Happy Belated Victor
Happy belated to Hasselblad creator and photographer Victor Hasselblad, whose birthday was a couple days ago. I've been a proud owner of a Hasselblad 500cm for around eight years now and it has become one of, if not my most prized and useful possessions. I can only imagine the immense satisfaction that Mr. Hasselblad must have had knowing how many people used his cameras to create images. I'm sure he would also be quite pleased (maybe not surprised though) to know that the beastly early models of the 500 series are still out there producing beautiful images in 2021.
When I was looking to get back into film and dip my toe into the medium format waters, I considered a number of different cameras. A few film shooters local to PDX and here on Flickr were inspirations and made me take a closer look at the 500 series. What I saw was an incredibly flexible system with outstanding build quality and aptitude. Searching my archives for an image to match, this photo from our front garden 'popped' out at me.
The versatility of the camera was on full display. Interchangeable film backs let me to load a roll of Portra 800 into an empty back which allowed for increased speed and depth of field, letting me shoot this handheld at a higher shutter speed. A tack sharp Zeiss lens mounted along with a 55mm extension tube got me up close for a true macro view. Plus the ability to swap the waist level finder for the PM-5 prism viewfinder for critical focusing and useful eye cup to block out light on a sunny day. The result is a spot on focus image of the inside of a poppy flower, so sharp you can see individual bits of pollen. Not to mention that I could have easily taken this same film back, and put it on my SWC for the next frame for a 38mm wide angle photo of our entire yard and house from the same spot. Not many film systems can claim this kind of versatility with the quality to match.
From our front yard to the Bavarian Alps, from the South Pacific seas to snow storms......my Hasselblad has been around, and never let me down.
Thank you Victor, I salute you.
Image with my Hasselblad 500cm.
Happy Belated Victor
Happy belated to Hasselblad creator and photographer Victor Hasselblad, whose birthday was a couple days ago. I've been a proud owner of a Hasselblad 500cm for around eight years now and it has become one of, if not my most prized and useful possessions. I can only imagine the immense satisfaction that Mr. Hasselblad must have had knowing how many people used his cameras to create images. I'm sure he would also be quite pleased (maybe not surprised though) to know that the beastly early models of the 500 series are still out there producing beautiful images in 2021.
When I was looking to get back into film and dip my toe into the medium format waters, I considered a number of different cameras. A few film shooters local to PDX and here on Flickr were inspirations and made me take a closer look at the 500 series. What I saw was an incredibly flexible system with outstanding build quality and aptitude. Searching my archives for an image to match, this photo from our front garden 'popped' out at me.
The versatility of the camera was on full display. Interchangeable film backs let me to load a roll of Portra 800 into an empty back which allowed for increased speed and depth of field, letting me shoot this handheld at a higher shutter speed. A tack sharp Zeiss lens mounted along with a 55mm extension tube got me up close for a true macro view. Plus the ability to swap the waist level finder for the PM-5 prism viewfinder for critical focusing and useful eye cup to block out light on a sunny day. The result is a spot on focus image of the inside of a poppy flower, so sharp you can see individual bits of pollen. Not to mention that I could have easily taken this same film back, and put it on my SWC for the next frame for a 38mm wide angle photo of our entire yard and house from the same spot. Not many film systems can claim this kind of versatility with the quality to match.
From our front yard to the Bavarian Alps, from the South Pacific seas to snow storms......my Hasselblad has been around, and never let me down.
Thank you Victor, I salute you.
Image with my Hasselblad 500cm.