Considering adding MF film to my toolbox // Hasselblad 501cm/500cm

[RalphLambrecht]

Thanks for the fantastic respons, guys. Really helps me. The Bronica, Mamiya and Pentax suggestions are interesting, but there's something that draws me towards Hasselblad. I really like how the camera looks and feels. And that is a very interesting part, just how a camera, especially being analog, can affect you and how you think.



Great tips. Thanks. Really set on getting the CF lenses, and lenses of high quality.



Alright, great. Thanks for the info. Might just go for a 500cm to start with, it seems like a good place to start. I don't wanna put too much money into it too soon. Interesting thougts about the image quality. That is one of the reasons I wanna start a bit slow, and test how the images compare. Especially when printed at around 50" on the long side. Will I see a great difference? Will film have a certain look to it? How will the transitions compare? How are the details? You know when you enlarge digital, especially in some photos, you kind of see that digital noise or digital sharpening. Not sure how to explain it, but I thought anyway it would be super interesting to test this and actually see with my own eyes, not just read and get opinions.

I have a friend living close by who's got a drum scanner. If it wasn't for him I probably would not dive into this as I would have to send the negatives to a different city, and the whole process would be so much more cumbersome.

Will avoid the 500c. Thanks!



As I mentioned, I will have access to a drum scanner, which from what I've read will give me great quality. I am leaning towards just getting a 500cm and then get some high quality glass. I am thinking something fairly wide, something in between and a good telephoto. I have not yet looked too closely into the lenses yet, except for the different C/CF/(CFi?) models. Any tips on quality lenses is greatly appreciated. I will look into the 180 and 250 - thanks. In my current Canon setup I do use the 300mm 2.8 IS II quite a lot. It is so sharp and really have no flaws (except for the weight!). I am looking for something similar for the potential Hasselblad setup. What I also find myself using a lot is the Canon 85mm 1.2 II and something wide like a Zeiss 21mm 2.8 or Canon 16-35mm F4 IS.



Thanks for the welcoming. How do you find the 250mm and the 500mm? Are they sharp from corner to corner at certain f-stops? As I wrote above, I do greatly appreciate tips and help as to what lenses to aim for (Wide, "portrait" and tele/super tele - 3 lens setup). Good info regarding the cutoff, so thanks to everyone for clearing that up.

Definitely going for CF or later lenses. And thanks again, I am sure there will be more questions.

I'm sure you won't be sorry with CF lenses.I'vegot 40,50,80,150,180,250 all 2nd hand and all excellent.

 

[Alan Gales]

I like the focal length spacing of:

38mm [SWC], 50mm, 80mm, and 250mm CF lenses OR
38mm [SWC], 50mm, 100mm, and 250mm CF lenses​

Yes, the 100mm lens is very sharp and one of my favorites but sometimes it is a little long and I need the 80mm lens. I recommend doing mother-in-law portraits with the 100mm lens and girl friend/wife portraits with the 80mm lens.

Don't like your mother-in-law, Sirius?

If someone's girlfriend/wife is over a certain age they might want to add the Softer 1 to the 80mm too.

I did a corporate shot of my wife for her boss's website a while back with a D300. She has really nice skin for being 58 but I did remove a few wrinkles around her eyes with Lightroom. A happy wife is a happy life!

 

[Ai Print]

I use Hasselblad as a full time professional, film and CFV50c digital back. I saw evidence of image cutoff in the viewfinder in 500C/M's starting at 120mm, especially when focused close. When I used my 180 CF, it was at an annoying level and above that at 250 and 350 it was a total deal breaker.

I sold both 500C/M's and replaced them with good clean 501C/M's and a 500ELX for aerial work. All three use the gliding mirror system which eliminates the annoying image cutoff with longer glass.

That being said, I am now on the lookout for another clean 500C/M to convert to a specific pin registered project that would never see lenses over 100MM.

If you know you want to use Hassy glass that is 180mm or longer, don't even waste your time, get the 501CM and put the concerns behind you.