motorized Hasselblad

[FrankS]

The other weekend, I took some photos of my friend's elderly mother, using my freshly CLA'd Hasselblad 500cm and 80mm lens. The camera was on a monopod, and we were in front of a large window. Attached is a pic from that session.

One thing that I noticed was that after each shot and winding on of film, I had to refocus. I did this not with the focus ring but by moving the camera slightly nearer or farther from the subject. It was a bit of a pain since I was using window light and a wide aperture and the plane of focus was narrow.

A couple of days later, I started looking on ebay at motorized Hasselblad cameras, and ended up with a 500ELX for a decent price. Its in good cosmetic condition, and I'm hoping it isn't all worn out inside. It's going to make portrait sessions like this much easier.*

(This purchase is the reason for my having to sell my lovely Black Olympus 35SP, currently in the RFF classifieds.)

What do you think of my plan and the pic?

 

[FrankS]

Thanks. The camera was on a monopod not a tripod. I wanted to minimize the intimidation factor for her, so didn't set up a tripod.

 

[GaryLH]

I wouldn't describe the elx as a beast. A friend of mine in college loaned me his for the day. Ergonomics are ok, a tad heavy.

I would call a baby linhof a beast with out the anatomically grip 🙂

But I would also be worried about the battery issue as well.

Gary

 

[Steve M.]

The motorized 'blads go for a song these days, and if you're not having to tote a camera w/ you all the time, that would be a much better solution. I often shoot Leica R lenses on cheap Nikon AF SLR's, mainly because of their motor drives. I get AE w/ stopped down metering, so shooting involves only focusing and pressing the shutter. About as simple and fast as it gets.

Great portrait by the way.

 

[Trius]

I thought you were done.

 

[FrankS]

I thought you were done.

🙂

I live in the moment.

For the moment, I am done.

🙂

There are only a few cameras and lenses that still jerk my chain. That number is getting less and less. A Hasselblad super wide is still one of them.

The ELX can't be any worse than an RB67.
There is a simple, even DIY, 9 volt battery solution for the ELx cameras.

 

[Nokton48]

Sounds to me, like maybe the mirror assembly in your camera needs some more work?? There are foam seals in the body that correctly position the mirror assembly, which can affect your focus. Maybe the foam has deteriorated?

I mean, I have two 500C/M's, and two motorized 500EL/M's, and I have -never- had to refocus after every shot. Were the images sharp every time when you did that? Very very odd and almost certainly not right.

 

[Ezzie]

There are solutions to the EL family battery issues. Some more ready than others. I wouldn't worry too much about that. And size and weight? If it's going to sit on top off a tripod most if the time, who cares? They are certainly ridiculously cheap these days.

 

[Nokton48]

This is the one that I prefer. I bought two of these (and a third, as a backup):

http://www.ebay.com/itm/9V-Battery-Adapter-Hasselblad-500EL-500ELM-500ELX-/390352006384

BTW David Odess (my Blad repairman and noted Hasselblad repair Guru) has assured me that these 9V adapters can in no way damage an EL/M.

 

[Roger Hicks]

APCAM. Google it.

Cheers,

R.

 

[Ezzie]

Elegant side mounted motor and grip that.