Digital Medium Format Thread

So being a complete newcomer to medium format and buying the Fuji GFX100RF and Hasselblad X2D II, one thing I was hoping to avoid was learning another editing application and having to make changes to my workflow.
I've used Lightroom for years, I love it, I can process and edit images in my sleep, and I think over the last couple of years their masking updates have been incredible, I almost never have to switch to Photoshop anymore.

So while I've now had both camera for a couple of weeks, and I've taken them both to Riyadh, Lake District and Anglesey, I've had a chance to do some experimentation.

Let's start with the Fuji GFX100RF - I've never been a fan of Capture One, I tried it a few years ago and I just couldn't find that connection that I have with Lightroom. So I started just importing the RAF files direct from the camera into Lightroom and editing, the final images were excellent to my eye and I was happy, but a couple of days ago I downloaded Capture One and use the free 'Fuji RAW Converter' licence. I took this image and processed it twice, one by importing direct into Lightroom and the other importing it into Capture One, doing the adjustments and exporting to a 16-bit TIFF file to then import into Lightroom.

I think you can see the difference, to me the image that was passed through C1 initially is so much better. (I guess a lot of you Fuji guys already know this anyway :ROFLMAO: )

Imported directly into Lightroom (it's worth noting, not particularly on this image, but on others, Lightroom struggled to pull back the details in the shadows on the RAF files, whereby C1 did a much. much better job)
2025-09-17 18.25.21.jpg

Passed through C1 and then into Lightroom
2025-09-17 18.25.21-2.jpg

Edit: Not sure if posting the images this way allows you to see the full difference, maybe I'd be better putting them on flickr?
 
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Same experiment on the Hasselblad X2D II, I still want to use Lightroom so I do the initial import into Phocus Desktop, from there the software does an incredible job at recovering details from the highlights and the shadows, I then export to a 16-bit TIFF and then import to Lightroom.

Importing the 3FR file directly into Lightroom
2025-09-16 12.57.47-2.jpg2025-09-16 12.57.47.jpg

Importing the 3FR file into Phocus Desktop and then export to 16-bit TIFF for import into Lightroom

I've gone a little too far than I normally would with pulling up the shadows but I was trying to prove a point that the initial processing in Phocus, while a bit of a pain, is worth it. Although I'm not a fan of the 600MB TIFF files :ROFLMAO:
 
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Hanley said:
Same experiment on the Hasselblad X2D II, I still want to use Lightroom so I do the initial import into Phocus Desktop, from there the software does an incredible job at recovering details from the highlights and the shadows, I then export to a 16-bit TIFF and then import to Lightroom.

Importing the 3FR file directly into Lightroom
View attachment 463466View attachment 463467

Importing the 3FR file into Phocus Desktop and then export to 16-bit TIFF for import into Lightroom

I've gone a little too far than I normally would with pulling up the shadows but I was trying to prove a point that the initial processing in Phocus, while a bit of a pain, is worth it. Although I'm not a fan of the 600MB TIFF files :ROFLMAO:
Click to expand...

Interesting, and thanks for the comparison. I can see the improvement with the Fuji, but the hassleblad image looks a lot better in LR - less haloing around areas going dark to light (like the telegraph pole). I can see that with more careful processing it wouldn't look so washed out, although the colours do look quite off in the Phocus version.
 
ancient_mariner said:
Interesting, and thanks for the comparison. I can see the improvement with the Fuji, but the hassleblad image looks a lot better in LR - less haloing around areas going dark to light (like the telegraph pole). I can see that with more careful processing it wouldn't look so washed out, although the colours do look quite off in the Phocus version.
Click to expand...
Thank you, I think I went too far in Phocus with the shadow and highlight recovery
 
The lightroom subscription went up, so I am currently using capture 1 raw converter (the free one) and liking it... I miss some things, so saving for the one off app payment.
But there is something about the pics that feel..... nicer somehow.
Once I"ve got the full app and histograms etc ... I'll post my feelings about it again :)

Enjoy the hasselblad and the rf
 
I thought the gfx 100s coped reasonably well with the dim lighting in the museum...
Over exposed and brought back a bit...


Exposed a bit better


I only note that the spot is still centered in the image for exposure... so I may need to use the full screen exposure...
 
Another reason I love the GFX100F, it fits in your pocket and can be taken in places that won't accept what they call 'professional' cameras. I was at St James Park yesterday for the Newcastle game, I checked beforehand the rules on photography and it said small cameras that don't have interchangeable lenses are allowed, so I took the pocket rocket Fuji, had it in my jacket pocket, nobody said anything when I was using it in the stands and because of the amazing resolution you come away with fantastic shots that you couldn't get with your phone :)
First pic shows how high up the away fans are, second is cropped in. Third is a 3 shot pano
Just a pity we lost 2-1 :ROFLMAO:
Despite the look on here, these pics are razor sharp

2025-09-28 16.15.07.jpg2025-09-28 16.21.21-2.jpg2025-09-28 16.15.13.jpg
 
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