1700mm f4 Hasselblad lens

[Claire Senft]

Carl Zeiss will be showing a 1700mm F4 Hasselblad lens at Photokina. I do not know the price but since the lens weighs more that 560 lbs perhaps your budget should include an assistant.

 

[Dave Wooten]

Carl Zeiss will be showing a 1700mm F4 Hasselblad lens at Photokina. I do not know the price but since the lens weighs more that 560 lbs perhaps your budget should include an assistant.

Still a bit slow for my available light pub photos.

 

[arigram]

Still a bit slow for my available light pub photos.

I don't think a pub is big enough to fit inside that kind of lens!
Sounds very cool mostly because it means that there are still nature or sports photographers that V Hasselblads. And to think that the company was phasing out their "old" series in favor of the H.
That lens probably costs something like 20,000 euros. To drop it would be worse that crashing your new Porsche.

 

[Dave Wooten]

The Whopper

Well lets think about this little lens.....

1700/4 =425mm or about 16.75 inches...

that would be the diameter of the lens....

what camera would this be for? One would have to have a hoist or block and tackle set up to get it off the ground!

 

[Terence]

True, if it were a non-retrofocus design, but I don't think it holds true for retrofocusers.

 

[Nancy]

I'm going to add it to my Christmas wish-list. I know I won't get one, but my hubby will certainly have no qualms about getting me the 150mm I really want.
Of course if the 1700mm shows up under my tree, I'll be sure to sell it on APUG for a bargain price.

 

[david b]

I wonder what the bokeh is like on that one?

 

[Ole]

True, if it were a non-retrofocus design, but I don't think it holds true for retrofocusers.

If it were a retrofocus lens, it would be even longer than the already humongous focal length.

You're thinking about Telephoto design!

But the entrance aperture still has to be the same size regardless of construction, so yes - it's at least 43cm wide.

You don't need an assistant with this. You need a pack elephant!

 

[clogz]

Hello Ole,
I am pretty sure you can make this lens fit one of your folders

Hans

 

[Ole]

Hans, it would have to be the other way around. Even with a Hasselblad you would mount the camera to the lens, not the lens to the camera!

Just like mounting a camera to an astronomy telescope - about the same focal length too? Maybe that's what it is - a 17" reflector telescope!

 

[egdinger]

Whoever said 20,000 euro I think that is a bit low. I'd guess more around 100-120 thouasnd euro! The canon 1200mm f/5.6 was around $120,000! Would be fun though.

 

[Dave Wooten]

wonder how much bellows needed for a full frame head shot...

 

[Abbazz]

Here is the link:

http://tinyurl.com/k9kuo

The tiny little black box you see on the smaller end of the lens is the Hasselblad body. Oh my, this thing is even bigger than my mother in law!

 

[arigram]

Here is the link:

http://tinyurl.com/k9kuo

The tiny little black box you see on the smaller end of the lens is the Hasselblad body. Oh my, this thing is even bigger than my mother in law!

Oh my God!
That thing is a big as a motorcycle!
256 kilos? Wow!
You definately need a pack elephant!
Cool design btw, it looks like a spaceship shuttle.
You are right, 20,000 euros is way too little for this monster.

Well done Zeiss. I am sure its a Guiness record of a lens.

 

[Soeren]

Does it come mounted on a Saab or a Volvo ?
Cheers
Søren

 

[benjiboy]

Assistant required

Carl Zeiss will be showing a 1700mm F4 Hasselblad lens at Photokina. I do not know the price but since the lens weighs more that 560 lbs perhaps your budget should include an assistant.

This optic needs not only an assistant included in your budget, as you say Claire, but also enough for s truss for him or her, to cover the ensuing claim for industrial injury for the double hernia sustained lugging it about.
Seriously, I was thinking what is the market for a lens like this ?, how many do they will sell to jusify the research,development and manufacturing costs ? what would a lens of this type be used for ?

 

[scootermm]

what would a lens of this type be used for ?

its likely as much a marketing tool as it is something created to be sold.
one of those items created with the intention of likely not ever selling but meant to drum up sales of other lenses etc.

very cool design. imagine itd be a neat astronomical lens maybe.

 

[benjiboy]

I would tend to agree with you Scooterman, its their entry in the record books for making the biggest M/F lens.

 

[Mike Kovacs]

Somebody in another forum rightly pointed out Arabic script at the side. You can bet this is going to some Saudi Prince and is worth 50x more than that

 

[Dave Parker]

It does say in the text on the page it was built for a client..

 

[Andy K]

I have translated the arabic script, it says 'NCC 1701 H, Starship Enterprise'.

 

[mortimer]

I thought the Zeiss page said it was commissioned? I would imagine for a nature photographer that this would be mounted on a Jeep, sort of like a military machine gun would be. But who knows.

 

[Dave Parker]

Actually if you look at the profile, it looks like the monster from the early star trek series that ate planets!

 

[Terence]

There also appears to be a digi output on the back end.

 

[Ole]

It does say in the text on the page it was built for a client..

Built for a client... Arabic script on the side...

My guess is that the Sultan of Brunei has a pack pacyderm ready already!