Testing The FUJIFILM GA645

[@LucyLumen]

Thanks to everyone who joined the live chat that was fun! Let me know your thoughts below on the GA645...I am still not sold on medium format for my style of photography and the price of the film and less shots per roll also deters me??

[@olympus2OM]

The portrait with the sun glasses is amazing.

[@anthonyritchie696]

Love the lighthouse photo :) The boat shot is pretty good as well

[@Nieuwhollands]

What a cool camera. Looking forward to this one!

[@LucyLumen]

Hope you enjoy, let me know what you think, is the Fuji GA645 worth the price do you think?

[@Nieuwhollands]

@@LucyLumen Loved it. Watched it 3 times now lol. I've heard it can malfunction on you out of the blue. But it's a pretty damn cool camera. I'd say definitely save up for one if it's perfect for you. I so want the 6x9 version of this. Can't get it for lower than €1000 here. (Should go to Japan one day to get one haha) Loved that bass on the first background song!

[@olympus2OM]

Like the shot with the plants (9:07).

[@Superbustr]

Just as a fyi to anyone reading the comment section. It is normally best practice to load your film in subdued sunlight if it is at all possible. ~Like the vid music btw.

[@y2ktube]

Yeah, I cringed the entire time as they were loading the 120 roll !

[@olympus2OM]

I don't know where to start. So many beautiful portraits.

[@olympus2OM]

Lucy is modeling again. 14:32 - 14:52. Stunning.

[@LucyLumen]

Thank you 🙏🏻 it was fun to model for matt! Merry Xmas to you and your family lovely and thank you for your support and encouragement this year on the channel! Thank you 🙏🏻 ❤️🙋🏻‍♀️🎄🎁

[@NunoAlmeidaPhotography]

It was great watching the premiere with everyone! This camera seems to be a great choice for everyone looking for an easy to use medium format camera. Thanks for sharing! 👏

[@LucyLumen]

Thanks for joining Nuno, you are a legend! Oh my god it was so easy to use, I was blown away with how easy it was. Basically a point and shoot, but a big one haha

[@lightspeed2121]

Excellent video,, looked like a fun day , great photos

[@LucyLumen]

Thank you Eric! Merry Xmas to you stay safe and thank you for watching and commenting on the videos this year it means the world! 🎁🎄📸👍🏻🙏🏻❤️

[@DLivingston]

I have thought about getting myself a GA645. Such a great camera from what I have seen in videos. I loved this video and can't believe I am just now finding your channel!. I am here to stay! i loved these photos as well! Can't wait to dive into more of your videos!

[@LucyLumen]

Hello Derek 👋🏻 nice to have you here and I’m so glad you are enjoying the channel, thank you for the kind words. Merry Xmas 🎄

[@mollyanderson449]

Such a fun video! Thanks for sharing your thoughts on the Fuji! Looks like a good option if you want to simply medium format shooting, but I still say use whatever works best for you & have fun🙂

[@LucyLumen]

Thank you Molly, we had lots of fun and lots of laughs. If I had the disposable income I would buy this camera no problem it was literally like using a point and shoot haha but I can’t afford it and that’s fine cause I have so many cameras! Merry Xmas to you and your family and thank you for watching and supporting me this year. ❤️🙋🏻‍♀️🎄🎁🙏🏻

[@mjones410]

I don't care about the 645 I'm here for the Matt shoots Lucy valuable portrait tips. Great to see you guys teaming up again :)

[@LucyLumen]

Haha 😂 yes the portrait sesh was a lot of fun!!! We are going to team up again soon on Matt’s podcast so keep an eye out for that. Thanks for watching and happy new year Matt!

[@EdwardIglesias]

Kept waiting for you to drop the camera at the end and have a seagull grab it. Great video. Love the b&w shots of you.

[@LucyLumen]

Thank you Edward! Haha you are quite the comedian and I almost didn't get your comment on my 120 post on patreon but my partner explained and then I was like ohhh how clever haha. Hope you had a great xmas :)

[@AlexLuyckxPhoto]

The GA645 is a great camera, I've worked with the GA645Zi (the one with the zoom lens) and it's a nice package and produces excellent results! Also, love the "High 645" joke. Favourite shot is of the red boat!

[@LucyLumen]

Hey Alex, hope you had a great xmas! I think the zoom lens one would be my ultimate choice in medium format as I do love a tight crop and zoom is great for that. Haha yeah Matt is pretty funny hey. Loved spending the day with him and getting to meet his family as well :)

[@mrbarkan]

The colours on the 645 are stunning... And I'm honestly shocked on how much it resembles the render and resolution of my XT3 + XF 23mm 1.4, I'd love to see your shots in higher res. Do you post them anywhere?

[@LucyLumen]

Hey David, thanks for watching! I was so shocked at the resolution too especially because I normally shoot 35mm. I have a patreon where I post a lot of photos I don’t share on Instagram and other cool things too, the link is in the description. I don’t think the photos get compressed as much as they do on IG. I’m glad you enjoyed this video and thank you for commenting and sharing your thoughts 💭🙋🏻‍♀️📸👍🏻

[@mrbarkan]

Great idea ! 😉 Cheers!

[@Eclectachrome]

Aw missed the live chat but what a great video! Love the collab with Matt Loves Cameras and the camera, photos were gorgeous, and the music was so good. Also the model moments were great haha definitely the price is a consideration with the 120 film and also the size of the camera, but at least this camera looked more fun to use than the mamiya :)

[@LucyLumen]

Hey Molly, hope you had a great xmas and thank you for watching. I'm glad you liked the music too :) This camera was an absolute dream to use I would love to have one if money was no issue at all. I am so pleased I got to try it out though, it's so important if you are going to spend lots on a camera to have at least had a go with it. :)

[@poniatowski3547]

haha trying to take that photo of Lucy on the beach is exactly me trying to take a photo of my wife :) Love that GA645

[@LucyLumen]

Haha 😂 yeah we left that whole bit in as I thought it was pretty funny. This camera is so sick but just way outta my budget. Thanks for watching and merry Christmas lovely! ❤️🙋🏻‍♀️🎄📸🎞

[@jackienguyen9290]

This was such a fun watch!

[@LucyLumen]

Thank you my love! We had lots of fun. Merry Xmas to you and thank you for watching the channel ❤️🎄🙋🏻‍♀️👍🏻🎁

[@cal3blipa]

15:01 need that one in print frame 🖼️

[@diegomayafotografia8856]

Nice video like always. Gorgeous images and portraits too. Boy, i need a photo friend to walk around my town too.

[@LucyLumen]

Thank you lovely! Yes, I wish I was closer to you I would totally photo walk with you. Have a happy new year 🥳 thank you for supporting the channel this year. ❤️🙏🏻🙋🏻‍♀️🍾

[@MikeLikesChannel]

I loved my GA645, but holy cow, the price of 120. I didn't leave film, film left me. I couldn't stand throwing 2 dollars on the ground every time I clicked the shutter. Begrudgingly moved to digital (besides my phone obviously) and actually really enjoying my Fuji 50R, but yeah film prices went out of control and don't seem to be settling down. Especially for medium format.

[@LucyLumen]

Oh yeah it’s insane! I only really shoot 35mm for that reason now. It’s gotten out of control even for that too

[@MikeLikesChannel]

@@LucyLumen Yeah 35mm is more reasonable. 120 has to be, like, special occasions.

[@stapledtogether]

Another great video! I love these cameras, last year they were around 800-1000aud and now they’re almost double!

[@LucyLumen]

Thank you lovely! Happy new year to you and thank you for watching this year. I know they are crazy expensive now it sux haha

[@neeravnaik]

Looks like a cool camera! Problem is it being electronic so risk of breaking down is there and then it could be challenge to repair it. Great pictures !!

[@LucyLumen]

Yes exactly right, it is a big risk with these electronic cameras! Thank you for watching lovely and merry Xmas to you and your family. Thank you for supporting the channel in 2021! 👍🏻📸🎞

[@perilthecat]

That was a fun watch! It’s cool to see your videos evolve, especially as a contrast to more established channels which can tend to fall into a predetermined structure.

[@LucyLumen]

Hey Darren, thank you for saying that I’m glad you’ve enjoyed the channel so far I hope 2022 I can bring even more videos to you! Thank you for noticing as I do always try and change it up rather than every episode being the same formula. Merry Xmas 🎄 ❤️🙏🏻🙋🏻‍♀️📸🎞

[@acecreates]

I just watched one of Vuhlandes videos on this camera.. I'm super keen to get my hands on one!

[@LucyLumen]

Yeah I saw he had a video on this camera but I get so over dudes walking around with medium format cameras being "cool" so I didn't watch it. I was lucky this kind person sent this camera to Matt so I could try it out. It's really awesome but I just don't vibe with 120 and it's too expensive. Plus I hate loading it as you can see me fumbling hahha

[@acecreates]

@@LucyLumen haha rest assured it doesn't matter what I have, I won't be 'cool'!!! haha

[@cescoto88]

The orange glasses are 🔥 I am always so nervous opening any camera back just hoping it rolled all the way back in 😱 lost a roll a couple weeks ago. ✌️ 📷

[@LucyLumen]

Hey Christopher! Thank you, the sunnies were just cheap ones. Yes me too I live in fear that I haven’t actually shot the whole roll and then the whole thing was a waste of time!! 😫😫 film photography is anxiety inducing sometimes haha. Merry Christmas lovely 🎄❤️📸🙋🏻‍♀️

[@wilson_law]

Hey Lucy, Wilson from Brissie here, just something you might want to consider. Format and focal length: Fujifilm GA645zi shoots at an equivalent 4:3 aspect ratio, with a lens of 55-90mm. This is equivalent to roughly 35-55mm in 135 film format. Olympus Camedia C-3040 shoots at 2048x1533 resolution (4:3 aspect ratio), with a sensor size of 1/8" (crop factor of 4.8x), lens equivalent to 35-105mm in 135 film format. Depth of Field: Now, we all know from Tony Northrup's videos that equivalent calculations have to include f-number. The C-3050 lens is f/1.8-2.6, with an equivalent depth of field of f/8-12 roughly,. And since you have shot on 135 format, you would be aware that an ideal portraiture dof is f/5.6 and above. Facts: The 645 (along with micro four-thirds and smartphone) format are popular is because of its 4:3 aspect ratio. Digicams are popular because of CCD colours and slow operation. Therefore: The Olympus Camedia C-3040 is actually a miniature GA645zi, ideal for portraiture, with f/1.8-2.6 exposure capabilities (not referring to dof here), which is even better than the Fuji. Caveat: Medium format uses a telephoto lens. And using a smaller format, you will not get the same lens compression. However the benefit is that you are now shooting in digital format, with same aspect ratio, fast lens, along the slow quirky operation of a digicam! Lastly, if you compare the looks of the Olympus C-2000z and Fuji GA645zi, you will find very close similarities. Sorry for the technical calculations, hope this is your next video idea.

[@LucyLumen]

Hi Wilson check out my video on the f.095 lens I did recently it explores some of these ideas. I also have one of those camedia Olympus so stay tuned for that.

[@wilson_law]

@@LucyLumen just came back from the video. What you were chasing (which i admit i had been too) was lens compression from the medium format look. But this is different from compensating with a shallow dof (0.95) on a xt4. You'll need to step down to f/4 to get an equivalent dof on a 6x9 of f/12 (or f5.6 on FF) to eliminate the focus issue. i would agree that having razor thin dof is awesome but then again you will have focusing issues (similar to shooting 50mm @1.4 on 135 format). Physics does not allow lens compression on smaller sensor formats due to crop factor. Hence why the 0.95 will never look the same as your 6x9. To get the same lens compression, you have to use the same focal length. Also explains the trend of 85mm and 70-200mm lenses on full frame being the preferable choice for weddings in the past. Another thing to consider on the xt4 is aspect ratio; 3:2 is different from 4:3, being slightly longer. In comparison, you might find a smartphone being easier to compose than your xt4. And why some choose to shoot in square format. Dont get me wrong here, im not trying to put you down or go against you; you do you. Just would like to shed some light between dof, lens compression, and aspect ratios.

[@BeeandAnt]

This video was so fun to watch!! And very informative thank you! I’ve been thinking about trying medium format but haven’t had the courage to do so yet! Maybe I’ll try it next 😋

[@LucyLumen]

Thank you Bethany. I'm glad you enjoyed it and if you do try medium format I would love to see you do it in a video on your channel!! Keep up the great work and I'm glad we connected on here.

[@gamingwithstand6886]

Mamyai made a range finder medium format camera if I remember correctly.

[@KNURKonesur]

This Fuji is one of those things I could never convince myself into liking. As much as it's great to have an automated snapshot camera that's not huge and super bulky... I think I'd rather get a Plaubel Makina 67 if I was on the hunt for a rangefinder style medium format camera. But I'm mostly portrait oriented, hence the odd camera choices :D

[@highlander200107]

I was fairly certain you would get on with this camera a lot more, it truly is more your style of shooting

[@LucyLumen]

Hey John, yes absolutely this is my perfect camera if I was going to get into medium format. It’s sooo expensive though and I am pretty happy with 35mm. I had fun shooting this though and was happy to get to try it out. The film community is an amazing bunch, including yourself! Merry Xmas to you and your family and thank you for being so kind to me this year! 🙏🏻👍🏻📸🎞

[@kadeemcreates]

Instax Evo x T3 is a smooth combo

[@carltanner9065]

The Fuji medium format cameras are great cameras, but they are expensive. If you want to get into MF pics, have a look at some of the older cameras like the Olympus Six, Mamiya 6 (not the newer one, but the older, manual camera), etc. Whilst MF film is dearer, per shot, that 35mm film, the quality of the negatives is so much better since the negatives are quite a bit larger. But, what I've found is that I can pick up MF film cheaper than many of the 35mm films. Don't be fooled by the more shots = cheaper myth. It might seem cheaper but when you take into account the amount of 35mm film you can go through in a photo session, it's not a cheap way of taking photos!! Unless you shoot the cheaper films or go completely B&W. But, it's horses for courses...if you like 35mm then stay with it and enjoy what you're doing. MF film and cameras are a different kettle of fish and you may not like it and that's OK. Personally, I like both formats. However, I'm also into large format pics as well. But, if you want to eek out the economy of 35mm, have a go at using a half frame camera. You can get 72 shots on a 36 shot roll of film. There's plenty of half frame cameras to choose from on eBay or Etsy. Pick up a good little half frame and go crazy with a roll!!! :)

[@LucyLumen]

Hey Carl, Thank you for such great insight and advice here yet again! I think I am pretty happy to stick with 35mm to be honest, and lie you say that's okay. Ektar is my favourite film but i'm more than happy to shoot the cheaper colour neg films most of the time, plus I just like the ease of loading and I already have so many 35mm cameras to choose from. You are not the first person to suggest a half frame camera to me and Matt who I did the episode with, has one and I am going to ask to borrow it! 72 shots sounds like a dream as I love to just snap away once I get going! Can you recommend any particular one Carl?? I have seen videos on the Olympus pen??

[@carltanner9065]

Sure, Lucy :) Any of the Olly's will do as they're all pretty good cameras. But, if you can afford one, grab a Pen F. Being as they have interchangeable lenses they're more versatile than the single lens cameras. However, they're also a lot more expensive. Another camera you could look at are the Canon Demi half-frames. I have a Canon Demi EE17 which I really like. Beautiful little camera and takes great pics. But, like the Pen's, any of the Demi's will do good. Hashem has a review of a Demi on his channel. Sometimes, you maybe able to pickup a good copy of a Russian Smena half frame. But, like all Russian cameras, they can be hit or miss in quality. Sometimes, they can scratch your pics if you get one that isn't so great. Then, again, you can get one that's top notch. Pentax and Minolta made a couple of half frames, but I can't remember what models or whether you might find one. Konica also produced a camera that could switch between full and half frame, called the auto reflex. With many of the older Olly's, they used selenium light meters in the lenses and sometimes on the bodies of the cameras. They can wear out when left to just absorb light all the time or kept in dusty/moist conditions. So, if you look at one, see what condition the camera is in overall. You could get one with a good meter, if you're lucky. If you get one it's also a good idea to check all the light seals, make sure they're in good nick. I will say though, given there's so many models of half frame Olly's, do your research and check out the ones that appeal to you before you put your money down on one. Do the same with all the other cameras, as well. Go onto eBay and have a look, There's plenty of them there!!

[@rightfulhare6861]

120mm Gang!

[@LucyLumen]

LOL! 🙋🏻‍♀️😂 you are the best! X

[@sooooooooooos2300]

What a nice video

[@LucyLumen]

Thanks lovely ☺️

[@claytonsharp2168]

Love the video Lucy. SEXY shirt Matt!

[@LucyLumen]

HAHAHAHAHAHHA

[@MattLovesCameras]

Ha ha only just saw this, thanks mate! I wear it in every Lucy Lumen video lol

[@kodewilliams2892]

can i have that 645

[@randallstewart175]

You know how each roll of 120 film has "load in subdued light" printed on it? I guess in Australia or NZ (wherever these two are), they have become so bedassled that they can no longer tell the difference between bright noon-day sun and shade. And of course, they act like the village idiots through the first half of the video, so save your time and trouble. If you are a big risk taker, I didn't watch the 2nd half, so you are on your own there.

[@MattLovesCameras]

Only a village idiot would spell "bedazzled" like that 😂

[@mustbebc]

Firstly the video was clearly about trying out something new and not pretending to be an expert, secondly it’s low speed film and there’s no evidence of light leaks in the photos so not only is your comment rude it’s also irrelevant.