Hasselblad prism finder out of focus.

Cybertrash · Aug 29, 2014

I've owned an old Hasselblad Metered Prism (the one with the mercury cell) for a while, and used it to shoot focused at infinity from an airplane without any problems. However, I thought I would give it a try when doing portraits as well, but I noticed the viewfinder image is a bit out of focus, making it very difficult to tell when you've focused your shot. At first I thought there was some sort of diopter lens missing, but I noticed that whilst the numbers on the meter scale in the viewfinder are sharp, the cross on the ground glass screen in the camera is not, which leads me to believe that the entire prism is out of focus. Any ideas on what I could do to fix this?

Xmas · Aug 29, 2014

You might need a diopter to get the cross in sharp focus and leave the meter blurred.

I just got to the limit of adjustment on my OM4's variable diopter.

Douglas Fairbank · Aug 29, 2014

You will need a corrective dioptre and fit it to the eyepiece, there should be a retaining ring in place already.

paul ron · Sep 1, 2014

By any chance did you install a new focusing screen or the focusing screen is upside down?

Obviously something has changed in the system.
The causes are diopter, your eyes OR
focusing screen.
Or the lens but you eliminated that by seeing an out of focus screen.

Sirius Glass · Sep 1, 2014

Is the prism properly sitting on the body correctly? The body or prism may need to be put on a jig and adjusted by a Hasselblad repairman.

Cybertrash · Sep 1, 2014

Thanks for the answers everyone. Currently there is no diopter lens in the ocular at all, only the standard magnifying lens, and the ground glass is installed right way up. I'm not sure how to check if the prism is seated correctly though, it snaps in place without effort and it looks like it's straight, but I'm not sure I can tell with the naked eye, I suppose I could try out another prism on my body, then I'd know for sure... Not sure I want to pay for a repair if it comes to that, the local Hasselblad tech tends to charge quite a bit.

Sirius Glass · Sep 1, 2014

The body and prism can both be good but the prism is not sitting properly. That can be adjusted by a Hasselblad repair man. The must be someone in Sweden can help you.

John Koehrer · Sep 1, 2014

If the prism has been dislodged, it may rattle if you shake it. Another check would be to look at the base of the finder & see if the glass appears to have the same spacing all the way around the perimeter.

cowanw · Sep 1, 2014

If you take the prism off and look through the GG all by itself, Is there a distance that you can focus your eyeball so that the GG is sharp? If so then you know the prism is the problem.
Perhaps there is a camera store in the area that might have a sample prism to try.
And/ Or go to a pharmacy and try out reader glasses through the camera and prism to see if you need a diopter adjustment.

Cybertrash · Sep 2, 2014

The ground glass is tack sharp when using the wlf, so I suspect the prism is the issue

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cowanw · Sep 2, 2014

Good, now go to a pharmacy with your camera, or wherever they sell cheap readers glasses, and try on the diopter sizes to see if any help the problem.
Do you wear glasses normally; if so, for close up or far away?

paul ron · Sep 3, 2014

If you can see the gg in sharp focus, the problem then is with the mounting or the lens.

Cybertrash · Sep 3, 2014

I went to the optician today, they couldn't help me, so I went to the camera store instead, they had original Hasselblad diopter lenses that fit my prism, after putting in a -2 lens the crosshair on the ground glass is sharp and it's a lot easier to see when objects in frame are in and out of focus.

cowanw · Sep 3, 2014

There you go.

Sirius Glass · Sep 3, 2014

paul ron said:
If you can see the gg in sharp focus, the problem then is with the mounting or the lens.

He said what I have been saying.

wiltw · Sep 3, 2014

If the focus screen is not seen clearly, there is something wrong OTHER than diopter value, as The OP has already stated that he can see "I noticed that whilst the numbers on the meter scale in the viewfinder are sharp", which indicates correct diopter but goes on to say "...the cross on the ground glass screen in the camera is not".
The pentaprism mounting is more likely the issue.

wiltw · Sep 3, 2014

Cybertrash said:
I went to the optician today, they couldn't help me, so I went to the camera store instead, they had original Hasselblad diopter lenses that fit my prism, after putting in a -2 lens the crosshair on the ground glass is sharp and it's a lot easier to see when objects in frame are in and out of focus.

Then maybe it is your EYES that have 'drifted' How are the numbers on the meter scale, with the new diopter value?

Cybertrash · Sep 4, 2014

wiltw said:
Then maybe it is your EYES that have 'drifted' How are the numbers on the meter scale, with the new diopter value?

Blurrier than before, I find that I need to "re-focus" to read it, but it's still readable.

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Hasselblad prism finder out of focus.

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