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Hasselblad X1D

D&A

Well-known member
Thanks for info Joe. Interesting you mentioned that drizzle on that trip, as I was just going to referance it. One of the Pentax legacy non WR telephoto lenses I used that day was a borrowed lens from a good aquantance. When I looked thru the lens about 2 weeks later before returning it to him, one of the inner rear elements developed fogging due to condensation even though lens was covered while shooting and when placed back in a sealed bag afterwards, had desiccant packs placed with the lens. I suppose if it was a WR lens such as one you described, this would have been prevented.

All's well that ends well as Focal Point did a marvelous job taking care of the issue and my aquantance said with collimation, his lens focused more accurately than ever before.

Still I wasn't fast enough to capture that unexpected fawn/deer that materialized out of nowheres and no doubt you got the shot. Of course bribing the dear with deer kibble from your pocket, gave you an advatage over all of us...LOL (just kidding about the kibble of course).

So I guess class 5 white water kyacking and kyack eskimo rolls are out of the question with the XD1 and other similar WR medium format systems?. :)

Dave (D&A)
 

hcubell

Well-known member
So I guess class 5 white water kyacking and kyack eskimo rolls are out of the question with the XD1 and other similar WR medium format systems?. :)

Dave (D&A)
I was recently in Iceland for 10 days, and the weather was typical Iceland weather. Lots of rain and wind. I initially shot with a Hasselblad H2/IQ 180. I tried my best to shield the camera and the lenses from the rain with plastic covers. The IQ180 LCD went wonky after 3 days, but it still recorded images. By the end of that day, the H2 stopped working completely. There were 9 other photographers with me shooting Fuji, Nikon, Canon and Hassy 500 CMs with film. My camera system was the only one that failed. Moral of the story: the more you spend, the less you get in terms of reliability.
 

MomentsForZen

New member
I'm sure that the engineers at Hasselblad would be perfectly aware that properties such as "weather resistance" are only as good as the weakest point. It has been been confirmed that the lens mount has a gasket, so I would be betting that the entire lens (i.e., focus, front, etc.) are equally well sealed. It also bodes well for the body to be weather resistant since it would be pointless stopping water from entering at the seal with the lens if water could easily enter somewhere else.

Dave (D&A) - You indicated that you thought that the X1D was aimed at the fashion/model studio crowd. I'm not getting that impression. We had Hasselblad release a video at the announcement with a lady wandering through the streets taking photographs. And they had Ming Thein take to the seafront and markets of Penang. I would argue that the H-series is perfectly suited to the studio. The X1D is aimed at applications where the photographer is moving around freely and would therefore benefit from the reduced bulk.

:) ... MomentsForZen (Richard)
 

ErikKaffehr

Well-known member
Hi,

My guess that the X1D is intended for who ever would buy it…

Perry Ousten said in an interview that they wanted to reach young photographers on a limited budget.

Hasselblad forgot about a few things, no X-sync flash contact and no cable release. That is certainly not a camera intended for studio work.

But they will sort out things. The X1D is probably a first bold step for Hasselblad and I think it is a step in the right direction.

Best regards
Erik

I'm sure that the engineers at Hasselblad would be perfectly aware that properties such as "weather resistance" are only as good as the weakest point. It has been been confirmed that the lens mount has a gasket, so I would be betting that the entire lens (i.e., focus, front, etc.) are equally well sealed. It also bodes well for the body to be weather resistant since it would be pointless stopping water from entering at the seal with the lens if water could easily enter somewhere else.

Dave (D&A) - You indicated that you thought that the X1D was aimed at the fashion/model studio crowd. I'm not getting that impression. We had Hasselblad release a video at the announcement with a lady wandering through the streets taking photographs. And they had Ming Thein take to the seafront and markets of Penang. I would argue that the H-series is perfectly suited to the studio. The X1D is aimed at applications where the photographer is moving around freely and would therefore benefit from the reduced bulk.

:) ... MomentsForZen (Richard)
 

cly

Member
Hi,
Hasselblad forgot about a few things, no X-sync flash contact and no cable release. That is certainly not a camera intended for studio work.
What makes you think so?
1. Are you sure that you can't use a, say, Profoto Air Remote?
2. If I shoot tethered and if I can control my camera from C1 or Sinar Capture or Phocus or whatever I much prefer this method to using a cable release. Quite a few studio photographers shoot tethered :)

Chris
 

ErikKaffehr

Well-known member
Hi Chris,

It may just be "old think". Initially I felt that X-sync was not important as everyone shoots RC, but I was lessoned on the need of it by a pro needing that capability, but he was shooting a lot of weddings where he used a strobe on the camera and needed the X-sync port to hook up the RC-controller.

Regarding RC connector, I initially felt that remote control over wifi, using a cell phone was adequate, but was told that it used to be unreliable. I am a landscape shooter and I feel that capability is important.

The modern way may be to control things using an iPad.

Eventually, I guess they will implement a remote control over USB connector. That connector already sits there.

But you are right, times are changing and different features are needed in modern times.

Best regards
Err


What makes you think so?
1. Are you sure that you can't use a, say, Profoto Air Remote?
2. If I shoot tethered and if I can control my camera from C1 or Sinar Capture or Phocus or whatever I much prefer this method to using a cable release. Quite a few studio photographers shoot tethered :)

Chris
 

ErikKaffehr

Well-known member
Hi Doug,

Are you sure? Folks needing a back are not really helped by the X1D.

On the other hand I guess that you can buy a Hasselblad X1D with all three lenses for the price of for about half the cost of a H6D50c body.

That is competitive if you don't need a flipping mirror system or a large lens set.

I guess that Hasselblad is just happy selling all cameras they can make, even if some buyers would be even more happy could they make more.

But, Hasselblad moved the cost of entry to around 10k$US that may cause Phase One some concern.

Best regards
Erik


One thing for sure you can say about the X1D, it's knocked the hell out of used Phase One back resale values.
 

DougDolde

Well-known member
Hi Doug,

Are you sure? Folks needing a back are not really helped by the X1D.

On the other hand I guess that you can buy a Hasselblad X1D with all three lenses for the price of for about half the cost of a H6D50c body.

That is competitive if you don't need a flipping mirror system or a large lens set.

I guess that Hasselblad is just happy selling all cameras they can make, even if some buyers would be even more happy could they make more.

But, Hasselblad moved the cost of entry to around 10k$US that may cause Phase One some concern.

Best regards
Erik

Well just look in the for sale forum. They can't even sell an IQ180 in the low teens
 

ErikKaffehr

Well-known member
Hi Doug,

I doubt that is due to the X1D. X1D is crop frame and just 50 MP.

I got the impression that many of the newer backs were bought as entries in the "upgrade circle".

But clearly, you cannot make pictures with an IQ180, you also need a camera and a lens. With the X1D you can get sensor, camera and lens and shoot with it at a cost in the low tens, once you get hold of one that is.

There may be many factors, CMOS vs CCD is one.

Best regards
Erik



Well just look in the for sale forum. They can't even sell an IQ180 in the low teens
 

tashley

Subscriber Member
To answer some of my questions from below, with information coming from tech at Hasselblad via my dealer:

GPS - no answer yet.

Weather sealing:The body has a number of rubber seals in the following areas; Media card door, lower interface door battery base (seals the battery compartment when the battery is locked) These are in addition to the body seals in particular for the top plate (hot shoe area), thumbwheels, buttons and the main mode dial. The lenses are also sealed, including a seal at the mount end which effectively seals the lens/ body gap when you mount the lens.

Auto ISO: The Auto ISO is now functioning in all modes. The iso range covered is 100 to 3200. Later firmware will allow the selection of the desired lower and upper limits. [I have asked for further clarification on the question of parametric selection of shutter speed as a ratio to focal length when in Aperture Priority mode]

Histogram: The histogram information is only available on the rear display after exposure has taken place.

I will report back as and if I discover more.....


SO what do we need to know?

There seem to be a number of questions floating around subsequent to the publication of the manual and the questions raised by what is or isn't in that, compared to the 'official' spec sheet and the user reports of pre-shipping firmware.

Things I'd like confirmed:

Is there GPS?
Is it weather sealed (and to what degree)?
Does Auto ISO work in modes other than full auto - e.g. in Aperture Priority mode? What parametric settings are there?
Can you see histograms and exposure warnings before and/or after exposure? Are these 'true RAW' or JPEG based?
What is startup time, both from OFF and from Sleep?

Please add your own outstanding queries. Time to consolidate them all on one place and then drill down to the answers!
 

tashley

Subscriber Member
I tried one today.

It felt bigger than I expected though not too big at all but I have to say that i was quite taken aback by how basic it felt. Running beta firmware it had odd quirks such as not showing what ISO it was selecting in Auto until after the shot was taken, and it crashed a lot. It generally felt very hesitant, as if the issue were more to do with the speed of the processor than merely the FW and the FW is, at least in the current iteration, so crude feeling IMHO as to mean that quite a big leap will be needed in quite a short time if it is to justify the hype.

I'm still hopeful that it will all come good but I have to say that a handling session made me feel that it was further off than I thought it would be.
 

D&A

Well-known member
I have no idea what processor or processing speed the X1D has but its certainly a major factor in keeping costs down. Thats what Pentax opted for in their original 645D, and regardless how good the firmware was developed in that camera, it slowed many functions down considerably. This is in contrast to what Leica used in their early S bodies but then again look at the price differences.

I'm far from being an expert but from what Tim and others have described, it appears to be both limitations with processing speed as well as early firmware development with glitches. How much can be ascribed to the processor vs. The firmware at thisnpoint is anyones guess but hopefully more firmware as that is easier to address.

Dave (D&A)
 
I tried one today.

It felt bigger than I expected though not too big at all but I have to say that i was quite taken aback by how basic it felt. Running beta firmware it had odd quirks such as not showing what ISO it was selecting in Auto until after the shot was taken, and it crashed a lot. It generally felt very hesitant, as if the issue were more to do with the speed of the processor than merely the FW and the FW is, at least in the current iteration, so crude feeling IMHO as to mean that quite a big leap will be needed in quite a short time if it is to justify the hype.

I'm still hopeful that it will all come good but I have to say that a handling session made me feel that it was further off than I thought it would be.

Hmmm, I felt the exactly same way when I tried it at Photokina last month. A little worried that dealer demos haven't been updated with more recently, better functional firmware.
 

KeithL

Well-known member
I still think the X1D has the potential to be the most exciting camera to be announced in years.

I really wish I could envisage real advantages in the field and at the print sizes I produce when compared to the full frame cameras (24x36) I currently use. The fact is I can only see disadvantages connected to DOF and adequate shutter speeds at acceptable ISO when hand holding - surely the raison d'être for such a camera? I admit I could well be missing something.

I'm sure others will see potential advantages within their own workflow and make the X1D work for them. I wish I was one of them. I also wish Hasselblad much success.
 
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