Updated on April 5, 2016: After getting feedback from a wide variety of sources I have added some corrections and updates to this review. These updates are notated with bold text at the beginning of the update. The updates are noted in the Autofocus, User Interface, Flash Sync and Software sections of this comparison. Thanks to everyone for...
Last December, after doing some extensive testing of various medium format digital cameras, I decided to purchase the Hasselblad H5D 50c WiFi camera and three lenses. As you might suspect, this wasn’t a snap decision. It was over a year in the making. I started thinking about medium format cameras early in 2015 when I...
Rad. Stoked to see you made the switch. MF is still king. Great lens choices and it’s nice to see that the Skyport works without issue.
Looking forward to seeing what you produce with this setup.
Welcome to the club 🙂
Thanks! I enjoyed reading your blog posts about your experiences with the Hasselblad. Congrats on becoming a Hasselblad Ambassador!
Thanks! I enjoyed reading your blog posts about your experiences with the Hasselblad. Congrats on becoming a Hasselblad Ambassador!
I agree, using this camera since it’s introducition without a problem or issues, before with first 50c I found a bug and Hasselblad send me a new camera in exchange!
It’s heavy, cumbersome and slow, but if IQ is important for You there’s Nothing best in the 50Mpixel reign.
[…] camera systems before making any decisions. You can see my review of the H5D 50c WiFi right here on the blog. I realize there are a very small number of people out there that shoot with either of […]
[…] camera systems before making any decisions. You can see my review of the H5D 50c WiFi right here on the blog. I realize there are a very small number of people out there that shoot with either of […]
[…] medium format capture. I still use my Nikon DSLRs for the majority of my work but I have added the Hasselblad H5D 50c WiFi kit along with four lenses for those situations that don’t require wicked fast autofocus or […]
I found your article very helpful as I am hoping to move to medium format within the year. I know this article is old by the time I’ve come across it..but I see something rather disturbing in the images posted. The b&w that you said is sharp corner to corner and the shot with the trees that are covered with snow. There are tiny hair line dashes in the images.
I really want to see the sharpness corner to corner as you said and i noticed the reptilian in the lines. I don’t see it as much in the tree shot. Perhaps it’s because of all the white..but I found the same lines.
Maybe it’s a compression thing? Reducing a large file for web use. I’ve been looking at a lot of medium format photography online and those lines in these images stood out to me.
Your article was great, I appreciate the insight. If you can let me know what those lines are…if you don’t see them…I can certainly point them out for you if you’d like.
G.
*i apologize for the auto correct…ugh
*i noticed a “repetition” of horizontal lines …NOT reptilian in the lines
Please let me know..if in fact it’s a downsizing or a bit conversion that may have added those horizontal artifacts to the images. I believe I’ve noticed vertical ones as well.
Thank you in advance.
G
I don’t see any dashes in those images. That must have something to do with the way the images are being presented on your monitor. Hard to say not knowing what you are looking at. And these are massively lower resolution than the full res images files so it isn’t easy to tell anything online. Take it from me they are crazy sharp.
[…] you can check it out on their website. Will I upgrade? That is the question. I still have another camera purchase to pay off before I buy any new cameras but at some point I will definitely be adding a new action […]
Great write-up, and ultimately what helped me make my choice as well. I just took delivery of a CPO H6D after trying out an older 645DF and IQ160 back, and even considered an H4X/H5X with the IQ160 back. Cheers!
The 100 2.2 becomes an 79mm 1.8, not 1.0
I know this is a 4 year old post but do you still feel the same today as the day your published this article re: the H5D-50C? I’m just at the point in my photography where I can purchase a used H5d-50C (without wifi so i can put the extra $ to a lens). i did purchase a used one from hasselblad for $8000 w 4ooo clicks; and a new 80mm. any tips/tricks to using the system?
Hasselblad makes some amazing cameras. The H5D is still a phenomenal camera in terms of image quality. It is quite slow though, which is the only downside. In the last year I have sold off my entire Hasselblad H5D 50c WiFi kit and almost all of the lenses and purchased the FUJIFILM GFX 100, which has better images quality and is a much faster, more versatile camera system for my needs. With that said, if you are a portrait or studio photographer the Hasselblad offerings are still excellent.
Just jumped in on a low miles version – I was a GFX user previously – far too complicated and just couldn’t get on with an oversized DSLR – this is magnifique – cheaper now than they used to be too – I read this post twenty eleven times before deciding
Hi Michael, a blast from the past with this post. You wrote, “One Lens in particular, the Hasselblad HC 100mm f/2.2 medium telephoto lens (as shown above), caught my eye and had me drooling. On the H5D 50C WiFi this lens is the equivalent of an 80mm f/1.0 or so in 35mm DSLR terms.” How did you arrive at 80mm f/1.0? Wouldn’t the equivalent be 75mm f/2.8? as the H5D-50c sensor has a .75 factor compared to 35mm?
Nick – To get the focal length and aperture basically multiply everything by 0.78 as that is the conversion factor between this sensor and 35mm. Hence that would make the 100mm f/2.2 an 80mm f/1.7 or somewhere in there. I did get the math wrong on the aperture. In use, the images look like a wider aperture than f/1.7 because to get the same framing you stand in a different place so the bokeh seems shallower. Note that I no longer use this system and have moved onto the FUJIFILM GFX system with the 110mm f/2 and 80mm f/1.7 lenses among others.
The Winter 2016 issue of the Michael Clark Photography Newsletter is now available for download. If you’d like to sign up for the Newsletter just drop me an email and I’ll add you to the mailing list. This issue includes an editorial about my latest travels and purchasing a new Hasselblad medium format digital camera system, a review of...
Last fall, as the Elinchrom Skyport Plus HS was announced, I set up a BMX shoot for Elinchrom USA here in Santa Fe, New Mexico to show in a real world scenario how the Elinchrom ELB 400 and the new HS (hi-Sync) flash heads along with the Skyport Plus HS transmitter could be used to...
I have been off the grid for the last three weeks, as you might have been able to tell from the lack of blog posts and social media posts this past month. In late January and through early February, I was down in southern Argentina in Patagonia, a mythic region with wild, beautiful and rugged...
Since the introduction of the Elinchrom Skyport Plus HS transceiver, and the new Hi-Sync capabilities of that transceiver, there has been a massive amount of confusion as to how this technology works even though Elinchrom and myself have put out a lot of in-depth information on the topic. As the photographer that shot some of...
Hi Michael,
With your Nikon cameras do you lose any light at all shooting up at the highest shutter speeds like 1/4000th to 1/8000th?
I notice shooting at normal sync speed and then going to high shutter speeds i lose about 4 stops of light on the subject i am shooting. The ambient i expect to drop as it should. Is that to be expected with this system? I ask because to me it isn’t much better than HSS at all because it loses nearly the same amount of light i am finding.
Kind regards,
Craig
The way the Hi-Sync works you only get a slice of the light so you end up using a smaller and smaller slice the higher the shutter speed you use. With the ELB400 and a high performance reflector I can overpower the sun from around 20 to 30 feet away depending the situation. So, you do have less light at 1/4000th sec than you would have at 1/1000 sec. Generally, it just darkens the background and I just have to open up the aperture a bit to account for the difference. I am not sure how many stops of light is lost – that is very hard to measure accurately and varies with the shutter speed chosen but the background does get darker (as normal when using shorter shutter speeds). In my testing with the Profoto B1, I couldn’t get the HSS to work very well at all any more than five or six feet away from the subject, so I’d say the Hi-Sync is much more powerful.
Thanks ever so much for your reply Michael. It’s much appreciated and i now understand the system much better now you’ve cleared it up for me.
One last question though if thats ok. Do those high performance reflectors make a big difference for throwing the light further? As you yourself shoot action sports you will understand my predicament that you can’t always have the flashes super close and sometimes you really do need to overpower the sun from 10+ feet away so will purchasing them help me out a lot?
Thanks ever so much for your time Michael.
Yes, the high performance reflectors really help push the light out there quite a bit and they also focus the light as well. I use them often for sports photography. I highly recommend them. Of course, they are not the softest light source so if you need to shoot a portrait a softbox or umbrella might be a better tool. Just depends on your lighting needs.
Thanks ever so much for your help Michael. You’ve really cleared some things up for me.
Thanks very much for this article, Michael! I am curious to hear your thoughts on best ODS settings to use, if anything other than “OFF”. Are you expected to work it out for each scene, using a stand-in for the model and trying different values until you chance upon the best exposure, or is there a more scientific method? I remember seeing a table with standard ODS values for cameras and shutter speeds somewhere but can’t find it anymore.
Alex – You shoot with Nikon cameras so I would just leave the ODS setting off or at 0, which is off. I have never found the need to use the ODS feature with my Nikon Cameras. If you are trying to get a lower amount of light on the subject at a certain power setting you can move the ODS setting and move the strip of light being used to a lower part of the flash curve but that is a pretty specific use. The ODS settings will be very repeatable if you are using them. So you can try that out at home and then just know if you want to do XYZ then set the ODS to 1.x or whatever. I think this is more a feature for Canon shooters where they have to use this just to get the Hi-Sync to work at all.
Thanks for another useful article Michael, I was very excited to order my HS kit just before Christmas but have had mixed results so far in testing.
How much does power setting affect any (potential) banding in your opinion? I ask as the first thing I did when I got the Skyport out of the box was to set the light/camera on stand/tripod pointing at a wall & go right through all full-stop shutter speeds at various power settings & I noticed significant but inconsistent banding right across the board with both a D810 & D4s. I played with ODS & could reduce it somewhat but it was definitely there.
Also, I found that I had to go to speed mode by default as I was getting the lower banding if I went from 200th to 250th (again, Nikon so should have been fine at 250th) but I did read somewhere that anything above 200th required speed mode?
Paul – Great point, I thought Elinchrom had fixed that issue with going up to 1/250th sec for Nikons with the Skyport Plus HS but apparently it is still there. I will amend the article. Thanks for pointing that out. As for the banding, there is still some but when not shooting a white wall it is very difficult to see in my experience. If shooting with the Pro head then there is a lot more than when shooting with the HS head. Either way, it can be dealt with in post by using a graduated filter. What were your settings with the D810 and D4s? So far, I have used a wide variety of power settings on the ELB400 and it seems to have very little banding at any setting. The higher power settings are cleaner than the lowest power settings. I’ll have to do some testing when I get back from this next assignment as I did not test it on a white wall at all power settings.
Hi Michael,
Great article, finally some in-depth explanations about the differences of the heads. but unfortunately, i’m still not sure which heads are the right for me.
I’m planning to use it for outdoor sports and fashion.
was thinking about buying the Pro head, so i can roughly taste both of the worlds with it (regular usage + abit of HS). but i’m not completly sure if im currect.
Or on the other hand, buy the HS and enjoy its HiSync capabilities for sports – but would it limit me somehow photographing fashion?
Maybe i should just buy Pro and HS and end the wondering 🙂
Thank you for your time!
Alexander – You could go with the Pro head but I don’t think you would be satisfied. I would just buy the Action head and the HS head and then you will have the best of both worlds.
Hi Michael,
Thanks for another really informative article. I’ve been really interested to read your previous posts comparing the ELB 400 and Profoto B1 (which had previously been my favoured option). Having read your articles and explanations around HS and those of Quentin Decaillet on Fstoppers, I’m about to jump in and purchase the ELB 400 HS system.
One question – what can’t the HS head do ? It looks as though it’ll freeze motion really well through fast shutter speeds and HS and I can’t imagine that still portraiture will pose a problem either. Presumably studio work with splash / liquid photography may be more suited to the Action head ?
Am I missing something or will I be OK with an all HS Head setup ?
Thanks in advance for your wisdom !
Alex – The ELB400 with the HS head can do a lot but if you need to shoot at 1/250th second or slower and want to stop action then you will need the Action heads.
Many thanks for your reply Michael
So unless I’m in a low ambient light situation and need to drag the shutter for the ambient exposure and use the flash to stop the action, the HS Heads should be pretty good for everything but that ?
I’m on a fairly limited budget so as well as using the ELB 400 system for location portraiture, I will likely have to use the ELB 400 system as my makeshift studio lights too for the foreseeable future. May I therefore ask whether you think there would be any problem in mixing Action & HS Heads in a studio type setup for doing static portraiture ? For example, using 1 head to light a background, another for hair lighting and 2 for the subject ? Likely I’d run a pair of HS Heads off 1 pack and a pair of Action Heads off another. I can’t see that this would cause problems but would value your thoughts ?
I’m very grateful for any advice you may be able to give me
Thanks
Alex – That could work mixing the HS and Action heads as long as you use the HS heads on the background. I typically don’t ever plug more than one head into the ELB400 packs but I typically am shooting outside. You’ll find out quickly if it works for you when you start shooting with them.
Thanks for this further advice Michael
Please excuse my ignorance on this matter – am I correct in presuming that the reason for using the Action Heads for the subject lighting and HS Heads for background is that the former will be better at stopping any subject motion at lower (more typical studio setting) shutter speeds whereas the HS Heads wouldn’t and in my hypothetical mixed setup would therefore be better used on the (static) background ? Or am I missing something here ?
It would be really helpful if Elinchrom could publish a table comparing the suitability and pros/cos of all 3 heads for different uses/situations.
Thank you one again for your guidance and advice. Some fantastically inspirational images on your site
Best wishes
Yes, Alex, that is exactly correct. the HS heads on the background because it won’t be moving in that scenario. Elinchrom is working on that blog post discussing the different flash heads as we speak so there will be one soon.
Many thanks for calrifying this Michael
I’m sure that such a blog post from Elinchrom clealry showing the pros/cons of each head type and best scenarios in which to use specific head types (but also what you can get away with) would be really useful to many of us – particularly those of us contemplating taking the plunge with the Eli ELB 400 system
Thanks once again for your advice, great reviews and blog posts
Best wishes
Alex
Michael,
I’m pretty much sold on the HS head, but I’m a little confused on it’s application for portrait work. I shoot mainly portraits of subjects that aren’t moving (no dancing, no jumping, etc), just pose, and take the picture. Will the slower duration of the HS head cause me any problems when I’m syncing under 1/200 of a second while i’m in the studio (or lower light situations where I need to drag the shutter to gain more ambient)? Even if the flash is popping at around 1/500 of a second, it seems like it will still be fine.
Thanks for being such an excellent resource!
Mark – The only issue with the HS heads will be if the subject is moving. Then the subject will be blurry is shooting at 1/200th sec or lower. The good news is the flash heads are not that pricey compared to a lot of the competitions and if you find the need for the Action head, you can add one at any time.
Michael,
Will these heads work with the older Ranger RX or Quadra power packs?
Ted – Which heads are you referring too? The HS heads only work with the ELB400. The Ranger can use the S or the A heads. For Hi-Sync with the Ranger you want to use the S heads.
Good afternoon Michael,
Firstly, thankyou for sharing about the HS, I have just purchased my HS and am having quite strong banding (brighter ribbon across the bottom) issues, I use a Nikon D750, Elinchrom SKYPORT HS, Ranger RX 1100 with S-Head….
Is there any chance you could share an unedited photo showing what banding you get!!!
I have applied the settings you have recommended!!!! Was so excited to move away from my Pocket wizards, but currently a little disappointed, any help would be greatly appreciated
Scott – With the Ranger S head you will have some gradations. for example it will be brighter on one side than the other. That is normal. Applying a graduated filter in Lightroom should take care of that. With the ELB400 and the HS flash heads there is very little gradation of any kind.
Hi,
Does the HS HEAD in hi sync mode work well at low 1/4 or 1/2 power?
Most article only mention shooting at full power.
I shoot sports action and not only want the hi sync but i also want my flashes to recycle fast so I can get at least 3-4 flash bursts.
Many thanks,
Andy
Andy – Yes, the HS flash head works great in Hi-Sync mode all the way down to the lowest power settings, which makes it incredibly versatile!
Great article!
Am I right in assuming, that, independing of the power setting, the flash duration of the HS head stays constant at 1/600th, or does flash duration reduce with power, too? This is a little confusing as the website says: “Almost all of Elinchrom’s strobes offer their shortest flash durations at the top of their power scale. ”
When you refer to stopping action, I think you mean fast paced sports, as at weddings you usually are able to freeze a couple at 1/550th of a second? When I read correctly, one could insert the Head into port B at 33% power but 1/1100th indoors easily, if needed
Holger – The HS flash heads are a unique flash head for Elinchrom and don’t follow their standard flash duration ratings. At full power it is 1/550th second and it does vary as you lower the power. I believe at the lowest power settings it is closer to 1/1000 sec flash duration, which is still useful for Hi-Sync. As they don’t publish the exact flash duration numbers for the entire power range I don’t know what the exact numbers are. Yes, for stopping action with the HS head it all comes down to the shutter speed (for sports). If I was shooting weddings, the HS head would not be my first choice.
Thank you. The HS head would be our choice for the portrait sessions (usually in bright light). We would complement it with the action head for the rest.
Hi Michael,
Very concise article, I just have one question before I purchase: will I need to purchase anything additional to trigger my Ranger RX Speed AS with this trigger or does the Ranger have the receiver already built in?
cheers bud
For the Ranger RX Speed As you will need the Skyport Receiver Rx and an adapter to put it on your Ranger:
Thanks a lot mate 🙂
Sorry Michael, that link you posted goes to Transceivers, not Receivers? Am I mistaken or is this what I need: http://www.kayellaustralia.com.au/elinchrom-skyport-transceiver-p-2834.html with this: http://www.kayellaustralia.com.au/elinchrom-skyport-ranger-adapter-p-2839.html ?
Frank – Yes, those are the ones.
Thanks again bud
Hello Michael, thanks for the excellent information. As many others are here, I’m having a hard choice between the heads and wonder if you may help kindly? I am pretty much thinking that the HS heads are the best bet, as I plan to do a lot of shallow dof portraits outside, however I also do lots of portraits indoors and in the studio type settings. Given that the subjects will be mostly still for making portraits (i.e. not really fashion shots of people jumping around, would you recommend that the hs heads are the best bet for me? Will they still be good enough for normal portraits. I can’t really see the advantage of the pro heads at the moment. It seems to make more sense to purchase either HS heads or if needing to freeze motion then the action heads? Can the HS and Action heads be used together? Kind regards, Joseph
Joseph – The HS heads are great for Hi-Sync use. I prefer to use the Action heads when shooting at 1/250th second shutter speed or below. I have not tried the HS heads in the studio so I don’t know how well they would work. If your subject blinked or moved even a little bit the HS heads would not stop the motion so my advice is to buy both the Action and the HS heads for the best of both worlds. That is part of why the ELB400 system is so versatile.
Thanks for the reply Michael! So say you used 1/160th shutter speed on a D810 for example, the ELB and HS head on full power (flash duration 1/600th of a second) that may not be enough to freeze a blink or even slight movement during portraits? I’m surprised slightly as when doing street photography, I always aimed to shoot at 1/500th of a second to get quite sharp pictures.
I do think being able to purchase the different heads is very versatile and possibly using the action heads for the subject and hs heads for the background in certain circumstances.
I don’t know for sure Joseph. It might work just fine, but I haven’t tried it. Shutter Speeds stop motion much more than fast flash durations. With a D810 at 1/160th second without a flash I’d be lucky to get a sharp image. I have to shoot at 1/500th second to get a sharp image with that camera without flash – because of the high MP count. I am not the steadiest guy out there. At 1/250th second, I can get about 60% tack sharp images but that is cutting it close for me. It also depends on what lens I have on the camera. Bigger lenses require higher shutter speeds to be assured of getting sharp images.
I have an older Quadra Ranger 400ws with 2 A heads… can I get these to work in HS?
Mike – If you buy some HS heads and use them with the new Skyport Plus HS transceiver then yes you can do Hi-Sync. Hi-Sync will not work with the A heads.
Hi! Thanks for the great write up! I use a canon and an old (old!) Hasselblad H2. Do I need to buy two different skyport Plus HS transceivers? on the website its just sony, canon and nikon versions…. Also with the Hasselblad, you mention get the Action Head as I can take advantage of the leaf shutter, I want to be able to shoot and freeze subjects at wide apertures – will the HS head be better with my Hasselblad?
Chen – The Canon Skyport Plus HS should work fine on your Hasselblad. I use my Nikon version on my Hasselblad. With the Hasselblad you want to make sure the flash duration is shorter than the shutter speed. So, yes, the action heads would be best for use with the H2. With the HS head you can freeze motion at any shutter speed you want with your Canon DSLR. It might be more effective at freezing motion because of the limited shutter speeds on the Hasselblad. But, I have found 1/800th second on the H5D and the A head to be pretty effective at stopping motion. You will have to try them out to see which you prefer.
Any chance you can just use an HS Flash Tube in a regular Pro head and get the same HS results? Can’t imagine any type of built in circuitry difference between the various heads as the duration is more a result of the flash tube….. but I could be wrong.
Mark – I don’t know. Interesting idea though. Let me know if you test that theory out.
Michael Clark in response to Joseph: “The HS heads are great for Hi-Sync use. I prefer to use the Action heads when shooting at 1/250th second shutter speed or below…”
When you say “below”, do you mean faster, not slower?
When photographers use terms like higher, lower, above, below to describe shutter speeds or aperture, I find it can get confusing at times. For example, when discussing shutter speed, does the term “higher” refer to a higher speed or a higher number (eg. 1/250 > 1/500). Also, terms like above or below can be perceived differently depending on whether it is relative to the fastest or slowest shutter speeds. Another example, does a higher aperture refer to a higher f-stop or a higher, greater amount of light?
Personally, I find terms like faster, slower, longer, shorter for describing shutter speeds and brighter, darker, wider, narrower for describing aperture all less ambiguous. Of course, there are a number of other terms used, such as dragging, which have a clear meaning but other terms I find ambiguous. Maybe it’s just me.
Harvey – Thanks for pointing this out. I mean that when using Action heads, which have a fast flash duration, they are great when shooting at the standard shutter sync speed, i.e. 1/250th second on my Nikons, or at any slower shutter shutter speed, i.e. 1/10th second. This is because the fast flash duration will freeze the action. The HS heads are for using shutter speeds that are faster than the 1/250th second flash sync, i.e. 1/4000th second. The HS heads have a very slow flash duration – only 1/550th second (compared to the 1/2000th second and faster flash durations of the Action heads). Hope that clears it up.
could anyone help me with my question, that is can I connect my nikon sb 700 with elinchrom HS head used with transmitter skyport plus HS as would like to see if I could use the speedlights as a second flash .
The only way to do this is set the ELB400 to slave mode and then when your SB700 goes off (attached to your hot shoe) then the ELB400 will go off but you will lose the HS capability of the HS flash head. Alternatively, you could buy one of the less expensive Elinchrom sky ports and trigger the Speedlight with it in the Skyport hot shoe. I would suggest contacting your camera store or Elinchrom for more advice.
ok michael thanks for that , I have a set of pocket wizards(king x) and a elinchrom skyport plus and out of all of it I am sure I will get something to work .
Cannot get my canon 5d mk ii to sync the transmitter.
Not sure what to say. I shoot with Nikon. I know lots of Canon shooter’s have been working with the HS heads on the ELB400 and have gotten it to work very well. I would contact Elinchrom and see if they can solve your problem. Also, if you are working with anything but the ELB400 and the HS heads for it, that might be the issue.
I just got the skyport plus and ELB 400 with HS head. I have my D800 set to 320 auto FP. The skyport shows the HS on screen. When I use above 1/800 or so, power drops to produce black image. I have my Nikon set to F 2.8, and light is on full power. Light is on top of subject. What am I missing?
Make sure you are in the normal sync mode – the Skyport Plus HS should be glowing green. And it should be a Skyport Plus for Nikon. The power is not dropping on the flash. You are just using a slice of the light produced by the flash head. Adjust your settings and the flash output until you get a good exposure, which you will have to judge by looking at the LCD on the back of the camera and using the Histogram. Also, crank up the ISO if needed depending on your shooting situation. Start out with the light at full power and relatively close to your subject (5 to 10 feet away) and just using a standard reflector.
I should have mentioned that I did confirm normal sync mode. Yes, Skyport for Nikon. It was a sync issue. It went from 1/800 sec being ok to 1/1000 mostely black. I saw the sliver of the frame (that was getting exposed from the light) getting over exposed when I raised the ISO. It was wonky. I turned everything off, had diner, came back to do more tests and now no issue going to 1/8000 on less than half power (2.5 or so). I did not change a thing except power everything down. I will continue to test over the next few days. Thank you for responding to my question. Hopefully just a fluke.
Hi Michael, I have not seen any other resources online that address my question. Therefore I am back here bugging you. sorry and thx
I believe my issues stem from attempting to use two lights simultaneously with Hi-Sync (elb-400 with HS head + quadra RX with Pro head). When I reset everything and use only one HS head, it starts to work.
Before I buy a second HS head, do you know of issues using more that 1 light with this technology?
Scott – There should be no issues whatsoever using more than one pack and head with HS. I was just shooting with three of them. Using different flash heads (i.e. Pro and HS) might have some issues because they have different flash curves – meaning different flash durations. I would say that is the issue you are facing. So, getting another HS head should take care of that.
Hi. Have you tried using the hs head and ction head together as. Main. Kicker or hair ligh or fill…? Is it better to get action head in addtion to hs kit or get a speedlight and recevier like 600ex or a strobe
.just to emulate a sun from behind. With cto. AS all 3 options are same price..thnks
Hi do you have some images that you shoot with your hasselblad and action head that we can see?
And did you try the pro head with same system?
I’m curious to see the difference
Hi michael
I got a elb 400 hi sync head. Love it
I dnt shoot movement bu like darkening background.
I would like to get another light in my system for hair or to emulate a sn from behind to go with tye dark background effect like the photo portrait of the skater.
Should i go for another hs head? CanonFlash ex 600 or other brand ? Or a second strobe? Or mix a action head on the same elb or just another hs head on the same elb..? WOnders
Thank you for your great articles.
It sounds like yes, another HS head is what you need for that. I’d go for the HS head as you can’t use HS and a speedlight together. HS is very specific and the Speedlight won’t show up if you are triggering in HS.
Per – Yes, here are a few images shot with the Hasselblad H5D and it’s leaf shutter:
Hi Michael,
Can i use multiple d-lite RX4(Hi-Sync enabled) heads with GODOX
power converter outside for Hi-Sync?
Is there a limit on how may HS heads i can use with Skyport?
Bala – I am guessing you can use that setup. I haven’t tried it but the GODOX is just a battery so it should work fine. You can have up to ten different flash heads with the Skyport Plus HS as I understand it.
Thanks Michael. I really envy you….
Can you provide a scenario how i can use Action Head outside in full daylight to freeze action? Or can action head be used only inside? Like you BMX shots, but using action head. Is it possible?
Bala – You can certainly use the action heads outside – you just have to stay under your cameras normal flash sync, which means you typically need way more power to over power daylight. Usually around 1,000 Ws or more.
I am tad confused. If we use way too much power outside and keep the sync within 1/200, would we have to use small aperture settings? Can you explain further if you don’t mind?
Assume Sunny Day, Ideal Settings ISO 100, 1/16 and 1/125 Speed. I am have Elinchrom BRX 500 (2 Units).
Bala Krishnan
Bala – Yes, if you want to overpower full sun in the middle of the day at 1/200th second that requires using an aperture of f/11 or so. his is basic flash exposure stuff. I suggest trying it out on your own and experimenting.
Bala – Yes, if you want to overpower full sun in the middle of the day at 1/200th second that requires using an aperture of f/11 or so. his is basic flash exposure stuff. I suggest trying it out on your own and experimenting.
Some advice please….
I have been using an S head for the quadratic which can overpower the sun, 1/200, F16, ISO 100 e.g.. I use this for groups at weddings when bright sunlight means back to the sun for the groups and filling with the quadra.
However I have recently bought the HS head and if I’m understanding things correctly I can do similar with higher shutter speeds and easily over power the sun.
My question is around advice for the larger groups. Can I do something with the two lights (I only have one Quadra pack and know it splits the power between the outputs)?
If not what is the best modifier to spread the light across a group of say 50-60 people? (I have the adapter)
Thanks
Scott – yes, you can use as many flash heads as you want with multiple packs. I have never lit a huge group like that so i don’t know what the best modifiers would be. I would suspect you would need way more light power (an ELB 1200 or multiple ELB 1200s) and use the biggest soft boxes you have. Also, be aware, when using HS you usually end up with a smaller aperture – say f/5 or f/5.6 so that may not be enough depth of field to keep everyone in a large group sharp.
Hi Michael, has anyone tried mixing the pro heads with the HS heads and then shooting in HS mode? If so, I’m wondering what the result would be?
I don’t know. I am sure it could work but it wouldn’t be optimum.
Using the elb400, a Quadra action and the Skyport trigger would I be able to achieve 1/8000 second sync with a D800, if not what max speed could I sync at. Cheers Carl
Carl – If you want to use the Hi-Sync capabilities of the ELB 400 you will have to use the HS flash heads, not the action flash heads. I know that is counter intuitive naming. With the Action flash heads the fastest shutter speed you can use is your top flash sync speed on your camera, 1/250th for Nikon, 1/200th for most others. Also, to do Hi-Sync, you will have to use the Skyport Plus HS. See my other Elinchrom articles on my blog for more info on that.
Thanks for the speedy reply, you’ve save me a fair amount of money, I’ll not by the Skyport and keep using the action head as I do, and buy a dedicated hiss sync moonlight. Cheers Carl
Carl – In my opinion, Hi-Sync (HS) is way better than HSS. You might rent an ELB 400 with the HS head and try it out before going the HSS route.
I need to be able to shoot at f1.8 in daylight and darken the background hence the HSSsync, I will look at rental though and look at what I can achieve. Great fast, useful info on here though, thanks a million
Carl – You can do that very easily with Hi-Sync. Check out this blog post: https://blog.michaelclarkphoto.com/?p=4590 – Also, you might want to educate yourself about the differences, HSS is massively limited compared to Hi-Sync: http://www.elinchrom.com/learn/hss-hs.html
Thanks, got it now. Need to get the hs head and a Skyport, guess the bonus is I can use the Skyport with the rotalite I am looking at too.
Hi Michael,
All your flash head suggestions in the article and comments have been around the ELB 400. Would you give the same advice on flash heads for the ELB 1200? I can get an ELB 1200 with a Pro head for a good price, but not sure if that head would have the same situations as what you have described for a Pro head on the ELB 400.
Glenn – Yes, I would give the same suggestions for the ELB 1200 as for the ELB 400. I have HS and Action heads for my ELB 1200 and for my ELB 400. The Pro is a hybrid which can do both but isn’t optimized for fast flash durations or for HS.
Hi Michael.
Have you used elb 400 action and has head together?
Do you know what situations you can use them together and which one would not work so well. I was thinking shooting with medium format camera and head head as the main and the has head for background. Would that work on location and studio?
Regards
Per
Sorry for the mobile phone autocorrect.
Action head as main and hss head as background light.
And maybe shooting at 125 or little higher in studio and maybe higher on location if needed
Per – The ELB 400 does not have an HSS flash head, just the Hi-Sync (HS) flash head. No, I never use both the Action and the HS flash head at the same time. I am either using and HS set up or a setup with the Action heads. Mixing them will not work because of the different flash durations. If you are shooting below your sync speed then you want the action heads. If you are shooting above your sync speed then the HS heads are the way to go.
Okay so there is no way to get them to work together ?
Nope. They are not designed to be used together.
Updated February 16, 2016 – See the note at the end of this blog post about using the Nikkor 300mm f/4 PF VR lens with the TC14E III for photographing big-wave surfing and a true test of it’s autofocus capabilities. Over the last month, I have been testing out the Nikon AF-S 300mm f/4E PF...
© 2024 Michael Clark Photography|ProPhoto Blogsite
[…] « Winter 2016 NewsletterThe Hasselblad H5D 50C WiFi vs. The Phase One XF IQ350 » […]
Wow Michael, had no idea about how bad the Phase One AF was. AF is VERY important and add the price differential, it is a no-brainer.. Thanks for the very comprehensive review.
Tony Bonanno
So I’ve been shooting h5x and credo 40 for about a year and a half, and while k have never shot a cmos back, I agree on all fronts wth what you’ve written. I previously had an older h1 and the af on that was awful – true focus works amazingly well, and I’m probably in the range you are with focus 75-80%. The market for used lenses was a huge factor for me, as I own four lenses but bought zero new.
Michael,
Any chance the Phase One could have been defective ??
Tony
Tony – I am pretty sure it was fine. Several other photographers have said the AF on the XF was pretty useless.
Michael, Good review. You had commented about sync speeds on the XF and stated the 35LS sync speed was found to sync only to1/100. Is that correct? My 35 LS is actually in, just need to pay for it and I find that info surprising.
I use Broncolor RFS 2.1 remotes and they have a very fast transmit time and I easily sync to 1/1600 on the Schneider 55,80 & 110LS with no issue at all. I have also used Profoto ( built in transmitter )with no issues. Phase from what I understand is working on additional Profoto features on the menu, “Fast mode” is one of them I understand which speeds up the transmitter “transmit time” to take full advantage of 1/1600 sync speed. Pocket Wizard transmitters must be set to TX only and receivers must be set to HSR mode in order to work properly with HSS. Have you received any other correspondence from other pros regarding A/F or lack of A/f accuracy?
Don
Don – Thanks. I look forward to hearing your experiences with the new lenses and the flash sync speeds. To clarify, the lenses that were in questions with eh 1/1600th sec flash sync speed were the new larger “blue line” lenses.
As for feedback on the Phase One XF’s AF abilities, as I stated in the article everyone using the XF that I talked to before posting the review considered the AF extremely poor on the XF. There is a health conversation going on in the Forum’s on Luminous-Landscape and GetDPI about this review and comparison. Some say the AF is great and serves them well others say they have had quite a few issues with it.
Interesting stuff! I moved from Hasselblad to a Phase One XF last December. I ordered the 80MP CCD back, but by the time it shipped the 100MP CMOS back was also available, so I paid a discounted upgrade price and went for broke! My old H3D II was getting on for eight years old, and whilst still amazingly good, had started showing signs of wear. On top of that my fighting lens, the 35-90 locked up when the internal focus ring failed. It came back after $1500 holiday but still wasn’t right – soft on the righthand side. This was one of the reasons I chose the XF – Schneider-Kreuznach. I understand they’re optically comparable with Hasselblad’s, but I just felt the build quality was a bit better. With the Phase One XF and back it’s been so far, so good. I haven’t experienced any issues with autofocus. It’s probably done 30 or so shoots with no lock up. Yes, it’s a bit heavy handheld!! I shoot a hell of a lot of stuff on a tripod or high hat with the mirror up, so love the time delay options and seismograph. I’d developed a knack with the H3D of knowing when images were sharp (you couldn’t always tell from the preview!), but with the XF the screen is amazing. There’s also the promise that of this thing fails, they’ll ship a replacement to me – anywhere in the world. To give Phase One their due, the XF is still being developed. Yesterday I was sat reading about the automatic focus stacking capabilities which comes with the latest update, as does time lapse. The Phase will be more expensive than the Hasselblad (all day long) but no one ever pays the published price – inc. me!
Wow you really didn’t get on with the XF did you?
I wrote a review of the XF + IQ350 in July 2015 (on my website) and didn’t experience any of the issues you describe.
One of the lenses I had was the new blue ring 35mm which I would agree is a substantial piece of glass but I loved using it. I wouldn’t describe it as excessively heavy but the camera body weight has increased because of the inclusion of a glass prism.
The problems you experienced with the new focusing system are difficult to explain but in the couple of weeks I had the camera focussing was never an issue.
I used Pocket Wizards with Elinchrom heads in the studio and they fired every time without issue. I also use a Broncolor Move kit and they worked fine on location.
One of the strengths of the Phase One / Capture One software is Capture Pilot and the ability to push images to an iPad / iPhone directly from the IQ back by using the built in wi-fi transmitter. As you say Capture One Pro is way ahead of Phocus or LR and working tethered with an XF / IQ3 is just so easy.
There is no doubt that the H5D is an excellent camera and at the price point in December represented excellent value. The handgrip LCD and the LCD on the back are as you say awful and unworthy of the camera. The price reduction in my opinion was probably more about shifting old stock than trying to bring people into MF. Lenses are also currently on offer suggesting that a major overhaul of the product range may be coming on April 7th.
As I don’t own either I look forward to seeing how Hasselblad respond to the XF system.
Michael, thanks for the review. Half a year ago I was considering changing my Contax 645 with a Leaf Aptus 7 II-back to a H5D 50c. Comming from Nikon fullfomat I was through with the one AF-point, low ISO and bad display of the CCD-back. At that time the price for the H5 was at € 25K or so. I tried it against the Pentax 645 Z, you have mentioned too. Doing this I found out, that the Z has a very well functioning AF-System, even in low-light-situations and Ricoh advanced the sensor so Hi-ISO above 1000 are no problem at all. The handling and the display are like DSLRs. The only thing which I didn´t like was the flash-sync-time of 1/125. But as you wrote: I can use a fullformat DSLR with highspeed-sync if needed. So I bought a used Z and then several FA 645 Lenses. Now I am having a digital medium-format system, with 35mm, 55mm, 75mm, 120mm macro, 150mm, 200mm, 45-85mm and 80-160mm-lenses and the overall best medium format camera for much less than $ 14.500,00. Even new, the whole system with the newest lenses (25, 35, 90mm) would be less than the H5 without any ore with only one lens. So I think, that it is ridicoulous to pay 20 or 30 or even 40 to 60 grands for camera-systems with almost no AF bad displays and bad ISO. I want more than 70% percent and for sure more than 10% sharp images. I hope you will like your Hassi instead and have a lot of fun with it!
Thanks for the comments Frank. Great info there….good to hear you haven’t had any AF issues. It seems like there is a mix of issues.
Thanks you so much for this awesome post: this is the review I have been waiting for for a long time. Precise, informative, you cover every aspect for both cameras. Definitely sharing your post with friends photographers! Cheers.
How many photographers who own XF cameras told you they had focus problems? You said “everyone” you didn’t call me nor any of my numerous professional colleagues who shoot with the camera.
You shot with the camera for one day? I would hardly consider that enough time to get use to the camera and learn how to operate it. Why didn’t you ask one of the photographers who own the XF to shoot the alongside you? Are you going to show us the test photos you shot?
Jeffery – As I said in the comparison, those photographers I talked with said they had AF issues. I didn’t say I had talked to every XF owner. Those photographers that I talked to that own an XF live in other States and are working pros so it is tough to get together and borrow their camera while they are traveling non-stop. I won’t be posting comparison images as I did not have both cameras at the same time so I think it is unfair to both cameras to post comparison images of different scenes – aside from the noise test. This is just my experiences and thoughts on the two cameras.
[…] 5.4.16: השוואה מענינת בין Hasselblad H5D 50C WiFi לבין PhaseOne XF […]
I’ve been shooting with the DF+ and a IQ250 back for about a year with LS lenses. The autofocus performance I’ve seen is decent in the sense that it gets close, but it is not perfect often enough that I usually double-check the focus. In practice this means that is spot-on about half of the time, but I don’t like trusting that any given shot is in perfect focus. This is why I try to shoot tethered whenever possible and use AF to get approximate focus. If it proves to be soft in Capture One, I make small MF adjustments until it is perfect. Once this is dealt with, the model can start posing/acting in earnest. It takes several minutes to check this, and it has to be re-checked after every significant shot or if the model moves off their mark. Having said all this, I am used to MF on DSLR cameras (Zeiss on Nikon) so this doesn’t bother me much.
AP
I attended the launch party for the H6D series in NYC. They went to great lengths to specify that the old H lenses cannot be upgraded with the new shutters. They found that they couldn’t manufacture enough shutters to build the new lenses and upgrade all the old ones. The NYC staff had just gotten their hands on the h6D just a few days before the event, so a lot of the information was new to them. I think it would probably be wise to wait to know more before expecting the opportunity to upgrade.
Lawrence – I was told they could by several Hasselblad reps and online directly from Hasselblad. I guess we will see here at some point. It won’t matter to me as I have an H5D and won’t be upgrading anytime soon.
[…] The Hasselblad H5D 50C WiFi vs. The Phase One XF IQ350 […]
Ive shot with both of thee cameras extensively I waited with baited breathe for the XF system and was willing to part with nearly 60k AUS. After a few test rentals and a 10 day shoot around Australia i soon realised the flaws of this new XF system. the focus is terrible. I have 20/20 vision and i could not get a frame sharp without engaging live view and focussing then shooting. This does not work out when you’re trying to capture candid and real time images.It forced me onto a tripod, and that killed the fluidity of the shoot. I previously had remembered being on a beach in wales, in driving rain and wind on a cloudy low light day chasing the one and only Bear Grylls around on the older mamiya df+ body with the 1q140 back if i remember correctly and not even thinking about the autofocus. Nearly every shot was tack sharp. essentially they have failed by not waiting for a multi spot focus system. Its a huge let down. I now just rent a H5x with an iq350 back as a work around as true focus performs really well. I hope this helps some people out there to not feel like they are fools because they cant get a pin sharp shot out of the XF without engaging live view which is a ridiculous work around.
Cory – Glad to hear I wasn’t the only onto had AF issues with the Phase One XF. I have found the Hasselblad H5D AF to be quite accurate and I trust it implicitly without having to use Live View or have it tethered. Thanks for your insight!
Hello Michael,
Since I left my last comment, I upgraded to the Phase One XF with the IQ3-100 back (XF-100). Because of your review here, I seriously considered the equivalent Hasselblad instead. From your review, I liked the idea of getting 1) a lower price, 2) better AF, 3) better reliability. These were concerns because the Phase One gear is very expensive, I did not trust autu focus on moving subjects, and I had my shutter tangle itself on a shoot, forcing me to use a D800 I had as a backup.
That said, when I got the actual quote for the Hasselblad it was actually more than the XF-100. This was partly because I would have had to replace my lenses, but even if that part of the quote was removed, it was still more expensive. This was due to the upgrade value my Phase One dealer was willing to give me. When I mentioned that to the Hasselblad dealer, he offered to give me a healthy competitive trade-in discount if I bought the H6-100. At this point, the price was almost exactly equal, not the $10k less I was expecting. Therefore, price was not an advantage.
The AF issue bugged me a bit because I like to shoot sports when I get the chance and it is very difficult to get anything in focus with fast moving athletes at close range. My D800 can do it fairly reliably, but the lenses (even my Zeiss Otus) aren’t as sharp as the Schneider lenses on the Phase One system, and the lower resolution and color depth are unsatisfying. On this subject, I was willing to give Phase One the benefit of the doubt on the basis of positive reviews I’d read of the updated honeybee focus system.
I had also read that the XF was much stronger reliability-wise than the DF+, which made me feel better about it. Also, I had read reports from disgruntled Hasselblad users that mirrored DeCohen-Lara’s tirade against Phase One. My own experience with the DF+ was that it had one serious problem: the shutter failure mentioned earlier, and then quite a few lockups that were solved in a minute or so by popping out the batteries and starting it up again. Since I have the same problem on my D800 (with the same solution) when using the Zeiss 15mm distagon, this didn’t bother me much. On the whole, this was a toss-up and I think may come down to manufacturing tolerances of individual cameras from both companies. I have used a loaner from Phase One twice (the other time was my fault for getting sand in the trigger when shooting on some dunes) and both times it was relatively painless.
There were two new factors added to the mix with the new 100MP Hasselblad: 1/2000s flash sync and 4k video. I liked the idea of both, but realistically didn’t expect to shoot video, and wasn’t sure that the difference between 1/1600s and 1/2000s sync was a deal-breaker.
What finally decided me was the color of the Phase One system. Every example photo I’ve seen from the H6-100 has color that I like less than the color used to demonstrate the XF-100. It may be the choice of images or photographers rather than the brilliant sensor (which is the same anyway), but it seemed to me possible that the difference in image processors (assuming that these are indeed different) or the way the Phase One interprets the signal from the sensor yields color more to my liking. This was not a small difference to me, because it is very clear in the images I was comparing, then confirmed when I demo’ed a unit over the summer. Though not my choice, I used it to shoot a basketball game (I wanted to use it on a studio portrait, but scheduling forced me to go with the game instead). So there I was with a 150mm blue ring Schneider mounted on an XF-100 shooting handheld from the foul line of some streetball championships. They wouldn’t let me use the strobes I brought (I am normally allowed to use these, but not at NBB games) so I had to shoot the whole day at between 1600-6400 ISO. I was not expecting great results given these conditions, but the color was amazing to look at and the ISO less of a problem than expected.
At this point I went for the XF-100, but admit that I did not demo the H6-100, though I had tentatively agreed to attend a workshop where I could have used one for a few hours. In the end it came down to color. For all I know this is more about the software on the camera than any of the mechanical details, but wherever it is coming from, I consistently prefer Phase One color to Hasselblad. They are both great, but the look is different.
I forgot to mention in my last post that I am quite enjoying the XF-100, primarily for the color and detail. Auto focus is a problem though, so I find myself using AF to get an approximate focus and then manually adjust from there. I shot an equestrian event with the camera and got some really amazing action shots, but then when shooting a bicycle race had a much harder time because the cyclists were moving much faster than the horses and I was much closer. That said, the colors are, again, superb. Also, using it for a sporting event is not done with the goal of recording the event–a Nikon or Canon would be fine for that–but to get one or two high quality action shots.
On a normal tethered shoot on location or in a studio, it works fine and I don’t worry about the AF because MF only takes a couple of minutes to perfect and after that no shots are lost.
AP
I found the color to be better with the Hasselblad system than the Phase One, but as you say, that is just a matter of taste. They both are incredible cameras. And since you already had a Phase One system switching is always a bit more costly. If you were starting from scratch, the Hasselblad would have saved you $15K USD. Either way, it doesn’t matter if you are happy with what you got.
Wow, that admission that the AF is so horrible you use it to get close then use manual focus is very telling. I can’t imagine buying a $48,000 USD camera set up and it can’t achieve accurate focus on a stationary subject. I have been shooting a ton of sports and all manner of subjects with the Hasselblad and the AF is incredibly good. Sure it can’t track moving subjects, but it can focus on whatever I point it at extremely accurately.
Michael
Great review better than maybe the other 20-30 on the internet.
Its seems most people reviewers don’t actual take the time to shoot any images process the files and compare like you did. If you know of any reviews that get into the software menu items and describe the functions in detail comparing the use of a particular setting(s) with real world shooting conditions you could pass the link on to me it would be great. I find Hasselblads explanations extremely limited, if they know the capabilities of the functions why don’t they explain them in plain words showing examples of why and how.
I have the 100c on order and looking forward to using it.
The things that still bother me about the camera are
The idea of integrated focus stepping has been on the “to-do-list”
Live view mode on the rear display where you can see a live view constant with auto focus.
Grip display
Higher resolution larger font size
tilt-able
sun grade LCD easy to see in bright light
Sensor Unit
Power solution for tech cam
Live histogram
Camera Body
titanium opt
Mirror up, remote release and stop down buttons relocated or to protrude farther out from body
Viewfinder
manual mode button A dedicated button to set to manual mode??
better sealing from dust
locking eyesight adjustment wheel
better eye piece hood (we have made it stronger and there is also a shorter type for eye-glass users available)
Remote shutter release
Jog stick and button w/ movable focus point
Lenses
different lens shade attachment system
180mm macro tilt shift
fast focus attachment
filter attachment system before lens shade
VR vibration reduction
tripod foot accessory for heavier lenses
Accessories
Panoramic Head with nodal points pre marked for lenses.
Better HTS- lighter/titanium, knobs that you can reach and adjust better clearance for cable release and access to mirror up, remote release and stop down buttons
Grip for left side of camera (vertical shooting)
One piece rain cover
wireless remote shutter release
sensor cleaning kit
lightening trigger
Hasselblad backpack (for field use not storage) with fitted section for camera body set up with RSS bracket and lens for field use.
Phase or Hasselblad; I shopped these systems early last year at a tradeshow (March 2016). They were just an aisle apart and I spent much of my tradeshow time hopping back and forth, comparing, analyzing, and focusing on the same beige wall with both cameras. Well it was the XF and the H5D, but I had a clear winner, Hasselblad. This would be my first Medium format camera after using Canon for 25 years. I preordered the H6D 100c the following month.
At that moment, I crowned the Hasselblad in my mind, because of how much more comfortable and compact the H5D body felt. Its faster autofocus was noticeable over the Phase XF body which was hunting and unsure. The XF’s awkward and heavy design, including the back autofocus button, made my hand sore after just minutes of use.
I used the H6D 50c for 5 months (June to October 2016) while waiting for my 100c order. My Hasselblad experience was like death from 1000 cuts. It constantly had digital back errors and other camera errors while shooting, which I had to remove the battery to reset, and one time my CF card corrupted. The 24mm and 28mm lens are cropped sensor lens that need a ton of correction to un-bubble them (Phocus does automatically), which may stretch parts of the image. The H6D 100c does not have a proper wide. The 35mm lens is old and has bad optics. The ipad app presented vertically shot images horizontal. The Phocus software is painfully slow. Hasselblad support did not have a PC, and was not able to help me after a Windows update did not recognize Hasselblad formatted cards. I returned the H6D system after contacting Hasselblad’s CEO. A few weeks later, the CEO departed, and the company reportedly is now owned by DJI in China.
A few weeks ago I bought a Phase One IQ3 50 kit with an 80mm and 35mm blue ring lenses. I did not want the 100mp at this point as I felt like I just got out of a bad relationship. I’m just now putting my toes back in the water. So far, I rate my Phase experience at 90 points out of 100. The Phase XF is heavier than the H6D. XF lenses are gear driven but I prefer the Hasselblad’s belt system on lenses as I like to rack out my focus, then re-autofocus. Not a big deal. The XF autofocus hunts more than H6D. Autofocus, in low light back focuses sometimes.
On the plus side, my XF camera has not had one error while shooting. I like how thoughtful the various features are on the XF body and back. One of my early favorites is the seismograph. I press the shutter button and the camera lifts the mirror and waits for any shaking to stop before firing. I can see the image better on the IQ3 50 back compared to the H6D back. I like the XF’s 2 battery design. I was never comfortable with the H6D’s battery/grip design as I worried the grip may come off. The XF grip does not come off. The 35 and 80mm lenses are super sharp and vibrant.
Capture One 10 is super-fast on my i7 8-core gtx1080 system. The same system running Phocus made me wait for thumbnails to be rendered, then I would view one large image, wait, then wait again when going back to the same thumbnails to render again. Phocus is a disaster. When you buy Hasselblad or Phase, you are also buying their proprietary darkroom. When I bought HB, I just didn’t think Phocus could be that bad.
To sum it up, I’m glad I don’t own the H6D anymore. My first month with the Phase system, camera and software, makes me excited about photography again. For the first time, I have confidence in a medium format system. Cheers,
I’ve owned both systems and have quite a bit of experience on commercial jobs with them both.
Both systems have their drawbacks. It’s like comparing a Ferrari and a Porsche. They’re both super high performance machines, and will likely need service from time to time. DSLR’S = HONDA VS TOYOTA. Dependable / Reliable / and do the job just ok
In terms of support:
Phase One hands down has been much easier to work with than Hasselblad. Turn around times on repairs much quicker, loaners next day, troubleshooting on the phone, easy. There’s just much more support out there.
Hasselblad Phocus vs Capture One =. No Brainer. Capture One is industry standard. I tech and shoot full-time and NO ONE uses Phocus on set. If there’s a Hasselblad on set it’s almost always with a Phase back on it, and for good reasons.
Lightroom is slow as molasses an you can’t shoot with a tech and have clients watching images come in with how slow that is. Not possible, it least to my standards.
Sync: Phase 1/1600th I get with all my lenses no problem. This is with Profoto built in remote in my XF. With pocket wizard plus 2’s I’ve gotten 1/1000 all the time. No issues here. The benefit of the Phase system is that you have a focal plane shutter. I can shoot outside, freeze action with the sun! Hasselblad, well good luck. You can only use a leaf shutter lens, and if you don’t have the newer Orange dot lenses, you are limited to 1/800th of a second. In full sun you’re having to stop down which sucks. Also 1/800th on medium format isn’t much at all. You need every ounce of shutter speed you can get, especially freezing action hand held on location (which is what I do quite a bit of and I know Michael does too).
Image quality: Both are awesome and if you only had one, you wouldn’t even scrutinize it or care. your clients won’t know the difference either. They can already barely see the difference between DSLR and MF. The more educated ones can, but they know what to look for. For me it’s just simply having a more prestigious tool to bring out on set, and of course the benefit is delivering much better image quality than a large portion of commercial photographers out there.
Focusing: Yes the XF can hunt, but so can the hassy. I have great success rate with focus. Michael not sure what you were testing or if you camera was set to “average” or “spot” focus, or if was set to “single” or “continuous”. Those all factor into how it focuses, but you may have had just an early camera or a bad unit.
I’m nailing it least 70% of focus with moving objects, and in studio I’m closer to 80%. Of course, if you’re shooting at f4 and wider, this can easily be a problem when the XF is set to “average”
The fact that DJI owns Hasselblad is kinda weird to me. They must have needed money badly to go that route.
BTW, if you want fast focus on an MF camera, get the FUJI! It’s fast and shoots 3fps, and you can handhold it pretty easily because it weighs half as the hassy and XF.
However, no true fast sync due to lack of leaf shutter lenses.
Hmm, what else. Well Phase costs way too much money!!!!!! They need to figure this out quick. They also alienate other MF camera users from using their software. I think that’s just arrogance in the industry.
Oh, Battery life. Much better on Phase XF system with battery sharing. Oh and the fact that you can use a waist level finder is amazing for some applications!! AKA, walking around and street shooting with an MF camera. Kinda cool.
The fact that the same Sony chip is in 5 different MFG cameras and the pricing difference is almost $20k makes me really question whats under the hood.
Anyhow, I’ve owned both, have had a few issues with both and am currently with an XF setup. I always recommend trying both out and seeing what’s best for you. BUT I can say as a working professional photographer, you will get more support and have better overall options with your camera with Phase. Hands down.
Feel free to ask any questions.