Hasselblad Superwide C (Zeiss 38mm Biogon)
Photo thanks to Richard Spitzer
Home Page - daguere@ibm.net
Related Links:
Hasselblad 500C/EL Users Guide by Lance Karp
Hasselblad EL/M Battery DIY Guide
Hasselblad Lens Guide (D. A. Munroe)
How to Buy a Hasselblad by Lance Karp (local copy)
Kiev TTL Prisms (for Hasselblad bodies)
MF Cameras - see Hasselblad Links
Plungercam Hasselblad (loupe for a lens)
Using older 12 Back with 220 film (220 plug..)
By contrast, later Rollei SLX 6x6cm SLRs with
motorized bodies and Zeiss 80mm leaf shutter lenses are running about the
same price (viz., $800 US) for the basic body and lens kit. But there are
lots more older
accessories, backs, viewfinders, and lenses for the Hasselblads than the
Rollei SLX or 600x series on the used market.
The Hasselblad 2000 series bodies also include
some potential bargains. However, some of these 2000 series cameras have
poor reputations because the original Hasselblad 2000 series FC and FC/M
cameras had problems with exposed shutter curtain damage. Unfortunately,
parts to fix some of these problems are no longer
available from the manufacturer. So unless you have a donor body with a
good shutter, these cameras may be difficult or nearly impossible to
repair if the shutters are bad.
But these mid-1980s model cameras can be
found in working condition for prices as low as $400 USD. That price is
less than the cost of fixing the bodies. So it is often cheaper to buy
another working camera than to fix an old one. You may be able to get one
of these focal plane shutter bodies with working shutter and continue to
use it with extra care (especially if you don't change out backs often, so
the shutter is rarely exposed).
As we will see below, the huge advantage of a focal plane body is that it
allows you to use all sorts of lenses and optics without the need for a
leaf shutter in the lens (or bellows setup). But there are some tricks
that even leaf shutter Hasselblad body owners can use to adapt lenses to
use on their 500c/cm and 500el/elm series Hasselblads.
I think the best idea is to tradeoff and buy the Zeiss lenses that you
will use often (e.g., 80mm, 150mm). The trick is to come up with
alternatives in budget lenses that you will use infrequently enough to
make it hard or impossible to justify buying the Zeiss lenses at today's
high prices!
Here is a brief list of some of the adapters I have:
0.18x circular fisheye (15mm equiv.) [$50-100+] 0.42X superwide semifisheye (34mm equiv.) [$35-50+] 0.5X very wide (40mm equiv.) [$20-40+] 0.6X wide (48mm equiv.) [$20-40+] 0.75X wide (60mm equiv.) [$10-15+] [80mm f/2.8 zeiss planar] 1.25X short tele (100mm equiv.) [$10-15+] 4X long tele (320mm equiv.) [$35 up]
Adapters are not replacements for prime lenses either in resolution or
image quality. Having a 0.42x or 0.5X adapter for your 80mm lens may make
the difference between getting a shot of a cramped room interior, or not
being able to get anything at all. Even if the image is slightly soft in
the edges, it may
work well enough for many purposes, especially if the photos are for your
own amusement (e.g., travel or fun photos). While these adapters are
frankly poor on marginal 35mm film and lenses, medium format performance
is often rather better as lesser enlargement factors are needed. The
milder wide angle (0.75X, 0.6X, 0.5X) adapters have less distortion of
straight lines than the semi-fisheye (0.42X) and true fisheye (0.15-0.18x)
optics. Flare is more of a problem when you add an adapter to your
regular lens, so use a homebrew lens hood or block the sun with hand or hat
for best results.
Moreover, you may discover that even when you have a prime lens, that the
equivalent adapter plus lens combination has some useful image making
features. For example, I have a 35mm Kowa 6x6cm rectilinear lens. But I
also use my Sakar 0.42X adapter to produce a similar ultrawide effect
(circa $25-50 used on EBAY). The 0.42X adapter image is considerably
distorted in a semi-fisheye sense at the image edges, which is a different
effect from the sharp prime lens rectilinear image. If I want the curved
and distorted line effects, I have to use the 0.42x semifisheye
adapter to get them (or Photoshop). There are also grafitti shooting
situations where I wouldn't take kilobucks worth of lenses along, but a
$25 adapter could be risked. These adapters are also relatively
light in weight, so you can carry a fisheye adapter quite easily.
Not only
can I use the adapter on my Hasselblad, but I can also use it on other
medium format cameras, as well as view camera lenses and 35mm SLRs too.
Another advantage beside cost is that most adapters (other than the
fisheye and the 4X listed above) don't change the prime lens speed. So
used on the Hasselblad 80mm f/2.8, the adapters just broaden the angle of
coverage (or narrow it with telephotos). In a pinch, you can still shoot
at f/2.8. Similarly, your viewscreen image is still bright and easy to
focus too.
Unfortunately, most of the adapters produce somewhat soft images used
wide open, so they are usually used on lenses stopped down to around f/11
or so for best results. Slightly softer images are actually a benefit of
the short telephoto lenses (here, 1.25X, but 1.5X and 2X and even 4X also
exist). These lenses reduce the sharpness of the prime lens, which may be
just what you want with portraiture. Who wants every wrinkle and defect in
their faces to be ultra sharp on the final print? A softer image from a
soft short telephoto adapter used wide open can produce a nice effect for
some uses. This effect is different from some soft
focus filters and lenses, adding to your photographic bag of tricks.
The fisheye 0.18X adapter deserves special consideration. You can buy a
30mm fisheye for Hasselblad, and even a rare 24mm fisheye specialty lens,
but there is no 15mm equivalent fisheye. So the images made by this
fisheye adapter are unique. You can use the same fisheye adapter on 35mm
SLRs and medium format cameras using a low cost filter ring size adapter
(e.g., 52mm to 55mm). The optics of the 0.18X fisheye are complex, which
explains its higher cost (circa $50 to $100+ USD) than our typical
adapter.
My personal experience is that low cost adapters make it possible to take
many unique photos which would not have been possible with just the normal
lens alone, but without breaking your budget. But more importantly, these
low cost adapters can open up some fun photographic possibilities that
expand your range of photographic capabilities and skills.
|
For Hasselblad 6x6cm C lenses, from the Hasselblad Compendium per posting:
|
|---|
24mm f3.5 F Distagon - about 50 0.01% (cf 16mm on 35mm SLR) 30mm f3.5 F Distagon C - under 1000 0.24% (cf 20mm ") 40mm f4 Distagon C - approx. 9,000 2.16% (cf 24mm ") 50mm f4 Distagon C - approx. 75,000 18.03% (cf 35mm ") 80mm f2.8 C Planar - approx. 210,000 50.47% (cf 50mm ") 120mm f5.6 S-Planar - approx. 14,000 3.36% (cf 85mm ") 150mm f4 Sonnar C - approx. 70,000 16.82% (cf 100mm ") 250mm f5.6 Sonnar C - approx. 30,000 7.21% (cf 180mm ") 350mm f5.6 Tele-Tessar C - approx. 3,000 0.72% (cf 250mm ") 500mm f8 Tele-Tessar C - approx. 4,000 0.96% (cf 350mm ") |
Bongo's Law states that the price of a
lens is often inversely related to its frequency of use. The Zeiss 30mm
fisheye may be a great lens, but how often will you use it? Can you
justify the steep price on a per shot basis? You could rent, if there are
local outlets. But these lens rental costs add up fast if you are not a
paid professional. Nor are they tax deductible unless you are at least a
semi-professional photographer. For many of us,
it makes sense to buy a few Zeiss lenses that we will use often, such as
the "standard trio" of 50mm, 80mm, and 150mm (or 180mm) lenses. But for
the rest, it may make lots more economic sense to either rent or come up
with an alternative approach such as lens adapters, lens mount
conversions, and use of bellows mount lenses.
Don't feel too bad if you don't have every focal length of lens that Zeiss
offers for your Hasselblad. Reported sales (above) of older model Zeiss
lenses shows that circa half of all Hasselblad lenses sold were 80mm
lenses. The "standard trio" of 50mm, 80mm, and 150mm accounted for over
85% of all lenses sold. Only 1,000 of the 30mm f/4 Distagon lenses were
sold, representing only 0.25% (1/4%) of all lenses. So you aren't the
only person in your camera club who doesn't have one of these 30mm lenses!
The average (mode) Hasselblad owner has just the 80mm lens and camera. If
you have more than 3 lenses, more than one body, and more than 3 backs you
are probably in the top 10% of Hasselblad owners.
Afocal telephotos are often found atop tall buildings and national park
sites.
For example, you can take photos through the viewing telescopes at the
Grand Canyon by holding your camera up to the telescope, set your lens at
infinity, and let your autoexposure camera do the rest. This practice of
eyepiece projection also works for larger telescopes of great power, as
well as microscopes if you have a suitable rigid mounting setup and light
tight bellows (see microscope shutter).
The big advantage of afocal projection is that you can get some tremendous
telephoto (and microphotographic) effects for modest costs, using existing
low cost instruments. Naturally, the optical quality of a Zeiss telephoto
would be greatly superior. But then, who has $25,000 USD for the 1,000mm
f/8 Zeiss lens for the Rolleiflex SL66 focal plane
camera? Unfortunately, most amateur telescopes and finder telescopes don't
have the ability to fully cover 6x6cm without vignetting the
corners. Still, the ability to get a huge magnification factor may
outweigh the limitations and cropping required, especially considering the
cost and non-availability of the alternative Zeiss optics!
On the down side, you lose two
stops, so an 80mm f/2.8 lens becomes the equivalent of a 160mm f/5.6
lens. The optical quality of the 80mm and 2X combination is a bit less
refined than the 150mm f/4 lens, and a stop slower.
On the positive side,
you will find that the combination 80mm and 2X focuses close enough to
often obviate the need for an extension tube in most portrait work. This
extension tube is often needed to extend the limited 150mm f/4 close focus
range (and explains why many users prefer the 180mm without tube instead).
While many users would be scandalized at the suggestion, a pair of
teleconverters may also work surprisingly well for some brightly lighted
situations. The resulting 320mm f/11 lens is very slow compared to the
350mm f/5.6, two teleconverters would cost a lot less than $7,000 USD for
a new Zeiss CFE lens! However, it pays to test any teleconverter
carefully. Some users suggest that simply enlarging the superb Zeiss 80mm
images produced better results than the 80mm with 2X teleconverter pair.
But if your situation mandates a long lens, while cost and slowness are
critical, use of a teleconverter may be a worthwhile option to study too.
On the good news side, we have a page dealing with direct importing of photogear from overseas which
can save you major dollars, even on new Hasselblad lens purchases. We are
talking $1,800 USD for a new in-warranty (international only) lens versus
over $3,000 USD for a USA imported and warranteed lens. The prices of many
of these new imported grey market Hasselblad Zeiss lenses with
International Factory Warranty(s) is often less than similar model used
lenses from dealers and on Ebay!
My theory is that Hasselblad Zeiss lenses
have uniquely gone up in price, even for used models, because they are
able to replace much more expensive current model lenses. So a 150mm f/4 C
chrome lens that cost $333 in 1961 was $1,750 in 1988 and $2,756 in 1998.
Forget about finding even an early 150mm f/4 C for less than $750 USD
(unless in beat-up bargain condition). But compared to $2,750+ USD for a
new 150mm f/4, saving $2,000 USD or so by buying an older used one made
the $750 to $1,000+ USD used price seem almost a bargain. While there have
been some major improvements, mainly in lens coatings, the images from
many of the older lenses are very nearly as good for many users.
Most of us will be quite happy with the quality achievable using a good
quality, much cheaper two element achromatic closeup lens (such as the
Nikon 62mm series). If you mostly intend to shoot nature subjects, the
subject will likely minimize the visible differences (versus flat document
copying, where the higher correction of the proxars might be useful).
Enter the older Hasselblad non-automatic bellows. To use these units, you
need to use a special dual bellows release. Or you could construct a much
cheaper
unit out of two cable releases setup so one is fully depressed before the
second. But the bellows provides a range of closeup extensions which if
often more than you can achieve with less convenient extension tubes
alone. Unfortunately, you may still need a thin extension tube for use
with telephoto lenses (e.g., 150mm) for optimal closeup shots (or pick the
more close focusing 180mm optic).
You may also find a handful of nifty tilt/shift medium format bellows
(such as the Deluxe II bellows for Bronica S2/S2A, or Kowa 6/66 bellows,
or the Spiratone variant). These bellows provide not just extension, but
also front movements of lens tilts and shifts, enabling you to place the
focus plane where needed on a closeup subject (e.g., tilted to match
subject plane). These bellows would require some camera mounting hardware
to mount on the Hasselblad leaf shutter lens mount (for 500C series
bodies) or F mount (for the Hasselblad 2000/200 series bodies). In this
case, the Hasselblad 2000 FC and 2000 FC/M bodies would make closeup work
much easier with non-Hasselblad bellows and lenses, thanks to their
built-in focal plane shutter.
Another interesting option is to mount your Hasselblad body to a 6x9cm or
4x5" view camera back, using some sort of body mounting ring (e.g., an
extension tube epoxied to a back with the central hole drilled out). Now
you can use the view camera's bellows and movements to provide tilts and
swings and other perspective controls. With this trick, you can still use
your Hasselblad backs (including Polaroid backs) and viewfinders,
including the metering prisms (such as the inexpensive TTL Kiev viewfinder
that mounts on the Hasselblad bodies). The disadvantage of this setup is
that it works better with normal to telephoto lenses, as wide angle lenses
don't have enough bellows movements unless they are retrofocus designs
(due to Hasselblad's 74.9mm lens registration distance).
You can also "gut" an inexpensive folder camera with a leaf shutter
mounted lens and movable front standard to provide a "front end" for your
Hasselblad. We will look in more detail at remounting leaf shutter lenses
below. But keep in mind that you can combine elements of the Hasselblad
system design with a view camera style front end to produce a hybrid
system with the best features of both. With your Hasselblad "rear end",
you can have
a bright upright image (SLR design), plus TTL metering (perhaps
autoexposure on some 200/x bodies), plus the economy of rollfilm and
smaller Polaroid backs. The view camera front end provides easy lens
mounting and interchangeability with leaf shutter options, plus a full
range of perspective control movements. Nifty! The Hasselblad Flexbody and Arcbody
designs are a more compact approach worth studying too.
This feature was included to enable photographers to do certain
tasks, particularly for closeup work, using non-Zeiss lenses. The idea was
simple. You mounted a closeup lens on the bellows or extension tube. Then
you connected your electronic strobe flash to the body strobe synch
terminal. Now when it came time to make a closeup exposure, you stopped
down the lens manually to the desired
f/stop. When the body was tripped, the mirror popped up while the rear
baffles over the film opened up. When the baffles were fully open,
exposing all of the film, the body strobe synch shorted and fired the
strobe. Stop pressing on the shutter release, and the baffles fall back
into position. Wind the film crank, and the mirror drops back
down.
What you may have missed in the above paragraph is that the lens did
NOT have to have a leaf shutter, or be synchronized to the camera
if it did. So you could use any lens that would mount on such a setup,
whether made by Zeiss (e.g., closeup Luminars) or not.
The big limitation of this setup should also be highlighted. You don't
have very good control over the exposure time. The baffles cycle is 1/25th
of a second up to as long as you hold the shutter release closed. In
practice, probably few of us can reliably time an exposure of less than
half a second using a cable release. We will look at some electronic
options (especially for the 500 EL/ELM bodies) and some more tricks for
getting around this limitation in daylight shooting below.
The trick is to use the camera in a setting where there is little or no
ambient light, so you don't get a "ghost" exposure. Closeup photography is
a key use of this trick, given the use of small apertures with closeup
macrophotography (for maximum depth of field), plus the effect of any
bellows extensions on light falloff. You have to use powerful strobes to
light such subjects (e.g., in studio). It is also readily possible to use
the "freezing" power of a short strobe light flash to freeze subject
motion in a darkened studio, where you have full control over ambient
lighting during exposure. You can also do very neat "daylight" appearing
exposures of landscapes by using moonlight exposures, with the cable
release and body locked open for hour-long exposures. We have details here
on recommended moonlight landscape exposures
and techniques. Don't forget to allow for film reciprocity.
To further facilitate using this handy feature, you could buy a
standard Hasselblad
lens mounting block with a lens rear mount to match the body at one end,
and a starter hole drilled in the metal block which could be used to mount
any lens that could then be fitted onto the Hasselblad lens mount. Lacking
such a sturdy standard Hasselblad lens mounting block, you still might be
able to mount lenses using a bellows mounting, or a drilled out body cap,
or an extension tube machined to accept a metal lens mount. We have
details on adapting a wide range of low cost macrophotography lenses on
our homebrew lenses pages. Incidentally, most
of your 35mm SLR lenses will work surprisingly well on a bellows or
other mounting for medium format macrophotography.
The lenses you use have to have coverage for 6x6cm or better, so most
medium format (folder, TLR, SLR,...) and view camera lenses will work (but
not 35mm optics). They need to be in a focusing mount or on a bellows
mount, with manually adjustable aperture diaphragm ring. You can use the
regular Hasselblad viewfinder to focus by eye, so distance scales are not
needed. Many focal plane and leaf shutter lenses such as Kiev-88, Kowa 6,
and Bronica S2/EC have longer lens registration
distances than Hasselblad 500/200/x's 74.9mm value. As one popular
example, the Kiev 30mm fisheye lens in Kiev-88 mount has an 82.1mm lens
registration distance. The difference here of 7.2mm is taken up in a body
cap or machined extension tube mounting.
You simply mount the Kiev 30mm or other 6x6cm covering lens onto your
Hasselblad 500C or 500 EL/M (perhaps using a body cap design (see homebrew body cap mounts). Focus, then stop
down the aperture manually. Using mirror lockup is a good idea if you want
to minimize vibration. Just press the cable release, time off the desired
exposure, and let go of the cable release. The rear baffles act like a
shutter in these long exposure shots, permitting you to use any
lens that covers 6x6cm for your shot.
The non-obvious part of this trick is to use a neutral density filter on
the lens so you can control the lens aperture and exposure. A six stop ND
filter converts an exposure time of 1/60th second into a one second
exposure. Combining a six stop ND and three stop ND filter gives a 9 stop
effect. Just pop these filters on the front of the lens before your
exposure (or drop into filter slot for fisheye lenses). So a 1/250th
second exposure becomes a more easily hand timed 2
second exposure. On a 500 EL/ELM, you can use a simple 5 pin DIN plug and
NE555 timer chip circuit to precisely time exposures from under a second
to as long as required. On a 500c/cm, a locking cable extension may be
handy for longer exposure times.
If you have a 500EL/ELM model camera, you can generate precise exposures
over a wide range with a delay circuit (e.g., 555 timer, see Radio Shack,
Forest Mims, Optoelectronics Notebook). A less precise setup might
use a dual cable release to trigger the 500c/cm body, exposing the film
for a time exposure (as long as shutter release is held in). You could use
the body x-synch terminals on some of the older 500c and 500cm bodies, if
your body has this feature. If not, then you simply chain a second NE555
timer (or use the NE556 dual timer chip) to time the required 1/25th or so
of a second before the rear baffles fully open up, and then fire a pulse
to trigger a TRIAC in your electronic strobe (or an external SCR or TRIAC
trigger to an older model strobe). With this dual timer trick, you can
also vary the delay before the strobe is triggered, trigger the strobe
repeatedly (e.g., fifty millisecond period astable NE555 timer
configuration for twenty flashers per second sports shots), or delay the
strobe until right when you release the cable
(creating x-synch at the end rather than the beginning of the exposure).
If you are not shooting action or moving subject
shots, then you can use nearly any 6x6cm coverage lens with a long enough
lens registration distance (greater than 75mm) on a tripod with this
setup. You can also mount
many lenses on the Hasselblad older bellows, and combine focusing and
cable release plus mounting hardware in this modest cost solution. Just
homebrew a lens mount for the bellows front.
If you use a lens with a leaf
shutter, such as the Schneider 150mm Xenar for 4x5", you can even use the
lens' own leaf shutter with this setup at any standard speed too. Just
trigger the body with one cable release, and then trigger the 4x5" lens
leaf shutter with the second cable release. Remember to close the leaf
shutter after you finish focusing, but before making the exposure!
Again, remember that the older camera bodies just cocked the lens shutter
and told lens when to stop down and start the exposure. The lens handled
the x-synch or flashbulb synch tasks. The lens stopped itself down and
timed the exposure and did all the real work. The 500c/cm body just waited
for the user to wind the film after everything was done.
Since there is no communication between body and lens, you can trigger the
body and then manually trigger the lens and release the body when you are
finished. On the 500 el/elm, you have to be careful not to let go of the
shutter release until after the longer time exposures have finished (e.g.,
1/2 second). Now you know why! While this lack of lens to body
communication seems primitive by today's chips in the lens technology, we
can take advantage of this simple design to adapt many lenses to these
non-electronic camera systems. These adaptations would be much more
difficult with more modern electronically controlled cameras, at least
without a lot more knowledge about proprietary camera electronics and
software.
While the rear baffles might open and close in as little as 1/8th of a
second or so, this timing is too precise to do manually with a cable
release. You might be able to build a radio-control solenoid and NE555
timer chip tied to a cable release rig (see Forest Mims book, above) that
could do this accurately
on a 500C or CM. With a 500 EL/M body, you have a lot more ability to get
a faster cycle time using a 5 pin DIN plug and timer chip. Using our tips
on a $5 shutter speed timer, you can check
the timing with the back off, or simply do some on-film tests. However,
the nature of the rear baffles design makes it easier to get an even
exposure by using a longer exposure. With longer exposures, the motion of
the baffles is a smaller part of the total exposure compared to shorter
exposures below 1/4 second or so.
Frankly, I like the option of using stacked neutral density filters
to get longer exposure times, especially at crowded tourist sites. With a
five to fifteen minute(!) exposure, most of the people in motion
will not even register on your image. A fifteen second landscape exposure
will also allow plenty of time for camera vibration to dampen out. For
many subjects like landscapes and cityscapes and still lifes, the longer
exposure times won't alter the character of the resulting image.
The big advantage of such a leaf shutter lens mounting on the 500 series
bodies (500 C, C/M, EL, EL/M..) is that you have a lens with leaf shutter
mounted on the camera. Unlike the Zeiss Hasselblad optics, there isn't a
direct connection to the lens, automatically stopping it down, closing the
leaf shutter, and then making a timed exposure and reclosing the leaf
shutter after the exposure.
You have to do some of this work, which makes
it slower. After focusing, you would have to manually stop down to the
desired shooting aperture (to avoid dim focusing image at small stops).
Next, you would have to close the shutter (perhaps by releasing a cable
release or tripping an arm). At this point, you can't see the subject as
the lens leaf shutter is closed. Now you trigger the body to raise the
mirror and open up the rear baffle curtains covering the film. Next, you
trigger the leaf shutter to open and make the desired timed
exposure. After the exposure, you release the body's shutter release,
allowing the rear baffles to cover up the film. Now you can wind the film
advance knob to the next exposure and drop the mirror back down for
viewing. Finally, you cock the lens shutter, open up the shutter for
viewing, and set the aperture to fully open for focusing and
viewing. Phew!
If you are a large format fan(atic), this will all sound somewhat
familiar. But it is easier to do than to read about. Closing the shutter
and stopping down the lens manually is one action. Using a double cable
release, you press smoothly, first triggering the body to open up the rear
film baffles, and then the lens leaf shutter to open and make its
exposure. After the exposure, you let go of the cable release, allowing
the body to close the rear baffle curtains. That is the end of the
exposure cycle. Now you wind the film. Recock the shutter and open up the
aperture and shutter in one motion. Compose your next shot and shoot.
The big advantage of this setup is that you can use lots of lenses which
can cover 6x6cm and with lens registrations longer than the Hasselblad
500/2000 series distance of 74.90mm (see table). For
example, the Kiev-88 lenses are 82.10mm, providing a mere 7.2mm for an
adapter and leaf shutter. Reportedly, the rear of these Kiev lenses
unscrews, making it easier to adapt them with a threaded mechanical
mounting. Similarly, the Mamiya RB leaf shutter lenses have 112mm lens
registration distance, allowing a huge 37.1mm adapter mounting to
potentially use those fine lenses. However, you would have to provide a
focusing mechanism in that 37mm adapter, as the lenses lack this feature
thanks to the built-in bellows of the Mamiya RB/RZ design.
The Zeiss lenses for the
Rolleiflex SL66 would also work, given their 102.80mm distance. Here, you
would need to add a leaf shutter, presumably from a large format camera,
since the Rollei SL66 is a focal plane camera. Similarly, I might have a
dozen Bronica S2/EC nikkors and zenzanon mount lenses (at 101.70mm
distance), most of which I have purchased at prices below $150 USD. An
adapter might be made (26.8mm thick) which had a Bronica mount (from an
extension tube) at one end, and a Hasselblad body mount at the other, with
a leaf shutter inbetween. Such an adapter would permit using lots of low
cost nikkor quality telephoto lenses on my Hasselblads. See why I'm
interested in all these techniques?
The microscope shutter is simply a Hasselblad lens mount which includes a
compur leaf shutter, just as if it were a normal 80mm f/2.8 style
lens. The main difference is that there is no glass in this microscope
shutter. Instead, there is a roughly one inch sized opening designed to
match the eyepiece sizes used on most lab microscopes. There is also a
bellows piece which connects the camera to the microscope, blocking out
light and allowing focusing using a typically vertical focusing rack
stage.
You set the shutter speed on the camera. You advance film and cock
the shutter just as if it were a regular lens. Only the lens is provided
by the microscope, while the microscope shutter provides the precisely
timed exposure. Simple.
Naturally, you can use this setup with any lens or optical instrument,
including telescopes and monoculars, which will fit and work through the
one inch or so aperture hole through the microscope shutter. A wide
variety of closeup lenses would be particularly easy to adapt using a
combination of a bellows and the microscope shutter as the leaf shutter
for the lenses.
Naturally, you could leave the aperture fully
open on the "shutter lens", and stop down manually (or preset) with
the aperture ring on the adapted lens too. Again, the key feature is that
a "shutter lens" looks to the camera just like a regular Zeiss lens. It is
simple and relatively fast to use, being similar to using a regular preset
or manual lens on a 35mm SLR.
A subtle feature of the "shutter lens" is that it is potentially easy to
use the existing filter threads of the 80mm f/2.8 (perhaps using a Bayonet
50 to 52mm or similar thread adapter). Now you can use a matching metal
filter stack cap as a very low cost machined plug for mounting many light
lenses.
A stack cap is a pair of metal male and female threaded disks which
protect the filters from side impacts and damage. They are thick enough to
be sturdy, cheap to buy, and easily drilled metal in which to center and
mount lenses. Being low cost, you can dedicate a stack cap to each lens.
The focusing mount of the 80mm should have enough range to provide useful
focusing operation. But you can use filter rings (in which the glass of a
bad filter has been removed) as "extension tubes" to provide extra close
focusing range if needed. Needless to say, such thin extension tubes are
much cheaper than the Hasselblad ones that go behind the lens.
You can also use such filter cap mounted leaf shutter lenses with a simple
adapter to mount on bellows and other projects, making them flexible ways
to share lenses between 35mm, medium format, and even large format.
You can also use a shutter in front of many lenses, as
well as behind them. This trick is used by many large format cameras
equipped with a Packard shutter. This shutter is operated by air pressure
(from a pressed rubber bulb). The shutter can be mounted behind or in
front of the desired lens, providing a reasonably useful exposure speed
(e.g., 1/125th or so of a second, depending on air pressure force). Not an
ideal solution, but worth considering in some desperate circumstances.
Finally, you may not need a shutter with some lenses which may have
small working f/stops (e.g., f/45 or f/64) for maximum DOF and performance
(e.g., 127mm f/7.7 lens). Old timer photographers used to use their hats
as a cheap front of the lens shutter when working with slow film and
slower lenses.
Similarly, you can use a pair of walkie talkies or a commercial infrared
beam alarm (again, Radio Shack in the USA) in place of more expensive
photogear specialty items. Not only may you save a lot of money, but the
range of the radio may be greater.
Similarly, a low cost silicon controlled rectifier (SCR) can be used to
trigger more EL/M cameras, as well as putting them under the control of a
computer output port. A very flexible setup using a portable computer and
handful of parts ($20 USD) could replace a complex intervalometer setup.
On a related page, we have tips on battery
replacements for the 500 EL and 500 EL/M series. Others have tips on
using lower cost batteries on the 500 EL and EL/M
series. Similarly, there are lots of alternative chargers that can be
used for out of camera battery charging and replacement.
Some of the older Hasselblad filters are now officially "obsolete", so the
prices have tumbled to little more than similar quality filters (e.g.,
$10-15 USD for some early B50 filters). Compared to current and larger
Hasselblad filters, these older used filters are raving bargains. But many
exotic filters are rare or very pricey in the required Hasselblad filter
mounting.
So the simple solution is to buy a Hasselblad Bayonet to
standard filter size adapter. For example, I have a B50 to 52mm filter
adapter for my older 80mm f/2.8 C chrome Zeiss lens. This modest cost
(under $10 used) adapter lets me use my wide range of Nikon 52mm glass
filters on my Hasselblad. I can also use Cokin and Ambico+ 3x3" resin
filters and my various Ambico+ compendium lens shade (circa $25 USD used
versus $100-150 USD for Hasselblad used compendium shade and mountings).
You can save more money by homebrewing many filters from low cost
materials, as described at our homebrew
filter FAQ section. You can also use tricks to put some filters (e.g.,
warming filter) at the rear of some of the larger filter diameter
lenses. The savings from a few filters can again be surprisingly large,
especially for the larger and odd-ball Hasselblad filter sizes. You may
also find a few cases where you can remove a threaded ring on the lens and
use smaller filters (e.g., 86mm thread versus 93mm bayonet) [see notes].
One of the viewfinder options for your Hasselblad that you won't find in
the latest Hasselblad catalog is the Kiev-88 prism finders. You can buy a
direct copy of the Hasselblad NC-2 (45 degree) glass only prism, or the
TTL metering prism version shown above for the Kiev-88. As you can see
from our Kiev TTL Prism Pages, many Hasselblad
users have opted to use these modest cost prisms with their Hasselblad
bodies.
A bit of history may help explain why this can happen. Hasselblad
came out with their original Hasselblad 1600f
and 1000f cameras. The "f" stands for focal plane shutter (and the
number for the claimed top speed, e.g., 1000f for 1/1000th second). Both
Bronica of Japan (Bronica
Z/D/S/S2/C/EC..) and the Soviet block in their Salyut and later
Kiev-88 cameras copied the Hasselblad 1600/1000f camera design in
many ways. The Kiev-88 series was the more faithful copy to the
original Hasselblad 1600f/1000f model, although there were minor
differences in the threaded non-autodiaphragm lens mount and the backs
were soon modified to
be uncompatible.
However, the viewfinder mounting on the Kiev-88 line of
cameras was kept the same as on the original Hasselblads. In turn, when
Hasselblad came out with the leaf shutter lens model 500C and later 500EL
designs, the viewfinder mounting was preserved (and later Hasselblad back
accessories mostly interchange too). This compatibility means that you can
use the older Hasselblad 1600f/1000f viewfinders on the later 500
series and up bodies. But it also means that you can use the Kiev-88
series cloned viewfinder mounts on your budget Hasselblad 500C, 500C/M,
500EL, and even later bodies (e.g., 2000 FC/M). Make sense?
Since you can often buy a used Kiev clone of the all glass 45 degree
Hasselblad NC-2 prism for circa $50-100+ USD, the savings can be very
considerable here. The Kiev-TTL metering prism may not be as bright or
fancy as the newer Hasselblad models, but you can pick it up for little
more than the price of the Kiev NC-2 prism (circa $100 up USD). New kits
from the Ukraine and Russian stockpiles are little more than used models
too.
Naturally, the Hasselblad prisms are a bit brighter, with less reflections
from peering in at odd angles, and with a nicer finish and feel. The newer
and very pricey TTL metering prisms have more modes and features too. But
if you really just want a basic prism or metering TTL prism, then the Kiev
series may save you some major expense.
All they had to do was change
out the baseplate under the prism to match the Hasselblad mounting width.
You can get the mounting part for the bottom of the viewfinder as a spare
part, or scavange one from a busted Hasselblad WLF base. Now remove the
existing baseplate (e.g., Bronica EC) and replace with the Hasselblad
mounting
base (possibly adding screw holes or gluing as needed). Viola! You have
just converted a low cost TTL metering prism from the older cheaper
mounting to mount on your Hasselblad(s).
You can do the same thing with older glass prisms of the various 45
degree, 90 degree, and TTL metering variants available on the used
market. Many of us have multiple medium format systems (e.g., Hasselblad,
Kowa, Bronica S2/EC). If you have some backup or underutilized
viewfinders, you may find it easy to convert these to use with your
Hasselblad instead of buying the much more expensive Hasselblad
models.
My point here is that it may really pay to shop around. At
$360 USD, you may be able to buy another 500C or 500 EL/M body for less
than the cost of a repair (and have a spare parts body for the future as a
bonus). On the other hand, you may be able to get a repair done for a much
more reasonable price, as well as benefit from a refurbished and cleaned
camera over five or ten or more years of light amateur use.
Personally, I am rather fond of the chimney viewfinders. Like the WLF, the
chimney viewfinder is lightweight and relatively inexpensive (circa $75
USD up). The chimney viewfinder has a variable
diopter feature that makes it easy to adjust for failing closeup
vision with aging. The magnification and contrast is quite high, in part
due to the solid wall design and eyecup to block sidelight from the
viewscreen (as can happen with the unprotected WLF).
Now back to the screen template, possibly using a light yellow color to
improve contrast? You can use a ruler and sharp edge to scribe a set of
centered lines 4.5cm x 6cm, both horizontally and vertically. This pair of
layouts will tell you how to compose for 8x10" style cropped images, if
that is your planned output. The center box will be circa 4.5cm square,
and represent the superslide format (actually 41.5mm square). You can also
use a clear plastic screen, and put neutral density swatches in the four
corners. Again, the result is four corners are marked, so you can see both
horizontal and vertical 4.5x6cm layouts.
Naturally, you can also layout other aids, such as vertical and horizontal
grids for architectural work, and simply slip these under your finder as
needed.
Here again, there are some benefits to the older lenses that partially
offset their age and single coated designs.
I am told that this trick also works with both the 16 exposure backs and
the 16S superslide backs (shooting 4x4cm superslides for regular 35mm
slide projectors). So again, you might be able to use 220 rollfilm in the
older series backs with a low cost (under $3-5 USD) rubber plug. For more
details, see Hasselblad notes.
My own experience is that the 6x6cm backs are more flexible and don't
require using a prism, as on most 6x4.5cm cameras. You don't need a tripod
arm to make it possible to rotate the camera 90 degrees to go from
vertical to horizontal shots either. On my square
composition pages, I point out how I preferred to simply crop
horizontally or vertically to get a 6x4.5cm shot out of my 6x6cm
backs. While this "wastes" some film if you are doing solely prints, it
provides extra leeway in cropping and lets you shoot 6x6cm or 6x4.5cm
slides and crop in the slide mounting after development.
Fortunately, it is relatively easy to convert a 6x6cm Hasselblad into a
6x4.5cm shooting Hasselblad. You could spend $25 for the drop in mask kit
(from B&H; etc.). But you can easily make a 6x4.5cm custom mask and drop it
under your viewfinder on top of the screen. This mask is simply a clear
plastic sheet (from a report cover) on which the 6x4.5cm horizontal and
vertical composition lines have been scribed. You can also put in tick
marks or "+" marks at the rule of third points, if you like reminders of
such composition aids in your viewfinder too. Similarly, horizontal lines
can be scribed, or vertical lines, or a grid for architectural alignment
uses. In fact, a single plastic sheet of 8x10" will probably let you make
a number of handy and lightweight grids and compositional aids (golden
mean..).
Now you simply compose your subject in either a vertical or horizontal
6x4.5cm box and shoot. After developing the film, you can use a deluxe
film cutter (formerly $29 USD from Mamiya) to cut the 6x4.5cm film out. Or
simply use any sharp and handy pair of scissors and a thick plastic
cutting guide that is 6x4.5cm (to match the slide mounts). Sure, you are
"wasting" some film shots doing this trick. But you may also save a few
shots thanks to the extra film area (above/below or left/right) which
allows you to save a shot or two by cropping each session. In my book,
those saved shots and compositions are worth more than the dollar or so I
might save on film (after paying $450+ USD for the back).
If you are shooting 6x6cm slides, you can reshoot them with a bellows
setup to superslide size on a regular back (see related notes). The
superslides are square format too (4x4cm), so you don't have to change or
alter your square composition gems in this copying process. I like this
trick simply because you find lots more 35mm slide projectors than 6x6cm slide projectors. I also consider
this cheating. Many times folks are blown away by the quality and
impact of the superslides compared to the smaller 35mm slide images.
The even older Hasselblad 1600f/1000f can use slightly modified Kiev-88 lenses, since those lens mounts were
virtual clones of the Hasselblad mounts. Conversely, you can use the
newest Kiev TTL spotmeter on your older 500C hasselblad, again since the
viewfinder mounts are similar. Today, even some of the Kiev auto-backs are
now in use on Hasselblad bodies, at a third the outrageous cost of today's
Hasselblad backs (like circa $1,000 USD for a back!). How long before the
Kiev lenses in autodiaphragm mounts are available in the Hasselblad mount
for use on the focal plane Hasselblad bodies? Hmmm?
This dilemma is what prompted
Hasselblad to design a special non-SLR body to mount the Zeiss 38mm Biogon
rectilinear ultrawide lens in leaf shutter to their superwide body. But I
could theoretically create my own custom body to mount a Hasselblad back
and viewfinder at the rear, with a T-mount ring at the front to accept
this lens' threads. I would need to provide some sort of leaf shutter or
use our neutral density long exposure tricks to control exposure. After
all, the earliest photographers used their hats to cover and uncover the
lens to make the exposure, then put in the dark slide. Why not us?
The result would be a custom circular fisheye covering
140+ degrees centered on a Hasselblad film back. A homebrew superwide
fisheye that takes Hasselblad backs and viewfinders!
The attraction of the superwide design is that you can use various
Hasselblad back mounting accessories such as ground glass and chimney
viewfinders to inspect the image, even a prism with TTL metering if
desired. Then switch to the film back and take your shot. Unlike the 35mm
SLR camera mounts, this superwide fisheye designs covers much more film
with an image.
At the risk of being obvious, you could simply substitute the Kiev 30mm
fisheye lens for the Sigma. Actually, noted photography author Roger Hicks
did so (described in British Journal of Photography and
Shutterbug articles some years ago) by constructing a custom 4x5"
camera for the Kiev 30mm fisheye. The Kiev 30mm fisheye projected a very
large (4"+) circular image. The result was a unique optic on 4x5" and a
unique fisheye camera. We are just applying the same trick with a 35mm
fisheye. You might check some of those rectilinear fisheyes in your 35mm
kit, as they might project an interesting and useful circular fisheye
image on 6x6cm. What, you haven't got any such lenses? Look into the low
cost Kiev 35mm ultrawide and fisheye
optics.
Suppose you take a Schneider Super Angulon 47mm f/8 or f/5.6 in leaf
shutter (as on the Plaubel Veriwide 100). The
lens is surprisingly small, and easily covers 6x9cm (even 4x5"), allowing
plenty of movements. Put a Hasselblad rear body mounting (from repair
parts?) on the back of the camera. Now you can mount the Hasselblad backs,
including the Polaroid backs, and still retain the ability to snap on
ground glass back with integral chimney viewfinder (or other TTL prism or
WLF on this mount). Unlike the Hasselblad SWC/903, you have enough
coverage to permit huge movements, so a bellows or simple homebrew shift lens mount will do just fine.
The trick here is to simply modify a regular digital camera to take a
photo of the virtual image projected at the film plane by your Hasselblad
lenses. To do that, you need a powerful diopter lens plus your digital
camera setup. A plus +8 diopter lens on a normal lens should result in
imaging about a 2 1/4" square area at five inches with the digicam lens
set at infinity. See diopter usage table,
extrapolating from +4 diopter (divide distances in half for +8).
One interesting option might be to simply use the appropriate diopter lens
with your Hasselblad Chimney finder, or WLF, or (Kiev TTL or NC-2 clone)
prism. You hold up the digicam to the eyepiece (perhaps with a rubber
oring protector). A closeup +diopter lens is put on the digicam (e.g., +5
on a +3 magnification Chimney finder might be close enough, then fine
tune by varying +/- diopter strength on the Chimney finder). The camera
sees the viewing screen image on the ground glass. Stop the lens down
manually on the Hasselblad. Now fire the digital camera. You may need to
use a slave strobe adapter on your regular strobe to detect the digital
camera's strobe on smaller digicams which lack x-synch outputs (but have a
built-in flash). What the digicam sees in the stopped down lens image on
the ground glass screen is what the film in the camera's back should also
see. In any case, this should be good enough to provide a digital camera
image of what the camera is seeing. Many digicams have integral LCD color
panels that display the most recent shot, or you can download to a nearby
computer and monitor display for closer and larger examination. Simple
enough?
On some older 500c/cm and 500el/elm models, some longer lenses may be
cutoff at the top, and perhaps some flare from internal reflections may be
problematic for some applications. What you really want here is the image
at the film plane. The solution is to find an older obsolete Polaroid or
other Hasselblad back that can be used for its mounting elements. The
older Polaroid backs can be found for $15 on up as they are considered
obsolete and less attractive than the newer film pack backs. You can
readily disassemble and split the back and film carrier off, and end up
with the mounting hardware.
Now the trick here is to mount the digicam with a high power +diopter lens
that can image the full 6x6cm or 2 1/4" square image area. As a starting
point, a +8 diopter lens will let a standard 35mm camera's normal lens
(50mm) image a 2 1/4" x 3 5/16" area when mounted 4 15/16" from the flat
subject (with camera lens focused at infinity). Many budget digicams are
actually focused at around 6 feet or so, using depth of field to cover
3 feet to infinity. You can combine diopters to reach the required
strength, or use one of the variable diopter (+1 to +10 diopters) adapters
on the used market for modest prices ($15-25 up).
The diopter lens should enable the digicam to focus on the aerial image at
the film plane, and show you exactly what the film will see when
exposed. Here again, you stop the lens down manually, press the mirror up
control, and fire the camera body with a locking cable release. Now fire
the digital camera to take a photo of the 6x6cm film plane image. You can
use the digicam's strobe with a slave strobe control to trigger the flash
on your studio strobes. A fiber optic cable can be used if direct line of
sight is problematic in firing the big strobe. You can also tape over the
built-in camera strobe to reduce its effect and use the fiber optic cable
(e.g., Edmund Scientific Inc.) to conduct the light to the slave strobe
sensor. Naturally, I am assuming that you are using a digicam without
xsynch outputs for direct triggering of strobes, as is the case for most
modest cost one megapixel and down digicams on the used market today.
You may have difficulty getting a precise aerial image focus. One option
is to place a thin piece of ground glass at the
image focal plane. Now the image is being formed on the ground glass,
making it easier to see and focus with some digicams. Once you get the
proper alignment and position for the diopter lenses in use, you can
construct a small mounting at that point to the (Polaroid) back on the
camera. This mounting will block extraneous light bouncing from the
ceilings and strobes, and should be black paint
or flocked internally if reflection is a problem.
If you have a ground glass focusing back (e.g., for Hasselblad Superwide)
and a focusing Chimney viewfinder, you can simply your setup considerably.
The ground glass back lets you mount the Chimney viewfinder with its
variable diopter lens on the top. You simply need a corresponding diopter
lens (e.g., +5 diopter plus +3 magnification of the finder for total of
+8). Again, the chimney viewfinder is cheap on the used market, and
features a twisting focusing ring to vary the diopter of the viewfinder
over a +/- range for eyesight correction. Only now, you can use it at the
film plane image on the ground glass back, as the back is setup to take
the finder for direct inspection.
Just hold up the digicam (or use a filter ring mount) and shoot. The
digicam will see the ground glass film plane image and record it (with
enough flash lighting and the right diopter and fine tuning settings).
Check the image on the color LCD panel on the digicam, or download the
image into a PC or MAC for further inspection and use. Again, the beauty
of this setup is the use of existing ground glass backs and finders of
modest cost in conjunction with your digital camera. What you see is what
the film will see.
But don't throw that Polaroid back out just yet. Some image effects such
as moving subjects with time exposure shots require Polaroid materials (or
special digital cameras and modes). And film is still better quality than
most modest cost digital megapixel cameras too. But in the meantime, you
can putter with taking digital photos with your current digital camera and
your Hasselblad camera setup. Enjoy!
How about a homebrew digital back for under $50? The trick here is to use
a color photo hand-scanner (such as EasyPhoto) and existing software to a
standard Wintel PC (or Mac portable). Instead of scanning a color
photograph by moving the hand scanner over the photo, you are going to
scan the film opening of your Hasselblad back.
Perhaps you also have one of those huge older Polaroid film backs for
Hasselblad bodies? They are often quite cheap. You can mount the back on
your Hasselblad body. Some older backs have a glass plate to conduct the
light from the focal plane to the Polaroid film pack. Others are direct.
In many cases, you can remove the rear of the polaroid back from the front
(in case you want to reuse). But the point is that you now have a largish
easily mounted low cost hardware back that mates to your Hasselblad body.
You will make some alignment channels and shim them to the proper distance
to get an image with your hand scanner sensor.
You simply drag the hand scanner element across
the film image at a constant speed, and let the software put the image
together for you. Just like scanning a photo, except it is what your
Hasselblad lens is seeing that you are scanning in place of film or
Polaroid materials.
Next you need to examine the design and function of your individual color
photo hand scanner. You will probably need to experiment with lighting
(high) and exposing the sensor array (with or without lens elements).
Perhaps you can put a thin piece of frosted ground glass at the film plane
and scan the image formed on the glass directly? Or you may need to remove
the imaging lens elements in front of many sensor arrays, and use the
camera's lens as the imaging source. Due to many design differences, you
just have to be willing to experiment here.
Fortunately, most hand scanners are worth very little on today's market,
and often sell on EBAY or garage sales for $10 and under, complete with
software and cabling. You can't put your own together, let alone write the
software for $10. So simply use this low cost circa 300 dpi color sensor
as a simple way to convert what your lens sees into digital files.
Yes, this digital back won't compete with the $55,000 Dicomed for your
Hasselblad, which has higher density and instant operation. But it might
meet your needs for a simple way to get what your lenses see onto the WWW
and Internet.
An anamorphic panoramic adapter is familiar to most movie goers who enjoy
wide screen movies (in technorama or other versions). This anamorphic lens
compresses and uncompresses that wide screen effect onto regular 35mm
movie film. The anamorphic adapter works by using a cylinder lens design
to compress the horizontal image, without altering the vertical format
size. When you project one of these wide screen movies, you use another
anamorphic projection lens of the right design to reconstitute the
original wide format image in proper viewing form. You can find various
standard compression ratios of 1.5 to 1 (for 6x9cm on 6x6cm effect) and
even 2 to 1 (for 6x12cm effect on 6x6cm film).
The trick here is that you have to "uncompress" the image when making your
enlargement or when projecting your 6x6cm slide. Naturally, you will lose
some image quality in compressing twice the horizontal image data onto a
6x6cm piece of film. But as most movie-goers will attest, the resulting
image quality is quite acceptable for many purposes.
You can also use an anamorphic lens adapter without uncompressing the
images. This lens adapter trick makes buildings appear taller and
skinnier, women models look like they have lost half their weight and look
like the English model "Twiggy", and trees look longer and taller. Perhaps
you recall seeing the compressed images in the opening subway scenes of
the popular show NYPD-Blue? You can also uncompress regular images,
spreading them out, and making people fatter and shorter and buildings
squatter and heavier.
Unfortunately, anamorphic adapters tend to work best with certain focal
lengths of lenses, such as short telephotos and normal lenses. So you
can't use this trick to get 180 degrees onto your superwide SWC photos.
Sorry! But this can be a modest way to experiment with such panoramic
effects by using a modest cost ($50 up) panoramic lens adapter. You will
also find some prime panoramic lenses for 35mm on the used market, but
most will not cover 6x6cm, sad to say.
Many people are modifying older folder cameras and turning them
into panoramic cameras using the
Larscan design. The Larscan design uses two small DC motors, one to
rotate the camera, and the other to rotate the film past a slit (acting as
a shutter). The lens is stopped down and put on "bulb" or "T" for timed
exposure mode. The camera rotates around through 360 degrees, with one
motor rotating the camera. As the camera rotates around, the lens projects
the full 360 degree image onto the 1 or 2 mm wide slit. All you have to do
to get the full 360 degree image on film is to pull the film past the slit
with another motor synchronized to the right speed to match the rotational
speed.
You can do any angle of panoramic exposure, from 20 or so degrees
to 360 degrees and more. Simply stop the film and exposure whenever you
have gone through the desired arc, up to 360 degrees. You can even keep
going, and do multiple rotations of 720 degrees and so on. Neat!
To convert your Hasselblad temporarily into a 360 degree rotational camera
takes some simple electronics and motor gearing setups. Start by cutting
a 1 to 2 mm wide slit down the center of a dark slide (centered with the
back off). This 1 to 2 millimeter wide slit is the shutter for your 360
degree camera. You may also need to notch the slide so the back thinks the
dark-slide is out, and permits you to fire the lens shutter. You can also
create a black (non-reflective) plastic drop-in mask for your back with
the required thin 1 or 2 mm slit if you prefer not to sacrifice a
darkslide.
Incidentally,
the 80mm normal lens will work just fine in this application, or you can
use a wider angle lens to get more vertical coverage in the image. The
horizontal coverage is determined by how far the camera rotates about. The
slit width (or shutter "speed") can be modified if you find you can't get
good results with the existing slit (hint: start thin, make bigger, as it
is harder to do the reverse!). You can also vary the exposure for film
speed changes by varying the lens aperture (since the shutter slit width
or "speed" is fixed). Make sense?
The second part of the trick is to use a 12 back, which is not
automatic. Advance the film until you see the "1" number on the film
backing paper in the back's film window. The trick requires an older
non-automatic back, since we are going to wind and wind and wind the film
past our slit while rotating the camera.
The 12 back lets us do this because it doesn't have any interlocks (as the
automatic backs do). That is why you have to watch the film window and
then twist backwards the film winding crank to enable the film counting
mechanism to begin measuring film and counting shots. If you don't do that
backwards twist, you can simply wind and wind and wind until all the film
goes from the film roll to the takeup spool. This effect is
precisely what we need for a simple 360 degree panoramic camera!
How do you get the film back to advance the film at a constant rate? The
short answer is to setup a small motor to interact with the film winding
crank. You will use a simple voltage regulator chip to vary the speed of
the DC motor and gearing. Change a potentiometer control (variable
resistor), and you can precisely and finely change the speed of rotation
of your film winding motor.
I also recommend that you use a voltage regulator circuit on your battery
supply, so variations in battery voltage and charge won't effect
your camera results. Fortunately, these voltage regulator chips are only a
few dollars apiece from Radio Shack and other parts sources. Radio Shack
also has a handy Electronic Experimenters Notebook by fellow Texan
Forrest Mims that has many circuits laid out. You should also get the
Larscan camera resources for related design and motor specifications and
sources.
The last element you need is some way to rotate the camera around 360
degrees while mounted on a tripod. Again, the simplest solution
is to mount a small electric motor with slow speed gearing so it rotates
the camera in the desired time period. Use another voltage regulator to
get fine control over this 360 degree camera rotation speed.
One fine point is that the center of rotation should be at the lens node rather than under the camera. A simple
extension bar from the camera's tripod mount to the lens node makes it
easy to rotate the camera around the optical center of the lens.
So let's review. You have your Hasselblad mounted on top of a motor and
gear assembly that rotates the camera (e.g., 360 degrees in 12 seconds).
The setup is rotating around the optical node of the lens, producing a
minimally distorted image. The dark slide with a 1 or 2 mm slit in it is
used in effect as a shutter in this camera. So you use the regular lens
but with a timed exposure setting (e.g., 12 seconds using locking cable
release). As the camera rotates around, the film is wound (in the opposite
direction) past the slit by a second motor rotating the back winding
handle (in upright position).
The last thing you have to do is a series of test shots, using different
speed settings on either the rotating camera motor (the easiest to vary)
or the camera back motor. Vary the speed of the motor to produce the
lowest distortion image. Incidentally, you can walk around behind the
camera if you don't want to be included in the scene. Be sure to use a
lens hood, and cloudy days produce better results by avoiding flare from
the sun in some parts of the picture.
I call this a beginning rather than an end, as it is up to you to begin to
explore some of these potential solutions and expand what you and your
Hasselblad camera(s) can do together. Have fun!!!
Digiratidoc@aol.com wrote:
> Pardon my ignorance but what is a 220 plug?
A 220 plug was used to plug the peep-hole light tight to be able to use
220 film in the non-Automatic backs:
I posted the instructions once to the rec.photo.equipment.mediumformat
group. Here they are:
Hasselblad's original instructions (from 1965!):
"The new 220 film has no protective backing paper and, therefore, no light
must be allowed to leak in through the film window which must be made
light-tight. The manufacturer has therefore made a light-tight plug which
is fitted onto the film window, from inside the magazine, with the number
"220" facing outwards. The magazine can also be sealed against light by
affixing black tape across the film window. Like 120 film, the 220 film
has an arrow going across the first paper section. But 220 film has no
numbering system. It has, however, a dotted line, about 6" before the
crosswise arrow and this dotted line is very important in connection with
loading this film in the Hasselblad magazine.
To obtain the best possible results in spacing between the negative
frames, the manufacturer has prepared three sets of instructions for the
three variations in construction of the Hasselblad Magazine 12 now on the
market.
Magazine Construction 1 (Nos 001 - 19,999)
a) Thread the film in the usual manner onto the Hasselblad spool-holder. The protecting paper is drawn forward so that the dotted line comes to the center of the receiving spool, (see photo). b) After the spool-holder is inserted in the magazine, set the exposure-counter window at 1. c) Wind the film forwards 7 complete turns (14 half-turns). d) Expose 12 frames (no stop). e) Reset the exposure-counter window to 1. f) Expose another 12 frames (no stop).
Magazine Construction 2 (Nos. 20,000 - 64,399)
a) Thread the film in the usual manner onto the Hasselblad spool-holder. The protecting paper is drawn forward so that the dotted line comes to the center of the receiving spool, (see photo). b) After the spool-holder is inserted in the magazine, set the exposure counter window at 1. c) Wind the film forwards, 10 complete turns (20 half-turns), or until the framenumber 8 begins to appear in the mechanism of the exposure-counter window. d) Reset the exposure-counter window to 1. e) Expose 12 frames (until stop). f) Reset the exposure-counter window to 1. g) Expose another 12 frames (until stop).
Magazine Construction 3 (Nos. 64,400 - )
a) Thread the film in the usual manner onto the Hasselblad spool-holder. The protecting paper is drawn forward so that the dotted line comes to the center of the receiving spoof, (see photo). b) After the spool-holder is inserted in the magazine, set the exposure-counter window at 1. c) Wind the film forwards 9 complete turns (18 half-turns), or until framenumber 7 appears in the mechanism of the exposure-counter window. d) Reset the exposure-counter window to 1. e) Expose 12 frames (until stop). f) Reset the exposure-counter window to 1. g) Expose another 12 frames (until stop).
Loading in accordance with the above gives relatively good spacing results
troughout. In the older magazines, that is Construction 1 and also
Construction 2, it must be expected that certain frames, especially in the
film-section 8-12, can overlap by a few millimeters. But spacing is better
in the newest magazine, Construction 3.
Regarding the loading of Magazine 16 and 16S which have manufacturing
numbers below 204.200, these should be loaded in accordance with the
instructions according to Magazine Construction 2; from manufacturing
number 204.200 and above, according to Magazine Construction 3. In both
cases, the resetting of the exposure-counter window is to be done after 16
exposures have been made."
End quote.
From Hasselblad Mailing List:
Date: Thu, 26 Oct 2000
From: Mattei mattei@cts.com
Subject: Re: I Can't Believe They Desinged It This Way.
>>Today, The Esteemed Mattei gathered electrons and wrote: >> >>> anyway, for the counter to reset. I've paid between 100.00 to 200.00 for >> >>Wow! Good price. Is this place in SD top secret? >> >>ERic > > > >Eric, et al:
Here's the scoop.... Being nice pays great dividends. I've been appalled
at times by the behavior of so many camera-types over these past years.
Many of them (no HUG-ers, I'm sure) are such nasty old crones. Yes, San
Diego may just be the nicest city I've ever been in. The people are
gracious to a fault. For its size, there is a warmth and generosity that
defies modern norms. We're trying real hard to keep it that way.
I've always been courteous with the salespeople behind the counter, never
made a fuss over a price and usually pay the sticker on the used item.
Aside from film and batteries it is a rare day that I purchase new.
After awhile, the salespeople and proprietors have become good friends and
aquaintances bonded by a common interest.
I've purchased two A-12's for 300.00 apiece when they came in, unused,
from an estate purchase. This was at Nelson's, a large store with lots of
corporate accounts. Their reasoning is that they will establish cashflow
with their inventory as opposed to letting it rot a-la NYC. I'm sure that
Nelson's made a tidy 50 - 70%. I paid cash and they had their turnover in
just a day. I've purchased "12" backs at Camera Exposure, where there is
always something interesting in Hasselblad, usually at modest prices.
Just this last week, a 500 CM sold, MIB, for 500.00. I don't think that
it had ever been used. I've paid, as I mentioned earlier, 100. & 200. for
these "12" backs there, depending on what they paid to get them, time of
year, lunar cycle, whatever. The point is, that I don't quibble and
inevitably, the clerk will shoot me a discount anyway. I've also
purchased two "12" backs in superslide mode. These backs are geared for
16 exposures. Since these are the older type, 32 exposures are possible.
The superslide backs came also in their original boxes essentially unused
@ 100. apiece. When I get around to them, I'll swap a 645 plate and have
fun. The backs came with clear viewfinder inserts which will allow
viewing 645 as well.
I can't tell you the number of times that the same old Saturday morning
camera shop regulars have begun to haggle with clerks at the shops within
earshot of every other customer in the store. You'll get absolutely
nowhere with "attitude" in San Diego.
AS to the 220 plugs, they were a neat molded plastic plug manufactured by
VH back in the 60's(?) -- my Nordin is at the office. The plugs fit into
the peephole for exactly the purpose of allowing 220 to be used in the 12
backs. Full instructions are in the Freytag book. Talk about saving a
ton of money. One can certainly make their own plug with clean pliant
materials, ie a rubber stopper, perhaps. Additionally, one could then
mask the stoppered hole with gaffer's tape. The little rewind knobs are
great and I've paid between 5. and 20. apiece for them. I purchased a bag
of ten 220 plugs at Nelson's for about 2.00 a couple of years ago. Those
Hasselblad parts-n-pieces bins under the counter hide wonderful finds and
the 220 plugs normally filter to the bottom.
Be nice, folks. Rage against the early onset of OFS (old fart syndrome).
You'll contrast noticeably against the others.
Peter Mattei
Date: Thu Nov 02 2000
rec.photo.equipment.medium-format
From: Tim Daneliuk tundra@tundraware.com
[1] Re: Stupid Hasselblad Lens Question
Nope, only the shutters on the old 'C' lenses had self-timers.
the newer CF T* and CFi/CFe families have no integral timer.
I dunno about an auxiliary self-timer, though I know that Kalt
makes one, but whether it fits or not is another matter.
jjstafford@my-deja.com wrote:
> Yesterday when I stepped on my cable release and broke it, I had to > revert to using the self-timer on an SWC I borrowed. I think I recall a > question someone posted regarding self-timers that fit the Hasselblad. > Seems he didn't have one. Do not all Hasselblad lenses have self-timers > in the shutter?
Date: Tue, 14 Nov 2000
From: "M P Brennan" mpbrennan@hotmail.com
Newsgroups: rec.photo.equipment.medium-format
Subject: Re: where to upgrade from my broken hasselblad copy?
perkowitz@my-deja.com wrote
: thanks for the tip on the mamiyas, but i really do want 6x6.
Just remember that most 6x6 shots end up getting cropped to 6x4.5, anyway.
But it *is* nice not having to rotate the camera for vertical shots.
: finally, what should i look for in a 500c if i go that route? do they : all have the winding crank or do some just have a knob? i can't tell : from KEH's descriptions. anything else?
Most would have the knob. The only downside to a 500C is that the screens
are not user changeable (actually they are, but it's pretty nerve
wracking, from what I've read). If you find a 500C that has already had a
brighter, aftermarket focussing screen installed, then I would have no
qualms about purchasing one. The 500CM's seem to go for about $100 to
$150 more than the C. You'll have to decide which route is best for you.
The same goes for buying a 500EL. If it has a brighter screen installed
than what came on it, I'd give it serious thought. The 500ELM gets about
a $100 to $150 premium.
I've got a 500C and a 500ELM and wouldn't give up either. The C is great
for environmentals, but the ELM is much more convenient for weddings. The
only downside to an ELM is that you can't really use a prism at the same
time you have a Polaroid back on it, since the back has to sit above the
back of the motor housing. So it's easier to Pola-proof with a C or CM.
Whenever you check out a Hassy body, take off the back and gently push in
the two curtains (you won't hurt them). If the small screw located
bottom-center looks boogered, then this body has jammed fairly frequently.
Stay away from it.
-Mike
Date: Wed, 15 Nov 2000
From: mr500cm@pipeline.com (Mr500CM)
Newsgroups: rec.photo.equipment.medium-format
Subject: How to buy a used Hasselblad
The body: The main bodies are the 500C and 500CM (even though this is
not a how to use article, the same applies for the 501 and 503 series)
and there are a lot of them out there. First examine the body without
the lens or magazine on. Now, the main difference between the 500C and
500CM is with the 500CM "you" can change the focussing screen. Now
there are a few 500C's that are actually CM's, to check, remove the
waist level finder and look at the screen. If you see four screws, one
in each corner of the screen you have a "C". If you see two tiny
levers, one on the right and the other on the left, you can change the
screen. Most photographers use one screen, so if your buying a 500C
and you don't like the screen that's installed, any good repairman can
change it. The screen should be clean without any major marks.
Cleaning marks are common only when somebody tries to clean it and
does not know what their doing. Check for dents, dings and brassing on
the back rails. Brassing on the back rails where the magazine meets
the body is common, nicks and rough edges show hard use. Next check
the rear shutter. Press the shutter release and watch the shutter open
and close. Do this several times. It should open fully and crisply,
then return to it's fully closed position. If the rear shutter seems
mushy or sluggish, chances are it needs some work. Lack of use causes
this, followed by old age. This is not a bad thing, it is if you're
paying top dollar. This problem can be easily repaired. Next check the
mirror. It should be clean and free of marks. Slight marks on the
bottom edge are common only when the foam in the body dries out.
Another sign of age and lack of maintenance are slight dry squeaks
when you advance the camera. 500C bodies are a real good value, and
many are still in use. Don't count them out, many pros still use them
as main or backup bodies. If your on a budget then go with the 500C
and save a few $$$'s. If the body your buying has any problems then be
sure to take the price of the service off the price of the camera. A
camera serviced by a good repairman will last a long time.
EL/ELM bodies: These bodies are basically overgrown 500 cameras with
motor drives. You check them the same way as you would a 500 camera
but be sure to listen to the motor for squeaks, squeals and other
noises. It should run smooth and crisp. Run the camera for a while.
The camera should not blow fuses. A camera that blows fuses needs to
be checked out by a repairman. Be sure to check the batteries. The
biggest problem with the ni-cad batteries is over charging them. After
a while, they begin to swell and loose capacity. There was a problem
with battery supply, but not anymore. The batteries are not cheap,
that's why the new generation uses AA batteries. VHI is now modifying
EL's and ELM's to use AA batteries. Any qualified repairman can do
this update too. EL's are at an all time low in price and make great
remote and tripod cameras. A good body with a battery and charger will
be in the $400.00 area or even lower if you look hard.
Lenses: Checking a "C" or "CF" lens is the same. First check the
overall appearance of the lens. Scuff marks on the barrel means that
the lens was used. Dings and dents mean that it might have seen some
rough times. Next check the glass for scratches. Light cleaning marks
are common on Zeiss optics due to their soft coating. They look like
hairs and generally do not have any effect on the performance of the
lens. Next check for nicks and scratches. I would beware of any
scratches on the rear elements, since they usually have an effect on
the lenses performance. Unless it's a tiny nick at the edge of the
glass, shoot a roll of film and then examine them with a good loupe.
Next, look through the lens, look carefully and look at an angle. The
optics should be clear, no hazing. Two things to look for especially
in older lenses are fungus and separation. First fungus, fungus looks
almost like a tiny spiders web inside the lens with a slight haze.
Fungus in its early stages can be cleaned without the hurting the
glass, and future images will be fine. After a while, fungus will etch
itself into the glass making a $2000.00 lens useless. Separation looks
almost like a water drop in between the glass. It usually starts at
the edge and spreads. A lens with minor separation is still useful but
will require major optical work in the future. Again, this is not
cheap so think about that when buying a lens with separation. Next
check the shutter (this must be done on the body). The shutter should
be crisp and low speeds should not drag. The aperture blades should
snap into position. If they drag or the shutter seems sluggish, it's
time for a cleaning. An often over looked item is the PC outlet. Be
sure to check for flash synch. Flash contacts wear out and need to be
replaced. Next check the focussing ring, make sure in moves freely and
evenly. They sometimes get stiff and need to be cleaned and
re-greased. I'm not going to get into which lens should I buy a "C" or
"CF". Do your homework and you'll know which is right for you. I will
say this, I've seen mint "C" lenses that were dead when I put them on
a camera. These lenses were seldom used. Age and lack of use took its
toll. With a good cleaning they can be back in service, but be sure to
remember that services cost's $$$'s. The shutters in both lenses are
as good as they come. They can be rebuilt and function like new. In
all my years, I only knew one guy who needed a new shutter, and his
lens fell in the ocean! There a plenty of good deals out there, take
some time and make sure your not buying somebody's headache.
Magazines: First check to make sure the insert and shell both have the
same serial number. They are matched at the factory. Sometimes they
get mismatched, and it lowers the value. Next run the back on the body
and advance the counter till the end. Now remove the insert from the
sell and watch the counter reset. It should be swift. If the counter
sticks or is sluggish service is needed. Make sure the pressure plate
and rollers are clean and free of fingerprints especially if you plan
to use 220 film. Grit on the pressure plate can cause scratches. Now
remove the dark slide from the body and check for light leaks. Light
traps wear out with use and age and need to be replaced. If you see
light coming through the area where the dark slide goes into, then the
light trap needs replacing. When ever possible run a roll of film
through the magazine. By doing this, it allows you to check for light
leaks and spacing problems. Over lapping is a common problem. Again,
these problems can all be corrected.
The myth is that professionals beat their cameras to death. We do use
our cameras, but since we make our livings with them, so we keep them
in top shape. When buying a camera, if you spot a problem, let the
seller know and work out a price reduction. Cosmetics blemishes do not
effect the performance of a camera only its value. I would buy a lens
that has scuffmarks on the barrel as long as the optics were clean.
Dents are another story. I would want to make sure that the lens was
still aligned. I will say this, I've seen a lens that was dropped and
dented, sent to the factory to be checked out, and only to be told
everything's fine! Hasselblad's are tanks. As long as they are
serviced every few years, they'll last a lifetime. Look at what you're
buying and know what you're getting into.
Where should I buy my cameras? Humm, that's a question that has been
asked by many people. I read the Shutterbug; I watch prices on the
newsgroups and of course, good old Ebay. I've been watching prices on
Ebay for a while and there are some real good buys on there and there
are some people who are plan nuts. Here's why. If I buy my equipment
from a store, I expect a warranty for a certain time frame. If I buy
from an individual why would I want to pay the same amount that I
would pay to a store? Most people sell equipment as is. Therefore you
should be getting a better deal. I watch prices from certain stores. A
guy at a camera show had an old 60mm f5.6 Distagon lens for sale. He
was asking $1000.00 for this lens. I asked him how come he was so
high. He told me that a new lens was over $2000.00 and he was asking
50% off the price of a new lens. Great thinking except that the lens
he had was over 40 years old, and the lens he was comparing it to was
brand new! Two booths away, another guy had the same lens for $600.00.
After talking with him a while and pointing out some cleaning marks, I
got the lens for $475.00 with a filter and lens hood. I don't mind
paying fair market value but I do mind being taken advantage of. The
moral of this story is don't be afraid to say "I'll pass."
If you have any questions, you can e-mail me and I'll help you if I
can
Lance Karp
Mr500CM@pipeline.com
Date: Wed, 15 Nov 2000
From: mr500cm@pipeline.com (Mr500CM)
Newsgroups: rec.photo.equipment.medium-format
Subject: The Hasselblad Update
Updated 11/00
The Hasselblad Update
This article is written for users of older 500C/M and EL/M users. I
wrote it to help users of older equipment find accessories, filters
and other items that were discontinued a few years ago.
Unlike other camera companies, Hasselblad still repairs and services
all of the 500 series equipment no matter how old it is. Some cosmetic
parts are no longer made as well as some accessories. In this
article I will pass on some information and hopefully others will
e-mail me some information too.
Filters: The Bay 50 series made for the older "C" lenses (80mm, 100mm,
120mm, 150mm and 250mm) are no longer made by VHI. There are a good
amount of these filters on the used market and prices are fairly
cheap, usually around $10.00 to $25.00 depending upon the brand and
it's condition. If you are looking for new filters, you can sometimes
find new old stock, in addition Hoya is still producing new Bay 50
filters. Skylights, B&W; colors (green, red, etc) and light balancing
are still made. You can buy a Bay 50 step up ring that would allow
you to use screw in filters, the most common are 52mm and 55mm (you
can go up to 58mm but they often won't work with lens hoods). The
rings run form $12.00 and up. The 63 series, also known as series 8
(for the older 50mm & 60mm "C" lenses & SWC) are plentiful on the used
market. I have seen brand new Hasselblad filters selling as cheap as
$10.00 for this series. If you remove the filter retaining ring, you
can use a 67mm screw in filter too. These are still made by all
manufactures.
Softars: The most sought after filter in the Bay 50 size is the
Softar. Hasselblad does not make the Softar, it is made of them by
Zeiss. You can buy a 52mm Softar ( I, II or III ) for about $200.00.
Yes it is expensive but if you want it you can still get it. Bay 50
Softars are very expensive if they're near mint and seldom found in
that condition. They are made of plastic and scratch very easy.
Proxars: The Proxar is a useful close-up filter designed by Zeiss to
be used with their optics. Again, these were discontinued in the Bay
50 size a few years ago. There seems to be a fairly good supply of
these and I still see some old new stock pop up from time to time.
Prices are in the $30.00 to $50.00 ranges depending upon its
condition.
Quick Focussing Handles: For the older "C" lenses there were two
handles made, #1 and #2. Handle #l was for the 50mm, 60mm 80mm and
100mm lenses. These handles are no longer made. Now as a wedding
photographer I only like the handle with an 80mm lens, and I was
distraught when they were discontinued. The Lynn Company came out with
their own quick focus handles. Handle 1 included an adapter that
allowed the handle to be used on the older "C" lenses. The adapter is
a thick rubber ring that slips over the focussing mount. You place the
ring on the focus mount of the "C" lens and then you place the handle
over the rubber ring and tighten. This worked but if you were hard on
the handle like I am, it would often pop off. I found that it was just
not worth it. With a little help form VHI, I found out that the new
quick focus handle #1 for the CF lenses works well with the old "C"
lenses without any modifications. First the handle is a bit smaller
than the original so this takes some getting used to. It is made a lot
better and the handle folds for easier storage. The handle sits
farther back on the focus mount, because of this you can easily see
you depth of field marks with no problem. There is one recommendation
that I must make, if you use a PC cord with this lens, use the
Paramount high tip cords made for the "C" lenses. Other cords can
cause a lock up until the cord is repositioned (it gets caught on back
end of the handle). Unlike the older handles, which only lasted a few
months of heavy use, I have been using the CF handles for almost two
years and it works great. The price is a bit high, $60.00 for a new
one. Older #2 handles are plentiful. They can often be found for
$10.00 and up.
Focussing Screens: These too have been discontinued a few years ago.
About a year ago I needed a split image screen for a 500C that I
bought. I contacted a place that I deal with, the owner who is also a
repairman, informed me that I can use any screen that is made for the
newer cameras. All you have to do is CAREFULY remove the metal frame
from the screen and install. I did and it worked. If you've never
installed a screen in a 500C or EL body you can do it yourself, but
the screen must be aligned to insure that focus will be correct. When
doing this in some older cameras, shims might be needed. This is
usually for the early run of 500 C bodies. If you don't want to do
it, any repairman can easily in stall the screen of your choice
including an Acute Matte.
Shutter Speed Bands. The chrome shutter speed bands that were on the
chrome "C" lenses have been discontinued for a while. The current
replacement is a black band found on the last series of black lenses.
I have seen people refinish the chrome bands using press type and then
coating them with clear coat. It looks good and it doesn't cost as
much as a new band, and your lens still looks original. Ross Yerkes
of Ross Yerkes Camera Repair is making replacement bands. You send
Ross the lens and he applies his band to the lens. The price is
around $25.00 plus shipping. Ross can be found at 342 Kirby Street,
Los Angeles, CA 90042 or you can call him at 213-256-1018.
EL/ELM Batteries: Varta (the original supplier) discontinued these
batteries in the beginning of 1997. The factory has found a new vender
and they are back in stock . It is important to discharge them (the
older nicads, the newer nicads do don't need to be discharged) to
prevent memories and avoid overcharging. A full charge is 14 hours
with the standard charger. The factory is offering a modification for
the older cameras. Once modified, the cameras will run on AA batteries
like the current series. Details are coming in, but the price should
be in the $200.00 area. There are people selling adapters to use
9-volt batteries in your EL/ELM cameras. They promise you faster
winding and no ni-cad hassles. It works, but your putting extra
voltage to the motor and winding the camera faster than it was
designed to go. My suggestion is to stick with the factory battery or
look into having you camera modified to take AA batteries like the
current ELX's.
Other lens problems: The Compur shutters used in the "C" series lenses
are very reliable and will last the life of the lens. I have known
only one lens to need a new shutter and that lens fell in salt water.
After it was repaired it worked like new. A killer of these shutters
is lack of use. Lubricants harden and the shutter becomes sluggish. It
is best to exercise the shutters every few months simply by shooting a
few shots on each speed 1 through 1/500 sec. You should also work the
self-timer. Don't forget to work the focusing ring. The grease becomes
stiff with age and could cause a tightness when focusing. You should
have silica gel packs in your case to keep moisture down. Moisture
can breed fungus, which can turn a $2000.00 lens into a paperweight.
At first it starts with a small tiny dot, then it becomes stringy and
looks almost like a spider's web. The lens should be clean as soon as
possible, fungus will etch into the glass
making it useless. You also should make sure you have your shutter
set on the correct type of synch you will be using. "M" is for flash
bulbs and "X" is for strobes. Most of us, have no use for "M" at all,
in fact if you're not careful you can change the flash synch without
even knowing it. My technician "pinned" my lens. There are two ways of
doing this, one is total removal of the "M" gear train that means the
shutter must be torn apart. The other way is to put a tiny screw in
the sync track that will prevent the lever from moving to "M." This
is the method that I recommend. It's cheap and it can be reversed in
seconds.
Storage: If you're not going to use your equipment for a long period
of time, it is best to store it in a relaxed state. What this means
is take the back off and trip the shutter. The mirror is now up and
the
shutter (if a lens is on the body) is now closed. Replace the back
and store the camera. If you have other lenses, trip the shutters and
relax them. This takes the stress off the main spring in the lens and
will add life to it. Remember to re-cock your equipment.
Repairs: As I stated earlier, lack of use is a killer of camera
equipment. The lack of use causes lubricants to become hard and gummy.
This will make shutters sluggish and low speeds will start to become
inaccurate. In magazines, two things usually go wrong. The first is
light leaks along the edge. This is normal with use. Inside the
magazines there is a light trap to prevent fogging when the dark side
is removed. It is made of foam and Mylar. The foam wears out with age
and needs to be changed. The other problem is spacing between frames
becomes uneven. At this point it is time for service. Bodies seem to
go on forever, but they need service too. A good point to check is the
rear shutter in the 500 series. Make sure that they snap open crisply
and snap back together quickly. When they require service they are
sluggish and sometimes the shutter does not fully open. I just had a
body require service after fourteen years of use, that's not too bad!
Good technicians are hard to find. A good technician not only fixes a
problem but also finds out why it happened and while he or she is
inside, they check and replace key parts as needed. I used one
technician for ten years until he retired. My search several years ago
led me to Brad Sherman of Precision Camera Service in New Jersey. Brad
is a rare find, an honest technician who knows what he's doing and is
reasonable. Oh, and he is factory trained. All my friends now use him
and they agree with me. Here's his information:
Brad Sherman Precision Camera Service 798 Woodlane Rd., Ste. 10-128 Mount Holly, NJ 08060 Tel: 609-702-8100 Fax: 609-702-9410 E-mail: bladfixer@aol.com
How old is my equipment: Bodies and magazines are easy to date. Before
the serial number there are two letters. The two letters hold the key
to the code, which is:
V H P I C T U R E S 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0
If your body is RI, your body was made in 1984. Lenses were thought to
be undateable. But not anymore, thanks to Richard Nordin's new book,
more information below.
Books: For the beginner the best book I've seen on how to use the
Hasselblad system is "The Hasselblad Manual" by Ernst Wildi. Mr. Wildi
goes into incredible detail with the system and it can answer most
questions. Another book is "The Hasselblad System Compendium" by
Richard Nordin published by Hove. Unlike Wildi's book that is how to
use the system, Richards's book is on the equipment. It is a history
of the system and more. Listings include descriptions and photos of
all the camera models, lenses and accessories plus a lot of previously
unpublished data like the lens dates, all the code numbers, listing of
literature and reference material. It is 300 plus pages and has over
700 photos. It can be found at most good book stores, I bought my copy
at "A Photographers Place" in New York. It is well worth the money.
If you have a question about anything I wrote e-mail me and I'll see
if I can help. Please note, I am not paid nor am I receiving any gifts
of any type for any information that I list. The people and products
that I list are those that I use.
Lance
Mr500CM@Pipeline.com
Unlike other camera companies, Hasselblad still repairs and services
all of the 500 series equipment no matter how old it is. Some cosmetic
parts are no longer made as well as some accessories. In this
article I will pass on some information and hopefully others will
e-mail me some information too.
Brad Sherman Precision Camera Service 798 Woodlane Rd., Ste. 10-128 Mount Holly, NJ 08060 Tel: 609-702-8100 Fax: 609-702-9410 E-mail: bladfixer@aol.com
How old is my equipment: Bodies and magazines are easy to date. Before
the serial number there are two letters. The two letters hold the key
to the code, which is:
V H P I C T U R E S 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0
more information below.
Books: For the beginner the best book I've seen on how to use the
Hasselblad system is "The Hasselblad Manual" by Ernst Wildi. Mr. Wildi
goes into incredible detail with the system and it can answer most
questions. Another book is "The Hasselblad System Compendium" by
Richard Nordin published by Hove. Unlike Wildi's book that is how to
use the system, Richards's book is on the equipment. It is a history
of the system and more. Listings include descriptions and photos of
all the camera models, lenses and accessories plus a lot of previously
unpublished data like the lens dates, all the code numbers, listing of
literature and reference material. It is 300 plus pages and has over
700 photos. It can be found at most good book stores, I bought my copy
at "A Photographers Place" in New York. It is well worth the money.
If you have a question about anything I wrote e-mail me and I'll see
if I can help. Please note, I am not paid nor am I receiving any gifts
of any type for any information that I list. The people and products
that I list are those that I use.
Lance
Mr500CM@Pipeline.com
Date: Fri, 22 Jun 2001
From: "Eugene A. Pallat" eapallat@apk.net
Newsgroups: rec.photo.equipment.medium-format
Subject: Re: The Hasselblad Users Update
Mr500CM wrote:
snip
> Filters: The Bay 50 series made for the older "C" lenses (80mm, 100mm, > 120mm, 150mm and 250mm) are no longer made by VHI. There are a good > amount of these filters on the used market and prices are fairly > cheap, usually around $10.00 to $25.00 depending upon the brand and > it's condition.
snip
I have older bay 50 120mm macro and 150mm lenses. For those I just use a
bay 50 to bay 60 step up ring and use the same filters as my bay 60 50mm
and 80mm lenses. I also have a bay 60 to 67mm setup up ring for some
older filters I used when I used to have an S2A.
As for batteries, **IF** you are electronically talented, or know someone
who is (such as a radio ham) you can make an external battery pack for the
ELs. I use a 6 pin DIN connector available at Radio Shack for about USD
$1. Ernst Wildi's book shows the pin outs and polarity. I use 5 D cell
batteries in series in an external battery pack and it works very well.
If you do it wrong, you could have an expensive repair bill.
Gene Pallat
From Hasselblad Mailing List:
Date: Fri, 22 Dec 2000
From: bigler@ens2m.frM
To: hasselblad@kelvin.net
Subject: Re: Non-Zeiss lenses for Hassy?
From: Andrew Moore
> Does anyone besides Zeiss currently make lenses for the Hassy 500 > series mount?
If you mean a coupled lens with built-in leaf shutter, I am not sure
this exists outside Zeiss/Hasselblad original lenses. However if you
can live with a double cable release, a "shuttered" view camera lens
mounted on the (discontinued) Hasselblad lens mount adaptor will do
the job as, for example, mentioned previously on this group :
>> Date: Wed, 20 Sep 2000 >> From: Phil Lindsay fotophil@pacbell.net >> Subject: 100 mm Symmar on a Flexbody >> .... The 100 mm setup is a Symmar with Compur shutter mounted in a >> Hassy #40037 Lens Mount Adapter. The adapter has been out of >> production for a while but you can still find them.
There is (or was) a soft-focus telephoto portrait lens named Imagon by
Rodenstock in Hasselblad mount. May be it is for the 200/2000 series
only, for which it is easier to adapt non-shuttered lens covering
medium format. Some third party companies offer the service to
re-mount lenses for focal plane Hasselblads, for example lenses
fitting the Exakta 66 (formerly Pentacon) or Kiev Ukrainian medium
format cameras. The Ukrainian 30mm Zodiak lens seems to be very
popular in un-coupled Hasselblad mount. Those Ukrainian lenses are
available in Western Europe from some specialised German retail stores
like http://www.fotobrenner.de. You can also check
http://medfmt.8k.com/mf/hassyadapter.ps for a do-it-yourself
adapter. But if you really need a shuttered lens, although
tantalizing, this will not be useful on a 500 C/M.
-- Emmanuel BIGLER bigler@ens2m.fr
From: "Q.G. de Bakker" qnu@worldonline.nl
Date: Wed, 3 Jan 2001
Newsgroups: rec.photo.equipment.medium-format
Subject: Re: Hassy 500 C/M question
max_perl wrote:
> > > Has the 500 C/M a mirror lockup function?......and how is it activated? > > > > It's not a lock-up function, per se, but actually a pre-release. It's a > > small button in front of the crank that pushes upward. It will release > the > > mirror until the crank is turned again. > > > Thank you it seems to work..........
Not having a lens yet, i can see how you're not sure about the difference
between operating the release button and this pre-release thing.
The release cycle of a lens-shutter Hasselblad (like the 500 C/M) is:
When you press the shutter release:
1) The shutter blades in lens close, and the aperture closes.
2) The mirror flips up.
3) The auxiliary shutter in rear of camera opens.
4) The lens shutter opens and shuts for the preset time, making the actual
exposure.
When you lift your finger from the shutter release:
5) The auxiliary shutter closes.
6) Though the cycle is not finished yet, there's no number 6.
Notice that step 5) is operated by finger pressure only. It is in no way
synchronized with the rest of the cycle. So if you lift your finger while
the lens shutter has not completed exposure, the auxiliary shutter closes
anyway, cutting short the exposure. So always make sure to keep the
release button depressed long enough, especially at shutter times of 1/4
second and longer.
There is synchronization between the lens and the body. (After all, the
shutter in the lens, after closing, must wait to begin the exposure until
the mirror has lifted and the auxiliary shutter has opened.) This
synchronization is achieved by the little, grey key in the camera's lens
mount. It turns and stops for preset amounts and at preset points in the
cycle.
The camera ends up with mirror up and lens shutter closed. Turning the
wind knob next does three things:
a) it winds on the film to the next frame.
b) it returns the mirror to the down position.
c) it cocks and reopens the lens shutter.
Step c) is very important in connection with the little key, synchronizing
lens and body. Since the lens shutter finishes up closed, and is only
opened by turning the wind knob, this key still engages the lens until the
lens wind cycle is completed. So never try to take a lens off when it's
shutter has not been cocked first. And never try to put a lens on a body
that's not been reset.
Now back to the difference between the normal release and the pre-release.
Pressing the pre-release instead of the regular release button will make
the camera go through steps 1), 2) and 3) ("Three steps to heaven"?). You
will have to complete the cycle, steps 4) and 5), by pressing the regular
release button. And doing steps a), b) and c).
Date: Sun, 28 Jan 2001
From: "Q.G. de Bakker" qnu@worldonline.nl
Newsgroups: rec.photo.equipment.medium-format
Subject: Re: X-synch. on 500C/M
max_perl wrote:
> On my 500C/M there is a X-synch contact on the body. > The lens has also one which you normal use? > Is it safe to use the X-synch on the body?
No.
The synch on the body is meant to be used with shutterless lenses (like
the Luminar micro-lenses), and synchronizes flash with the rear, baffle
shutter in the Hasselblad.
The rear shutter is out of synch with the lens shutter: it has to be, it
must be fully open before the shutter in the lens starts opening, so it
would trigger the flash before the lens shutter even started opening.
So this body-synch can not be used when using the regular leaf shutter
lenses.
From Hasselblad Mailing List;
Date: Sat, 3 Feb 2001
From: bigler@ens2m.fr
Subject: Re: Nikon lenses with a 500CM camera
The only thing you can practically do (hmm; not so practical but
possible ;-) ) with a 500 C/M body with any 35 mm, shutter-less lens,
is to use it for close-up work, with long exposure times or open-flash
in a darkroom.
Close-up : because the flange-to-film distance of a 500 C/M is much
bigger than for any 35 mm lens. And the flipping mirror insides does
not allow you to cheat by plunging the lens inside the body. So
impossible to focus on infinity. However optically speaking since the
area covered by any lens increases on close-up, I would really be
surprised if, say, a Micro-Nikkor does not actually cover 6x6 on
close-up. As a general rule at 1:1 ratio, in the 2f-2f position the
diameter of the circle of sharpness is doubled with respect to the
"regular" infinity-focus position.
Long exposure time or open flash : because on the 500 C/M you can only
use the rear baffle as a shutter. Early 500 C cameras had a flash sync
plug on the body so they could be used with flash synch'ed with the
rear baffle, for example taking flash pictures through a microscope
with the discontinued lens mount adapter.
--
Emmanuel BIGLER
bigler@ens2m.fr
From Hasselblad Mailing List:
Date: Sun, 4 Feb 2001
From: LEO WOLK bigleo@worldnet.att.net
To: hasselblad@kelvin.net
Subject: Re: Idyll curiousity
It's my understanding that the 80 Planar, because it's a "symetrical
design", is especially good for use as an enlarging lens. Hasselblad
made, at one time, an adapter for this purpose. I'd think you could pick
up an older 80FT* lens (shutterless) rather inexpensively, that would make
a FINE enlarging lens.
Best, Leo.
From Hasselblad Mailing List:
Date: Sun, 04 Feb 2001
From: Ragnar Hansen raghans@powertech.no
Subject: Re: Idyll curiousity
Zeiss has made four lenses suitable for repro/enlarging:
40mm/5,6 S-Biogon 60mm/4 S-Orthoplanar 105mm/5,6 S-Orthoplanar 120mm/5,6 S-Planar
The Biogon and 60 mm S-orthoplanar has too small circle to be used for
full-frame enlarging of 6x6.
The Biogon also has too short distance from rear lens element to negative
to be used with a normal negative carrier on my pictochrome. I had to make
a recessed negative carrier.
The 105 mm is optimized for 10-20x and you can clearly see the difference
between the result with this and a Apo-Rodagon when the enlargement
exceeds 8 times and the neg has been taken with one of the better Zeiss
lenses, as 38 and 100 mm.
The 120 S-Planar may be of the same construction as the S-planar (or macro
planar) for the hassy.
The 120-S-planar for enlargement is often
found in old Gretag printers.
It has a the front and rear lens elements threded into a diaphraghm. This
diaphraghm can be replaced with a no 0 copal or compur shutter made for LF
and be used on front of the flexbody. The threds are the same but you have
to check carefully the thickness of the diaphraghm and shutter.
To use a normal planar for enlarging is normally not recommended.The
normal planar is not made for flatness of
both film and paper .
Ragnar Hansen
From: jjs john@stafford.net
Newsgroups: rec.photo.equipment.medium-format
Date: Tue, 30 Jan 2001
Subject: Re: 'Blad curtains
"Owen P. Evans" opevans@istar.ca wrote:
> Hi all, > Here's a question that I am sure someone will know the answer to? > Why are there two shutters in a 500 C/M?? > What does each one do?
The rear 'shutter' keeps light from passing by the mirror to the film
when the leaf shutter is open for viewing. It also permits you to use
non-shuttered lenses on the body, but in 'B' mode only. Uses of the
later might include microscope and telescope applications.
And to confuse things further, there is a flash synch for the rear
shutter on the left side of the body.
[Ed note: not all 500 c/m have this feature, dropped in mid-run, so check
first if you need this option, AFAIK it is on all 500c models...]
Date: Sun, 21 Jan 2001
From: Op's martin@wollongong.apana.org.au
Newsgroups: rec.photo.equipment.medium-format
Subject: Re: Screwmount converter for Hasselblad
Hoya ones cost me $11 each.
Randy wrote:
> I picked up a Hasselblad bay60 to 67mm screw filter adapter from B&H > for about $60.00 because I didn't feel like spending 125 dollars for a > hasselblad skylight. > > Randy > > On Thu, 18 Jan 2001, "max_perl" > max_perl@post11.tele.dk wrote: > > >Does anybody know if a filter screwmount converter exist for > >Hasselblad e.g. 60mm bayonet to 72mm screwmount. The reason I > >ask is that I have seen what a orig. pol. filter costs. It whould be nice if > >I could > >use an e.g. 72mm pol. filter which I use for my 35mm system. > > > >Max
From: Randy holgamod@twcny.rr.com
Newsgroups: rec.photo.equipment.medium-format
Subject: Re: Screwmount converter for Hasselblad
Date: Fri, 19 Jan 2001
I picked up a Hasselblad bay60 to 67mm screw filter adapter from B&H;
for about $60.00 because I didn't feel like spending 125 dollars for a
hasselblad skylight.
Randy
Date: Sun, 21 Jan 2001
From: Op's martin@wollongong.apana.org.au
Newsgroups: rec.photo.equipment.medium-format
Subject: Re: Screwmount converter for Hasselblad
Hoya ones cost me $11 each.
Randy wrote:
> I picked up a Hasselblad bay60 to 67mm screw filter adapter from B&H > for about $60.00 because I didn't feel like spending 125 dollars for a > hasselblad skylight. > > Randy > > On Thu, 18 Jan 2001, "max_perl" > max_perl@post11.tele.dk wrote: > > >Does anybody know if a filter screwmount converter exist for > >Hasselblad e.g. 60mm bayonet to 72mm screwmount. The reason I > >ask is that I have seen what a orig. pol. filter costs. It whould be nice if > >I could > >use an e.g. 72mm pol. filter which I use for my 35mm system. > > > >Max
From Hasselblad Mailing List;
Date: Mon, 19 Mar 2001
From: bigler@ens2m.fr
Subject: Re: External long-exposure timer, DIY ideas
>From Robert Monaghan :
Long, exact exposure times on a 100% mechanical camera (e.g.
500C-series)
> ...look into the older radio control setups....a solenoid that > pushes on a cable release, so it can work with most cameras; just > setup a timer to trigger the transmitter and hold it open for 90 > seconds...
If you've found the electronic timer but do not find a solenoid
actuator, and if you are interested in Do-It-Yourself things : among
cheapest, strong enough and easy to get actuators, you may consider a
servo-motor used for model planes and cars. From such a device you can
easily adjust the mechanical travel to push on a regular cable relase.
Just screw on the rotating disk or arm of the servo-motor a lever of
suitable length and secure the servo-motor on something clamping the
cable release. Of course a model plane servo-motor is also naturally
suitable for remote control.
--
Emmanuel BIGLER
bigler@ens2m.fr
From Hasselblad Mailing List:
Date: Wed, 21 Mar 2001
From: Peter Klosky peter.klosky@marcgs.com
Subject: Re: microscope adapter
Frank,
Thanks for this clarity. As another list member pointed out in another
message that may have been off-list, an important factor in determining
the suitability of this adapter for a given lens is the rear element
distance at infinity. For example, the Kiev 30mm would be a different
animal than, say, a 300mm or 500mm lens. The comments follow.
Peter
> While the topic of using Kiev lenses on the Hasselblad is not that > applicable to my own work, I have two comments. The first is that there may > be a way to adapt these lenses to a Hasselblad 500 using an older Hasselblad > microscope adapter or adapter made by another maker.
The Hasselblad Microscope Adapter was a neat little thing consisting of a
Hasselblad lens bayonet on one side, a tube fitting over a microscope's
tube and taking the eyepiece lens inside on the other side, and both ends
connected by a short, flexible bellow.
It is in itself no good for adapting Kiev lenses, unless you would want to
slaughter it to use the lens bayonet.
Did you perhaps mean the Microscope Shutter? This too will not be of much
use, since it is way too thick (basically it is a full 80 mm Planar C
mount minus glass, having an extra bayonet mount in the front to take the
Microscope Adapter), thus moving the Kiev lenses too far from the film
plane. What one could try is make the lens fit in the Compur mount, or
rather, fitting the shutter in the Kiev lens.... I don't think this can be
done, keeping the cost reasonable, if at all.
What is needed first of all is to remove the Kiev mount from the lens, and
replace this by a Hasselblad mount. Hasselblad lens-mount to film distance
is 74.9 mm, Kiev has 82.1 mm, so there is some room to play with, but not
enough to add the shutter necessary to make them work on a 500 series
Hasselblad...
So there is no way of making them work on a 500 series Hasselblad. They
can be fitted to any focal plane Hasselblad camera.
From Hasselblad Mailing List:
Date: 30 Mar 2001
From: Patrick Bartek bartek@pdai.com
Subject: Re: Hassy 500
you wrote:
> I'm getting a used Hassy 500 body only for $300 and the lenses seem like > they're at the very least triple that. How do I go about getting lenses > that are more realistically priced? I'm looking price range like 300-400 > dollars.
The ONLY 'Blad lens you might be able to get for that price is a used,
80 f2.8 Planar, the so-called normal lens. Except for the 80, I
rarely ever see any Hassie lens in good condition, regardless of age,
going for less than $1000. Check on eBay or rec.photo.marketplace and
rec.photo.marketplace.medium-format on the Usenet.
Also check the classifieds of your local newspaper, particularly the
estate sales and going out of business sections. I was able to find a
complete Hasselblad system this way -- 500 C body, 3 backs, NC-2
prism, 50, 80, 120, 150, pro-shade and a few other do-dads, all
in Mint condition -- for $1500. I sold off most of it and more
than recovered my $1500. So what I kept I got for free.
Another thing you may not be aware: a Hasselblad "body" is usually
just that -- a body. No finder, no lens, no film magazine. So, find
out just what you're getting. So, besides the lens and a finder, if
you need one, you'll need to get a film magazine, too. A used 12
exposure film magazine is going to cost you anywhere from $150 to
$400, depending on type, age and condition.
--
Patrick Bartek
NoLife Polymath Group
bartek@pdai.com
rec.photo.equipment.medium-format
From: tw406@aol.com (TW406)
Date: Wed Apr 04 2001
[1] Re: Pinhole Adapter for a Hasselblad
Not exactly pinhole, but check out marktucker.com, a Nashville
photographer. He modified a Hasselblad using a loupe for a lens which he
calls a plungercam: fabulous results! Seems to use it quite a bit. Kinda a
highend Holga.
[Ed. note: the ultimate budget 'blad - a pinhole? ;-)]
From: S.Kahlert@gmx.de (Stefan Kahlert)
Newsgroups: rec.photo.equipment.medium-format
Date: Sun, 15 Apr 2001
Subject: Re: Pinhole Adapter for a Hasselblad
"John Emmons" JOHNCYN@worldnet.att.net wrote:
>I know that these are made to fit various 35mm cameras, anyone ever >seen one that will work on a Hasselblad? I've seen the wooden 4"x5" >cameras and thought using roll film might be easier. >Any leads or tips appreciated.
I tried this for a while when I had just a body and a magazine but had
to ask a friend when I needed a lens. I can tell you that a Hasselblad
may be the ideal pinhole-body because of its rear baffle that can
easily be used as a convenient shutter.
For the pinhole just cut a circular piece of cardboard the size of the
hassis bayonet and leave a little flap at its outer diameter that will
allow you to remove the cardbord from the bayonet once you placed it
there. Punch a whole into the middle of the cardboard-disk and cover
it with some kind of metallic foil and make your pinhole. You can
easily and affordably make several disks and experiment with different
holesizes for optimum sharpness and excentric wholes to emulate
shift-lenses.
have fun
Stefan
rec.photo.equipment.medium-format
From: "M P Brennan" mpbrennan@hotmail.com
[1] Make Your Own Hassy 220 Plugs for Manual Backs
Date: Mon May 14 2001
I was looking for an attractive solution to plugging the peep hole in my
manual 12 exposure Hassy backs (so I can use 220 film in them instead of
120) and didn't care to spend $15 on eBay for a simple rubber plug.
I found the perfect solution for 55 cents.
Go to your local Ace Hardware store and purchase their Item # 40206. It's
in the plumbing department and is called a "Ballcock Coupling Nut Washer".
They'll probably be in a pull-out drawer (they come in bulk, so they're
loose in a drawer), but the Ace employee can help you find them.
It is a fiber washer that is a **perfect** fit in the peephole.
I then cut two squares of black electrical tape and placed one on each
side of the fiber washer and trimmed off the corners.
You'll be amazed at how good it looks.
Remove the insert from the magazine and pop it in from behind. It fits as
good as the factory plug (it actually "pops" in).
That's it.
If you have any questions about this highly technical project, feel free
to ask.
-Mike
rec.photo.equipment.medium-format
From: davehodge@aol.com (DaveHodge)
Date: Wed May 16 2001
Re: Next Lens Choice for my Hasselblad 501CM
what would be a good next lens choice?
I have a 50mm and a 150mm in addition to the 80.
From hasselblad Mailing List;
Date: Fri, 25 May 2001
From: "Q.G. de Bakker" qnu@worldonline.nl
Subject: Re: Non-shutter lenses
Digiratidoc@aol.com wrote:
> I have heard that one can use the rear baffle in the 500 series bodies as a > 1/4 sec shutter with any lens. You would have to use slow film and stop down > a bit ;)
And what would be timing this 1/4 sec shutter speed?
It all depends on how good you and your fingers are. Better not use the
rear shutter as main/only shutter for any exposures shorter than 1 second.
From: bobjames27@cs.com (Bob Gurfinkel)
Newsgroups: rec.photo.equipment.medium-format
Date: 04 Jun 2001
Subject: Re: Bronica question
>It isn't by any chance possible to use 220 film in a 120 back is it?
It was possible to shoot 220
film in the older 12X Hasselblad magazines; when the counter reached 12
one simply moved the insert key backwards and reset it to 1.
Of course, you had to keep track of the number of shots taken or you'd
attempt to shoot 36 pictures on the roll.
The modern A12 magazine won't allow this - when it reaches 12 it locks up
and the only way to reset it is by removal of the film insert.
If you don't want to waste all that 220 film, look for an older 12X back
on Ebay, buy it, shoot the film, and then resell it. Or get yourself an
A24 back.
Bob G.
Date: Mon, 25 Sep 2000
From: "M P Brennan" mpbrennan@xoommail.com
Newsgroups: rec.photo.equipment.medium-format
Subject: Re: Alternative 'Blad lenses
Ain't gonna happen, I'm afraid. Plus, if you think about it, the whole
reason for BUYING a 'blad is so that you can use the glass. The body and
backs are nice and solid, but it's all about the glass.
Until your wallet gets fat enough to buy that 120, 150 or 180 portrait
lens, you might consider buying a 2X teleconverter to turn your 80 into a
160mm. When you calculate your exposure settings, remember that you're
losing 2 stops of light when the teleconverter is in place.
-Mike
Date: Mon, 25 Sep 2000
From: "eMeL" badbatz99@hotmail.com
Newsgroups: rec.photo.equipment.medium-format
Subject: Re: Alternative 'Blad lenses
As mentioned in the other replies, Hassleblads like Hasselblad lenses...
There may be three possible solutions to your predicament:
1. Get an older Sonnar 4/150 C lens (chrome, single coated.) These can
be had relatively cheaply and are plenty sharp for portraiture. In fact,
I had to use diffusers with a 150 C lens back in the seventies!
2. Get a 2x or 1.4x extender for your Planar 80 mm (Kenko makes a cheap
one.)
3. Get any trashed Hassy lens, salvage the lens mount, and adapt a lens
of your choice (from any MF or view camera) with or without the internal
shutter - in the later case use the camera auxiliary shutter. Your 500 C
may even have the second flash synch terminal on the body. It's a bear of
a project (and a little PITA to use...) but you can conceivably get
yourself a great portrait lens for 100-200 dollars.
Michael
Date: Mon, 25 Sep 2000
To: rmonagha@post.smu.edu
Newsgroups: rec.photo.equipment.medium-format
Subject: Re: Alternative 'Blad lenses
I have the same problem re: high priced hassy optics; I ended up expanding
an alternative Kowa 6 system with full range of optics for less than the
cost of a sonnar 150 (see http://medfmt.8k.com/mf/kowapg.html);
see my 80% solution pages on using the normal lens with teleconverters and
closeup lenses and front of the lens adapters etc.
http://medfmt.8k.com/bronlensenvy.html
You can do quite a lot of fun work with low cost ($50 or so) ultrawide and
fisheye adapters on your 80mm normal lens; the photos won't be as sharp or
contrasty as the $3k-8K zeiss optics, but you will get a picture that is
interesting and fun, and the distortion in the ultrawide is an interesting
effect in its own right, see http://medfmt.8k.com/bronaux.html
and http://medfmt.8k.com/bronfe.html fisheye and ultrawide
adapters pages; there is also a telephoto adapter to 1.25x and 1.5x normal
for closeup lenses, 2 element are best, see ~medfmt.8k.com/mf/diopters.html
a lot of kiev viewfinders will work on the hassy, see pages on low cost
kiev ttl metering finder etc. at
http://medfmt.8k.com/mf/kievttl.html and mf/kiev88.html...
regards bobm
Date: 04 Jun 2001
From: bobjames27@cs.com (Bob Gurfinkel)
Newsgroups: rec.photo.equipment.medium-format
Subject: Re: Bronica question
>Hmm... how can you tell whether a back is A12 or 12X? Serial number on it >is RT 3291778, says "12" in that little circle..
The "RT" denotes a 1986 film magazine, it's gotta be an A12.
The old 12X has a tunnel in the rear through which you viewed the film
backing numbers - used for advancing the film to frame 1.
The A12 has a lever to advance the film until it stops automatically at
frame 1.
The old 12X will keep going and will run the film through unless you stop
at #1 (looking through the red filter into the tunnel) or, as we old
timers learned, until the film counter is just past the 7, at which point
you stop advancing, twist the key back to reset to 1, and you're ready to
shoot.
Date: Mon, 4 Jun 2001
From: "Q.G. de Bakker" qnu@worldonline.nl
Newsgroups: rec.photo.equipment.medium-format
Subject: Re: just got 500 C, where do I start?
0nceinalifetime wrote:
> No problem, I've found it now, thanks!
Since you say your camera is from 1964, you should have come across a
PC-synch socket on the body as well. It is underneath the name plate on
the camera's left side, next to the little opening that takes the cable
hook. This PC-socket synchronizes flash with the body's rear shutter. It
cannot be used when lenses with built-in shutters are used, because the
rear shutter has to be fully opened before the lens shutter starts to
open, and thus would fire the flash way too early. Its intended use is to
supply flash when lenses without built-in shutter are used, like the Zeiss
Luminar micr-lenses, or when the camera is attached to another optical
device, such as a microscope.
This body-synch was discontinued in 1973.
Date: Thu, 14 Jun 2001
From: remove.david@meiland.com (David Meiland)
Newsgroups: rec.photo.equipment.medium-format
Subject: Re: silly hasselblad question
no no man blipo@nonoman.com wrote:
>I recently purchased a 501cm and was wondering what the deal is for >self timers. I didn't see any function of one but am curious about it. > >thanks > >chris
Taking your own portrait in medium format, eh?! Seriously, there is no
self timer on that body. You can get that functionality with some of
the older lenses (C series, I think most or all have it, set the lever
on the shutter to the 'V' position) or you can use an external device
that attaches to the release button. I really wish they had not
dropped that function from the CF lenses. It's really useful when
you're feeling narcissistic and/or forgot a cable release.
---
David Meiland
Oakland, CA
From Hasselblad Mailing List:
Date: Thu, 31 May 2001
From: Peter Janke Muecke-Janke@t-online.de
To: hasselblad@kelvin.net
Subject: Re: thin film base= 60 shots in 12 back?
Dear Robert,
one B&W; film with a thin base is the Kodak Technical Pan 6415
(Estar AH-Base). Normally color negative film has a thinner base than the
base of color reversal films. I use film without paper backing in my A12
as well and have no problems with it (film 120). But films with 60 shots
may cause problems with the framing?!
Peter Janke
Robert Monaghan schrieb:
> I was reading Freytag's Hasselblad book, and he noted in passing that > some of the Hasselblads in space usage used a thin base film stock and > evidently darkroom loaded film without paper backing, making it possible > to get up to 60 shots using the 12 back. I'd like to have more shots on a > remote telephotography (bird) 500 EL/M rig, and yet I'm not sure I want to > do it badly enough to get into 70mm backs and carts and all that. > > Has anyone tried similar tricks to get more shots out of the older backs? > > Does anyone know of a listing of thinner base films? Thanks!! bobm
From hasselblad mailing list;
Date: Tue, 31 Jul 2001
From: Marc James Small msmall@roanoke.infi.net
Subject: Re: macro lens options
A Shooter wrote:
>I am new to Hasselblad. I only started building my system today. I >have looked at the Hasselblad web site, but I do not see anything >about modern macro lens. Does Hasselblad make any? If so, what are >they?
Well, the 5.6/135 S-Planar on the Bellows is the first step. Then you can
begin to adapt a swathe of true macro lenses to the Bellows in place of
the S-Planar. I have a range extending from a 24mm Leitz Micro-Summar and
a 25mm Zeiss Luminar and Leitz Photar to a 9cm CZJ Mikrotar and 10cm Leitz
Micro-Summar. I believe the only such lenses in production are a remnant
of the Leica Photar line, but such lenses are easily found used on e-Bay.
Wildi gives a good write-up on Luminar use in his book.
Marc
msmall@roanoke.infi.net
From Hasselblad mailing list;
Date: Wed, 1 Aug 2001
From: Patrick Bartek bartek@intermind.net
Subject: Re: 500 EL/M
A Shooter wrote:
> I was wondering about the 500 EL/M. I have a chance to buy a 500 EL/M body for less > then $500 USD. Is it worth it? Will I be able to find a new battery for it, if it > needs it? > > If this is a good deal, then I need some more peices to complete my setup: A12 and > 80/2.8 CF T*. If this is not a good deal, I need a complete kit, 50X, A12, > and 80/2.8 CF T*. Where should I go to find these peices?
Yes, $500US for an EL/M is a good deal, all things considered. One
would expect to pay that or more for a 500C/M. But, do you REALLY need
an EL/M? I would say, no. It will be just extra weight and bulk to
carry around with the motor providing no real useful purpose.
The batteries are no longer made by Hasselblad, but you can get adapter
kits to use 9V ones, or go to a battery specialty store and they can
most likely make a rechargeable one just like the original. It used
standard NiCad cells stacked to provide the correct voltage, held
together with heat-shrink tubing.
If you're looking to save money, consider getting used C T* lenses, the
ones in Compur shutters, instead of the newer C-whatever ones. A nice
black 80 f2.8 C T* can be had of eBay for about $300 - $500, maybe
less, if you are patient.
Look on eBay and www.photogon.com, a classifieds site; and in the US,
the Shutterbug magazine, to name a few. Most, if not all, of the
dealers in Shutterbug have their own web sites. So, check like Midwest
Photo Exchange, KEH, and Columbus Camera Group. There are many others,
but those are the only ones I've ever brought from.
--
Patrick Bartek
NoLife Polymath Group
bartek@intermind.net
Date: Thu, 10 May 2001
From: JIB jbuf@ix.netcom.com
Newsgroups: rec.photo.equipment.medium-format
Subject: Re: Hasselblad 12 back advice needed
The way cool thing about the Non auto backs is that you can easily use 220
film in them. There are 2 ways to do it. The first way quick and dirty,
you lose one exposure this way. All you do is to load the film without
the dark slide, and wind up to the first full frame. Than reset the
counter to one and shoot your twelve exposures, then reset the counter,
and shoot the second twelve. You just have to remember that the last
frame is lost and you have to figure some way to Block the opening in the
back of the film back. There is a second way where you Do not lose a
frame but i can find my Hassleblad book. That tells you exactly what to
do.
Hope this helps
John
...
Date: Sat, 12 May 2001
From: "Q.G. de Bakker" qnu@worldonline.nl
Newsgroups: rec.photo.equipment.medium-format
Subject: Re: Hasselblad 12 back advice needed
....
Let me quote myself quoting Hasselblads original instructions (from
1965!):
"The new 220 film has no protective backing paper and, therefore, no light
must be allowed to leak in through the film window which must be made
light-tight. The manufacturer has therefore made a light-tight plug which
is fitted onto the film window, from inside the magazine, with the number
"220" facing outwards. The magazine can also be sealed against light by
affixing black tape across the film window. Like 120 film, the 220 film
has an arrow going across the first paper section. But 220 film has no
numbering system. It has, however, a dotted line, about 6" before the
crosswise arrow and this dotted line is very important in connection with
loading this film in the Hasselblad magazine.
To obtain the best possible results in spacing between the negative
frames, the manufacturer has prepared three sets of instructions for the
three variations in construction of the Hasselblad Magazine 12 now on the
market.
LOADING INSTRUCTIONS
Magazine Construction 1 (Nos 001 - 19,999)
a) Thread the film in the usual manner onto the Hasselblad spool-holder.
The protecting paper is drawn forward so that the dotted line comes to the
center of the receiving spool, (see photo).
b) After the spool-holder is inserted in the magazine, set the
exposure-counter window at 1.
c) Wind the film forwards 7 complete turns (14 half-turns).
d) Expose 12 frames (no stop).
e) Reset the exposure-counter window to 1.
f) Expose another 12 frames (no stop).
Magazine Construction 2 (Nos. 20,000 - 64,399)
a) Thread the film in the usual manner onto the Hasselblad spool-holder.
The protecting paper is drawn forward so that the dotted line comes to the
center of the receiving spool, (see photo).
b) After the spool-holder is inserted in the magazine, set the exposure
counter window at 1.
c) Wind the film forwards, 10 complete turns (20 half-turns), or until the
framenumber 8 begins to appear in the mechanism of the exposure-counter
window.
d) Reset the exposure-counter window to 1.
e) Expose 12 frames (until stop).
f) Reset the exposure-counter window to 1.
g) Expose another 12 frames (until stop).
Magazine Construction 3 (Nos. 64,400 - )
a) Thread the film in the usual manner onto the Hasselblad spool-holder.
The protecting paper is drawn forward so that the dotted line comes to the
center of the receiving spoof, (see photo).
b) After the spool-holder is inserted in the magazine, set the
exposure-counter window at 1.
c) Wind the film forwards 9 complete turns (18 half-turns), or until
framenumber 7 appears in the mechanism of the exposure-counter window.
d) Reset the exposure-counter window to 1.
e) Expose 12 frames (until stop).
f) Reset the exposure-counter window to 1.
g) Expose another 12 frames (until stop).
Loading in accordance with the above gives relatively good spacing results
troughout. In the older magazines, that is Construction 1 and also
Construction 2, it must be expected that certain frames, especially in the
film-section 8-12, can overlap by a few millimeters. But spacing is better
in the newest magazine, Construction 3.
Regarding the loading of Magazine 16 and 16S which have manufacturing
numbers below 204.200, these should be loaded in accordance with the
instructions according to Magazine Construction 2; from manufacturing
number 204.200 and above, according to Magazine Construction 3. In both
cases, the resetting of the exposure-counter window is to be done after 16
exposures have been made."
End quote.
Date: Fri, 11 May 2001
From: Charles Barcellona swampamp@telocity.com
Newsgroups: rec.photo.equipment.medium-format
Subject: Re: Hasselblad 12 back advice needed
Hehehehe...
You can ALSO get 13 images on 120 film with the 12 back!!!!
You've got to experiment a little to get the start of the film right, but
it can be done.
Just wind the film NOT to the "1" but before it (some users do this by
feel, others by counting the turns of the handle after the arrow lines up
in the takeup spool) Practice on some outdated film of the same type if
you can get some - ie, load film with mag off camera, and darkslide out,
to see how you best find the first part of the film emulsion.
Set the counter to "1"
Take 12 shots
Reset the counter to "1"
Take shot 13
Wind the film with the magazine key until the resistance is gone, and
remove from camera.
Date: Tue, 15 May 2001
From: "Q.G. de Bakker" qnu@worldonline.nl
Newsgroups: rec.photo.equipment.medium-format
Subject: Re: Make Your Own Hassy 220 Plugs for Manual Backs
Mike "The Helpful Hardware Man" Brennan wrote:
> [...] Plus, this solution doesn't leave > any adhesive residue on the leather.
Put the tape across the hole on the inside (!) of the shell. Plus on the
back of the insert.
That way, not only you don't get adhesive on the leatherette (it's
plastic, so very easy to clean), but also nobody will think you are
working with a back that needed fixing with sticky tape.
But i agree your solution is more elegant. :-)