Hassy vs. RZ: Another one of THOSE threads....

ChristopherCoy · Sep 28, 2014

The great camera conundrum -

I currently own a Hasselblad 500cm with tthe Zeiss 80mm 2.8. I love the camera, but I think I love the idea of the camera more. Its a great camera. A 1977 in excellent condition. The lens is sharp and I can produce great photos with it. However there are a few things that I dont like about it. The focusing isn't the quickest, and its a bit cumbersome even with the speed ring. The screen isn't the brightest and its sometimes hard to focus because its hard to see. And the accessories for it such as the Acute Matte D screen, and extra lenses are still SO EXPENSIVE, even today.

I'm thinking of selling it in order to purchase a Mamiya RZ67 kit. I used to shoot with a Mamiya C33 so I know that I definitely like the bellows focusing, and I like the brightness of the Mamiya screens. I can still make square images with a 6x7, but it will also lend itself well to traditional sizes as well.

My conundrum is whether I will really want to sell the Hasselblad or not. Its a classic and I may never find one in this condition again. I know that the equipment doesn't make the image, the photographer does, but will I regret it later on?

Thoughts? Decision making advice?

cliveh · Sep 28, 2014

Keep the Hassy, a Mamiya is not in the same class.

David A. Goldfarb · Sep 28, 2014

Do you see the world in squares or rectangles?

snapguy · Sep 28, 2014

Blad

Keep the 'Blad. No camera is perfect and you can learn how to work with what you have got.

Dr Croubie · Sep 28, 2014

Do you want to (and can you afford to) keep the hassy on a shelf and let it appreciate in value (which it will), and shoot the RZ? Or would you have to sell one to fund the other?
If you keep the Hassy only, are you afraid to take it out of the house and shoot with it for fear it might get damaged and lose value, or are you happy to use it as intended?
If the hassy focusses slowly and dimly, have you tried an RZ enough to know that it will fix those problems? And can you live with what you've got without GASing the expensive accessories (or can you live with the cheap-but-good Soviet hassy-compatible accessories)?

jjphoto · Sep 28, 2014

An RZ is a huge and heavy beast. It's very cumbersome. It's also very cheap these days so why not pick one up and decide for yourself. The 110/2.8 is an excellent lens too.

k.hendrik · Sep 28, 2014

Keep your Hasselblad and buy a Mamiya RZ67 Pro ii & be happy for some years. Then buy a Rollei SL66 or maybe SL66SE and you're happy for the rest of your life

Old-N-Feeble · Sep 28, 2014

RE seeing the world in squares: I DON'T. In fact, I see the world in horizontal format 2:3 or 1:2 ratio. THAT is the way human eyes see things, IMO. Our heads turn/pan more easily and further right-left... our eyes pan far easier and further left-right. That's so we can scan the horizon for pray and predators. It's only natural.

So I'd crop a Hassy 56x56mm image to 28x56mm or 43x56mm or even narrower (19x56mm horizontal) ... so any gains from those excellent Hassy lenses are lost.

bdial · Sep 28, 2014

Are you using the Hasselblad with a WLF or a prism? The prism will give you a brighter view, and improves the camera's ergonomics a bit (IMO). The old style 45 degree "domed top" prisms are pretty cheap, and the newer PM-45 squarish ones are not a lot more.

ChristopherCoy · Sep 28, 2014

Dr Croubie said:
And can you live with what you've got without GASing the expensive accessories (or can you live with the cheap-but-good Soviet hassy-compatible accessories)?

I take it out and shoot it from time to time. I'm not scared to take it out. But I want more range of lenses.

If I could find a cheap alternate to the Acute Matte D screen to make the screen brighter, and perhaps a few Kiev lenses that would work, I think I could get over the focusing thing.

ChristopherCoy · Sep 28, 2014

jjphoto said:
An RZ is a huge and heavy beast. It's very cumbersome. It's also very cheap these days so why not pick one up and decide for yourself. The 110/2.8 is an excellent lens too.

I'm toying with this idea as well. Keeping both for a couple months and see which one I prefer, but I HAVE to make the agreement/promise to myself that I WILL SELL ONE. (and therein lies the trouble.)

ChristopherCoy · Sep 28, 2014

bdial said:
Are you using the Hasselblad with a WLF or a prism? The prism will give you a brighter view, and improves the camera's ergonomics a bit (IMO). The old style 45 degree "domed top" prisms are pretty cheap, and the newer PM-45 squarish ones are not a lot more.

WLF.

My C33 had a WLF and I could nail the focus every time without having to use the little flip up magnifier thingy. Not so with the Hassy.

Sirius Glass · Sep 28, 2014

cliveh said:
Keep the Hassy, a Mamiya is not in the same class.

I agree. The lenses are not expensive for what one gets, it just takes longer for each purchase.

Alan W · Sep 28, 2014

Christopher,I've got both-Hasselblad 500cm,80mm and 50mm and also RZ67 and 50mm,110 and 180.The Hasselblad and 2 lenses is lighter and less cumbersome than the RZ and just one lens.The RZ gets used around,and in the house,the Hasselblad,on the other hand has been to Europe and beyond.They are both fine systems,but for portability you'll have to take the Hasselblad.

DannL. · Sep 28, 2014

Without reading back to what others have already posted, here's a couple ways of looking at it . . . .

It doesn't make much sense to keep a camera around that will never be used again. And it doesn't make sense to sell a fine camera that you might want to use within the next year or two. If you don't have to sell it today, box it up nicely and in a year or two if the desire to use it is absolutely gone . . . sell it. Prices ain't going to change much in that time. At least you won't to chase down a working version of the camera . . . as you already have one.

wiltw · Sep 28, 2014

You really need to handle the RZ67 a bit, and compare it to the size & weight of the Hassy. There is a reason that in their heyday the Mamiya was a STUDIO shooter's choice, while the Hassy was used a lot by wedding pros in the field on jobs.

Sirius Glass · Sep 28, 2014

wiltw said:
You really need to handle the RZ67 a bit, and compare it to the size & weight of the Hassy. There is a reason that in their heyday the Mamiya was a STUDIO shooter's choice, while the Hassy was used a lot by wedding pros in the field on jobs.

+1

ChristopherCoy · Sep 28, 2014

wiltw said:
You really need to handle the RZ67 a bit, and compare it to the size & weight of the Hassy. There is a reason that in their heyday the Mamiya was a STUDIO shooter's choice, while the Hassy was used a lot by wedding pros in the field on jobs.

It can't be any more cumbersome than the C33 can it? That thing was like hanging a brick around my neck...

And its not that the Hassy is cumbersome per say, its that the focusing is cumbersome. You have to hold the camera with your left hand, and kind of cross your right hand over your left to focus with the speed ring attached. And its not the loosest focusing system either.

frank · Sep 28, 2014

ChristopherCoy said:
... the focusing is cumbersome. You have to hold the camera with your left hand, and kind of cross your right hand over your left to focus with the speed ring attached...

This caused me confusion. Why is the speed ring handle over there? Just rotate it to where it's convenient, no?

Photo Engineer · Sep 28, 2014

I have been reading threads here for years, and I am going to stir up a firestorm with this.

I see more threads about problems with older Hasselblads than I do with any other MF camera. This stuck, that jammed, can't do this anymore and etc. And the repairs cost an arm and a leg.

Think what you will but please hear me out and see if I am not right. I may just be comparing cost with problem and saying to myself "those are lots of problems for such a high end camera". But then, if true, why so many for such a high end camera anyhow.

PE

Theo Sulphate · Sep 28, 2014

ChristopherCoy said:
It can't be any more cumbersome than the C33 can it? That thing was like hanging a brick around my neck...

And its not that the Hassy is cumbersome per say, its that the focusing is cumbersome. You have to hold the camera with your left hand, and kind of cross your right hand over your left to focus with the speed ring attached. And its not the loosest focusing system either.

Maybe re-orient the ring like I did?

The knob on the speed ring for my 553ELX is on the right. I cradle the camera and lens with my left hand and use my right hand only for focussing. It is extremely fast and smooth on the attached 80/2.8 C lens - faster than a non-speed-ring CF lens.

frank · Sep 28, 2014

Maybe older hasselblads are still around while lesser cameras have been abandoned due to issues long before.

But honestly, I do not have the same recollections.
Sure, there is the jamming issue, but that is well documented, and not a problem to fix even in the field once one knows how.

benjiboy · Sep 28, 2014

If you think a Hasselblad 500 CM is " cumbersome ", you will be going from the frying pan into the fire with an RZ 67.

hsandler · Sep 28, 2014

If the focus screen is the main issue, maybe try looking into a Bronica SQ-A. I find their standard screens quite bright and snappy. If you like the focus on a Bronica, your cost problem may be solved. They are as inexpensive today as the RZ.

frank · Sep 28, 2014

If the focus screen is the main issue, and the accumatte screen is too expensive, there are cheaper alternatives that are brighter than what you've got in your Hasselblad now.

Hassy vs. RZ: Another one of THOSE threads....

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