What did the Hasselblad world do to me
The best product engineering object I've ever touched with my hands. And I just got a digital back to mix the best of analog with the best of digital.
I got my first Hasselblad a couple of weeks ago, a film one, fully mechanical, the 503cw. Fully black, in Mint+ condition, with a waist-level viewfinder, acute matte screen D, the new film back, top-notch, best-in-class.
Then, two friends of mine (Brian and Walmyr) warned me: “next, you’re gonna like to get the digital back. You’re gonna say no now, but you will”.
“Bullshit”, I told them (that was one month ago, lol).
I got very happy with my new high-end, miracle of engineering, film camera, made some very cool shots with it, and got introduced (and quickly fall in love) with the square format, that I even wrote a post about it.
The ratio is the massage
I recently added a camera that shoots 6x6 to my shelf. Square negatives, twelve per roll. I expected to enjoy the lens, the build, the ritual of loading film backs. What I didn’t expect was how much the shape of the frame would mess with the rest of my photography vision, lol.
Quickly, the Hasselblad and it’s square format body dominated my soul, and all I wanted to do was to shoot with it. The SLR cube conquered me hard. I didn’t feel inspired to get any other camera to shoot, and I knew it was not just because the camera was new. There was something special in it.
Many people question me why film photographers have the need of owning multiple cameras, I think the ultimate answer is because each film camera has its own spirit.
Given that we hardly use film cameras for commercial work (but for fun instead), each camera sets a different stage when it’s time to choose the weapon of choice for photographing something. Sometimes you want a quick pocketable point-and-shoot, or the challenge of manual focus and the sharpness of a Leica lens, or sometimes you just want to shoot something that looks like an old camera, and here’s the reason why…
There is something special about using a camera that has a waist-level viewfinder, like the Hasselblads, some Mamiyas, Rolleiflex, etc., especially when shooting at the street.
It imposes a respect. Without saying a word, it tells “I am a photographer, don’t disturb me, and this, obviously, is fucking film, so you’d better not get in front of my shot.”
I say that because when I am using it on the street, people avoid passing in front of me on the sidewalk, that’s notorious. Either they pass behind me, or they wait for me to finish the shot. They notice there’s a photographer doing their thing. It sets a complete different stage in the photography scenario.
It imposes photographic authority.
I thought that Leica cameras were the pinnacle of conversation starters, because it is very common for people to reach out and sparkle a conversation about the Leica object I have hanging on my neck, but Hasselblads are even more insane with this. There isn’t a single time that I have the Hassie with me, that no one stops and ask questions, and the conversation is also different.
I think it’s because that this is the camera Man brought to the Moon for the first time. It’s an icon, but not like the M6 emoji 📷 (have you thought about it?).
It’s an icon that is recognizable for photography enthusiasts, landscapes, studio, and that usually sparkles a hot photography conversation, to a point I have to start carrying my photography business cards when I’m with the Hassel on me…
Anyway, back to the Hassel religion and the digital back story.
Brian and Walmyr told me that I woult not resist the temptation to get the 100 Megapixels digital back, the Hasselblad cfv 100c. Hasselblads always got notorious due to the fact that it’s fully modular. It’s the most modular camera ever. And with the digital back, I can just swap the film back to it when I’m tired of shooting digital.
Shit, that’s tempting.
In other words, I can carry the 503cw normally, and when I run out of film, or when I have photo FOMO, or when I’m just lazy to develop the films, I can swap the film back and I have a high-end sensor and image processing at the very film plane that the film back would provide.
I got it.
That means now I have a high-end digital camera, with no IBIS, no electronic rangefinder, but with a hell of an analog feel to it.
I made a video that will help you understand what I am talking about.
It’s such an interesting camera, and there are some things I love about it, which I will try to enumerate by order of priority from a film photographer’s mindset.
1. Reuse the V-system analog body - as described above;
2. The firmware simplicity - it’s a camera that takes photos and lets you see the photos. Period. No video, no crazy menus, it’s fucking simple;
3. Hasselblad’s color science - the 16bit HDR files are so good to work with;
4. When paired with film simulation software, it offers the best that both worlds (analog + film) can offer - let me double click on this…
Film simulation software with it
So, a huge advantage of the Hasselblad digital back is that you have a complete analog shooting experience, seriously, imagine having 16bit HDR RAW files with a shutter that sounds like this:
(Warning: ASMR)
These files, once submitted to a film simulation software, will give you a very satisfactory end result in terms of color, grain, latitude, and everything. My two favorite film simulation softwares are the Dehancer and DxO Film Pack.
Take a look at these shots simulating a CineStill 50D. I think that the only consideration I must do here is that the 50D is a daylight film with a very low ISO, and I shot these under the shade, that’s not a real possibility :P
Here’s something interesting about film simulations and things I can do with this combo: I can now get the camera on a tripod, and shoot a specific film stock with a film back, and then swap the film back by the digital one, and process a film simulation, and do a more acurate comparison.
Would you like to see this in Camera Clara?
FAQ
Q: Oh Raf! Is it the same thing as shooting film?
Of course not, and this discussion is kinda out of pointless among experienced photographers who know what they’re doing, and who know how to appreciate art.
Q: Oh Raf! Is it better than film?
Same answer as above :P
Q: RAF! Are you ruining the film experience?
Same answer as above :P
Q: OhRaf! Is this cheating? People think you’re shooting film but you’re not!
Do you pay for my film? Do you develop it? Do you fund my film photography journey? No? Do a litlte favor for both of us, hit the unsubscribe and get the f* outta here 😂. I do whatever I want with my photos. Go study culture and stop being an asshole. D
(I’m kidding, I’M KIDDING, JUST KIDDING, it’s a joke, don’t hit unsubscribe .I love you 🥹)
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Also, if you want to learn more about the Hasselblad V-system, I suggest watching the below live streaming where my friend Brian teaches everything about it:
