Long story short: My Leica SL3 failed while photographing in Japan, and after hearing of the 2.5 month wait time for repair, I decided that I had had enough of Leica. So I decided to sell all of my Leica gear save the Q2 Reporter. 

Still wanting something different— but this time reliable and yes, somewhat predictable, I purchased the Fujifilm GFX 100 mark II for my landscape and seascape photography. This is my first week of images with this beast of camera. What follows is Medium Format Goodness.

Friday April 18, 2025

The camera and lenses arrived Thursday morning and the first thing I did was charge the batteries. I planned to shoot that evening but a major rainstorm put the dampers on that. So my first day out with this new camera and new lens in a new format was Friday morning at an old favorite location of mine, Secrets Beach in Kilauea. 

I haven’t shot this wide in a long time and I found myself getting closer and closer to the rocks which ultimately got me closer and closer to the rushing water of the breaking waves. Not really knowing where the buttons were and not really knowing what they actually did made it all a little stressful. Fun, but stressful.

I think the shot before this one I mistakenly had the IBIS on and the frame floated in the beautiful and PHAT Electronic Viewfinder as if buoyed by the ocean. The viewfinder on the GFX 100 II really is awesome. It’s right up there with the Canon R1. 

On this day I find myself often boxed in on a stormy morning along the north shore, my shorts getting wet by what just might be the last winter swell of the season.

I think tomorrow morning I’ll read the manual with a few cups of coffee. Get to know the camera a little bit better before going out there again. I just couldn’t help myself. I had to shoot. Which is a good feeling to have.

Saturday April 19, 2025

Sunday April 20, 2025

The cloud forest of Koke’e State Park is cut by the Pihea Trail, a wandering, often slippery, stretch of red dirt and mud. The trail begins at the end of the road, which is currently closed so park at the Kalalau Lookout and road walk about a mile and a half to get to this inspiring view.

It feels fresh. It feels new every time I see it. And now with the GFX 100 II it feels closer and more detailed than ever before. I know it has been said and shown a million times, but the 102 MP sensor on this camera is simply sublime. The images that you are able to make with this camera are astounding. Unlike anything I have ever seen from my Canons or Leicas.

Of course, being Medium Format, it is slower than any full frame camera, with a blackout period and low burst rates. But the Auto Focus is perhaps— I’ll have to test it more-- but it just might be as good and snappy as my Leica SL3. And it is likely better than the SL2 that I sold and the Q2 that I kept. I can’t wait to use this camera more and more. For now I am just happy with my head in the clouds, dreaming of the possibilities that await for a photographer who has the desire to photograph every day.  For a nature photographer that means being in nature more and more, bringing happiness and improved mental and physical health. All good things and all brought about by a good attitude and a motivation to use the camera, no matter the brand. 

All of the images in this section from the Pihea Trail were taken hand held, utilizing the GFX 100 II’s excellent In Body Image Stabilization. I think it is advertised as “Up to” 8 stops of IBIS, depending on the lens used. It is more than enough for a shutter speed double the focal length. And I bet you could even shoot at much lower speeds like 1/20 sec or maybe even 1/2 a second. But I haven’t tried it yet.

Roadwalking a hike is usually distasteful, but it’s not so bad today. Ohia trees line the ridge on both sides of the road and brightly colored forest birds like the apapane flit in and out, stopping at the shining red needlelike flowers of the Ohia Lehua. The Ohia tree is the most common native endemic tree in Hawaii. It grows above 1,300 feet and is the most important tree of the native Hawaiian forest.

The tree is having difficulty now as a fungus is causing a phenomenon called Rapid Ohia Death. It’s so severe that it has been compared to a forest fire raging through a forest, only instead of flames and charred trees it’s a fungus and dead trees within the same amount of time. It’s that fast. Conservation efforts are in place and we can do our part by cleaning our shoes and boots before and after hiking in any Hawaiian forest. 

Tuesday April 22, 2025

The best day of the first week with the GFX came one morning at one of my favorite spots on island. I call this place the Pinnacles, sometimes "Lemuria" because it is such a mysteriously beautiful land. Petrified sand dunes carved by wind and swell jut out into the ocean in strange angles and shapes. It is a surreal landscape of mellow tones and splotches of rich green in season. Throw in a colorful morning sky and a south swell of size and speed, you have all the makings of a memorable session. Let’s just say I’m glad I made it out here today.

 I’ve photographed this location so many times over the years that I am surprised that I don’t have it figured out yet! But I think finally I may have discovered something today— you don’t want to be too straight on, as this angle flattens the landscape and the pinnacles lose structure, depth and part of their mysterious appeal. So after this shot, I moved back to where I started. Yeah, this is the view I want to share.

Timing. It’s crucial when photographing seascapes. Get the timing right and the tide pool remains unrippled. Get it wrong and the clarity is disturbed.

Time it right for the intention that you wish to communicate.

Full flow or flow stopped?

Wave breaking or wave rising?

I’m still trying to figure out the best way to actuate the shutter with the GFX. Normally I use a shutter release cable to actuate the shutter without touching the shutter button, thereby preventing camera shake. However, I need the appropriate 2.5 to 3.5 mm cable adapter in order for the cable release to work. In the meantime, I tried 2 second timer delay a few times, but that was very difficult to accurately anticipate the speed and power of the surf. Another option is to use the Fuji X App and actuate the shutter on your iPhone with the remote control feature of the app. This works pretty well, and I think this is the way to go. At least this is what I will use going forward. Until I get that adapter.

Thursday April 24, 2025

Kona winds in the summer. Still air. Trades have stopped. It’s hot. It’s humid and while we say Kona winds, it’s usually not windy at all. Just warm air coming in from the south. And when the volcano is active on the Big Island, that means some “vog”. Vog is a kind of volcanic haze. Atmosphere that sits in the air like the warm winds. Deep in the summer it can be stultifying. But it can also bring the chance for pink and red skies at sunrise and sunset. Especially on the south and west side of Kauai.

I feel that I am off to a good start with my new camera, the Fujifilm GFX 100 II.

And I look forward to more good things to come.

😎 🤙

Aloha,

Lee