Fujifilm GF 110mm F2 R LM WR Review

Name: Fujifilm GF 110mm F2 R LM WR
Brand: fujifilm

October 20, 2017 | Mark Goldstein |

Introduction

The Fujifilm GF 110mm F2 R LM WR is a classic portrait prime lens for the medium-format Fujifilm GFX 50S mirrorless camera system. This lens features a focal length of 87mm in 35mm term, an aperture range of f/2-f/22, 14 elements in 9 groups including 4 extra-low dispersion elements, 9 rounded aperture blades for smoother bokeh, a high-speed linear auto-focus motor, and a dust-, freeze- and weather-sealed physical construction that's capable of operating in environments as cold as -10°C. The Fujifilm GF 110mm F2 R LM WR retails for around $2799 / £2599.

Ease of Use

With a maximum diameter of 94.3mm, a length of 12.5mm and a weight of 1010g, the Fujifilm GF 110mm F2 R LM WR is currently the biggest and heaviest lens in the new GFX camera system. Despite this, it doesn't feel particularly unweildy when mounted on the GFX 50S camera, although one-handed use is certainly out of the question!

As with all of the the other GF lenses that we've previously reviewed, the build quality of the Fujifilm GF 110mm F2 R LM WR is excellent. The lens is dust, freeze and moisture resistant and it features a metal bayonet. The Fujifilm GF 110mm F2 R LM WR lens is comprised of 14 elements in 9 groups including 4 extra-low dispersion elements, and it accepts 77mm filters via metal threads. Note that there is no built-in optical image stabilisation in this lens, so make sure to choose a suitably fast shutter speed when hand-holding the camera/lens.

The Fujifilm GF 110mm F2 R LM WR lens mounted on a Fujifilm GFX 50S

The Fujifilm GF 110mm F2 R LM WR lens alongside a Fujifilm GFX 50S

The focusing ring is very, very wide, butterly smooth and beautifully well-damped in action without being loose, and it has a ridged, rubberised grip band. There are no “hard stops” at either end of the 90cm-infinity focus range though. It has a very large rotation angle which enables precise focusing and moves smoothly without any play. Two different focusing aids are provided - auto magnification and focus peaking. In conjunction with the GFX 50S' high-resolution electronic viewfinder, we found it very easy to accurately determine critical sharpness when manually focusing.

The side of the Fujifilm GF 110mm F2 R LM WR lens

The front of the Fujifilm GF 110mm F2 R LM WR lens

The rear of the Fujifilm GF 110mm F2 R LM WR lens

When it comes to auto-focusing, the GF 110mm F2 R LM WR is a very quiet performer on the Fujifilm GFX 50S that we tested it with thanks to the linear motor, and it's also pretty fast too, taking about 0.3 second to lock onto the subject in good light. We didn't experience too much "hunting" either, with the lens accurately focusing almost all of the time.

Focusing is usefully internal and manual focusing is possible when set via the camera body. Full-time manual focus override is available at any time simply by rotating the focus ring, if specified in the menu system, or you set the focusing switch to M, C or S.

The side of the Fujifilm GF 110mm F2 R LM WR lens

The Fujifilm GF 110mm F2 R LM WR lens has a traditional aperture ring on the lens barrel, which allows you to set the aperture in 1/3 steps, complete with full aperture markings. The aperture is also shown in the viewfinder or on the LCD screen. The aperture ring is nicely damped and makes a distinctive click as you change the setting. The aperture ring toggles between auto aperture control (the ring is set to A) or manual aperture control (the switch is set to one of the aperture values) or the C (Command) position which allows you to set the aperture via the camera body rather than the lens.

The Fujifilm GF 110mm F2 R LM WR lens in-hand

A soft cloth bag and a very large plastic circular lens hood are supplied as standard in the box.

The Fujifilm GF 110mm F2 R LM WR lens with the supplied lens hood fitted

Focal Range

The 110mm focal length gives an angle of view of 27.9 degrees on a 35mm full frame sensor, which is equivalent to a focal length of 87mm.

Field of view at 110mm

Chromatic Aberrations

Chromatic aberration (purple fringing) is a non-issue with the Fujifilm GF 110mm F2 R LM WR lens, only appearing in very high contrast situations.

Light Fall-off and Distortion

Light fall-off is noticeable wide open at f/2, though this can easily be corrected in Photoshop. Stop down to f/5.6 and the vignetting is already much less prominent, but it is still visible when shooting pale scenes that fill the frame.

Light fall-off at 110mm

Macro

A minimum focus distance of 90cm and a maximum magnification ratio of 0.16x doesn't make the lens very useful for shooting close subjects. This image is uncropped and shows how close you can get to a Compact Flash card.

Close-up performance

Bokeh

With a maximum aperture of f/2, the Fujifilm GF 110mm F2 R LM WR is the fastest GF lens currently available, and it generates very smooth out of focus areas thanks to having 9 rounded aperture blades. Bokeh is however a fairly subjective part of a lens’ image quality, so check out these 100% crops to see the Fujifilm GF 110mm F2 R LM WR’s bokeh quality for yourself.