Fuji GW690 Any comments for Portraits ?

[raytoei@gmail.com]

I find my GW690 to be quite contrasty, and perhaps not the best combination for Acros 100 film. I recently tried it with fomapan 100 and love the tones created by this film and camera.

here is one taken several weeks ago:

The 690 lens is 90mm which translates to around 35-40mm in 35mm format.

One question: Has anyone tried portrait, head and shoulders pictures with this camera ? It is possible to have LF type of shallow DOF where the eyes are sharp and everything else
start to get out of focus at f3.5 ?

thanks for your comments and pictures.

raytoei

 

[divewizard]

The lens is about a 45mm equivalent in 35mm. It is quite nice for portraits.
GW690, HP5+, green filter, NCPS process and scan

©2012 Chris Grossman

 

[Texsport]

You have a much larger range of lens choices with the original 690 series with interchaneable lenses---including 50mm, 65mm, 100mm,150mm, and 180mm.

Additionally, the extremely rare Auto Up accessory for the 100mm, allows close up use of the 100mm to fill the frame for head shots.

Texsport

 

[Pherdinand]

you can't really go that close to the subject, to create so strong selective focus.

It's a great camera though for half-body portraits, or farther.

 

[raytoei@gmail.com]

thanks for the responses. with a minimum focus of 1m, only half-body portrait is possible, unless i crop the image. i have had success with 35mm lens previously (in 35mm format) but with closer distance 0.5 - 0.7mm.

any one with portrait pictures to share with this gw690 camera ?

thanks

raytoei

( i found several portraits, half height, 3/4 height using google image search for "gw690 portrait")

 

[RedLion]

Fuji GW690III

Fuji GW690III

Shot on Fuji Film NPC 160

 

[Abbazz]

As stated by Texsport, the original G690 with interchangeable lenses would be better suited for tight portraits with its 100mm lens — which provides a slightly greater magnification at its minimum focus distance of 1m than the 90mm lens of the later GW690. The 150mm and 180mm lenses are also superb portrait lenses, but their minimum focus is too large for headshots (respectively 2m and 2.5m).

The real killer is the "Auto-Up" attachment for the 100mm lens on the old G690 series. It decreases the minimum focus distance to 0.58m while retaining the rangefinder coupling, allowing some really impressive headshots with razor thin DOF at f/3.5:

Cheers!

Abbazz

 

[Texsport]

Abbazz,

I always enjoy seeing these photos.

They were the inspiration for my search for the Auto-Up.

Thanks,

Texsport

 

[Abbazz]

I always enjoy seeing these photos.

They were the inspiration for my search for the Auto-Up.

Thanks for the kind words, Texsport. I apologize for posting the same old pictures again, but I must admit that I have no other pictures digitized at the moment.

Cheers!

Abbazz

 

[silverhalidedreamer]

Extremely late to the party. Hmm...don't know why it's so small...

 

[tsiklonaut]

It's great for portraits!

Not my shot but a good friend of mine currently is using my drum scanning services - a portrait shot scan from his GW690III:

And a crop from a grainy ASA400-film still drawing out those fine details - it's a very sharp lens IMHO.



Afterall he shot my own weddings with the same camera and gave the negs to me as a gift - a pure gold in material, tack sharp and superb tonality that the Fuji lens brings forth! :angel:


The bad side effect is it made me drool for a GW690 - what an amazing MF RF it is and I just hoping to have my own 690 sometime in the future...

 

[Prest_400]

Another one here who would like this camera.
And for my shooting, I tend to take more environmental portraits rather than tight ones, so no problem within distance and focal length.

It's great for portraits!
[...]
Afterall he shot my own weddings with the same camera and gave the negs to me as a gift - a pure gold in material, tack sharp and superb tonality that the Fuji lens brings forth! :angel:

The bad side effect is it made me drool for a GW690 - what an amazing MF RF it is and I just hoping to have my own 690 sometime in the future...

Your work is an inspiration about MF and travel. I'd like to do both at the same time, somewhere in the future (when this poor student can afford it).
While researching for gear, I found it to be an interesting option.

 

[one90guy]

The GW690 has been on my "I want badly list" for some time. So bad in fact I have been considering selling off most of my, nothing fancy, slr's and tlr's to get one. Just afraid it want live up to what I am expecting. I have made a list and sat down and started listing on auction site but chicken out. I know at 65 I should have a better grip, LOL.

Has anyone had any problems with the GW690? Are they hard to work on or find someone to repair one?


David

 

[StefanJozef]

I have a GW690 and although I've not used it that much when I have it's quality is stunning. It was a big investment for me and I haven't regretted it.

 

[kuzano]

The hints are on the camera itself...

The hints are on the camera itself...

The interchangeable lens Fujica bodies are the only 690/670 cameras that made allowances for portrait focal lengths in the lenses.

1) Clue number one. Only the interchangeable bodies had a frame line for 150mm in the interchangeable lenses. Fuji made the 150 and 180 focal lengths available classed as TS for short telephoto focal length.

Since the most favored lens in 35mm for portrait head shots are 75 to 85, and since the 150mm 35mm equivalent is 65mm, it would appear the 150 and 180, and the presence of the 150 frame lines were Fujica's anticipation of the use of those two focal lengths.

The near impossibility in finding 150's and limited inventory of 180 would imply that Fujica did not realize their planning on this.

I submit that the intended portrait lenses in 690 was the 150 and 180 lenses in filling the short telephoto niche for portrait. By the time of transition to fixed lenses, the sale of portrait length lenses in 6X9 frame size was so dismal that Fuji NEVER made a fixed lens 690 in the 150 or 180mm lens size.

So, we have all this hard to understand rationalization about the "wonderful" portrait qualities from shorter than normal focal lengths.

Does not play in my book, since my position is that all you can do with 20-35mm equivalents (wide angle) is to "uglify" people portraits by breaking the suggestions toward short telephoto as best for strict portrait rendering.

In fact when I did find a 150mm on eBay (only one ever) I snapped it up and base my comments here on my findings... The bonus... no finder necessary. The frame lines came with the camera.

The disappointment...., no short telephoto focal length model9such as 150/180, in the GW and GSW fixed lens models. And the interchangeable lens lengths that are quite suitable for portrait in the G/GL series, very hard to find.

It's much easier to come up with a Mamiya Super 23 or Universal with a 150 or even a 180 lens... far cheaper, and equivalent quality glass. Only real downside..... UGLY EFFIN' BODY for the Mamiya's

 

[Calzone]

I have a GL690, a GM670 and the 150/5.6. The 150 is a very rare lens and hard to find. The minimum close focus does not allow for head shots. While the 100/3.5 is a Tessar, the 150 is a Sonnar and has that Sonnar rendering that is particularly nice for portraits (soft corners wide open).

In particular I like the 150 on my GM670 and in particular I like shooting this rig for verticals.

Cal

 

[raid]

I have the 100/3.5 AE on a GL690. It is superb.
Now where do I get that Auto-Up thingie?

 

[Marel]

I've been offered the GW690III for around 600USD. After looking at photos from it both here at RFF and Flickr the last few days I think I will have a hard time turning that offer down...

I was on the verge of acquiring a 21mm lens for my M6, but the Fuji has stronger gravitational pull at the moment. Shouldn't I go for it?

 

[raid]

The Fuji MF cameras are going down in cost. I am not sure whether $600 is a good asking price or maybe it is too much. I bought a G690 with 100/3.5 for $200 a year ago. The lens may have a tiny bit of fungus.

 

[Marel]

The Fuji MF cameras are going down in cost. I am not sure whether $600 is a good asking price or maybe it is too much. I bought a G690 with 100/3.5 for $200 a year ago.

Yeah, I've been wondering a bit about the price. At Keh.com you can find these cameras from 235$ (condition ugly) to 751$ (in excellent condition). This particular example is described as being really nice (I haven't seen it yet).

But then I have to figure in shipping + VAT (I live in Iceland). For the grand total to be around 600$ the unit price can't be higher than ca. 450$. Which is a bit lower than the lowest 'buy it now' price I've seen on the auction site (they range from 460$ up to almost 1000$!) When this is all figured in I think it's not such bad deal after all (but of course I'll try to bargain if I go for it!).