Fujifilm GFX100RF review – Dreams do come true

By Keith Wee on March 22, 2025

Introduction

Announced on 20 March 2025, the fixed lens medium format Fujifilm GFX100RF is a dream for many fanboys who have for years requested Fujifilm to make a fixed lens medium format GFX camera.

The GFX100RF takes design cues from Fujifilm's best-selling X100 series and comes with functionalities unique to it. Let us look deeper look.

In today's review, instead of my usual style, I will instead focus on the 5 reasons for and 2 areas of growth for the Fujifilm GFX100RF.

tl:dr

Fujifilm has done quite the previously seemingly impossible with the GFX100RF, packing a 102MP medium format sensor into a compact, fixed-lens body. Moreover, this is one of the few times that Fujifilm has made what many users have requested: a fixed lens medium format camera.

The GFX100RF's camera design represents a bold fusion of Fujifilm's beloved X100 series design with their GFX medium format technology. The GFX100RF comes in a minimalist design with the classic dial operations many Fujifilm users have also come to value and demand.

I will touch on more details in the conclusions. I do personally find that, like the much loved Fujifilm X100 series, credit has to be given to Fujifilm for plucking up the courage to build a unique camera that its fans will appreciate.

The Fujifilm GFX100RF currently has no other 'real' competitor in its fixed lens medium format camera segment.

Fujifilm GFX100RF - in ASTIA

Technicalities

I am trying to keep this review under 2000 words for sanity's sake; hence, if you are a specifications reader, please pop by Fujifilm's official site here. There's little point in copying and pasting specifications when I am sure every other review site would have done so.

5 reasons for the Fujifilm GFX100RF

One: Uncompromising Image Quality

At the heart of the GFX100RF is the same 44x33mm 102MP CMOS II medium format sensor found in the Fujifilm GFX100S II working in tandem with X-Processor 5, one of the most powerful sensor-processor pairs from Fujifilm.

*The GFX100 II uses the 102 CMOS II HS sensor instead.

This tested and proven imaging sensor delivers stunningly detailed images with an incredible dynamic range of 14 stops and low-light performance with sensitivity from ISO 80 to ISO 12,800 (extended ISO 40 to ISO 25600).

Including the sensor's 16-bit colour depth output and the 20 Fujifilm film simulations, the imaging potential of the GFX100RF's back-side illuminated (BSI) sensor is in no way lacking compared to its GFX system siblings or most other cameras.

Image samples here will also inform the film simulation used.

Fujifilm GFX100RF - in ASTIA / Skin Smooth Effect

Beyond this, photographers are also supported with many creative imaging functions such as Grain Effect, Smooth Skin Effect, Clarity, White Balance shift, and HEIF format support - which promises 10-bit colour depth with a 30% savings in file sizes compared to the JPEG format.

Fujifilm GFX100RF - in ASTIA

Two: Camera design and handling

To cut to the chase, if one is accustomed to using Fujifilm cameras, especially the Fujifilm X100 series, there is not much of a learning curve to overcome in using the Fujifilm GFX100RF.

Though minimalist in looks, Fujifilm has cleverly included several designs unique to the GFX100RF, let us look at a few key ones here.

On the back, it is clear that the designers put ample thought into ensuring easy one-hand operation, with the Q button easily accessible at the corner.

At the left is the SCM switch, allowing one to toggle between AF-Single, AF-Continous and Manual focus.

Two new dials on the Fujifilm GFX100RF are the Aspect ratio and Crop-lever, with the former much advertised by Fujifilm in their teaser videos.

The Aspect ratio dial, as its name suggests, allows one to toggle between 9 different aspect ratios, including a "C" option. The ratios are 4:3, 3:2, 16:9, 65:24, 17:6, 3:4, 1:1, 7:6 and 5:4, inspired by Fujifilm's legacy cameras such as the very well-known 65:24 ratio associated with the Fujifilm TX-1, a panoramic 35mm rangefinder film camera.

Some might wonder why the fuss over a 65:24 ratio for starters, the thing is it does provide creative possibilities otherwise not as possible as say, a more conventional 3:2 aspect ratio.

If keen to read up more on the 65:24 aspect ratio, I suggest popping by Jonas Rask's site. This gentleman can and will undoubtly write a full 5000 words article on this topic alone.

The 65:24 aspect ratio is favoured by film enthusiasts, as it aligns with the output of the famed Fujifilm TX-1/XPan with a 45mm lens

The Crop-lever toggle at the bottom below the shutter mechanism also maximises the 102 megapixels available, allowing one to toggle between 45mm, 63mm and 80mm crops (the number will appear on the top left-hand of the LCD), going from 61 megapixels at 45mm, 31 megapixels at 63mm and 20 megapixels at 80mm)

I am also glad that Fujifilm stuck to a tilt-LCD design for the Fujifilm GFX100RF instead of a flip-out style. The 3:2 aspect ratio 2.1 million dots LCD screen sits completely flush when tucked.

This also seems a most logical choice given that the GFX100RF is a stills-focused camera.

Anyone who has used a Fujifilm X100 series or the X-Pro series will also find the OVF/EVF switch familiar; however, do note that since the GFX100RF does not have an OVF, the switch now toggles multiple functions - for example, toggling left switches between different display options while the centre button allows functions to be mapped to it.

Three: The newly developed 35mm ƒ4 lens

Integral to the Fujifilm GFX100RF must also be the newly developed 35mm ƒ4 lens, which is impressive alone in how compact it is, enabling the camera to achieve its 735 grams weight and dimensions of 133.5 mm X 90.4mm X 76.5mm.

As a comparison, the APS-C sensor sized Fujifilm X-H2 comes in at 660 grams without a lens. There is no native XF lens coming in under 75 grams if you are asking this too.

The 35mm ƒ4 lens has an optical design of 10 elements in 8 groups, including 2 aspherical elements with a 9-blade aperture diaphragm. The lens goes from ƒ4 to ƒ22 in 1/3 EV steps.

An amazing feat is how little the lens elements protrude during use, ensuring as compact a package as possible, one of the key selling points of the GFX100RF.

Together with the updated auto-focus algorithms, which include subject-detection capabilities supported by deep-learning technology,

Fujifilm GFX100RF - in Velvia

The GFX100RF's lens only has a very useful approximately 0.2 meters minimum focusing distance, allowing one to close up to subjects.

Fujifilm GFX100RF - in Provia

The combination of the 102MP medium format sensor and the tailored 35mm ƒ4 lens gives one tack sharp across corner-to-corner, and in this sense, what Fujifilm has done here is pretty impressive given the diminutive size of the lens.

Fujifilm GFX100RF - in Provia

Four: The built-in 4-stop ND filter and leaf shutter.

Not mentioned enough is that the GFX100RF has a built-in 4 stops ND filter and, more importantly, the same leaf shutter mechanism found in the X100 series.

If you do not know why a leaf shutter can be a big deal, it will really be good to read up more on it.

Fujifilm GFX100RF - in Provia

In contrast to the more common focal-plane shutters, leaf shutters can synchronize with flash at any speed. Even if one is not a flash user, leaf shutters are quieter and produce virtually no camera shake, which is a massive plus for a camera utilising a 102MP sensor.

One trauma that has stayed with me was how the shutter slap from the Sony A7R actually woke up my sleeping kid years ago (of course Sony has improved by leaps and bounds since then)

In fact, even when I brought the GFX100RF into a cat cafe, the camera was so quiet that it allowed me to go straight up close to the resident cats.

Fujifilm GFX100RF - in Provia

The built-in 4 stops ND filter will be good when needed and, in my opinion, a sound choice with the wider focal length of the lens, especially for landscape photography.

Five: The form factor and size

Medium format camera and compact are two words that do not usually go together, but the fact that Fujifilm somehow managed to design a medium format camera with a lens included at 735 grams (when the APSC-sized X-H2 body alone is already 660 grams as a comparison)

The GFX100RF comes equipped with an adapter ring that allows one to mount 49mm filters and the hood. Similar to the design concept of the X100 series, using the adapter and hood adds weather resistance to the GFX100RF camera.

With this camera's form factor and compact size, hiking with it proved to be a breeze.

You can quote me but the GFX100RF is not pocketable unless you wear cargo pants for a living. That said it easily holds the crown of being the lightest and smallest digital medium format camera.

(I have no idea which dolt somehow declared the camera to be pocketable. To me an example of a pocketable camera is the X-M5 with a XF27mm or the Ricoh GR)

Fujifilm GFX100RF - in Velvia

The parts where it could have been better

No camera is perfect, but a balanced review should always be truthful and touch on this. For me, the omission of IBIS on the GFX100RF was undoubtedly a miss, though I understand that it did take 6 generations of the Fujifilm X100 for IBIS to appear on the X100 VI.

Having IBIS would have quickly quieted quite a few critics of the maximum ƒ4 aperture and made using the ND filter much more convenient. It is a hope of mine that Fujifilm can incorporate this into the GFX100RF's successor.

I am very acquainted with the autofocus capabilities of the Fujifilm system, and I do feel that there is still room to improve regarding the reliability of the autofocus system on the GFX100RF. I am sure Fujifilm already has planned performance updates, and I look forward to this.

I have no issues with the maximum aperture of the GFX100RF's lens. In fact, I see it as a necessary design decision to ensure the camera's compactness, and it is not as big a deal as some critics make. (I will also wager that this same bunch of critics would be whining about the size if Fujifilm decided to build a ƒ2.8 lens on the GFX100RF instead)

Conclusions

I can remember it was quite a few years back when my dear friend and Fujifanboys owner Ivan Joshua Low shared that he would love to see a fixed lens GFX camera one day, and in 2025, this dream has indeed materialised.

There is a lot to love about the GFX100RF, and of course, like any other camera, areas where the camera could be better, but overall there is no doubt the GFX100RF is true to Fujifilm's spirit as a camera maker.

I have to credit Fujifilm for the courage to build a camera with no other direct competitors in the fixed lens digital medium format camera category. It is a bold move and a camera that I am sure the fans of Fujifilm will appreciate.

Thank you for reading.

Disclaimers:

All product photos and samples here were photographed by me. I believe any reviewer with pride should produce their own product photos.

2. All images were shot with the Fujifilm GFX100RF, a review unit from Fujifilm Singapore and returned at the end of the review.

3. This review is not sponsored.

4. I write as a passion and a hobby, and I appreciate that photography brands are kind enough to respect and work with me.

5. The best way to support me is to share the review, or you can always help support me by contributing to my fees to WordPress for the domain using the Paypal button at the bottom of the page.