFX

@@protestagain Ok why not the 50SII ?The 50R is very difficult to hold and the grip and the interface of this new 50SII is much better . and cheaper than the 100S

@@Harold6643 Why two or more systems. I already have in analog from 135 to LF. It's naturally for me to choose the right tool for a job, and sometimes I will like to have the extreme GFX files to work with. That dynamic range, 16 bits, and so on, something I don't need for the every day shoots. Those days, I'm using my Pen-F og Pana GM5 with the Pana/Leica 15/1.7.

@@Harold6643 The prize difference between a used 50R and the new 50S II is about $ 2K. The same as from 50S II to 100S. The new 50S II does not offer me more than a 50R already have, and a 50R I can bye without problems, but if I buy the 50S II or the 100S, I have to think twice, and maybe sell some of my gear.

Once you have tried medium format you will never go back. In photographic terms bigger has always been better and so it is with the GF system - however with that said nearly all other camera manufacturers on FF use a kit zoom at 2.8 all the way through the range from 28 - 200 - so in that regard the SL is faster - however I have the GFX100 with pirmes for weddings and fashion because I can crop 200% if needs be with no loss of res compared to other systems Leica inc - however with that said when people see Leica they instantly think Rolls Royce and not Toyota....so there is that as well.

It’s a bundle with the GFX50S II to have it be $500 instead of $1000 :/

I wouldn’t really use this lens for a wedding at all, just too slow (in terms of aperture) for my preference. The camera on the other hand is amazing. Great resolution and I love the depth I get out of it for portraits and details on a wedding day.

@@benjhaisch Awesome, thanks for your advise, so would you say this is more of a landscape or a travel photographer lens? I was wondering if this lens would be good for reception photos, since it's so lightweight. Usually by the reception time of a wedding day, my back/feet are hurting and having lighter lenses on my camera would be my preference, or do you recommend switching to a Fuji XT4 camera during the reception time for lighter weight?

@@benjhaisch Last question - what are your top 5 favorite GF lenses for wedding days to pair with this camera?

HI Janisse - this is the exact question we asked ourselves as wedding photographers. Would this lens be ok to compliment our current camera (s) - more on that in a moment. We come from a film background and the transition to digital over the last twenty years has been a rocky road as no camera (until now) could replace the legendary Mamiya RZ and a cupla Nikon F90X's with kit zooms. We must have shot over 1000 weddings with that set up and only until now do our pair of Fujifilm GFX100 cameras give the detail we are used to. Now with the release of the new GFX100S this means that Jane can use a much a smaller camera and this lens with ISO set to 400-800 make our lives so much easier. We also use two Fujifilm X100V's - 1 set to B+W with a red filter and the spin on and off TCL converter - we also use Elinchrom ELB500 twin with a pop up small Elinchrom softbox on an Elinchrom pole and that is it. So to answer your question if 50MPX is enough and you can afford it yes - the results from the GF system is better than anything bar the Hasselblad X series but they are not wedding or flash friendly and their lens are too big and cumbersome and heavier anyway. The GFX100 with its tilt finder allows me to take MF style pictures with the camera at waist level with a traditional style perspective - far too many DSLR shooters take everything at eye level - we do not. Our kit list is as follows GFX100 x 2 with tilt finder and RRS cage (allows you to get into portrait mode without losing framing) GF 30mm GF 50mm GF 80MM GF 110mm Elinchrom ELB 500 Twin with 2 5m extension cords 2 fold up stands 1 x Elinchrom boom pole 1 x Elinchrom Snaplux softbox and Quadra adaptor 1 x 5 in one reflector X-Pro -2 leather camera straps If you can go for the GFX100s - as we are about to do for Jane when it is released - then do that - you can crop in 100% and still get fantastic detail which is still better than many FF cameras. We tried the GFX 50s when it was released - great but not quite there for us - creativity happens in post - the more you can do with a crop the better pictures you will end up with. Lastly - do not buy the Elinchrom ELB system - a bit old now and replaced by the more useable Elinchrom One instead - a thing we are going to do later on - Hope that helps. Good luck.

@@janissevalenzuela for wedding you need Mitakon 65mm 1.4 (not Gf) for that wedding look or large format look 4x5. GF80mm 1.7 GF55mm 1.7 (but Mitakon is better) GF32-64 for general purposes shots in wedding GF110 f/2 but bald move - can be too tight.

PS your videos plus Moment’s got me to buy the kit

It’s super sharp. I don’t have the 32-64 to compare it directly though.

@@benjhaisch Thanks for taking the time to reply. Much appreciated and good to hear it’s sharp.

All depends on what you do

it's a fantastic lens. The lack of shallow DOF is mostly what you're seeing as "mobile phone" quality. It's hard or almost impossible to properly convey the total sharpness of a lens in a quick youtube slideshow.

the quality is good (see test Reponse photo of nov 2021)

sub-par lenses???? are you kidding?

fwiw, the only thing mediocre about the lens is the slow aperture. Everything else in terms of IQ have been up to par for the sensor imo.

Unexciting, normal, conventional, boring. (source: Urban Dictionary)

4:24 ?

@@benjhaisch Thank you for the photos! Your review helped, so I can buy a used 35-70 to pair with a used GFX 50R....for a digital X-PAN. 🥳