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Verdict
Fujifilm rightly attracted a great deal of attention when it launched the original GFX 50S, so the fact that it's managed to shoehorn so much of that camera into an even smaller, lighter and more affordable body shows the system to be moving in the right direction. Not a great deal has changed since the GFX 50S in terms of the bones of the camera, but it's debatable whether much needed to.
Quite what you make of the GFX 50R as a whole depends on what your frame of reference is. If you’re pitching it against full-frame DSLRs and mirrorless cameras it will fall short in many areas, such as handling and autofocus speed. The lack of image stabilization in all but three current lenses, together with underwhelming video specs and ergonomic challenges presented by the necessarily large body, are also worth thinking about if you’re looking for the GFX 50R to serve as your primary camera.
However, this is decidedly not a full-frame camera, and so the only fair comparison is with other medium-format systems. And here, it’s unquestionably impressive. With Fujifilm combining familiar X-series functionality and operation with superbly detailed results, and delivering it all in a relatively portable body at an aggressive price, it’s hard to think of a more appealing medium-format proposition right now.
