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Author Topic: New guy. Want to make the jump. Pentax 645D vs H4D-31  (Read 18524 times)

danlandoni

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New guy. Want to make the jump. Pentax 645D vs H4D-31
« on: March 04, 2011, 07:40:26 pm »

Hey everyone! Been lurking on the forums for a while now and I've read so much over the past couple of months that now I am torn between the two cameras.

I shoot people/lifestyle, portraits and commercial. I do all the work in my studio and on location with strobes or natural light. I am currently shooting with a 5D Mark II and L lenses. Most of my work is done with a 50mm and a 70-200mm. Low light is not greatly important. Nothing over 400iso. If i need to go over that i will just grab the 5DII.

Shooting on a tripod is something i rarely do but i have no problem doing. I really like the line of lenses Hasselblad has and i am skeptical with the Pentax line.

I "like" or I am familiar with the Phocus software. I downloaded it along with some of their files off the website and have been playing with it. I normally use Aperture to PS for retouching. If i did get the Pentax i would most likely use C1.

Hasselblad failed to come through with the demo they were supposed to send me for whatever reason. (said they are sending it, never got the unit, haven't called me back)...so i have not had my hands on one yet. I would really like to try the Pentax as well but it seems like no one carries it in my area.

Would you guys say that the Pentax and the more megapixels is worth it over the Hasselblad? At this point I am leaning towards the H4D...maybe their marketing has sucked me in.. :D






ErikKaffehr

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Re: New guy. Want to make the jump. Pentax 645D vs H4D-31
« Reply #1 on: March 05, 2011, 03:53:32 am »

Hi,

This is a comment from the side lines, I'm not an MF shooter myself.

Lloyd Chambers has tested both (and the Leica S2). I'd recommend that you check out his "DAP" site, it costs about 35$ for a year but may be worth it if you plan on spending 20-30k on MF equipment. MFDB testing is not Lloyd's main business, tough.

You may also consider Phase One, the backs are better (AFAIK) and probably some of the lenses too.

Hasselblad has a very strong position in the professional photography business, that may be important to you.

Best regards
Erik


Hey everyone! Been lurking on the forums for a while now and I've read so much over the past couple of months that now I am torn between the two cameras.

I shoot people/lifestyle, portraits and commercial. I do all the work in my studio and on location with strobes or natural light. I am currently shooting with a 5D Mark II and L lenses. Most of my work is done with a 50mm and a 70-200mm. Low light is not greatly important. Nothing over 400iso. If i need to go over that i will just grab the 5DII.

Shooting on a tripod is something i rarely do but i have no problem doing. I really like the line of lenses Hasselblad has and i am skeptical with the Pentax line.

I "like" or I am familiar with the Phocus software. I downloaded it along with some of their files off the website and have been playing with it. I normally use Aperture to PS for retouching. If i did get the Pentax i would most likely use C1.

Hasselblad failed to come through with the demo they were supposed to send me for whatever reason. (said they are sending it, never got the unit, haven't called me back)...so i have not had my hands on one yet. I would really like to try the Pentax as well but it seems like no one carries it in my area.

Would you guys say that the Pentax and the more megapixels is worth it over the Hasselblad? At this point I am leaning towards the H4D...maybe their marketing has sucked me in.. :D







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David Watson

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Re: New guy. Want to make the jump. Pentax 645D vs H4D-31
« Reply #2 on: March 05, 2011, 05:27:58 am »

Okay as a hasselblad committed user here is what I think.

Pentax 645D - nice camera at a good price but no upgrade path and no hire/pro support to speak of.
Phase One - excellent digital back but camera not as good as either Pentax or Hasselblad.  Schneider lenses are very good but most if not all other lenses rely on focal plane shutter in camera.  Upgrades and hire support available
Hasselblad - best overall system with excellent range of leaf shutter lenses and superb tilt and shift adapter.  H4 camera bodies have True focus capability which is a class leader.  Digital backs are excellent and well integrated with camera (e.g. only one battery required).  Upgrades and hire available in most countries. 

I moved from the traditional film Hasselblads (500cm) and then migrated to H3D-31 (very good, the h3d-39 (even better) and now H4D-50 best so far.
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Radu Arama

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Re: New guy. Want to make the jump. Pentax 645D vs H4D-31
« Reply #3 on: March 05, 2011, 07:13:34 am »

Hey everyone! Been lurking on the forums for a while now and I've read so much over the past couple of months that now I am torn between the two cameras.

I shoot people/lifestyle, portraits and commercial. I do all the work in my studio and on location with strobes or natural light. I am currently shooting with a 5D Mark II and L lenses. Most of my work is done with a 50mm and a 70-200mm. Low light is not greatly important. Nothing over 400iso. If i need to go over that i will just grab the 5DII.

Shooting on a tripod is something i rarely do but i have no problem doing. I really like the line of lenses Hasselblad has and i am skeptical with the Pentax line.

I "like" or I am familiar with the Phocus software. I downloaded it along with some of their files off the website and have been playing with it. I normally use Aperture to PS for retouching. If i did get the Pentax i would most likely use C1.

Hasselblad failed to come through with the demo they were supposed to send me for whatever reason. (said they are sending it, never got the unit, haven't called me back)...so i have not had my hands on one yet. I would really like to try the Pentax as well but it seems like no one carries it in my area.

Would you guys say that the Pentax and the more megapixels is worth it over the Hasselblad? At this point I am leaning towards the H4D...maybe their marketing has sucked me in.. :D


Hello Dan,

I will try to dissipate some of the urban myths about Pentax (born in great part from their terrible marketing in the US). David in the post above said that there is no pro support when in fact every buyer of the 645D in the US is automatically included in the Pentax Professional Services that means something like this:

"Purchasers of the camera will have "prioritized access to a dedicated team of  U.S.-based Pentax 645D specialists to answer 645D customer service and product questions (Monday–Friday 7:30 a.m.–4:30 p.m. Mountain Time—holidays excepted)" and will be automatically enrolled in Pentax Professional Services, which offers quick access to rental lenses and accessories and high-priority repair services."

See the reference here: http://theonlinephotographer.typepad.com/the_online_photographer/2010/10/pentax-announces-us-availability-of-645d.html

Pentax already made in collaboration with Adobe customized lens profiles for all FA 645 and the sole D FA 645 at this moment in Lightroom 3 and Photoshop CS5 if you can download a trial copy of LR3 you'll have 30 days to evaluate it. I really don't see Phase One giving Pentax a hand with regard to optimizing Capture One for Pentax lenses and profiling the 645D. So IMO your best bets are either Adobe or Silkypix (a lite version ships with the camera).

If you use the 50 mm on a Canon 5D M2 then the "equivalent" focal length on a 645D would be 64 mm which don't exist as such (only on the 45-85 mm zoom) but you can chose a 75/2.8 mm for something like 600-700 USD new. You can evaluate what this combination of camera/lens could give you in a studio scenario here: http://www.imaging-resource.com/IMCOMP/COMPS01.HTM by comparing it with pictures from your current setup side by side.

The "no upgrade myth" is also debatable since Pentax entered the DMF market less than a year a go. The future will prove me right or wrong by IMHO they have a huge potential to upgrade and refresh their camera range faster than established companies simply because they are on a very aggressive 18 months or less refresh time for the dslr line. The economy of scale and R&D time is staggering considering that they reuse a lot of those components. Besides nobody says that they must have only one DMF camera on the market at the time.

Secondly you alone must evaluate when do you plan to upgrade your camera and if that time is more than one year away I guess no one except people that work for the MF companies could tell you what will emerge in that horizon of time.

Thirdly Pentax just announced a very wide 25 mm lens designed for the entire 645 frame size and I doubt that they went to such lengths and build such an expensive lens if they don't plan larger sensors (soon).

Fourthly Pentax is in a very favorable position to work with Japanese sensor manufacturer since they buy in millions sensors for their compacts and probably more than half a million of dslr sensors. IMHO they could be the first to convince a Japanese semiconductor giant to make for them a CMOS sensor and that moment could be not very far away.

In the end my advice would be for you to contact Pentax USA and try to locate a demo unit for you to test.

Best of luck and sorry for my poor English,

Regards,
Radu   
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David Watson

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Re: New guy. Want to make the jump. Pentax 645D vs H4D-31
« Reply #4 on: March 05, 2011, 07:48:53 am »

Hello Dan,

I will try to dissipate some of the urban myths about Pentax (born in great part from their terrible marketing in the US). David in the post above said that there is no pro support when in fact every buyer of the 645D in the US is automatically included in the Pentax Professional Services that means something like this:

"Purchasers of the camera will have "prioritized access to a dedicated team of  U.S.-based Pentax 645D specialists to answer 645D customer service and product questions (Monday–Friday 7:30 a.m.–4:30 p.m. Mountain Time—holidays excepted)" and will be automatically enrolled in Pentax Professional Services, which offers quick access to rental lenses and accessories and high-priority repair services."

See the reference here: http://theonlinephotographer.typepad.com/the_online_photographer/2010/10/pentax-announces-us-availability-of-645d.html

Pentax already made in collaboration with Adobe customized lens profiles for all FA 645 and the sole D FA 645 at this moment in Lightroom 3 and Photoshop CS5 if you can download a trial copy of LR3 you'll have 30 days to evaluate it. I really don't see Phase One giving Pentax a hand with regard to optimizing Capture One for Pentax lenses and profiling the 645D. So IMO your best bets are either Adobe or Silkypix (a lite version ships with the camera).

If you use the 50 mm on a Canon 5D M2 then the "equivalent" focal length on a 645D would be 64 mm which don't exist as such (only on the 45-85 mm zoom) but you can chose a 75/2.8 mm for something like 600-700 USD new. You can evaluate what this combination of camera/lens could give you in a studio scenario here: http://www.imaging-resource.com/IMCOMP/COMPS01.HTM by comparing it with pictures from your current setup side by side.

The "no upgrade myth" is also debatable since Pentax entered the DMF market less than a year a go. The future will prove me right or wrong by IMHO they have a huge potential to upgrade and refresh their camera range faster than established companies simply because they are on a very aggressive 18 months or less refresh time for the dslr line. The economy of scale and R&D time is staggering considering that they reuse a lot of those components. Besides nobody says that they must have only one DMF camera on the market at the time.

Secondly you alone must evaluate when do you plan to upgrade your camera and if that time is more than one year away I guess no one except people that work for the MF companies could tell you what will emerge in that horizon of time.

Thirdly Pentax just announced a very wide 25 mm lens designed for the entire 645 frame size and I doubt that they went to such lengths and build such an expensive lens if they don't plan larger sensors (soon).

Fourthly Pentax is in a very favorable position to work with Japanese sensor manufacturer since they buy in millions sensors for their compacts and probably more than half a million of dslr sensors. IMHO they could be the first to convince a Japanese semiconductor giant to make for them a CMOS sensor and that moment could be not very far away.

In the end my advice would be for you to contact Pentax USA and try to locate a demo unit for you to test.

Best of luck and sorry for my poor English,

Regards,
Radu   

Thank you Radu for the correction and the information - most helpful.  I will keep an eye on Pentax for the future.  In the meantime I will expand a little on what I mean by pro support.  Hasselblad has a huge installed user base and a wide distribution of equipment for hire.  This enablse a working pro to quickly obtain a backup or replacement camera and to hire additional lenses as required.

In terms of upgrades I accept that Pentax may bring out a higher resolution model at some point in the future but if they offer to take back an existing camera and offer a cost effective upgrade price I will be surprised.

As a pro you need to bet on certainties (or as near as you can get) and at present Hasselblad IMO offers a better system with a greater certainty of support (in the context outlined above).  If the camera fails on a job I want to know that I am going to have a replacement/loan camera within 24 hours or sooner.  I would check whether Pentax can offer that.  If not you could always buy two cameras. ;D

In terms of price I think an H4D-31 at $10,000 is actually better value.  Just my opinio.  :)
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sarinale

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Re: New guy. Want to make the jump. Pentax 645D vs H4D-31
« Reply #5 on: March 05, 2011, 08:22:19 am »

Hi, I haven't tried the Pentax but it seems like an interesting camera especially for field and location work. Not sure about the workflow and shooting tethered seems to be impossible from what I have read.

The lens lineup may be an issue, especially the lack of leaf shutter lens. On the other hand the have the only 25mm lens for full 645 format. The Hasselblad D lens (28mm and 35-90mm) don't cover the full format (unbelievable but true).

Personally I'd recommend a used Phase One back with either a Hasselblad H2 or a Phase One DF body. The Phase One backs are the best from an image quality and built perspective and Capture One is far superiour to Phocus. The Phase One camera system offers the best range of lens with and without leaf shutter, the only issue is the mediocre body. According to Phase they have improved the annoying shutter lag that plagued the Phase One AF body (which cannot be used with LS lenses) and also the AF speed, but the Pentax will perhaps be the best camera with respect to autofocus and shutter lag. The other issue with Phase One is the outrageous price of their backs and bodies.

Hasselblad is a great name and the cameras are cheaper than Phase One (unless you want a bigger sensor than 33x44 mm in which case you have to take the 50/60 Mpix versions). in my view, the issue with both Pentax 645D and Hasselblad H31 is the 1.3 crop factor. This essentially means that you have no wide angle (unless you spend 5k$ on a 25mm that turns into a 32mm on your camera).

Hope this helps.

Best, Alex
« Last Edit: March 05, 2011, 08:27:32 am by sarinale »
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David Watson

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Re: New guy. Want to make the jump. Pentax 645D vs H4D-31
« Reply #6 on: March 05, 2011, 09:06:03 am »

Hi, I haven't tried the Pentax but it seems like an interesting camera especially for field and location work. Not sure about the workflow and shooting tethered seems to be impossible from what I have read.

The lens lineup may be an issue, especially the lack of leaf shutter lens. On the other hand the have the only 25mm lens for full 645 format. The Hasselblad D lens (28mm and 35-90mm) don't cover the full format (unbelievable but true).

Personally I'd recommend a used Phase One back with either a Hasselblad H2 or a Phase One DF body. The Phase One backs are the best from an image quality and built perspective and Capture One is far superiour to Phocus. The Phase One camera system offers the best range of lens with and without leaf shutter, the only issue is the mediocre body. According to Phase they have improved the annoying shutter lag that plagued the Phase One AF body (which cannot be used with LS lenses) and also the AF speed, but the Pentax will perhaps be the best camera with respect to autofocus and shutter lag. The other issue with Phase One is the outrageous price of their backs and bodies.

Hasselblad is a great name and the cameras are cheaper than Phase One (unless you want a bigger sensor than 33x44 mm in which case you have to take the 50/60 Mpix versions). in my view, the issue with both Pentax 645D and Hasselblad H31 is the 1.3 crop factor. This essentially means that you have no wide angle (unless you spend 5k$ on a 25mm that turns into a 32mm on your camera).

Hope this helps.

Best, Alex


Sorry Alex that just is not true.  The full series of HC and HCD lenses utilise the full sensor on all cameras except on the H4D-60 where there is a marginal crop on the 28mm and the 35-90.  The factor for the 31 is 1.1 for the HCD lenses giving an equivalent focal length of 31mm - not bad eh?
« Last Edit: March 05, 2011, 09:18:29 am by David Watson »
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sarinale

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Re: New guy. Want to make the jump. Pentax 645D vs H4D-31
« Reply #7 on: March 05, 2011, 09:33:03 am »

Hi David, focal length always refers to full format, even if the lens does not cover it. That means that 1.3 crop is 1.3 crop regardless of whether the lens would cover the full frame (which it doesn't).
In this light, you will clearly see that me calculation is correct. Perhaps we have a Hasselblad dealer who can confirm?
Best, Alex
« Last Edit: March 05, 2011, 10:00:39 am by sarinale »
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Re: New guy. Want to make the jump. Pentax 645D vs H4D-31
« Reply #8 on: March 05, 2011, 10:31:34 am »

Hi David, focal length always refers to full format, even if the lens does not cover it. That means that 1.3 crop is 1.3 crop regardless of whether the lens would cover the full frame (which it doesn't).
In this light, you will clearly see that me calculation is correct. Perhaps we have a Hasselblad dealer who can confirm?
Best, Alex

Sorry Alex that is just plain misleading and IMO totally irrelevant to the question asked.  The key questions are "does the lens cover the entire sensor?" and what is the multiplication factor to give a true focal length for that lens and that sensor.  The answers are:

All Hasselblad lenses cover the entire sensor of cameras from 22MP to 50MP and with a marginal crop in the case of the 28 and 35-90 in respect of the 60MP sensor.

Hasselblad HC lenses have a factor of 1.3 and HCD lenses have a factor of 1.1 with the 31MP sensor.

The word crop is entirely wrong in this context.  It is not a crop but a multiplication factor. 

Just to be entirely clear no Hasselblad lens crops the image on the 22, 31, 39 and 50MP cameras.

Are we clear now? ;)
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danlandoni

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Re: New guy. Want to make the jump. Pentax 645D vs H4D-31
« Reply #9 on: March 05, 2011, 10:46:51 am »

Thanks to everyone for your responses. I am now reading a little more into the Phase One backs to match up to an H2 body. Seems like they are pretty hard to find. I might call Phase and then Hasselblad to see if they have any old backs and bodies around.

I have always been skeptical on buying "older" equipment. I like feeling up to date with the technology so I'm debating whether or not "true-focus" is a deal breaker at this point. This brings me to the following possibilities.

Hasselblad H1 or H2 with a Phase back and lens to be determined. H3DII-31 or H4D-31. If i do go for the H4D i will probably be stuck with the 80mm for a while which is okay.

« Last Edit: March 05, 2011, 10:48:33 am by danlandoni »
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Re: New guy. Want to make the jump. Pentax 645D vs H4D-31
« Reply #10 on: March 05, 2011, 11:21:44 am »

Glad to be of help.

Hasselblad's UK subsidiary/dealer - The Pro Centre in London - have a good choice of cameras and lenses with the benefit of a 6 months manufacturers guarantee.

e.g.

Hasselblad H3DII-39 Camera c/w 39mp Digital Back 2293 Exposures (SM)  #70SR24598 (Boxed, Mint)    £7995.00
Hasselblad H3D-31 Camera c/w 31mp Digital Back 35784 Exposures  (HP)  #70SU21391   £3995.00
Hasselblad 35mm HC Lens (Mint)   £1845.00
Hasselblad 35mm HC Lens (Near mint)   £1795.00
Hasselblad 35mm HC Lens    £1595.00
Hasselblad 35mm HC Lens     £1295.00
Hasselblad 50mm HC Lens     £1595.00
Hasselblad 50-110mm HC Lens   £1975.00
Hasselblad 80mm HC Lens    £1245.00
Hasselblad 80mm HC Lens    £950.00
Hasselblad 100mm HC Lens     £1595.00
Hasselblad 150mm HC Lens   £1495.00
Hasselblad 150mm HC Lens   £1295.00
Hasselblad 210mm HC Lens   £1595.00

The H3D-31 with a 50-110 looks like a good cheap buy to start you off.

Contact details are:

Pro Centre, 5/6 Mallow Street, London EC1Y 8RQ.

Tel: 020 7490 3122
Fax: 020 7490 1292
Email: info@procentre.co.uk
Facebook - Twitter
http://www.procentre.co.uk

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cyeh01

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Re: New guy. Want to make the jump. Pentax 645D vs H4D-31
« Reply #11 on: March 05, 2011, 08:54:09 pm »

Yes. Lots of it IS marketing. I'm not entirely happy with the Ferrari Red H4 body but I'm sure Hasselblad has more up their sleeve in the future... or I'm going to Phamiya LOL! :)

That being said, you can't knock the H3D/H4D with whatever back. I use the 31 back on the H3DII. Here's an example:


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danlandoni

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Re: New guy. Want to make the jump. Pentax 645D vs H4D-31
« Reply #12 on: March 06, 2011, 01:11:42 am »

Very nice! I follow your blog and am a big fan of your work!

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Re: New guy. Want to make the jump. Pentax 645D vs H4D-31
« Reply #13 on: March 06, 2011, 04:31:14 am »

All Hasselblad lenses cover the entire sensor of cameras from 22MP to 50MP and with a marginal crop in the case of the 28 and 35-90 in respect of the 60MP sensor.

It's absolutely amazing that they did this huge system design error.... What were they thinking?

Regards
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Re: New guy. Want to make the jump. Pentax 645D vs H4D-31
« Reply #14 on: March 06, 2011, 05:19:07 am »

It's absolutely amazing that they did this huge system design error.... What were they thinking?

Regards

I don't know but that is the reason I have an H4D-50 rather than the 60.
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ErikKaffehr

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Re: New guy. Want to make the jump. Pentax 645D vs H4D-31
« Reply #15 on: March 06, 2011, 11:53:54 pm »

Hi,

It is very simple.

There is not a single medium format, there are many. MF sensors are still very expensive and the price increases overproportionally with size. Most MF sensors sold are crop frame. So Hasselblad simple decided to regard a cropped MF frame to normal size. With crop frames you are loosing much on the wide angle side, so they developed a wide angle for the cropped frame.

Now, using a cropped frame limits resolution, specially as all MF vendors buy their sensors from Kodak or Dalsa. Phase One has full frame sensors with 60 MPixels and now 80 MPixels. Hasselblad could not use smaller pixels to achieve that resolution, so they needed larger sensor to compete with Phase One on the high end.

So some Hasselblad lenses are designed for the smaller cropped medium format and they will vignette on full frame Hasselblad.

I'd suggest that most buyers don't have that problem. But would Hasselblad not develop the crop size wideangles those photographers buying 30 and 40 MP backs would not have any real wide angle!

Best regards
Erik


It's absolutely amazing that they did this huge system design error.... What were they thinking?

Regards
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dudu307

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Re: New guy. Want to make the jump. Pentax 645D vs H4D-31
« Reply #16 on: March 07, 2011, 02:57:31 am »

There is not a single medium format, there are many. MF sensors are still very expensive and the price increases overproportionally with size. Most MF sensors sold are crop frame. So Hasselblad simple decided to regard a cropped MF frame to normal size. With crop frames you are loosing much on the wide angle side, so they developed a wide angle for the cropped frame

Hi Erik,

Yes, it's simple but that's not the reason, there are many MF sensor sizes but the H3 system was designed with just one sensor size in mind, they use to sell the system as "Full frame".

Then Phase came with a bigger sensor and Hassy didn't have the guts to keep their system integrity.

Regards
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Re: New guy. Want to make the jump. Pentax 645D vs H4D-31
« Reply #17 on: March 07, 2011, 04:07:18 am »

Hi Erik,

Then Phase came with a bigger sensor and Hassy didn't have the guts to keep their system integrity.

Regards

That's a bit strong.  Hasselblad's focus is on delivering a class winning camera system (which it has done) not simply larger and larger sensors but market pressure (from high net worth amateurs in the USA if some posters are to be believed) forced their hand in an unexpected way.  Phase One is a digital back manufacturer with an adequate (i.e. not very good) camera so it is natural that they would wish to place the emphasis on the one thing they can do which is to up the stakes in the megapixel race.  IMO Phase One should have spent their money developing a camera that could compete with Hasselblad and not on fancier and bigger digital backs,.  This issue was debated to the death on a number of threads when Phase One announced their new product e.g. http://www.luminous-landscape.com/forum/index.php?topic=50727.0.

There is a strong argument that 39 or 50 MP are more than adequate for 99.9% of professional applications so why increase the memory and processing overhead by introducing a 60 or 80MP back?


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ErikKaffehr

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Re: New guy. Want to make the jump. Pentax 645D vs H4D-31
« Reply #18 on: March 07, 2011, 04:14:05 am »

Hi

Ever heard about Alpa and Rodenstock digitars?

Not sure that Phase One is not very good. Michael Reichman (owner of this site) went from Hasselblad to Phase One and he seems quite happy...

Best regards
Erik


That's a bit strong.  Hasselblad's focus is on delivering a class winning camera system (which it has done) not simply larger and larger sensors but market pressure (from high net worth amateurs in the USA if some posters are to be believed) forced their hand in an unexpected way.  Phase One is a digital back manufacturer with an adequate (i.e. not very good) camera so it is natural that they would wish to place the emphasis on the one thing they can do which is to up the stakes in the megapixel race.  IMO Phase One should have spent their money developing a camera that could compete with Hasselblad and not on fancier and bigger digital backs,.  This issue was debated to the death on a number of threads when Phase One announced their new product e.g. http://www.luminous-landscape.com/forum/index.php?topic=50727.0.

There is a strong argument that 39 or 50 MP are more than adequate for 99.9% of professional applications so why increase the memory and processing overhead by introducing a 60 or 80MP back?



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David Watson

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    • David Watson
Re: New guy. Want to make the jump. Pentax 645D vs H4D-31
« Reply #19 on: March 07, 2011, 04:28:26 am »

Hi

Ever heard about Alpa and Rodenstock digitars?

Not sure that Phase One is not very good. Michael Reichman (owner of this site) went from Hasselblad to Phase One and he seems quite happy...

Best regards
Erik



Hi Erik

Yes I have and I have used them with my Hasselblad digital back on a Rollei XAct2.  Great lenses and a great camera for certain very specific applications.

Michael would be happiest with a Hasselblad camera and a Phase One digital back.  He doesn't have that because he was and is unhappy with Hasselblad's decision to "close" their system whilst Phase One didn't (LOL  ;D).  In a personal exchange of emails last year he stated that he feels that Hasselblad has the better camera and Phase One the better backs which is something I don't think anyone would argue with.

I do not disagree that Hasselblad mis-judged the pace of change in the market place and handled the introduction of their own 60MP back badly.  Some senior managers at Hasselblad have already paid a price for that I guess.  Where I feel the misjudgement came was in calculating what their customers need and what they would want.  Most pros and all amateurs do not "need" 80MP but giving the "sex appeal" of big megapixel sensors you can bet that they will want it.  Hasselblad sensibly, in their view, chose to apply their efforts to real world improvements to their camera system by introducing True-Focus - a valuable and ground-breaking innovation.  On balance overall I still think that Hasselblad has the better system although I do admire and hanker after those Schneider lenses. 
 :)
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