Menu
What's new
The GetDPI Photography Forum

Great to see you here. Join our insightful photographic forum today and start tapping into a huge wealth of photographic knowledge. Completing our simple registration process will allow you to gain access to exclusive content, add your own topics and posts, share your work and connect with other members through your own private inbox! And don’t forget to say hi!

A Mamiya 6 OR Hasselblad 500cm

helenhill

helenhill

Senior Member
A new FEVER has gripped the Mind...:eek:

Having played with a Hassy this past week
and then the opportunity with A Mamiya Yesterday
its something I WANT
but will have to wait Till Summer
so any Advice tilting in either Direction.... Pros & Cons
Both seem seductive
How does the 75mm mamiya glass compare to the zeiss 80mm ?

I like the 6 because of the compactness collapsible lens
and the hassy for looking down and cranking the image into purrfection

I Do LOVE Digital but since working w/Film
FILM RULES :grin:
 
Last edited:
P

Professional

Active member
helenhill said:
A new FEVER has gripped the Mind...:eek:

Having played with a Hassy this past week
and then the opportunity with A Mamiya Yesterday
its something I WANT
but will have to wait Till Summer
so any Advice tilting in either Direction.... Pros & Cons
Both seem seductive
How does the 75mm mamiya compare to the zeiss 80mm ?

I like the 6 because of the compactness collapsible lens
and the hassy for looking down and cranking the image into purrfection

I Do LOVE Digital but since working w/Film
FILM RULES :grin:
Click to expand...
Both are great even i never played with either, but if i have the choice then i will go with Hassy :grin:
I saw one in the same store or dealer of Hasselblad i bought my digital, the body itself look sexy, different class, but i can't just judge on the body look, but i see many on the net having Hassy film over Mamiya, and the name of Hasselblad is something else as well.

Good luck!
 
G

Geoff

Well-known member
rangefinder vs. slr? Totally different. One is really compact, and very sharp lens. The other is bit more awkward, gives system capabilities (lots of lenses) and SLR composition.

I've enjoyed both, but found I took pictures too rapidly (too many) with the Mamiya, and needed to slow down. The Hassy is makes for more thoughtful pictures, the Mam 6 for more street shots of high quality. Take your choice. I happen to love focusing and composing on the glass - that extra bit of reflection makes for more careful shooting.

Just to mess you up - have you tried an twin lens? They have another charm to them as well.
 
Last edited:
R

robertwright

New member
they are very hard to compare.
Probably more Hassy's available used in good condition than mamiya 6's. And the 6's tend to command a high price because it was only produced for a short time. so you might be paying a premium for that.

another issue, the internal meter in the 6 is pretty bad in my estimation, all over the map. the mamiya 7 has a better meter, even tho the design is similar, they fixed it. so if metering is an issue...of course the hassy has no meter so perhaps that is not an issue.

probably more used glass available for the hassy. With the six you are stuck with three choices. But the lenses are great. Nothing lost to the hasselblad optics. the mamiya 7, one of my all time favs has some of the best rangefinder glass bar none.

difficult choice, probably has more to do with working methods as the other posters have mentioned.
 
PeterA

PeterA

Well-known member
Everyone ends up with a 500 Blad, a Mamiya 7 and an Xpan at some time. -:)

and yes - film does rule.
 
P

Paratom

Well-known member
I love the Mamya for its compactness, low vibration (no mirror schake), sharp lenses, fast focus, bright viewfinder.
IMO great for travel, landscape etc.
What I didnt : when using 150mm the frame in the viewfinder is pretty small, also the shortest focusing distance of the lenses is pretty long-which I found problematic for portraits.
Cheers, Tom
 
carstenw

carstenw

Active member
I don't know what the Mamiya 6 feels like, but I have a 500C and a 2000FC/M, and I can say with some confidence that even the best of the newer cameras do not give the same feel of satisfaction that these cameras do. I would compare using the classic Hasselblad to using a Leica M film camera. Chrome, leatherette, Aluminium, Bakelite. Perfection.
 
S

Stuart Richardson

Active member
If you want to use it handheld, get the Mamiya 6 -- it is easier to handhold, easier to press the shutter without vibrating the camera, it has no mirror slap, no viewfinder blackout, it is far quieter and it has a meter. It will also give you a higher camera angle than the waist level finder of the hasselblad. That can be important if you are not the tallest person around. I love my 203FE (hasselblad), but the mamiya 7II I use is much better when used handheld and the glass is just as good, if not better in the wide and normal range.
 
M

Mark_Tuttle

Member
After having gone primarily digital the last several years I just sold off a bunch of Hasselblad equipment but I kept the Mamiya 7 and the lenses; a quiet, lightweight travel combo with sharp results and a big chunk of negative. Perfectly suited for my occasional needs.
 
KeithL

KeithL

Well-known member
Helen

You could hardly conceive of two more different cameras, the choice is entirely dependant on what you aim to do with them.

Based on the images you have uploaded here I'd say that the Mamiya would be more suitable.

Keith
 
D

docmoore

Subscriber and Workshop Member
If you intend to shoot a fair amount and go with the RF then pick a Mamiya 7/7II over the 6. Rewind levers are fragile age is much older and build quality not a lot better on the 6. All things considered you will have a much larger universe of used lenses etc for the 7. Crop square and you have a six. Not that much larger and in a similar size to a Hasselblad 500... I find it much easier to pack a 7 couple of lenses and 40 or 50 rolls of 120/220 than a similar Hasselblad setup. Meter on the 7 is very good if you know its inherent strengths and weaknesses.

Bob
 
D

docmoore

Subscriber and Workshop Member
Keith has a good point in that the two cameras are quite dissimilar. One allows many additional options in imaging and closeup work while both can be use as street cameras.

The following are a couple of shots from each camera. Mamiya 7 with 65.
 
Last edited:
GrahamWelland

GrahamWelland

Subscriber & Workshop Member
PeterA said:
Everyone ends up with a 500 Blad, a Mamiya 7 and an Xpan at some time. -:)

and yes - film does rule.
Click to expand...
Now that is scary ... and true! I can personally attest to this.

The other thing that happens is that you wish you'd never sold them, even though they were sitting for ages unused in the cupboard.

You could probably add a Leica M6/35 cron to this list too.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top