GF500mmF5.6 Impression by William Chua
A super Telephoto lens is necessary for wildlife / sports photographers. We need the reach for our subjects. There are also times when we might need them for landscape photos.
I have been using the GFX cameras for wildlife photography for a few years.
Images from GFX cameras is amazing, but unfortunately, the longest lens we had previously is only GF250 mm. So a lot of times, cropping is necessary. So I longer lens for the GFX is definitely needed.
So was really happy when a GF500mm lens is announced. Even more so when I realized the lens is light and not too big. Almost similar size to the GF250 mm
In the past with a GF250mm, I need to crop a lot for the images when shooting wildlife, but now, at double the focal length, I might not need to crop as much, and I can retain the full resolution of the GFX100 II
Image quality and image sharpness is always our top priority for our images. Even more so when using long lenses. Because sometimes at a distance, images might not appear as sharp as we want to. So this is the reason why I loved taking wildlife photos with the GFX cameras. The detail in the images is always there. And with a GF500 mm lens, it really helped a lot in achieving great images
Although the GF500 mm lens is not a fast lens at f5.6, but for that cost and weight , it is a really good lens. Having been shooting wildlife photos in the last 10 over years, a fast lens although has each advantages, comes with a hefty price tag and also weight. But a GF500 mm lens has its own advantages as well, and coupled with a GFX camera, where optics are at its maximum, I am really very happy with it.
Do I miss using fast lenses for wildlife ? No really, because the weight is a deterrent, and you may have difficulty handholding the lens. The GF500 mm is at a very comfortable weight which is good for handheld images. Yes, we may need to shoot in low light sometimes, and at f5.6, it might be a challenge normally. But I am confident ( having used the GFX cameras since its launch) , that the GFX cameras can handle those low light situation well. And what is more important is that the quality of images is great
I brought the GF500 mm lens to India recently to take pictures of the snow leopard. Snow came a bit late this year, so I was faced with a dusty environment.
But the lens performed superbly in those challenging conditions. The OIS, the weather resistant and the focusing did not fail me at all. I am still able to capture my images in the harshest location at altitudes of 4600 m and temperature of -20 degrees
As a photographer, we are always looking out for maximum image quality in our images. Between a 35 mm camera vs a GFX camera, the difference is huge. You can never dispute the image quality of a GFX camera.
In the past, people will have reservations about a GFX camera, because of the availability of lenses ( especially in this case , a supertele lens) .But with the launch of this GF500 mm lens, it will definitely be a game changer. Because there is no reason to hold back getting the camera. Your images will look different from those of a 35 mm camera.
And besides wildlife photography, you can use it for sports and landscapes as well. I would definitely see a lot of opportunities to use this lens. Some might asked, if a longer lens is even better. It might be, but of cos we have to have a balance between the focal length, weight and cost of a longer lens.
Otherwise, if we really need a longer reach for the subject, we can always crop the images. And using a GFX100, there is still a lot of leeway for me to crop
I will strongly encourage fellow wildlife photographers to try out this lens. I am sure you will love it as much as I do
