Should I sell my Hasselblad 500CM?

etn · Oct 6, 2019

GLS said:
I routinely use the 180mm hand-held without a problem. If you maintain a 1/250th or faster it is not an issue, and 1/125th is perfectly usable if you have good technique.

Same here. No problem. Only limitation with slow film (such as Velvia 50, which I generally use) is that you get only f/5.6 at 1/250th in the sun and the depth of field is very, very shallow...
On the picture below, for instance, I focused on the telephone pole and as a result, the embankment in the lower 1/3rd is out of focus. Not so visible on this low-res scan but projected on 2x2m, it really does not look that good... It's a minor screw up but a screw up none the less

CF 180, Velvia 50, 1/250th f/5.6 (or 1/500th f/4?), handheld. No time and place to set up a tripod next to the highway! I literally just jumped out of the car, took the shot and jumped in again.

GLS · Oct 6, 2019

etn said:
On the picture below, for instance, I focused on the telephone pole and as a result, the embankment in the lower 1/3rd is out of focus. Not so visible on this low-res scan but projected on 2x2m, it really does not look that good... It's a minor screw up but a screw up none the less

Not a lot you could have done in that situation except shoot from a higher vantage or further forward to avoid the foreground embankment entirely; judging from the photo it probably wouldn't have been in proper focus even at f32, and I personally don't like shooting past f22 due to diffraction.

Here's one of mine for comparison (also on Velvia 50). It was shot on a tripod & focused on the line of trees, but even at f16 the extreme foreground grasses are quite out of focus:

etn · Oct 6, 2019

GLS said:
Not a lot you could have done in that situation except shoot from a higher vantage or further forward to avoid the foreground embankment entirely;

I meant the 2nd embankment at approx 1/3rd from the bottom of the picture - the one where the pole is. I like the very bottom one being out of focus. Maybe that's just me, but I find the eye being attracted to that 2nd embankment after going through the telephone pole, the sky and the foreground. Being out of focus causes a disturbing impression when the eye comes to rest there.

Yours is a terrific picture! I love the colors and the light. Where was it taken? Late summer day in England?

I agree with you, f8-f16 is probably the best range for the 180.

GLS · Oct 6, 2019

etn said:
Yours is a terrific picture! I love the colors and the light. Where was it taken? Late summer day in England?

Thank you. It was shot in October last year at a place called Bradgate Park in Leicestershire (in the Midlands area of England). My eye was drawn by the relationship between the bleached dead tree and the folly on the distant hilltop. In hindsight I think I used a bit too much polariser on this one, but I was trying to make those wisps of cloud really pop out.

Louis Nargi · Oct 6, 2019

Keep it! If it means anything Hasselblad is coming out with a digital back for that camera that can go on just like the A12 back in Dec.

AndyH · Oct 7, 2019

Louis Nargi said:
Keep it! If it means anything Hasselblad is coming out with a digital back for that camera that can go on just like the A12 back in Dec.

Phaseone has a fairly complete line, including V-mount Hassy models. As the market moves to 60MP, and Hasselblad comes out with its own models, I hope that the 20+ MP older models from Phaseone will begin to drop a little.

https://captureintegration.com/phaseonep/

Andy

GLS · Oct 7, 2019

If they came out with a digital back that covered the full 6x6 frame, that would be something worth getting excited for. The cost would be astronomical though.

Sirius Glass · Oct 7, 2019

GLS said:
If they came out with a digital back that covered the full 6x6 frame, that would be something worth getting excited for. The cost would be astronomical though.

We some will continue to dream about that.

Ariston · Oct 7, 2019

I am upset with my RB kit at the moment. I lost three important rolls that a lot of time, travel and effort went into, because of a malfunction that I did not catch until it was too late. I am trying to calm down before deciding what to do. I have to remind myself that these are old cameras, and it could have happened to any of them.

I could keep the Hassy and sell the RB, but it is a lot of kit that would be a real pain to sell and ship, piece by piece.

Louis Nargi · Oct 7, 2019

AndyH52 said:
Phaseone has a fairly complete line, including V-mount Hassy models. As the market moves to 60MP, and Hasselblad comes out with its own models, I hope that the 20+ MP older models from Phaseone will begin to drop a little.

https://captureintegration.com/phaseonep/

Andy

According to my friend who is more up on digital then I am the Hasselblad back will sell for around 7500.00, so maybe those 20mp models will begin to drop

AndyH · Oct 8, 2019

Louis Nargi said:
According to my friend who is more up on digital then I am the Hasselblad back will sell for around 7500.00, so maybe those 20mp models will begin to drop

With pixel prices plunging perilously (sorry, can't help myself...), I may yet to live to see a 6x6cm digital back, and surely the largest user base to market to would by Hassy users. I never thought I'd see digital backs in MF at all, at least not in a price range an amateur could even dream of.

Andy

etn · Oct 9, 2019

AndyH52 said:
With pixel prices plunging perilously (sorry, can't help myself...), I may yet to live to see a 6x6cm digital back, and surely the largest user base to market to would by Hassy users. I never thought I'd see digital backs in MF at all, at least not in a price range an amateur could even dream of.

Andy

I highly doubt a 6x6 sensor will ever be developed, due to the market dynamics of the semiconductor and photo industry.
A more realistic dream is an "affordable" 6x4.5 back for Hasselblad V series similar to the newly announced CFV 50c II (which only has a 33x44mm sensor).
6x4.5 sensors are already used in Hasselblad H as well as Phase One backs... the price just needs to go down a tad.

I definitely want to rent a CFV 50c II for a weekend when it comes out, but I fear the crop factor might not work that well. Let's wait and see.

Alex Varas · Oct 17, 2019

Coming back to the original thread... I traded my Hassy set for a Rolleiflex 2.8D with Xenotar.

AndyH · Oct 17, 2019

etn said:
I highly doubt a 6x6 sensor will ever be developed, due to the market dynamics of the semiconductor and photo industry.
A more realistic dream is an "affordable" 6x4.5 back for Hasselblad V series similar to the newly announced CFV 50c II (which only has a 33x44mm sensor).
6x4.5 sensors are already used in Hasselblad H as well as Phase One backs... the price just needs to go down a tad.

I definitely want to rent a CFV 50c II for a weekend when it comes out, but I fear the crop factor might not work that well. Let's wait and see.

I suppose I'd be fine with a 6x4.5. I doubt that I'll ever fully understand the dynamics of electronic pricing, but it's all to the good if it keeps film in production longer.

Andy

Should I sell my Hasselblad 500CM?

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