If you're looking to tap into the highest of high-end cameras, there's no better place to start than with a medium format mirrorless camera. These are the crème de la crème of digital photography, offering larger sensors for more detail capture.
Enter Fujifilm, with their latest release – the GFX100 II. A second generation of the original model, this camera manages to substantially undercut its predecessor in terms of price, while still delivering a sumptuous suite of features. It sits above the previously released Fujifilm GFX100S model, too.
This camera is just packed with goodness. You'll find a 102MP CMOS high-speed sensor, paired with a high-speed X-Processor 5 image processor. That should deliver up to twice the signal readout speed, when compared to the current generation model.
That processor also packs in a fantastic autofocus function. It makes use of deep-learning AI to capture human features, but also a range of other subjects like planes, trains and, yes, even some automobiles. The idea here is to allow the photographer to work creatively, confident that the camera will give a sharp focus every time.
To make sure you can always capture the perfect moment, there's even an 8fps high-speed burst mode, when used with the mechanical shutter. That should make it possible to snap the perfect moment, even when shooting fast moving subjects like sporting activities.
There's also a new film simulation to be found in the GFX100 II. That's the Reala Ace film, and should add a useful replication to the new device. It's actually the 20th film simulation the brand have created, too.
Elsewhere, you'll find ISO80 sensitivity on the new unit. That should offer users even lower noise and wider dynamic range, to assist with composing the perfect shot.
Plus, you'll find an eight-stop, five axis in-body image stabilisation system inside. That should make it possible to capture blur-free handheld shots in almost any lighting, with the camera doing lots of work to still bring out a perfect shot.
That sounds like a lot of camera, and – strange though this will sound – at £6,999 for the body only, it's actually fairly good value. Now sure, that is second-hand car money, but in the world of top-spec cameras, that's not totally insane.
Factor in that it's also a full £3,000 less than its predecessor – while still including a suite of extra features – and the Fujifilm GFX100 II sure looks like a pretty decent buy.
