Vintage Lenses on Fujifilm GFX 50s, GFX 50r, and GFX100
I purchased my first GFX50s used. It had less than 500 actuations and it was obvious that the seller was frustrated with the model. He is an avid Canon shooter and only used adapted Canon lenses on the GFX. At the time, I figured that medium format was not his cup of tea, but I quickly started understanding some of the limitations when mounting FF (Full Frame) / 135 format lenses.
My initial test included 40mm and 58mm Voigtlander lenses and some sharp Nikkors. I purposely selected some of the sharpest of my 135/FF lenses and all performed dismally! The quality was unacceptable, not even talking about limitations of coverage and vignetting...
The reality is that a medium format camera needs medium format lenses, just as large format requires large format lenses. So if you are not interested in spending the money on pricey Fujinon lenses, where to start with vintage medium format lenses?
There is an extensive selection of used medium format film lenses but picking the right ones can be intimidating if you never used these with film.
This guide is not written to recommend specific lenses but to give the reader a quality reference among brands and how these stacked up during the film era of the 1980s and 1990s. All manufacturers had good and dismal lenses. So these comments relate more to the brand quality in general and are based on my experiences of using some of these systems in the film era.
The square 6x6 format (like Hasselblad) was never popular in commercial advertising photography. Many art directors had problems envisioning cropped images and there were also complaints of film costs on large photo shoots when portions of the frame was going to waste. Most importantly 6x6 negatives required custom prints, a problem when customers needed hundreds of economical machine prints/enlargements. Customer budgets are always a priority. The square 6x6 format was far more popular with wedding and portrait photographers who did not work in a mass production environment. So my 6x6 equipment experiences are limited and not included in this article!
Mamiya / Mamiya Sekor 645
The Mamiya 645 was the entry level, interchangeable lens, medium format system. Like many, I joined the ranks of many 135 photographers wanting the increased quality of medium format... and what a disappointment that turned out to be! I recall comparing 135 transparencies to the 645 film and remember thinking “why am I lugging this box around?”. The quality wasn't there and I found this to be true for all the Mamiya 645 lenses. Build quality was mediocre as well. That said I never tried their popular 80mm f/1.9 so I have no opinion on the lens.
Mamiya RB67 / RZ67
This system was exceedingly popular with (studio) portrait photographers. The RB67 had some features reminiscent of large format like bellows focusing. This allowed for precise focusing through expansion or contraction of the bellows on the camera body, instead of the lens which is what most people are familiar with... Mamiya RB67 therefor have no focus ring and no means of focusing these lenses except when attached to a RB67 camera body. These lenses are inadequate for the GFX.
The RZ67 lenses in contrast do have a traditional focus ring and the entire RZ system operated in a more traditional way. Mamiya 67 lenses incorporate a leaf shutter, allowing these lenses to sync with studio strobes at all shutter speeds. This feature was of specific interest to studio photographers working with (moving) models and gave the system an advantage over other systems. The quality of the RZ67 lenses varied extensively and Mamiya offered a wide selection of lenses including LD (Low Dispersion) and APO lenses. The "LD" term was used as Nikon had a trademark on the term “ED” (Extra Low Dispersion).
Mamiya RZ67 lenses perform well and are great to adapt if these are already on hand! The built-in leaf shutter ads significant weight and the lenses are characteristically bulky. Additionally used lenses are often pricey. Price, weight, and bulk make these lenses less than ideal for acquisition.
Bronica GS-1 (6x7) lenses
Early Bronica camera systems used Nikkors before producing their own glass. I have no experience with the old Bronica Nikkors as these date from the 1970s. The GS-1 system was marketed as a high quality performer. The bodies were reliable and I personally put thousands of rolls of 120/220 film through the camera with interchangeable backs. Bronica was a better camera builder than a lens manufacturer! Lenses were good but not stellar, these lacked sharpness and micro contrast. These were somewhat bland in performance and color rendition.
Bronic ETRs (645) lenses
The Bronica ETRs was a chip of the block of its larger GS-1 brother. While the model and lenses were available to me, I rarely used it except when the customer requested the 645 format. I recall a customer wanting to save film costs on a large garment shoot and selecting the 645 format, just to be disappointed with the results and reverting back to the 6x7 GS-1. The ETRS lenses were only medium quality performers and the shortcomings of the lenses manifested themselves more in the ETRs line than in the larger GS-1 system.
Contax 645 lenses
Contax always captured my imagination for some of its innovative designs and features. This was a quality brand that often struggled getting sales and the name recognition it deserved. Buyers into the Contax system often became loyal customers. Contax produced 135 and medium format systems. Their native Yashica lenses were economical but for professionals they offered top of the line Zeiss lenses. Their 645 system was equipped with an assortment of Zeiss lenses. All were exceptional in quality. There are not many adapters for the GFX system but the Fringer adapter offers the unique feature of AF with some lenses, although I have not had the chance to test it. The drawback of Contax 645 lenses is price and availability, yet bargains can be found for those who are (very) patient.
Pentax 6x7 67 lenses
I switched from the Bronica GS-1 to the Pentax 67 in 1998. I recall a long time customer standing in awe as he was looking at the Pentax transparencies. I noticed it immediately but I never expected customers to perceive the improved color and sharpness.
Pentax had a loyal professional following with their 6x7 system. The camera was laid out like a 135 camera and the body had its limitations like slow sync speeds and no interchangeable film backs. Bodies were affordable so most photographers just used separate bodies instead of film backs. Additionally a dedicated body was used for the NPC Polaroid back. Most lenses were lighter than the competition and outperformed them optically.
It is important to look at the generation of the lens as some of these designs were developed decades ago. Newer generations are usually better all around. The Pantax Takumar lenses are the oldest, also noticeable by the pronounced yellow lens coatings. These lenses are not bad but may have more limitations than the modernized SMC versions. The Pentax 6x7 SMC lenses have significant updates in coatings and corrections over the Takumar line. The 6x7 SMC lenses are usually solid performers.
The 67 SMC lenses are the last of the Pentax line (note "67" and not "6x7"). Some had little improvements over the SMC 6x7 version listed above, other were optically completely redesigned. This is the best version to look for as these were the last generation and optically deemed the best.
These lenses are excellent performers and are extremely affordable but they remain 6x7/67 lenses meaning that there is significant bulk to deal with once mounted on a converter. Weight is more significant with the early Takumars than with the later SMC lenses.
A good resource on individual lens quality can be found on the Pentax forums where photographers submit user reviews, see https://www.pentaxforums.com but note that this too is opinion based and some of my lenses outperform their ratings. Many praise the SMC 105mm f/2.4. I ended up selling mine as my 135mm Macro outperformed the 105mm and yet the macro lens is usually rated lower.
Pentax 645
The Pentax 645 and Contax 645 were fantastic film systems that I never got to fully explore in the film era. The 645 lenses I acquired were purposely purchased for the GFX.
There is a great advantage to the Pentax 645 system. Unlike the 67, Pentax continued to update and even had an AF version in its last iteration. Not only were many lenses adapted for AF, their formulation was improved or redesigned when better elements and coatings were available. The entire system is of a different generation as it was introduced in 1984 compared to 1969 with the Pentax 6x7 system. The 645 evolution was more radical than the 6x7. Development of the 645 lenses continued into the digital era before Pentax went defunct. Generations were as follows:
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6x7 to 67 to 67II
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645 to 645n to 645nII, 645D to 645Z
The AF lenses were / are widely used with the Pentax 645D and the Ricoh developed Pentax 645Z, but do not let this influence you. There are many manual focus 645 lenses that perform exceptionally well on the GFX system. The Pentax forum's user reviews (see https://www.pentaxforums.com ) provide a good reference, especially on sharpness of the lenses.
Conclusion
There is no other system that offers more advantages than the Pentax system; from lens selection, availability, quality, and price! Getting the right generation is important and buying an optically mint example is recommended. That said, caution should be exerted when looking at lenses in Japan to make certain these have no fungus or traces of fungus, a widespread problem in Japan with their climate and the way lenses were stored in Japanese homes. Mint examples are available at incredible values, especially in Japan where there is an abundance of inventory. Pentax lenses were not sealed like modern lenses and are prone to dust in between elements. Don't settle for a dusty lens, minor dust specs near the front element are acceptable but avoid dusty rear elements. Look also for wear and creative photo angles that can hide wear or problems. Look also for black barrels with signs of retouched edge wear on the barrel, usually with a Sharpie which will reveal a purple hue. Brassing on the mount reveals that the lens was used extensively, damaged screws on the mount indicate that the lens has been opened and should be avoided...
A visual comparison of size and bulk (from top to bottom):
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Pentax 645 SMC A 45-85mm on Fujifilm GFX 50s
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Pentax 645 SMC A 150mm on Fujifilm GFX 50s
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Pentax 645 AF 120mm Macro on Fujifilm GFX 50s
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Pentax 6x7 Takumar 55mm on Fujifilm GFX 50s
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Pentax 6x7 Takumar 135mm Macro on Fujifilm GFX 50s
