Fun with the Hasselblad 907x

Hi. I just posted six 907x images. Well, five 907x and a birch tree picture that used the Hasselblad back on an Alpa 12SWA. I posted way back on page 3 of this post and finally got around to figuring out how to post an image. I imagine there is a more elegant way to do what I did. Anyway.

I got the 907x last fall and until a few weeks ago used it exclusively with the Alpa. I just picked up a used 45mm 3.5. Fun. The posted pictures are from a couple of walks in the woods behind my house In western MA. The others are from some bike (bicycle) rides I've been doing in upstate NY near where I grew up (Cambridge). These were all taken in the last few weeks. As you may have noticed, it's still early spring here.

This camera is a blast. I've had a hard time finding a digital camera that I liked but this is it.

Godfrey, did something bad happen to your camera?

Carl
 
tifat said:
Hi. I just posted six 907x images. Well, five 907x and a birch tree picture that used the Hasselblad back on an Alpa 12SWA. I posted way back on page 3 of this post and finally got around to figuring out how to post an image. I imagine there is a more elegant way to do what I did. Anyway.

I got the 907x last fall and until a few weeks ago used it exclusively with the Alpa. I just picked up a used 45mm 3.5. Fun. The posted pictures are from a couple of walks in the woods behind my house In western MA. The others are from some bike (bicycle) rides I've been doing in upstate NY near where I grew up (Cambridge). These were all taken in the last few weeks. As you may have noticed, it's still early spring here.

This camera is a blast. I've had a hard time finding a digital camera that I liked but this is it.

Godfrey, did something bad happen to your camera?

Carl
Click to expand...

Very nice! What lenses did you use? Alpa Rodenstock digital lenses?
 
The lens on the Alpa images are from an older 80mm Super Symmar. I wish I has one or two of the new Rodenstocks.
 
tifat said:
Hi. I just posted six 907x images. Well, five 907x and a birch tree picture that used the Hasselblad back on an Alpa 12SWA. I posted way back on page 3 of this post and finally got around to figuring out how to post an image. I imagine there is a more elegant way to do what I did. Anyway.

I got the 907x last fall and until a few weeks ago used it exclusively with the Alpa. I just picked up a used 45mm 3.5. Fun. The posted pictures are from a couple of walks in the woods behind my house In western MA. The others are from some bike (bicycle) rides I've been doing in upstate NY near where I grew up (Cambridge). These were all taken in the last few weeks. As you may have noticed, it's still early spring here.

This camera is a blast. I've had a hard time finding a digital camera that I liked but this is it.

Godfrey, did something bad happen to your camera?

Carl
Click to expand...

Lovely photos!

Nothing "bad" ... My camera, from day one, has an odd intermittent glitch when I set it up on a copy stand: the touchscreen becomes unresponsive. The first fimware update seemed to cure it, then a month or so ago the problem resurfaced. I decided to send it in and let Hasselblad see if they could find a specific problem and fix it. But, in the way of many intermittent issues, it decided not to present itself to the techs and nothing showed up when they ran their diagnostics. So the camera is on its way back home to me, the problem is registered, and if it ever resurfaces, I'll send it back and let them fix it.

Machines do have minds of their own sometimes... LOL!

G
 
One thing I've read about a few times on one of the 907x Facebook pages is the possibility of one accidentally catching the little back release knob while the camera is hanging from your shoulder, thereby resulting in the back coming crashing to the ground. I've never had an issue with that (so far!) as I don't carry the camera over my shoulder but around my neck (and usually even holding it with one hand at the same time). Is that in fact a common occurrence?
 
Vince Lupo said:
One thing I've read about a few times on one of the 907x Facebook pages is the possibility of one accidentally catching the little back release knob while the camera is hanging from your shoulder, thereby resulting in the back coming crashing to the ground. I've never had an issue with that (so far!) as I don't carry the camera over my shoulder but around my neck (and usually even holding it with one hand at the same time). Is that in fact a common occurrence?
Click to expand...

Has never happened to me, or anyone I've talked to.

G
 
A Follow-Up:

Finally pulled the 907x out and set it up on the copystand this morning. This is the exact situation that was causing problems before. Well, I captured 90 Polaroid exposures, used all the usual features and setup things, and not one glitch. Really happy that it seems whatever Hasselblad service did, it seems to be just fine now.

And now I have a bunch of Polaroids to go through, select and render. Woo Hoo!

G

Godfrey said:
...
My camera, from day one, has an odd intermittent glitch when I set it up on a copy stand: the touchscreen becomes unresponsive. The first fimware update seemed to cure it, then a month or so ago the problem resurfaced. I decided to send it in and let Hasselblad see if they could find a specific problem and fix it. But, in the way of many intermittent issues, it decided not to present itself to the techs and nothing showed up when they ran their diagnostics. So the camera is on its way back home to me, the problem is registered, and if it ever resurfaces, I'll send it back and let them fix it.
...
Click to expand...
 
Godfrey said:
A Follow-Up:

Finally pulled the 907x out and set it up on the copystand this morning. This is the exact situation that was causing problems before. Well, I captured 90 Polaroid exposures, used all the usual features and setup things, and not one glitch. Really happy that it seems whatever Hasselblad service did, it seems to be just fine now.

And now I have a bunch of Polaroids to go through, select and render. Woo Hoo!

G
Click to expand...

Great news. What you using as a copy lens? Is it that Leica R?

I just ordered a 120/4 CF Makro lens for my Novoflex copy stand arrangement with the Hasselblad automatic bellows. I’ve been using a 150 until now and it’s been fine, but it results in the camera being cranked way up in the air, so I’m hoping that the 120 will bring the camera closer to my light box. It’s supposed to be a great lens - it was a tossup between it and the 135 bellows only lens, but I opted for the 120 because I thought it would be more useful.
 
Vince Lupo said:
Great news. What you using as a copy lens? Is it that Leica R?

I just ordered a 120/4 CF Makro lens for my Novoflex copy stand arrangement with the Hasselblad automatic bellows. I’ve been using a 150 until now and it’s been fine, but it results in the camera being cranked way up in the air, so I’m hoping that the 120 will bring the camera closer to my light box. It’s supposed to be a great lens - it was a tossup between it and the 135 bellows only lens, but I opted for the 120 because I thought it would be more useful.
Click to expand...

I've done copy (and macro) work with the 907x using three lenses to date:
  • Leitz Macro-Elmarit-R 60mm f/2.8
  • Leitz Macro-Elmar-R 100mm f/4 in bellows mount with Focusing Bellows-R
  • Hasselblad Makro-Planar 120mm f/4 + Hasselblad Extension Tubes

The MER60 works well and keeps the camera elevation low (makes the copy stand more rigid not to have a big weight up so high). The MER60, though, has a bit of field curvature and barrel distortion when used for flat art like a negative or print; it's really at its best for 3D subject matter.

The Makro-Planar (MP) 120mm is a superb lens for close up work (very flat field, very crisp right to the very corners of the frame, etc) but it does make the camera configuration pretty bulky and needs a good bit of elevation on the copy stand to get to the magnifications required for 6x6 negs, SX-70 and Go prints. Lots of good working space for lighting, however, but I am careful when using it to use a remote release or Phocus to trigger the shutter—and NOT MOVE—so as not to induce vibration into the copy setup when working in the 1:3 to 1:1.5 range needed.

The MER100 falls between the two. Along amongst my adapted 35mm lenses, it shows virtually NO vignetting on the 33x44 sensor (at least at my most used magnifications) at all, and is sharp/contrasty corner to corner. It requires a bit more elevation than the MER60 but not as much as the MP120. The Focusing Bellows-R provides excellent, useful controls with this lens, including a means to flip the aperture wide open for focusing checks and then drop down to taking aperture in one press of a button. It also allows me to rotate the camera in click-stopped 90° orientations to optimize for different format captures and their alignment to the camera sensor. The bellows also include a micro-focusing rail built into it, and a selectable rail with mm of extension and distance/magnification numbers for 100, 90, and 135 focal lengths. The only issue with it is that it is similarly a bit on the heavy side, like the MP120 with all those extension tubes and the adapter.

For the prints I copied yesterday I used the MER60, added the lens correction profile in LR, and then added a +5 distortion correction to remove the barrel distortion. The results are very good, with excellent coverage in the central square of the field, and now that the camera is behaving itself properly on the copy stand, the capture process proved quick and easy.

I'll post a couple later today, presuming I get some time to do rendering. Right now, I have two rolls of 120 film that I want to process... :D

G
 
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