A World in Color: Fujifilm (GFX100 II) Helps Magnum Photos Revive Decades of History to be Exhibited at Several FUJIKINA Events

Photography is about preserving memories.

And in my little journey through this world, that’s exactly what I do: I take pictures of my family, my travels and my daily life to preserve those memories and make sure they don’t fade out too quickly like tears in rain.

Well, it looks like with their latest project, Fujifilm is on the same mission: preserving memory… just on a much larger scale!

In fact, Fujifilm has teamed up with Magnum Photos and MPP (Heritage and Photography Library of Paris) for the project A World in Color, a historic project to digitize the agency’s Paris color library archive, which has remained dormant for decades.

Marine Merindol, Chief Operating Officer at Magnum Photos, writes:

Our commitment to preserving this unique photographic heritage ensures it remains an invaluable resource, honoring the past while inspiring future generations to learn from and build upon this vibrant visual history,

The Fujifilm GFX100 II will be used to digitize a selection of 650,000 color slides, dating from the 1950s to the early 2000s.

Fujifilm is an ideal partner for this project, not only because they have probably the best camera for the job, the medium format Fujifilm GFX100 II, but also because Fujifilm has a vast photographic history and understands the importance of preserving memory and art through photography.

And there is more.

Part of this project is also a series of FUJIKINA events that will take place in Czechia, Italy, Belgium, the UK, France, and Germany, showcasing live exhibitions and talks with Magnum photographers.

The first Fujikina events dedicated to this projects will be:

In 2026, the breadth of the project will expand, moving the focus to the United States.

Just a final word: I already told you that most Fujikina events are not connected to product launches. Well, that will be even more so in 2025, as there will be more Fujikina events than ever, but most of them will be dedicated to this project rather than to new product launches.

You can read more about this project at Magnumphotos here and here.

Fujifilm X-M5 Sales Suspended in Japan

The sales of Fujifilm X-M5 cameras has been suspended in Japan, as reported by asobinet.

This is now a recurrent theme in the Fujifilm world: new gear gets announced and it sells just way better than Fujifilm can keep up with in terms of production.

The X-M5 stock situation isn’t much better elsewhere as you can see in the stores listed below.

I don’t think this has anything to do with a general revival of entry level cameras, but more with the exploding popularity of the Fujifilm system.

As of today, Fujifilm might well be the one system that keeps its value best over time. So it’s also easier to buy into a system that you know won’t lose value quickly (and if, then only by a small margin). Just recently I chatted with a FR-reader, who told me he recently sold the X100V for the same price he bought it many years ago. That’s not a bad deal.

7Artisans AF 27mm f/2.8 for Fujifilm X Available

The 7Artisans AF 27mm f/2.8 for Fujifilm X is now available at Amazon here.

Well, now we certainly can’t moan that there are not enough affordable Fujinon XF27mmF2.8 R WR alternatives on the market.

 

Fujifilm X-Pro4 Delayed by High Expectations – Fujifilm Wants It to Be More Than Just an Upgrade

Petapixel shared the X-Pro related part of the interview they had with Fujifilm managers at CP+. You can read it here.

In short:

  • Fujifilm is aware of demand for X-Pro3 successor
  • New X-Pro will come, but Fujifilm does not want it to be just a small “boring” update
  • the new X-Pro needs something which would satisfy the expert users
  • it would be boring to just put the 40MP and X Processor 5 in the X-Pro and call it X-Pro4
  • it should be a worthy upgrade
  • X100VI got IBIS and 40MP, hence introduced noticeable changes to the X100 line
  • Fujifilm has spent lots of time in thinking about X-Pro4, and during that time expectations kept expanding, making it harder for Fujifilm to live up to those expectations.
  • “the longer it takes to develop it, the more difficult it will be to please fans of the series“
  • “we probably made it difficult for ourselves, because we perhaps made the X-Pro too special.”

Fuji Guy Billy said already back in 2024 that the Fujifilm X-Pro4 needs to be something special. So the interview today confirms that.

Fujifilm X100VI Production Boost Moves Closer to Fulfilling Backorders

The Fujifilm X100VI enjoyed an extraordinary success, with pre-orders reaching levels that even Sony, Canon or Nikon could never dream of getting with any of their cameras.

Of course, this lead to a massive backorder and consequently, for many the only option so far was to purchase the Fujifilm X100VI highly overpriced via third parties or to wait many months to get it shipped after pre-order.

Fujifilm has consistently increased production, but it was not so easy, especially due to a curious fact that Fujifilm disclosed in an interview to Petapixel.

  • Fujifilm has more than doubled our production compared to the previous model
  • now more than 15,000 units per month are produced
  • it is complicated to increase production, especially for pieces like the top plate, which requires many processes
  • X100VI is not suited for ramping up production quickly
  • in 1 year Fujifilm has shipped as many units as for previous models in 3 or 4 years
  • Fujifilm understands that the wait is frustration, but first day pre-orders were very big
  • Fujifilm is doing its best and getting closer on clearing backorders
  • Fujifilm invites people to wait and not to purchase the overpriced units on the market

So, there is a light at the end of the tunnel.