An interview with Toshihisa Iida, general manager of Fujifilm’s digital camera and lens division

Toshihisa Iida talks about the future of medium format range, the challenges of 100MP and why Fujifilm will never develop a full frame camera in his interview for DPReview

Toshihisa Iida, General Manager of Fujifilm Digital Camera & Lens Division

DPReview: Photokina is an important event for Fujifilm, isn’t it?

Toshihisa Iida： Yes, that’s right. The X100 was announced at Photokina 2010 2012 was the introduction of our first generation of mirrorless cameras 2014, I can’t remember anymore and 2016, of course, is the GFX 50S. note.ed.: The X100T and X30 were announced in 2014

DPReview: Now that the major DSLR manufacturers other than Ricoh have full-frame mirrorless systems, will Fujifilm ever enter that market?

Toshihisa Iida: No, that will never happen. Because we never did any research or development in this direction, fortunately or unfortunately. We don’t see any meaningful prerequisites for Fujifilm to enter the full-frame market. That’s mainly because we have good APS-C and medium format camera series. If we started developing full frame, these systems would absorb each other. So we’re happy to stay with two completely independent systems.

DPReview: Do you notice the mass shift of users from the X system to the GFX?

Toshihisa Iida: Not quite. Because these are completely different systems. Our first mirrorless cameras were based on the X100 – the functionality, colors, ergonomics. But I hope many more X-series users will be able to upgrade to the GFX in the near future.

DPReview: Can you tell us how you came up with the idea for the 50R?

Toshihisa Iida: Shortly after we introduced the 50S, we started getting requests from customers who remembered the old medium format film cameras. Immediately after the release of the 50S they were asking “when will the 50S be released rangefinder style?”.

DPReview: You originally expected this camera to be used more as a field camera? Like the old rangefinder cameras?

Toshihisa Iida: Yes, exactly. All the controls on the camera had to be accessible with one hand, that was our concept in terms of comfort and ease of use. We wanted the camera to be more suitable for street, reportage and portrait photography.

The upcoming 100-megapixel camera is more like a standard SLR with a removable viewfinder similar to the 50S, but with a built-in battery grip that will allow a noticeable increase in battery capacity. The sensor and image stabilization system need a lot more power.

The new GFX 50R is a medium format rangefinder camera from Fujifilm that uses the same 50 megapixel sensor as the previous GFX 50S model.

DPReview: Work on the 100MP camera has been ongoing?

Toshihisa Iida: Yes, that’s why we developed our GF lenses to support 100MP when that resolution eventually became available. We started to talk about it openly.

DPReview: You mentioned the need for more battery capacity, what other challenges did you face in developing this camera?

Toshihisa Iida: The biggest challenge for us was image stabilization. The sensor is so sensitive that even the slightest vibration affects the image. So we knew we needed stabilization inside the body. I hope you can imagine how difficult it is to stabilize such a large sensor.

DPReview: This system is an adaptation of the IBIS system from the X-H1?

Toshihisa Iida: We drew on our experience with the X-H1, but this is a more complex system with a larger sensor.

DPReview: Will the viewfinder experience of the 100 megapixel camera be better compared to the GFX 50S and 50R?

Toshihisa Iida: It should be much better, yes, because the reading speed of the new sensor is much faster. The sensor and the processor themselves are both advanced. The processor is much more powerful.

DPReview: Fujifilm took its time to introduce video features, but the current generation is very powerful video cameras. What’s your further video strategy?

Toshihisa Iida: The upcoming 100MP camera will be the first 4K/30p GFX camera and that will be just the beginning. It will be interesting to see what quality we can get from the new sensor. In the X-series, for example, we plan to increase recording time and make the menus more convenient for stills and movies. We still have a lot of work to do: increase speed, introduce 4K/60p. We would really like to attract cameramen to the GFX cameras.

DPReview: Do you think you can make Fujinon cine lenses for the GFX system in the future?

Toshihisa Iida: We’ll wait and see. The first step is 100MP, and we’ll see how that works out. Of course, developing such lenses is probably technically possible, it’s just a matter of priority.

DPReview:How do you plan to promote the medium format 100MP among videographers? They’re usually not the kind of people who think about this format.

Toshihisa Iida: Immediately after the announcement of the 100 megapixel camera, I started getting a lot of questions from videographers. Large formats are becoming a trend in video recording. Filmmakers are creative people, always looking for something more.

DPReview: 100MP resolution and 4K/30p format is a huge amount of data. Is the SD card justified in this case?

Toshihisa Iida: I think the SD card and HDMI output is enough for now.

GFX’s upcoming 100MP sensor camera will have a built-in battery and stabilization inside the body. Fujifilm also promises a superior electronic viewfinder and advanced video capabilities.

DPReview: Do you welcome third-party manufacturers who want to create optics for the XF and GF system?

Toshihisa Iida: They are not yet an open standard, but of course our customers need a choice. We always consider what’s good for our customers, and the wide variety of lenses is usually good for them

DPReview: Can we expect smaller GF mount lenses, such as the upcoming 50mm pancake?

Toshihisa Iida: Yes, we’d like to expand our lineup of compact lenses for the GF in the future. We need small lenses for a smaller camera to get the right balance. We always think about the whole system.

DPReview: Competition in the market is getting pretty intense. Which products of your competitors do you take most seriously?

Toshihisa Iida: We’re always watching the major brands to keep up with what they’re doing, but at the same time we’re not leaving out smartphones. Quality and functionality – we have to watch this segment very closely, especially with our entry-level mirrorless cameras.

DPReview: How will you solve the smartphone problem?

Toshihisa Iida: First of all, more research needs to be done to understand exactly what smartphone users want from cameras. Ease of use, new shooting functions, etc.d. Perhaps we need to start from scratch when it comes to future cameras aimed at countering smartphones. Our biggest potential problem comes from smartphones, not competitors.

DPReview: Are you considering incorporating Instax into your traditional camera lines?

Toshihisa Iida: Yes, Instax is gradually becoming a digital camera. Maybe we should think about interchangeable lenses for Instax. One of the main advantages of mirrorless cameras is interchangeable lenses, so Instax is one of our prospects.

DPReview: Do you think there’s a future for small format cameras with interchangeable lenses like the Pentax Q, for example?

Toshihisa Iida: Those cameras had too small a sensor size. They couldn’t provide enough image quality to really compete with smartphones. We need a decent-sized sensor and a high-quality lens. So again, there’s the question of how to balance size, weight and quality. The camera body can be small regardless of the size of the sensor. The lens is another matter. The size of the lens is directly related to the size of the sensor.

Designed for the more compact GFX 50R, the future Fujifilm 50mm F3 lens.5 is closer to the pancake form factor and is much smaller than most GF series medium format lenses.

DPReview: In the past you’ve talked about software correction for certain lenses. Can you imagine a future where your high-quality lenses can become more compact, thanks to software?

Toshihisa Iida: We always prioritize optics quality by minimizing software processing. That’s our policy at the moment, and I don’t think that’s going to change. That’s why the APS-C format is important for us. We make our lenses as compact as possible without using any software processing.

DPReview: What are the challenges of creating fast focusing lenses with large apertures?

Toshihisa Iida: A faster lens means each element in it is a little heavier. So we have to build a more powerful focus actuator, but we’re limited by the size of the body. So there is always a trade off between lens aperture, focus speed and how heavy the lens is.

DPReview: Now that you’re introducing high-resolution video shooting into the GFX series, what impact will that have on lens design?

Toshihisa Iida: One of the challenges is how to minimize the weight of the focusing group. This is a challenge for the engineering team. Maybe they’ll use more aspherical elements, for instance. There are technologies we can use, but it’s a complicated process.

DPReview: Is there any possibility that Fujifilm will create a separate series of camcorders?

Toshihisa Iida: It’s potentially possible. We don’t have any specific plans, but we have to understand the needs of cameramen when it comes to menu structure and camera controls. For stills, mode dials are more acceptable, but video requires a fundamentally different control.