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You can't always judge a camera by perusing its spec sheet. One of the best proofs of this is Fuji's remarkable GA645 Professional, the first and only medium-format autofocus camera.
Aside from its sophisticated autofocusing capability, the camera's basic specifications seem fairly pedestrian--non-interchangeable 60mm f/4 lens, interlens leaf shutter, integral right-hand grip, and a small, built-in pop-up flash of modest power output. On cursory examination, you could almost dismiss it as an expensive, scaled-up version of a typical single-focal-length 35mm point & shoot camera. But once you get into its unique array of unexpected and unusual features, and then actually run some 120 or 220 roll film through it, you'll soon see why Fuji reports that sales are far higher than they expected in spite of the GA645's staggering street price of around $1,600]
Let's examine the Fuji's control dials and function buttons to see what makes this camera click. The mode/ISO dial on the back locks at the off position. Release it by pushing in a little button as you turn it to any one of four click-stopped settings; three exposure modes--M (manual) A (aperture priority), and P (programmed autoexposure)--and the ISO-setting position. To the right of this dial are buttons that let you input a surprisingly comprehensive array of on-film data (see photo and caption below), activate the 10-second electronic self-timer, and pop up and turn on the built-in flash.
To change apertures, first select M or A mode, then turn the up/down dial located at the right-hand end of the camera's top deck (see photo) while observing the f-stop on the adjacent LCD panel. To change shutter speeds manually (in M mode only), hold in the += exposure compensation button while you turn the up/down dial. Shutter speeds, apertures, and focusing distances in use-whether manually or automatically set--are also displayed in the finder, in bright, red, illuminated-LCD numerals when you touch the shutter button. In M mode, upward- and/or downward-pointing deltas light up in the finder to indicate whether your manual settings will give you underexposure, overexposure, or, when they're both lit, the correct exposure according to the metering system.
While comprehensive infinder readouts are essential in a camera whose official last name is "Professional," they're only part of what makes the...