Fuji GF670

The Fujifilm GF670 is supposedly the best folding camera ever built. Built by COSINA Japan from 2008 to 2014 it was also sold by Voigtländer as the Bessa III.

When the camera did it the market I was thinking of buying it. However, possessing many medium format cameras already, I decided not to buy and instead waiting for a nice Mamiya II (that I never bought).

Some years ago I was able to get one for a decent price. The front lens element had to be cleaned and for this reason I managed to lower the price asked. Before buying it I had read many reviews and I was warned about the difficulty of repairing these cameras due to scarcity of spare parts and repair instructions.

My lens got cleaned and I was finally able to use the camera. I have to admit that this piece of equipment is quite well built. The shutter operation is fully electronically controlled (no battery, no pics).

Lens quality is great and the meter accuracy is remarkable. The camera is really quiet (it puts the Leica M6 to shame) up to the point that once you press the shutter you're not even sure that it fired.

After my last trip, I developed the three rolls and noticed some light leaks. I checked the bellows and found it was plenty of cracks at the folds corners. I was able to quickly find a replacement bellow and have sent it to my camera repair show. Some days later I got a call from the repairman who told me that during repair one of the flexible flat cables got broken and that he was not able to find it.

Fujifilm GF670 Flex Flat Cable

I am also unable to find the part and all specialized shops told me that it is impossible to find. I am now considering to find a flex cable producer to get some 50 pieces to place on the market for people having the same issue.

After my experience I recommend people NOT to buy this camera: it is quite expensive (plan 2500 USD and up) and you will get into troubles as soon as you need a repair.

Fujifilm, Voigtländer and Cosina will not help you (exception for cameras bought in the US as they were sold for longer than in Europe).

July 2024 update

My camera repairmen was finally able to source the missing part and my camera is back in work !