Hasselblad 500s / Rollei 6000s / Mamiya RB or RZ

[sperera]

hi there....there are many good deals out there for the Hasselblad 500 series, Rolleiflex 6000 series and Mamiya RB or RZ cameras....all of which can take digital backs with adapters etc from Hasselblad, Phase One, Leaf etc.....

so the question is...which would you recommend as I want to shoot 6 x 6 film and put a digital back in the future.....there good prices for the Hasselblad 503CW - Mamiya RB67 SD, Mamiya RZ67 Pro II and Rolleiflex Integral systems.....so can anyone tell me which would be best option?

or have i passed on another good candidate.....?

[Graham Mitchell]

Have you looked at the available lenses? Does that make a difference?

Iirc, the Mamiya RZ is fully manual with no metering, and most Hasselblad 500s too (isn't metering available as an add-on finder on certain models?). The Rollei 6008 has auto exposure modes and metering, even with the waist level finder. It is also the only one with autofocus, and it has the fastest lenses and fastest flash sync. But nothing beats trying out these cameras for yourself, and no-one can tell you which one is right for you without knowing your own personal preferences.

[Justin Berman]

I'm interested. I have been wavering between Hasselblad 500 series and Mamiya RZ for a long while. It is easy to put together some reasonable kit for around 1k (non digital of course).

[Carsten W]

so the question is...which would you recommend as I want to shoot 6 x 6 film and put a digital back in the future.....there good prices for the Hasselblad 503CW - Mamiya RB67 SD, Mamiya RZ67 Pro II and Rolleiflex Integral systems.....so can anyone tell me which would be best option?

There are many options, but if you really mean 6x6, and not 6x7, then the 500 and the Rollei are the only options. The RB and RZ are much larger than the two 6x6 cameras, and the Rollei is larger than the Hasselblad, but much more advanced. It is quite easy to put together a system around a Hasselblad V body for not too much money, but with the Rollei it gets harder and more expensive. But it is more advanced...

[Rob C]

I have also heard that there are focussing issues with putting a digital back on a 500C or CM body.

As far as film usage goes, don´t forget that many of the older fashion photographers did move from Hasselblad to RZ or RB. That was not driven by cost but by the fact that Mamiya made some damn good lenses as well as the great advantage of providing a larger image and a rotating back with which to handle it without changing the orientation of the body.

As somebody wrote: it´s what suits YOU that counts and you´ll never know until you try them all out.

Rob C

[Carsten W]

I have also heard that there are focussing issues with putting a digital back on a 500C or CM body.

As far as film usage goes, don´t forget that many of the older fashion photographers did move from Hasselblad to RZ or RB. That was not driven by cost but by the fact that Mamiya made some damn good lenses as well as the great advantage of providing a larger image and a rotating back with which to handle it without changing the orientation of the body.

You seem to imply that putting any digital back on any 500C or 500C/M will result in "issues" (so you have "heard"). This is not the case, and the majority of cases work fine. Testing the specific body would of course be prudent. Hasselblads do occasionally have issues, just as the Mamiyas do. For some recent Mamiya issues, you need look no further than the ZD back trouble experienced by several photographers and documented here on LL, or the trials and tribulations of user "tashley" on getdpi.com, who had trouble getting sharp Mamiya lenses for his 645 system (brand-new, mind you).

You also seem to imply that a *significant* number of photographers moved to Mamiya RB or RZ cameras, due to some superiority in Mamiya's lenses over the Hasselblads. This is also not the case. The Hasselblad was probably the most sold medium format cameras ever, and the Mamiya was simply one other option. There is a very large number of very good Hasselblad lenses, so if someone moves to Mamiya, it is most likely to be motivated by some specific Mamiya lens which they preferrred, or perhaps as likely, they wanted to shoot 6x7 rather than 6x6.

You list the rotating back on the Mamiya as an advantage, forgetting that there is no need to rotate a 6x6 back... The 6x7 format is just 16% larger, not likely to make a difference in most cases. It could be a bit more if you factor in cropping for specific magazine formats, admittedly.

[whawn]

I'm using a 503cw with a phase1 back, and with film.  No issues there, but some of the old 'c' type lenses have worn sync contacts and so don't always trigger the back properly.  'Course, I bought the Hassey in order to USE the 'c' lenses, so I just get the sync trouble fixed.  I looked at Contax, but decided the camera was too likely to die intestate, while a Hassey can be fixed any day.  

The p45 has a 3/4 ratio sensor, a bit smaller than the film area, and it can be rotated on the 503 to change orientation.  As mentioned, 6x6 film doesn't need to be rotated.

You can get TTL metering with a viewfinder add-on, and it's pretty accurate, but I've found it more of a PITA than spot metering, because, with the 'c' lenses at least, I still have to apply the readings manually.

[Snook]

Another opinion or comment that may help you.
The RZ is BIG and heavy and not really good for movement (RE: running models/people) if you ask me. Unless you are really used to shooitng it.
Also does sync speed w/ flash matter to you? The RZ does 400/th with flash. the lens are pretty nice and rather cheap.
I have never shot HassleBlad.
Snook

[sperera]

thanks for all your comments......how does the mamiya 90mm f3.5 KL lens rate to you guys?

[Carsten W]

FYI, the RZ67 Pro IID weighs 2490g with standard lens and film magazine. The Hasselblad 503CW weighs 1500g with standard lens and film magazine, quite a difference. As much as people love the RZ, I have heard more than once from owners that they confine it to the studio. BTW, I am not against the RZ, I would love to own one. I would never replace my Hassie with an RZ though.