Photo: Fujifilm
Fujifilm has announced the GF500mm F5.6 R LM OIS WR, a relatively lightweight, compact super-tele prime for its GFX medium format system.
The 500mm delivers a 396mm equivalent angle of view in a lens that’s 247mm (9.4″) long and weighs 1,375g (3.03 lbs). It has built-in image stabilization rated to give up to 6.0EV of correction.
The design features 21 elements in 14 groups, including 5 extra-low dispersion (ED) elements and 2 Super ED elements. It can be used in conjunction with the company’s 1.4x teleconverter to give a 700mm (554mm equiv) angle of view with F8 maximum aperture.
Photo: Fujifilm
The lens uses a small internal focus design with a linear motor to make AF speed usefully fast. It has a focus limit switch that restricts focus to the range between 5m (16.4′) and infinity, to speed AF still further. Fujifilm says the lens is suitable for sports and wildlife as well as landscape, street and cityscape photography.
Fujifilm says the lens is designed for the 102MP sensors it uses in its GFX 100 models.
Press Release:
Super Telephoto Powerhouse: Fujifilm Introduces FUJINON GF500mmF5.6 R LM OIS WR Lens
VALHALLA, N.Y., May 16, 2024 – FUJIFILM North America Corporation, Electronic Imaging Division, today announces the latest lens in its GFX System line of digital camera and lens products – FUJINON GF500mmF5.6 R LM OIS WR (GF500mm), a super telephoto prime lens designed for photographers who primarily specialize in distant, moving subjects in genres ranging from wildlife and outdoor sports to landscape and street photography. GF500mm can create images up to 500mm (equivalent to 396mm in 35mm format), making it the lens with the longest range in the lineup of GF lenses to date.
“GF500mm is an exciting addition to the GFX System because it combines incredible range with the power of the system’s 102 megapixel sensor,” said Victor Ha, vice president, Electronic Imaging and Optical Devices Divisions, FUJIFILM North America Corporation. “GF500mm’s compact, lightweight design and super telephoto focal length enable photographers to create images in impeccable detail they may not have previously dreamed was possible.”
By miniaturizing a typically large and heavy super telephoto lens and achieving high-speed and high precision autofocus, GF500mm enables super telephoto photography in sports, wildlife, and bird photography, where high mobility is required. With incredible image stabilization sensing accuracy and optimal mechanical design, it achieves powerful image stabilization with up to 6.0 stops1 of compensation. Users can comfortably enjoy handheld image making in the challenging super telephoto range, where camera shake is likely to occur.
Product Features:
Telephoto capabilities beyond what the naked eye can see
By combining GF500mm with the FUJINON Teleconverter GF1.4X TC WR, users can expand the GF500mm’s focal length, achieving a maximum focal length equivalent to 700mm (equivalent to 554mm in 35mm format).
With a lens construction consisting of 14 groups and 21 elements, including two Super Extra-low Dispersion (ED) lenses and five ED lenses, GF500mm effectively suppresses chromatic aberration specific to super telephoto lenses and achieves high resolution performance. It accurately depicts a level of detail beyond what the naked eye can see.
Lightweight yet durable design
In contrast to the usual heft of large format telephoto lenses, GF500mm tips the scales at only 1,375 grams (3.03lbs)2. In addition to its lightweight design, GF500mm’s optimal arrangement of ED lenses and Super ED lenses minimizes chromatic aberration that is likely to occur with miniaturization, enabling GF500mm’s compact size, light weight, and high-resolution performance.
GF500mm is temperature resistant down to -10 degrees Celsius (14 degrees Fahrenheit), and its weather-resistant structure features sealing at 18 points on the lens barrel. Furthermore, the front element of the lens is coated with fluorine, providing water-repellent and anti-smudge capabilities.
Fast, accurate autofocus
While maintaining high resolution performance, GF500mm adopts an inner focus system that incorporates a small and light focus lens and drives the focus group using a linear motor. This enables a fast and silent autofocus (AF) with a minimum delay of approximately 0.31 seconds3.
The user’s desired focus can be shifted to a pre-defined location via the Focus Preset button4.
The GF500mm also features the Focus Limiter function (a setting within the Focus Range Selector), allowing users to restrict the lens’s AF range to shorten AF time when photographing a subject that is generally at least 5 meters (16.4 feet) away.
Pricing and Availability:
FUJINON GF500mmF5.6 R LM OIS WR lens is expected to be available in June 2024 at a Manufacturer’s Suggested Retail Price of $3,499.95 USD ($4,724.99 CAD).
For more information, please visit https://fujifilm-x.com/en-us/products/lenses/gf500mmf56-r-lm-ois- wr/.
1 According to CIPA standards, pitch/yaw direction.2 Excluding lens cap, hood, and tripod mount.3 AF speed on the telephoto end, using a CIPA Guideline compliant measurement method and when mounted on the FUJIFILM GFX100 II mirrorless digital camera with Phase Detection AF and High-Performance Mode selected.4 To operate the “SET button,” “focus control button,” and “focus select switch” on the FUJIFILM GFX50S, it is necessary to update the camera body to version 3.10 or later.
Fujinon GF500mm F5.6 R LM OIS WR specifications
Principal specificationsLens typePrime lensMax Format sizeMedium Format (645)Focal length500 mmImage stabilizationYesCIPA Image stabilization rating6 stop(s)Lens mountFujifilm GApertureMaximum apertureF5.6Minimum apertureF32Aperture ringYesNumber of diaphragm blades9Aperture notesRounded bladesOpticsElements21Groups14Special elements / coatings2 Super ED, 5 ED elementsFocusMinimum focus2.75 m (108.27″)AutofocusYesMotor typeLinear MotorFull time manualYesFocus methodInternalDistance scaleNoDoF scaleNoPhysicalWeight1375 g (3.03 lb)Diameter105 mm (4.13″)Length247 mm (9.72″)SealingYesFilter thread95 mmHood suppliedYes
