eric_george2 Posted February 20, 2007 Share Posted February 20, 2007 Who is still using the GX680? By the responses on this board it looks like the cameras are moving into the hands of advanced hobbyists who love photography and are taking their lovely studio cameras outdoors for great landscapes. I also base this statement on ebay sales. Or are the pros just to busy to respond on here and happy as clams using their GXs with digital backs. A bit of a shame Fuji is not very good at supporting these behemoths. They lost one of their two tech guys in the US. That is a 50% loss. Hopefully Bob sticks around at Fuji helping us to keep these beautiful cameras alive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ilkka Posted February 21, 2007 Share Posted February 21, 2007 I doubt the 680 has ever been very popular with pros, even in Japan. It is just too big for a general purpose camera. I suppose it is okay as view camera replacement for some uses, but how many people really need that? Fuji is very bad at supporting anything they don't make anymore. Whether you have one or two service guys is a moot point when parts are no longer available. I suppose your observation is right: pros are dumping medium format or at least switching to 645, leaving the old film cameras to advanced hobbyists. The prices are low enough that they can pick them up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
machts gut Posted February 21, 2007 Share Posted February 21, 2007 A 4x5 view camera, maybe with a 120 back, was always more versatile and cheaper than the Fuji. Never understood why anyone would want such a heavy MF-camera. Stefan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pete_andrews10 Posted February 21, 2007 Share Posted February 21, 2007 This sounds a bit like equipment snobbery to me Eric. Heaven forbid that a pro like you should be using a camera that might also be used by a mere hobbyist. Who cares? I bet there are more 'blads, Rolleis and Leicas in the hands of "hobbyists" or weekend professionals, than there are in proper professional use. It doesn't make them any less good as tools for capturing images. Plus it's probably only hobbyists who are keeping film alive and affordable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
william_markey Posted February 21, 2007 Share Posted February 21, 2007 I know a commercial photographer here in Birmingham, Alabama that uses one all the time--it's his main camera. He also owns a Hassey and digital, but mainly uses the Fuji with Provia film. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ken_wayne1 Posted February 21, 2007 Share Posted February 21, 2007 I sell Hasselblad gear for a living and I can assure you that it's the hobbyists that are keeping Hassy and film alive. They are finally able to afford a camera that they could only drool over before so they are really driving the market and so Hasselblad isn't going anywhere anytime soon. And when someone makes a digital back that's affordable and easy to use with the hassy then it'll thrive even more. At least I hope so. blessings, Ken Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leicaglow Posted February 21, 2007 Share Posted February 21, 2007 The camera is HUGE. I'm sure that's why it doesn't get used by pros much. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ilkka Posted February 21, 2007 Share Posted February 21, 2007 "it's the hobbyists that are keeping Hassy...alive. They are finally able to afford a camera...so Hasselblad isn't going anywhere anytime soon." In what way does it help Hasselblad if hobbyists are buying the used gear at bargain prices that pros have dumped? Hasselblad makes and sells new cameras and only there can it make profit that keeps it alive. I know spare part prices are high but I doubt it is a major profit center for Hasselblad. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sumo_kun Posted February 21, 2007 Share Posted February 21, 2007 I really like Fuji but I think they screwed up wtih the GX680. Its big and heavy and it's only medium format. For that sort of money you could get a real large format and either use a roll film holder if you really want to use roll film or just go to sheets and get better quality for no extra effort. The Fuji is basically a view camera anyway and its so big and heavy that a large format is a better choice for portability and studio work. It has a digital back but it costs an arm and a leg. It does look nice though! But so does my Ebony! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rehor Posted February 22, 2007 Share Posted February 22, 2007 Its a great camera from all accounts. The lenses are not cheaper than the Mamiya RB/RZ range but they are close and much cheaper than the Blad Zeiss. You guys are all forgetting one thing: This is the camera that supports the DBP Fujifilm digital back. Same sensors as in the S2/S3 but about 4 times bigger 20 + 20 MP. Best damn sensors ever made from all accounts. I am going to buy one of these one day, when the drop the price. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
philtokyo Posted February 26, 2007 Share Posted February 26, 2007 I live in Japan, my field experience here is that 9 out of 10 portrait studios use this camera. There is an abundance of "old" gx680 version 1 and 2 now on the 2nd hand market because these pros are turning digital, replacing them with the gx680 3 and its DBP digital back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eric_george2 Posted March 2, 2007 Author Share Posted March 2, 2007 Why did they stop selling gx680III in the US market? Does the DBP work on the older models? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
erlend sæteren Posted March 22, 2007 Share Posted March 22, 2007 I mainly use Canon digital commersially, but hope to achieve customers on the Fuji- the fastest mediumformat semitechnical camera ever made. I love to use it , and uses it a lot for artwork. It is heavy to move around , but when mounted on a tripod you dont feel the weight. The 680 1 is bad with the native battery- but replace it with a penlight aa- holder, and it is ok. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jed_wormhoudt1 Posted March 23, 2007 Share Posted March 23, 2007 A 680III with a P45 back is my standard kit- the Contax 645 and the D2x gather dust. I use it for architectural interiors and exteriors, product/catalog, and portraiture. It lives on a geared head on an old monster Gitzo. Why would I want anything else? jbw Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jed_wormhoudt1 Posted March 23, 2007 Share Posted March 23, 2007 A 680III with a P45 back is my standard kit, the Contax 645 and the D2x gather dust. I use it for architectural interiors and exteriors, product&catalog, and portraiture. It lives on a geared head on an old monster Gitzo. Why would I want anything else? jbw Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peter williams Posted July 26, 2007 Share Posted July 26, 2007 I use the Mamiya 6, Leica M6, Toyo 4x5 and Fuji GX680. The Fuji is my favorite of all of them. For studio work, I don't think that it can be beat. I think that most (all?) of the comments about the Fuji's size are from posters that do not own one. It was daunting at first, but I haven't thought about it's size in years. I take it out in the field for landscapes all the time and it certainly has easier handling than a 4x5 outfit. Macro shots with it are fantastic. I have never had a reliability issue with it and I don't exactly baby my cameras (of course I don't often drop them either). Like any camera, I do suggest using one before buying - everyone has their own preferred method of working. For me, the Hasselblad is long gone, but the Fuji is still here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeff_daniels2 Posted July 28, 2007 Share Posted July 28, 2007 I have now sold all my Sinar equipment and own two Fuji GX680 III bodies with every lens they have manufactured. After 30 years of using almost all large and medium format cameras, I have finally settled on the Fuji on the grounds of camera movements and lenses. I only use digital, not film any more. The camera doesn't seem big to me at all. I quite like the size. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
guri_singh Posted November 17, 2007 Share Posted November 17, 2007 WHERE CAN I BUY THIS CAMERA?! It is exactly what I have visualized as the ideal camera for me. I now use a Nikon D200 with 85mm PC Micro-Nikkor "tilt & shift" lens. Those familiar with these "pseudo-view camera" concepts and with Nikon will point out that my kit is "rigged": 85mm PC lens was designed for 35mm film, not DX format digital. So there are problems with "tilted and shifted" subject leaving the sensor if I make anything other than minor T&S nudges. On the other hand, for my small-product photography, I find that "minor nudges" are all that's needed most of the time...for superior results vs. greater subject distance / smaller aperture with regular macro lens. Also, much electronic data is missing or wrong with my set-up. I have tried real view cameras. Being a machinist, a Sinar view camera generates some emotional fondness in the otherwise cheeseball world of consumer electronics. But in all honesty, getting a good shot is much less fuss with the SLR + T&S lens for most of my jobs. The GX680III appears to be designed from the ground up for this approach, and should close the gap between my Nikon kit and a view camera by quite a bit in terms of composition capabilities. Of course the 120 film or digital back would give IQ a boost too. Weight? Who cares? Overall ease is what counts, I'm not physically disabled, and the class of work I have in mind for this bit of Fuji brilliance necessitates a tripod anyway. Besides, when it comes to consumer electronics, I have found that heavier is almost always better in terms of durability and reliability, especially important here for Fuji America's apparently crappy service and support. I WANT! WHERE CAN I BUY? THX! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peterson Posted December 29, 2007 Share Posted December 29, 2007 I believe that many sellors of used equipment still have this camera, as well as it's lens's available. My local store; Allen's Camera, in levittown PA still has the camera and lens's, I believe. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eugeniu_sofroni Posted August 12, 2010 Share Posted August 12, 2010 <p>Guri: .... Ebay :-)</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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