Hasselblad CFV-39 digital back In a world constantly upgrading and adding new innovative features to tempt users into buying a new piece of gear; it is truly refreshing to come across a product that not only raises the bar on quality, but reuses old camera systems - giving them a new lease of life. The CFV-39 digital back is something of a revelation, because …
To me one of the beauties of medium format was the ability to control the depth of field so much more than with 35mm. You can decide what you want in focus and the rest then just drops out. Sure you have to think a lot more about it, but then that always improves the results anyway.
I'll second the opinion of I have no need for one, but Oh boy do I want one.
Great review BTW. Nice to read a review that goes beyond "how many pixels"
The lens on this MF digital back that would get you equivalent DoF control to, say, Canon's 85mm f/1.2L would be 120mm f/1.7. Such a lens does not exist for MF.
The fact is that none of the fastest 35mm system lenses have an equivalent in medium format. There's no 34mm f/2.0 (equivalent to 24mm f/1.4 on 35mm), 71mm f/1.7 (50mm f/1.2), 191mm f/2.8 (135mm f/2.0) or 280mm f/2.8 (200mm f/2.0). The longest lens available for the V-System, the 350mm f/5.6, can be replicated by a 250mm f/4.0 lens on 35mm.
The multiplier used above is the ratio of the sensor diagonals, which by coincidence is almost exactly SQRT(2). DoF is a function of aperture diameter and image magnification, so multiplying both focal length and f-stop prevents those two variables from changing, and DoF in the output image remains the same.
No, I didn't purchase it for myself, it was a 10th anniversary present from my Wife. To say I was floored would be a gross understatement.
I bought the body & lenses used, right out of college, and still use it for B&W film photography. Most of my nieces & nephews are fascinated by the "ancient" technology, and I trust the older three with the enlarger, unsupervised (my darkroom's a converted walk-in closet here in the office).
Adding new tech to this old hardware was really a brilliant idea. I actually use it more now than I did when it was film-only.
Having used 'Blads extensively in some very uncomfortable situations (MoD), I thank the day I finally put the unreliable film backs, the flaring lenses, the overlapping frames on the film, the sheer weight and noise of the thing and the plaster dust from the ceilings where I'd pressed the shutter, all behind me.
Overpriced, overweight, overhyped and underwhelmed 'Blads be!
Looking at the sample photo's with this article it is obvious that they were taken by a professional photographer. Wonderful focus and contol of light, even in 'snaps' like these.
These just go to show the quality of medium format over the more 'snap-happy' 35mm sized cameras. The real difference is in the superb lenses as well as the amount of light captured with the larger sensor. Using a manual camera system, checking the light levels and making you 'work' for the image like this does improve your skills no end as you learn to look beyond the click of the button.
Just look at how tight the zone of focus is on these pictures, incredible. I'm going to get my precious out and play with her (Bronica SQA 6x6 film camera - I'm not rich enough to afford a digital back, but I do still have my own darkroom ;-) )
As a visual communicatoins professional I find the sensor lens factor a pain and very limiting. It does not allow you to use the lenes for what the were designed to do. My 40mm lens wide angle becomes a meduim wide and my 150mm lens becomes a much longer effective focal length lens. A full frame 6x6 sensor with 15mb @ 24 pixel bit depth would be perect, especially if it were in the $10k-15K USD price range. The Hasselblad V system is a fabulous platform but the sensor size greatly limits it use and functionality. Better off buying a complete Nikon D3s system at the same price. Digital back manufacturers are missing the boat by not making a 6x6cm digital back that is resonably priced; there are thousands of Hasselblad V systems out there just begging for this!!!
The Register 
Biting the hand that feeds IT
Copyright. All rights reserved © 1998–2024
