In time-honored tradition of modern-day product launches, Fujifilm's X-Summit ended with a "one last thing" after the main event of introducing the 40MP X-H2, the GF20-35mm, and the second-generation XF56mm f/1.2.
The 'one last thing' at the New York X-Summit turned out actually to be two new products - a pair of tilt-shit lenses for the GFX system - which were brought on stage at the end of the presentation. Last year, Fujfilm added the promise of a tilt-shit lens to its GF roadmap - but didn't give us the focal length or maximum aperture. The only thing we were told was that this perspective-control lens would be introduced in 2023.
What we now know is not only that they are working on a pair of tilt-shift lenses for the GFX family of medium format cameras - but also the focal lengths. What we will get is a Fujinon GF30mm f/5.6 T/S and a Fujinon GF 100mm f/5.6 T/S Macro - which will each appeal to very different types of photographer.
Fujifilm GF30mm f/5.6 T/S
The 30mm is a classic wide-angle tilt-shift - which will appeal in particular to architectural and interiors photographer. With a focal length of 24mm on a full-frame camera, the ability to shift the front section of the lens up and down to correct for converging verticals.
Fujifilm GF 100mm f/5.6 T/S Macro
The 110mm, meanwhile, is designed for product and food photography - offering an angle of view that is equivalent to 85mm on full-frame camera. We also know that the lens offers some degree of macro capability - which has obvious usage when photographing relatively small objects at close distances in a studio scenario. Here the tilt controls are just as important as the tilt ones - as these allow you to correct, or exaggerate the distortion of a subject's shape, and to increase or decrease depth of field.
For the moment at least, we don't have any further technical specifications for the lenses - but judging from the samples we saw and photographed, neither lens is particularly large for a tilt-shift lens - and they offer what looks like a decent degree of both tilt and shift movements.
The Fujifilm GF lens roadmap has not been officially updated, so we have no confirmation that both of these lenses will come in 2023 - although it seems likely these would now be introduced as a pair sometime next year.
The launch would be a significant boost to the GFX system. Canon and Nikon make tilt-shift lenses - but these were designed for its full-frame DSLRs, and not its most-recent full-frame mirrorless models.
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