Luminous Landscape Forum

Equipment & Techniques => Cameras, Lenses and Shooting gear => Topic started by: Royaldream on November 23, 2012, 06:33:31 pm

Title: Phase one or Hasselblad DB ON H2
Post by: Royaldream on November 23, 2012, 06:33:31 pm
Hi Every one
i am portrait photographer in Toronto, Canada.
i had h3d 39 2 years ago and it was great camer but i got a power problems and felt it is not trustable camera for wedding projects and got another problem with focus speed so i sold it as a as is condition,
 i have a question i Have 2 option first go with  Hasselblad H1 upgraded to H2 with CF 39 for with HC50-110 for $7000 under 12000 click the next option is H2 with Phase one p25 for $6000. i difference  about megapixel but which one can i trust to have long term work.
Thanks

Royal Dream Photography
www.photoorvideo.com
Title: Re: Phase one or Hasselblad DB ON H2
Post by: FredBGG on November 24, 2012, 05:27:45 am
The P25 is built like a little tank. Simple solid device.

Regarding the cameras...well they are old and even new they were not the most reliable cameras.

I would not go into any job with just one body or lens with medium format digital.

Definitely not weddings. Imagine the legal implications if it failed and the customer became aware of how
old the camera was.
Title: Re: Phase one or Hasselblad DB ON H2
Post by: Royaldream on November 24, 2012, 09:23:42 am
Thanks Fred, you think i should get the phase one back with 2 H bodys?
Title: Re: Phase one or Hasselblad DB ON H2
Post by: vampire on November 24, 2012, 09:25:16 am
You probably should have tried to trade in your old back/camera. You most likely would have gotten more money on an upgrade. I have an H1 that's old and have had no issues with it. Bought it used a couple years ago. Upgraded to an H4x earlier this year. You may want to have Hasselblad do a clean and check on the camera that you buy used. Or buy from a dealer that puts a warranty on it. You can also later upgrade to an H4x. I would also recommend looking at a P30+ back. You can always buy the camera and back separately. From what I understand, there was not too much of a difference between the H1 & H2. Were your focus speed issues related to your individual camera having issues(do you think your's was working correctly) or were you not happy in general with the performance with the H3d camera's AF? The option with the cf39 sounds like a really good deal. The P25 option sounds like it's priced a little hi.
Title: Re: Phase one or Hasselblad DB ON H2
Post by: FredBGG on November 24, 2012, 12:50:58 pm
Thanks Fred, you think i should get the phase one back with 2 H bodys?

The P25 is simple and reliable. Just 5 buttons. On/off and 4 robust menu buttons.
The LCD screen is pretty bad, but you don't really need one.

As for the H bodies they are quite "primitive" if compared to today's 35mm DSLR cameras.

What sort of work do you want to shoot with the Hasselblads?
What are you looking for in them that you can't get from a high end 35mm DSLR.

I am a portrait and fashion photographer and I have found that MF digital has become irrelevant for me.
I found MF cameras to not be reliable enough. I shoot A-list celebrity portraits and their time is very very expensive.
I also found that recent 35mm camera and lens designs have met and exceeded MF digital quality and MF no longer
has a look that cannot be achieved with 35mm DSLRs. The D800 was a tipping point for me. Great image quality and best dynamic range available.
Personally I find that a combination of 35mm digital and both 6x8cm film
and 8x10 film is far more empowering than MF digital. (the MF+ LF film +Digital 35mm is also far more reliable and far less expensive).
It is important to remember that medium format digital is barely medium format. The size of the sensor is smaller than the entry level of MF film.
While the MF sensors are sharper than film, they don't have the same look as film and the look of larger format MF lenses cannot be matched by 645 lenses.

Absolutely marvelous large MF film cameras can be bought at great low prices. My favorite MF film camera for portraits is the Fuji GX680.
Here are a few examples:

Film:

(http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5180/5458121808_279291c8e8_b.jpg)

(http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5299/5417854016_f1a10a64ae_b.jpg)

crop from above
(http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5297/5417246191_cf601ffe23_z.jpg)

(http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5250/5356464560_f46a54d63a_b.jpg)

35mm DSLR:

(http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5004/5325855779_6172300b2e_b.jpg)

(http://farm7.staticflickr.com/6021/5963259140_a5d90afb86_b.jpg)

crop
(http://farm7.staticflickr.com/6009/5961735537_d78f0487f3_b.jpg)

(http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5164/5326462354_bec6137ceb_b.jpg)

Title: Re: Phase one or Hasselblad DB ON H2
Post by: FredBGG on November 24, 2012, 01:23:28 pm
There are also some good comparison tests online.

http://www.circleofconfusion.ie/d800e-vs-phase-one-iq180/ (http://www.circleofconfusion.ie/d800e-vs-phase-one-iq180/)

Here for example is a side by side compassion of a 40MP hasselblad and the D800:

(http://photigy.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/NikonD800-face-crop1.jpg)


(http://photigy.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/Hasselblad-h4d40-vs-face-crop-1.jpg)

both are crops from this framing:

(http://www.photigy.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/Nikon-d800e-test-review-sample-image.jpg)

You can signup here and download the original raw files at www.photigy.com