Hasselblad's aversion to red dots

[MGrayson]

I just spent an hour sticking little triangles onto the barrels of all my XCD lenses and adapters. Why? Because Hasselblad refuses to mark how to orient the lens for camera attachment without removing the rear cap, rotating the lens, and squinting until the tiny red dot shows up. The V lenses at least have a red arrow visible from the back of the lens mount, but HC and XCD lenses don't. Leica, Mamiya, and Fuji lenses all have big red dots on the sides of their barrels. Pentax matches the dot with the top of the lens. No idea about Phase One.

Am I the only one annoyed by this? I know you can look for the "Hasselblad" name on the lens, move about 1cm past the "d" and it's around there, but what's with the red dot phobia?

Matt

 

[glaiben]

I always put red vinyl dot stickers on XCD lenses. You can easily tell at a glance whether it's oriented correctly for attachment. Also, when shooting at nite, you can feel the sticker and no fumbling. Then I remove them when sold - always feared folks might think it's silly.

...gregg

 

[jng]

I just spent an hour sticking little triangles onto the barrels of all my XCD lenses and adapters. Why? Because Hasselblad refuses to mark how to orient the lens for camera attachment without removing the rear cap, rotating the lens, and squinting until the tiny red dot shows up. The V lenses at least have a red arrow visible from the back of the lens, but HC and XCD lenses don't. Leica, Mamiya, and Fuji lenses all have big red dots on the sides of their barrels. Pentax matches the dot with the top of the lens. No idea about Phase One.

Am I the only one annoyed by this? I know you can look for the "Hasselblad" name on the lens, move about 1cm past the "d" and it's around there, but what's with the red dot phobia?

Matt

Yes, same here. I place a waterproof circular label with the lens’s focal length written on it so I can quickly see which lens I’m grabbing out of the bag.

 

[Mexecutioner]

I did something smilier to all my blue ring lenses. Added a pink and a blue dot on the barrel, makes it much easier to see where to orient them before mounting

 

[MGrayson]

Yes, same here. I place a waterproof circular label with the lens’s focal length written on it so I can quickly see which lens I’m grabbing out of the bag.

I do that with the rear caps. Of course, it means keeping them straight, but I also don't lose them that way.

I tried putting labels directly on the rear elements, but it didn't work out so well....

Matt

 

[Geoff]

Yes, it is annoying. Glad I'm not the only one....

 

[Ai_Print]

Yep, annoying as heck there are no marks.

I use a little bit white reflective tape at the 12 o'clock position to facilitate smooth and easy lens swaps. I also apply Griptac on portions of the smooth surfaces of the lenses that are otherwise hell-a-slippery.

 

[MGrayson]

Yep, annoying as heck there are no marks.

I use a little bit white reflective tape at the 12 o'clock position to facilitate smooth and easy lens swaps. I also apply Griptac on portions of the smooth surfaces of the lenses that are otherwise hell-a-slippery.

Yeah. the "hard to grab" bit bothered me a lot at first. Now I circle the base of the lens with thumb and first finger, press the lens release with the side of my finger, and twist. Seems to work well. A thick rubber band would also help.

 

[anwarp]

The mamiya lenses had a white bump you could feel and is oriented to the 8 o’clock position when looking into the lens. The Phase lenses don’t have this on the outside. So blue circles go on. And a wide black wrist band is slipped on the focus rings to cover the bright blue ring. And black insulation tape covers all the logos. Stealth camera!

 

[MGrayson]

The mamiya lenses had a white bump you could feel and is oriented to the 8 o’clock position when looking into the lens. The Phase lenses don’t have this on the outside. So blue circles go on. And a wide black wrist band is slipped on the focus rings to cover the bright blue ring. And black insulation tape covers all the logos. Stealth camera!

An invisible XF. I like it. I'm picturing an 8x10 Deardorff with black tape over the nameplate. People don't notice me when I put my tripod down next to them and quickly focus on the ground glass, insert the film carrier, take out the dark slide, and *click* for a candid portrait.

 

[docholliday]

I must be the only person who doesn't look at any lenses before mounting them. I've gotten so used to picking up V lenses so that the aperture lock button on the lens (or PC port) falls in a certain spot under my hand when I grab it and then blindly just slap it on the body. Yes, I've gotten rough when mounting during production shooting. I do the same with the H lenses feeling the plastic window under a certain knuckle, then just stab it onto the body and twist. I've done it this way for 25+ years, in total darkness and even when swapping lenses while moving (when I shot weddings back in the day). With my Canon lenses, I'm the same way, usually feeling for the clear window under a certain finger when picking it up.

I think I'm the exception, though. I also don't use lens caps, ever - they just sit in a drawer.

I've had a few lenses that were hard to feel for the usual components. My solution was to put a large drop of UV glue on the barrel near the mount and cure it into a hard dot to that I could touch it with my fingertip. It sticks well if you pretreat the surface with activator/primer, but does burn the surface a touch. Then again, I never sell or trade lenses much, so that cosmetic alteration doesn't bother me.

 

[MGrayson]

I must be the only person who doesn't look at any lenses before mounting them. I've gotten so used to picking up V lenses so that the aperture lock button on the lens (or PC port) falls in a certain spot under my hand when I grab it and then blindly just slap it on the body. Yes, I've gotten rough when mounting during production shooting. I do the same with the H lenses feeling the plastic window under a certain knuckle, then just stab it onto the body and twist. I've done it this way for 25+ years, in total darkness and even when swapping lenses while moving (when I shot weddings back in the day). With my Canon lenses, I'm the same way, usually feeling for the clear window under a certain finger when picking it up.

I think I'm the exception, though. I also don't use lens caps, ever - they just sit in a drawer.

I've had a few lenses that were hard to feel for the usual components. My solution was to put a large drop of UV glue on the barrel near the mount and cure it into a hard dot to that I could touch it with my fingertip. It sticks well if you pretreat the surface with activator/primer, but does burn the surface a touch. Then again, I never sell or trade lenses much, so that cosmetic alteration doesn't bother me.

The XCD lenses have NO protrusions or windows. They’re smooth except for the focusing ring. The new V lenses have a switch, but I don’t have any yet. Your UV glue method would be necessary. (And is a good idea for tactile feedback.)

 

[docholliday]

I don't use the X system, so I have no clue on the XCD stuff. But I've had every one of the V lenses at one point or another (CF thru CFe). They were the best at being able to be mounted blindly.

Here's what one of the H lenses look like with the UV dot. I use Loctite 4311 via a 50ul pipette to place. The surface is treated and cured with Loctite SF770 beforehand. It makes it really easy to just grab, touch, and mount. (Yeah, that's a chunk missing out of the barrel below it...I'm rough with gear)


Most times, I just release the lens on body with my left index finger while gripping the lens with left hand, rotate and remove. Then, I pick up the new lens with the window under the middle knuckle of my left hand and stab it on the body, with a twist. The right hand is holding the body/grip at all times.

When I shot V system a lot, I could do a film change on an A12/E12 back insert with my left hand. The right hand only removed/replaced the film roll on the insert rocker and cranked the shell to frame 1 when replaced. Muscle memory can be a great thing when it's fast paced or in the dark of night!

 

[rdeloe]

Nice solutions!

 

[Photon42]

It annoyed me in the beginning not having any mark for aligning the lens to the body, but then I made peace with it. Most likely an aesthetics choice. For alignment, I just check that the lens contacts are in a certain position. I have no need for any additional marker.

 

[wattsy]

I must admit that I too have found the lack of a dot or obvious mark quite annoying. When I change lenses (which isn't actually that often) with a digital camera I like to do it as quickly as possible and trying to find the correct alignment with the XCD lenses can be a little frustrating in the field. Perhaps if I did change lenses more often, I'd be more familiar with the correct orientation of these lenses?

 

[joakim]

When the red marking is at 12 o’clock the focal length print on the front of the lens is at 6 o’clock so I often use that instead (if I have removed the front cap first ). But adding your own marking sounds like an excellent idea

 

[TechTalk]

Personally didn't feel a need for them with the H Series lenses, but I get the desire for something tactile and visible on the barrel in addition to the red dot visible on the chrome mount. Maybe a possibility linked below?

• These low vision tools are made of durable soft plastic with a rounded top, these smooth, raised tactile dots have a self-adhesive backing for fast, easy application on most hard, clean surfaces (plastic, metal, etc.). Adhesive will not damage the product's surface.
• Medium, round orange-red bump dots w/rounded top
• Dots measure 0.3125 in. (5/16 in.) diameter

https://www.amazon.com/Bump-Dots-Medium-Round-Orange-Red

 

[MGrayson]

It annoyed me in the beginning not having any mark for aligning the lens to the body, but then I made peace with it. Most likely an aesthetics choice. For alignment, I just check that the lens contacts are in a certain position. I have no need for any additional marker.

Huh! Didn't notice the lens contacts. Nice!

When the red marking is at 12 o’clock the focal length print on the front of the lens is at 6 o’clock so I often use that instead (if I have removed the front cap first ). But adding your own marking sounds like an excellent idea

Another Method! Thank you.

 

[Geoff]

On the V lenses, the "Hasselblad" script is in the area of the red dot, so that can be used for rough placement. Then wiggle to fit.