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10-07-2018, 10:14 AM - 1 Like   #1
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645Z vs. Fuji MFD Mirrorless

Hey all, I've been shooting with the Pentax 645D and then the 645Z since 2012 and have to say I've been pretty pleased.

However, the idea of reducing the overall size and weight by moving to a mirrorless MFD is also tempting. Adding on the fact that Pentax no longer seems serious about pursuing a new version of the 645Z or new 645 digital lenses and with Fuji releasing a new 100mp mirrorless sometime in the future (and supposedly their lenses that resolve well enough to take advantage of the sensor) I'm not really feeling all that loyal to Pentax anymore. Plus, my understanding is that Fuji's customer service is much better than Pentax (I've never had any equipment issues with Pentax, but have heard horror stories of 6+ months to get a sensor or lens repaired). I shoot landscapes and often print very large (I've sold a number of 8'+ wide prints), so the 100mp sensor would actually make sense for me, especially if I decide I need to crop something or am in a situation where using my pano head isn't an option.

So, some questions for anyone that may know...

Can the Pentax 645 lenses be adapted to work on the Fuji mount? I love my 28-45mm, plus have ten other Pentax MF lenses for that system. The Fuji lens line up is more lacking than Pentax, which is also something that may hold me back, but if the lenses could be adapted that opens up more options.

Or, could the Fuji 23mm be adapted to work on my 645Z? I often find my 25mm to not quite wide enough, plus it isn't as sharp as the 28-45mm.

Also, has anyone done a comparison between the 645Z and new mirrorless Fuji MF cameras?

10-07-2018, 10:32 AM - 2 Likes   #2
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So your happy with your camera, but because of unsubstantiated internet rumors that Pentax has given up on its flagship system, that you’ve never has issues with, you want a new camera system?

Is there anything technically deficient with your 645 that you feel the Fuji will do better? That’d be a reason to upgrade.

The 23mm can’t work on a Pentax, the flange distance is too long.
10-07-2018, 10:38 AM   #3
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Your gear should follow your needs and give you the results + satisfaction required by your work. It may be too early to be able to rent a Fuji system for trial and evaluation purposes.


Have you shot with a mirrorless system before? MIrrorless vs mirror can be a very different experience. I like mirrorless for the live view and histogram overlay. Other people say the EVF drives them crazy.

Maybe you could try an APS sized Fuji to get a feel of the menu layout and general Fuji shooting experience.
10-07-2018, 10:43 AM   #4
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QuoteOriginally posted by skierd Quote
The 23mm can’t work on a Pentax, the flange distance is too long.
Thank you, that was one of the more important things I was wondering.

Yes, I'm happy with the 645Z and my lens set-up, but eventually the system will need to be updated. It's not about bragging rights or anything, it's just that the 100mp sensor is something that I know would benefit my business. The Fuji pricing on lenses is also very good for MF.

10-07-2018, 10:48 AM   #5
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QuoteOriginally posted by Ryan Tischer Quote
However, the idea of reducing the overall size and weight by moving to a mirrorless MFD is also tempting.
I tend to agree on this. I do not shoot MF but I suspect most who do are using a tripod most of the time because of the nature of the photography and the weight of the gear. And to me mirrorless on a tripod works. When on a tripod I almost always use liveview on the K-1, so adapting to mirrorless for this use case makes sense.

The 645z weighs 1550g and the Fuji GFX50s weighs 825g, just slightly more than half of the 645z. That is a significant difference.


The huge attraction to me for Pentax has always been the huge number of relatively cheap vintage lenses available. But sometimes it is better to just have one really good lens that works rather than a bunch of old ones sitting on the shelf.

Wish I could help the OP with the lens questions, but I'm sure someone else will show up who can.
10-07-2018, 10:57 AM   #6
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Guess I should have done a quick search on B&H before asking about adapting the Pentax 645 to Fuji MF G mount: FotodioX Pro Mount Adapter for Pentax 645 Lens to P645A-GFX-PRO

There are only two reviews for it and those are for the non-pro version. One review said the lens can easily fall off if you're not careful, but again that's the non-pro version, so maybe that one is better.
10-07-2018, 11:04 AM   #7
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QuoteOriginally posted by Ryan Tischer Quote

Can the Pentax 645 lenses be adapted to work on the Fuji mount?
Yes, manual lenses can be adapted. Sadly, I haven't read about an automatic aperture adapter for DA/DFA 645 lenses, so the 28-45 and 25 would be big no-no's. Perhaps a custom adapter could solve it.

10-07-2018, 11:39 AM   #8
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Currently, it is not easy to select a good yet affordable MF system. Pentax 645 body is large, old set of lenses. Fuji GFX50S and GFX50R use contrast detect for focusing, it is rather slow, fine for stills, landscapes, but would be a challenge for weddings, catwalks , where the Pentax would nail focus faster. It is expected that the Fuji GFX 100Mp will use phase detect for focusing, but it won't be cheap. Usually, when going out with a MF system with a suitable tripod, is not something small anyway. I'd wait to see how the new Fuji 100Mp will be like.
10-07-2018, 12:37 PM - 1 Like   #9
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I would also wait to see what Pentax does. Ricoh does one thing at a time, but they do it very well. I remember the several years of waiting for the 645D, and the quick follow-up with the 645z was a surprise.

Fuji is more facile, to be sure, with product announcements. But there is much more to a camera than the sensor, and the Fuji is a very different kind of camera.

Rick “expecting a new Pentax 645 that will use the same sensor—eventually” Denney
10-07-2018, 12:43 PM   #10
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QuoteOriginally posted by torashi Quote
Yes, manual lenses can be adapted. Sadly, I haven't read about an automatic aperture adapter for DA/DFA 645 lenses, so the 28-45 and 25 would be big no-no's. Perhaps a custom adapter could solve it.
FotodioX Pro Mount Adapter for Pentax 645 Lens to P645A-GFX-PRO

Not auto, but allows stepless aperture control. When shooting landscapes this could be used with practice to dial in the desired aperture.
10-07-2018, 12:46 PM - 1 Like   #11
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I think it’s Pentax’s 100th anniversary in 2019. I’ve made the decision that if they release nothing new in both MF body and lenses next year then I am out. It’s already been over 4 years since the 645z launched and no new roadmapped lenses at all.

BUT, I won’t be moving to Fuji either. Their system isn’t worth it. The lenses are huge and the usability of the GFX50s isn’t great in my view. Plus the files aren’t as good as Pentax RAWs, it’s like there’s something baked into them, they aren’t clean.

I will consider moving to the replacement camera for the Hasselblad X1D when it comes. Their lens lineup is much superior and the files are nicer. But it’s very expensive and I’m not sure I need it.

But then again, if Canon releases a high MP Full frame sensor in the EOS R body with good DR I may just stick with that as I have heaps of Canon glass and operationally Canon bodies are superb.

Only time will tell.
10-07-2018, 02:33 PM - 1 Like   #12
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as perhaps one of the few who shoots with both the 645Z and the GFX, if I had to chose one, it would be the Fuji. I have the Fotodiox adapter specifically for the 28-45 but it is an ungainly thing that is very front-heavy. I have used other Pentax 645 glass on my Fuji with adapters and I can live with it. In my opinion, the 645Z handles better while the GFX is more versatile. Besides the Pentax glass, I am also using Mamiya 645, Nikon, Canon and Minolta glass. It has been fun. As a user of LR, I haven't seen a big enough difference in RAW files to justify one over the other. And now that Capture One supports Fuji, that might be a mark in their favour.
10-07-2018, 04:15 PM   #13
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QuoteOriginally posted by jatrax Quote
The 645z weighs 1550g and the Fuji GFX50s weighs 825g, just slightly more than half of the 645z. That is a significant difference.
Apparently that's without the EVF, it's 920g with it - I don't know how well it's built, but I'm happy to trade 500g of weight for the build quality and optical finder of the D. The weight difference is minimal if you're carting a hefty tripod & head (mine weigh 4kg) and other accessories around. Having a tripod bush on the side of the Pentax 645's is a huge help if you want to do verticals.

Last edited by johnha; 10-07-2018 at 05:01 PM. Reason: Clarification
10-07-2018, 06:28 PM   #14
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QuoteOriginally posted by Brooke Meyer Quote
I'm curious. How would the 100 mp sensor benefit your business?
My business is based around selling artwork (I have a gallery and also sell work at art festivals) and it’s important for me to be able to print images very large (like 8’ wide and sometimes larger) when needed. I’ve found that in order to make a living at selling photographic artwork I need to be able to cater to higher end clients.

It would also be nice to have the option of cropping while still keeping sharpness.

---------- Post added 10-07-18 at 08:38 PM ----------

QuoteOriginally posted by 2351HD Quote
The lenses are huge and the usability of the GFX50s isn’t great in my view.
When I looked at the weight and dimensions of the Fuji 23mm vs. the Pentax D FA 25mm and also the Fuji 32-64 vs. the Pentax 28-45, the Fuji lenses were smaller and lighter.

I can’t speak to the usability of the Fuji, but I may try renting one eventually before I make any sort of decision. For now I’m still pretty happy with the Pentax, except for the size and weight. I have a feeling I’d take the camera out on more hikes if my camera bag wasn’t so large and heavy.
10-07-2018, 08:02 PM   #15
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QuoteOriginally posted by Ryan Tischer Quote
Hey all, I've been shooting with the Pentax 645D and then the 645Z since 2012 and have to say I've been pretty pleased.

However, the idea of reducing the overall size and weight by moving to a mirrorless MFD is also tempting. Adding on the fact that Pentax no longer seems serious about pursuing a new version of the 645Z or new 645 digital lenses and with Fuji releasing a new 100mp mirrorless sometime in the future (and supposedly their lenses that resolve well enough to take advantage of the sensor) I'm not really feeling all that loyal to Pentax anymore. Plus, my understanding is that Fuji's customer service is much better than Pentax (I've never had any equipment issues with Pentax, but have heard horror stories of 6+ months to get a sensor or lens repaired). I shoot landscapes and often print very large (I've sold a number of 8'+ wide prints), so the 100mp sensor would actually make sense for me, especially if I decide I need to crop something or am in a situation where using my pano head isn't an option.

So, some questions for anyone that may know...

Can the Pentax 645 lenses be adapted to work on the Fuji mount? I love my 28-45mm, plus have ten other Pentax MF lenses for that system. The Fuji lens line up is more lacking than Pentax, which is also something that may hold me back, but if the lenses could be adapted that opens up more options.

Or, could the Fuji 23mm be adapted to work on my 645Z? I often find my 25mm to not quite wide enough, plus it isn't as sharp as the 28-45mm.

Also, has anyone done a comparison between the 645Z and new mirrorless Fuji MF cameras?


I use both so i might be able to weigh in. They are both nice systems. The fuji is putting the effort that i wish pentax would into their system. I initially bought the gfx because of that very fact. I wasnt getting the updated sealed lenses that i wanted. With the fuji system, the lenses are very sharp, i love the ability to control everything on camera, i love the extended iso to 50, i like how there is reassurance that they are making an effort with the system (new lenses, capture 1, third party support in form of lenses, etc), evf soom in to get great autofocus for manual lenses,i love how compact and light the system is( it is the size of a k1 maybe even a little smaller), and no mirror vibration.

In the GFX laowa is coming out with a 17 mm lens for the system, you can adapt 35mm lenses such as the tiltshifts, you can use canon lenses with the camera with full autofocus. Even the film simulators are nice for those moments you need a jpeg file. Oh and comparison to the pentax, it doesnt have more of a magenta color to the files. I like how the gfx has a quick menu which you can customize for main settings.

As far as 645z goes, it has much better raw files, and you can use dng. Although the fuji you can shoot compressed, the file sizes are massive,111 with fuji compared to ~70 with the z. Although i want sealing with my lenses, i prefer the softer nature of pentax lenses which ill tend to adapt on to the gfx(unfortunately no autofocus). Another nice thing is how there is a bottom and side mount to the z. I like how there is no delay when looking through the ovf of the pentax, more telephoto lenses for now, weather sealing on body is great(havent tested the fuji quite yet), the files are more smoother and i like how they arent as contrasty(i needed to reduce it on the gfx), menu system is also nicer on the 645z. Unlike the gfx, i findchanging between different modes easier to navigate the z.

When i get home ill make sure i share a few files between the two cameras.


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