Francois_A
New member
This is my first post on this forum! I've been a daily visitor for the past year, and have always been impressed with the wealth of information, as well as the civilized tone of the contributors.
I am facing a dilemma, someone in town is selling a Hasselblad 500CM with a 40mm CF, 80 and 150, 3 backs, prism finder and a winder, all in excellent condition for the low price of $1400 US. I have to make up my mind today!
My questions:
1) Is there a future with such a system regarding digital?
2) I already own a Canon 5D, which I plan to convert for IR and replace it with the Mark II; would a digital back on the Hasselblad be somewhat redundant ?
3) I am not too happy with the result I get from my Epson V700 for 6x7 (Mamiya 7II + 65mm), but it is OK for 4x5. So, would it be better to stick with a 5D mark II for digital, and 4x5 for film (Sinar F2 and Chamonix), and skip the purchases of a better scanner and the 500CM ?
4) Another consideration is that I love B&W and I am somewhat dissatisfied with what I get from digital, especially in the low values, which do not have the smoothness and tonal separation of film. There is also the dynamic range of B&W film, which is not match by the 5D. Do you find much improvements on those aspects with digital backs ?
5) Last, there is the archival aspect; I still have my father's negatives dating from the early 50's. Will the raw digital files still be readable in 50 years ?
Lots of questions and soul searching; any comment would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks,
François Audet
I am facing a dilemma, someone in town is selling a Hasselblad 500CM with a 40mm CF, 80 and 150, 3 backs, prism finder and a winder, all in excellent condition for the low price of $1400 US. I have to make up my mind today!
My questions:
1) Is there a future with such a system regarding digital?
2) I already own a Canon 5D, which I plan to convert for IR and replace it with the Mark II; would a digital back on the Hasselblad be somewhat redundant ?
3) I am not too happy with the result I get from my Epson V700 for 6x7 (Mamiya 7II + 65mm), but it is OK for 4x5. So, would it be better to stick with a 5D mark II for digital, and 4x5 for film (Sinar F2 and Chamonix), and skip the purchases of a better scanner and the 500CM ?
4) Another consideration is that I love B&W and I am somewhat dissatisfied with what I get from digital, especially in the low values, which do not have the smoothness and tonal separation of film. There is also the dynamic range of B&W film, which is not match by the 5D. Do you find much improvements on those aspects with digital backs ?
5) Last, there is the archival aspect; I still have my father's negatives dating from the early 50's. Will the raw digital files still be readable in 50 years ?
Lots of questions and soul searching; any comment would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks,
François Audet