Getting to know the camera
View prices and buy the Hasselblad X1D-50c. Until recently, medium format cameras were a very small segment of the photographic equipment market. The reason for this was their extremely narrow specialization - “medium formatters” are heavy, leisurely, light-loving (due to the small ISO range they are rarely used outside the studio or without a tripod) and are extremely expensive. Only a very successful commercial photographer can afford to buy a camera for the price of a luxury car, and somewhere in a small apartment. The exception was Pentax, which launched the relatively inexpensive model 645Z, which, with all its advantages, remains a bulky and heavy medium format camera. The highest image quality that medium format cameras offer was a lot of money. Their huge sensors and first-class optics allow you to get pictures of exceptional detail, color reproduction and depth. But times are changing - fewer people are willing to spend tens of thousands of dollars on photographic equipment, and the impressive size and weight of cameras are gradually becoming a thing of the past. The dynamic development of technology among full-frame DSLRs and mirrorless cameras has further complicated the life of the medium format. For example, Sony, with its flagship 42-megapixel A7RM2 camera and G Master optics, has proven that modern full-frame mirrorless cameras are very close to medium-format cameras in terms of image quality, while remaining compact, functional and very convenient to use. The appearance of a new system in the medium format segment was a matter of time, and the first to change the rules was decided by one of the main market players, the legendary brand Hasselblad, which introduced the X1D-50c camera this year. Hasselblad is one of the oldest camera manufacturers with over a century and a half history. For its exceptional camera quality, Hasselblad began using NASA in 1962. This had a positive effect on brand promotion among professional photographers, and Hasselblad cameras are still installed on some American spacecraft.Hasselblad X1D Installations: ISO 400, F8, 1/125 sDownload RAW
In its modern development, the company has focused on medium-format digital cameras, but this is an expensive and narrow market segment. Hasselblad changed its shareholder and even production, continuing to search for new areas for itself. For example, more recently, the company actively collaborated with Sony, producing luxury versions of popular system cameras, including the Sony A7R, under its brand. Perhaps it was this collaboration that prompted them to create their own mirrorless camera.
X1D-50c is a completely independent development of Hasselblad. According to Hasselblad CEO Perry Oosting, the electronic platform developed at the end of 2014 was intended for two new models at once - the H6D and the X1D itself. In order not to slow down the process, two teams were created to work on each of the cameras. In the case of the H6D, everything is clear: this is a glorious follower of the traditions of medium-format photo equipment Hasselblad, the flagship of the system, modernized with time and technology. Hasselblad X1D-50c is a more ambitious project designed to expand the audience of users of medium-format high-end cameras due to its compactness, the ability to work outside the studio, as well as the price acceptable for this type of camera while maintaining the famous quality from Hasselblad. How this happened, we’ll figure it out now.
Appearance and Ergonomics
Meet, as they say, on clothes. Designers did their best: the camera looks very stylish, modern, expensive and at the same time concise in the Scandinavian style. At first, it was presented only in a silver-black version, but currently the X1D-50c is available for order in version 4116 Edition, which has a black color. The case is made of aluminum and has dust and moisture protection, which allows you to use it not only in the studio. True, you cannot name an all-weather camera - the manufacturer guarantees operation up to -10 ° C, which requires caution when using it in harsh Russian winters. The Hasselblad X1D-50c is compact compared to its older counterparts. The dimensions are generally similar to full-frame SLR cameras, and the weight of 725 grams including the battery is even less than many of them. At the same time, in the hands of the Hasselblad X1D-50c does not seem like a fluff - the camera is perfectly balanced. The grip handle of the camera, slightly slanted forward, does not burden the hand, and its high-quality rubber coating prevents accidental slipping out of the hands. At the same time, the height of the case is enough for comfortable work, while many ordinary cameras (both mirrorless and SLR) without a battery pack lacks grace. When installing the lens, the first thing that attracts attention is the huge camera sensor. The 50-megapixel CMOS sensor has dimensions of 43.8 × 32.9 mm and, in fact, is inherited from its older brother Hasselblad H6D-50c (although being adapted to use high ISOs). Hasselblad does not plan to release a version of X1D with a 100-megapixel sensor by analogy with the H6D-100c - the giant matrix of 53.4 × 40 mm in size does not fit in the compact camera body. Yes, and why? A larger sensor will make the camera significantly more expensive, and the company is determined to adhere to the declared price (already not too low) in order to attract a new category of customers to the Hasselblad family and the medium format camera segment. We are testing the Hasselblad X1D-50c complete with two lenses - the XCD 45mm f / 3.5 and the XCD 90mm f / 3.2. Installing lenses on the Hasselblad X1D-50c lens requires some habit. The camera mount is very tight, so you need to make an effort to wind and remove the lens. Currently, the system line has another XCD 30mm f / 3.5 wide-angle fix, and by the end of the year, Hasselblad promise to please fans of macro photography with the XCD 120mm f / 3.5 lens. Zoom lenses for the new system are also in the company's plans, and in the shortest. Despite the fact that the park of optics of the XCD series is still small, Hasselblad made it possible to use any lenses from the H series with a camera through a special adapter that allows you to use the autofocus of the most modern lenses with a built-in motor. The closest competitor Fujifilm GFX-50s, by the way, The Swedes would not have been Swedes if they had not used simple but useful technical solutions in their designs. In the case of the Hasselblad X1D-50c, one of these solutions was the shooting mode change dial, which is recessed into the case with the touch of a finger, preventing an accidental parameter failure. Another excellent solution is to double-lock the battery in the socket, made by analogy with Leica. After pressing the lever, the battery is only a quarter shown from the socket, after which it is removed with a small additional pressure on it. This is done for safety: to avoid accidentally dropping the battery to the floor. By the way, you will not find the traditional charging for the camera in the kit - the network adapter connects directly to the battery. In my opinion, this is another curtsy towards the laconic style of the new system with a minimum of details. The back panel of the camera is more than half occupied by a large three-inch 24-bit TFT-display with a resolution of 920000 pixels. For displays of modern cameras, the resolution is not the highest, but the screen has a touch control function. Almost all the main functions are made in the menu, which can be controlled using the touch screen. The display also makes it easier to view photos that are flipped with a simple flick of a finger and can be enlarged on the screen by analogy with touch smartphones. One can only regret the lack of the ability to rotate the display, which adds functionality to modern SLR and mirrorless cameras due to operational focusing on the screen from different angles. The color rendition of the screen seemed to me imperfect, with a bias in green. At first, I even sinned for incorrect white balance, but the situation did not change after manual adjustment. For security, you can take off the preview of the image in JPEG using Wi-Fi to estimate the balance on your computer or tablet, but this process will take time. One thing calms me down - this is the first camera in my life, the pictures with which look better on the computer screen, and not vice versa. Instead of the traditional optical viewfinder, the Hasselblad X1D-50c has an electronic viewfinder from Epson with 2.36 million points. In the premium segment, this is not the best technological solution. Epson's leading 4-megapixel viewfinder so far boasts only Leica SL. However, in the X1D-50c, the viewfinder does its job at a very good level. The photographer sees all the information about the shooting parameters at the bottom of the frame, and for those who wear glasses, a built-in diopter adjustment is provided. The overall extremely positive impression was blurred only by small jerks during the panning of the plot, however, this is not the fault of the viewfinder, but the overall low speed of the camera. The X1D-50c has two SD card slots with UHS-II support - a very thoughtful solution, given the size of the photos taken (about 110 MB in 3FR format). You can shoot on two cards at once or on the second after filling in the first. In RAW + JPEG mode, the photographer has the ability to record RAW on one memory card, and duplicate JPEG files on the second. In addition, engineers provided the camera with a USB 3.0 interface (at a speed of 5 gigabits per second) and miniHDMI, as well as connectors for a microphone and headphones. The online jsBeautifier is a free online program that is worth bookmarking.