User experience with Hasselblad H3DII-31?

Tachyon · 24th August 2009

Thinking of moving up from Mamiya to H3DII-31.

Been reading up on the camera but need a 'push' before plonking down $24,300 into the system.

Any comments from users who have practical experience with it?

Thanks and cheers!

sprewell · 24th August 2009

Apart from the slight crop factor (slightly smaller sensor that 39mp), there isnt much difference compared to the 39mp.

Using it for my commercial jobs and totally loving it.

you using it for jobs or leisure?

Tachyon · 25th August 2009

Originally Posted by sprewell

Apart from the slight crop factor (slightly smaller sensor that 39mp), there isnt much difference compared to the 39mp.

Using it for my commercial jobs and totally loving it.

you using it for jobs or leisure?

Thanks for sharing your comments! I'm looking to use it for leisure - landscape photography mainly. The amount is not trivial - and although I do realize there will be a better model released immediately after I buy it, I would like to avoid future comments like "Why did you buy this camera?? Didn't you know....", etc.

By the way, is Shriro the only place to buy Hasselblad? I also travel for business (China, Europe and US) - would it make sense to get it overseas instead? I noticed Hasselblad has a regional center in Shanghai and I wonder if it will be cheaper. Will drop by the next time I'm there.

Cheers!

madabouthass · 25th August 2009

I have a H3DII and I am glad together with many others to have bought from Shriro .
( Denis has to give me a good discount on the 35-90mm I am looking at now !)
The price difference is only due to conversion rates . ( you could always bargain the difference with Denis

And the service is good .
Besides , Denis organises Hasselblad Users gatherings FOC to provide an avenue for us to practice and learn how to make full use of the camera .
Overseas users and Professionals that I have met include those from JB , Batam , Cambodia and India who make the pilgrimage every first Tuesday of the month for the HUG .

Any way , the 31 is already better than 4x5 scanned film . . . and many times better than a full frame N of C .... do you need even better ?

Tachyon · 25th August 2009

Originally Posted by madabouthass

I have a H3DII and I am glad together with many others to have bought from Shriro .
( Denis has to give me a good discount on the 35-90mm I am looking at now !)
The price difference is only due to conversion rates . ( you could always bargain the difference with Denis
And the service is good .
Besides , Denis organises Hasselblad Users gatherings FOC to provide an avenue for us to practice and learn how to make full use of the camera .
Overseas users and Professionals that I have met include those from JB , Batam , Cambodia and India who make the pilgrimage every first Tuesday of the month for the HUG .

Any way , the 31 is already better than 4x5 scanned film . . . and many times better than a full frame N of C .... do you need even better ?

Thanks for your comments. I can now buy with confidence from Shriro. By the way, are non-Hasselblad users welcomed at HUG meetings?

zlimmer · 25th August 2009

Originally Posted by Tachyon

Thanks for your comments. I can now buy with confidence from Shriro. By the way, are non-Hasselblad users welcomed at HUG meetings?

All are welcomed . Thats how I ended up with a H3DII 31 . ha ha . no regrets and loving it .
Its next Tuesday 1st September , Shriro house , 6 to 8.30 pm .

Only , I will be out of town this time . . .

Axeleaf · 25th August 2009

H3DII 31 user here .
Best camera that money can buy .
The Fashion Guys use it .
The Enthusiasts love it .
The Bird people too . . . ( allows you to shoot with shorter lens , capture it , crop , and still have 16 million pixels of 16 bit low noise data for wall size enlargements .)

sprewell · 25th August 2009

I kind of think h3dii-31 and the 35-90 zoom makes an awesome combi and overcomes the small (not major) issue of crop factor.

Unless you want to go for distance..

halcy0n · 25th August 2009

I do honestly find the crop factor abit of a problem because the standard 80mm lens can be too tight sometimes. The 50mm would probably be closest to a "standard" focal length, but it is larger and heavier. If you wanted a comfortable wide angle, you would need to buy a 35mm instead of a 50mm, which is slightly more expensive.

If you don't mind a second hand set, procentre in London seems to have a pretty decent stock of secondhand sets and prices (depends on the pound).

Tachyon · 25th August 2009

Originally Posted by zlimmer

All are welcomed . Thats how I ended up with a H3DII 31 . ha ha . no regrets and loving it .
Its next Tuesday 1st September , Shriro house , 6 to 8.30 pm .
Only , I will be out of town this time . . .

Nice.. I will drop in next Tue!

JacePhoto · 25th August 2009

if you are shooting on a Mamiya, are you using a Digital Back? If not, there is a pain of learning to use how to shoot with a notebook. Apart from the Camera, u need to budget the price of a MacBook Pro. Right now, the cheapest MacBook pro is SGD 2K.

Denis is the right person to consult.

sprewell · 26th August 2009

also, if you are shooting with mamiya.. do you happen to have an AF 45mm f2.8 to let go?

am shooting film with mamiya tho.

Tachyon · 26th August 2009

Originally Posted by JacePhoto

if you are shooting on a Mamiya, are you using a Digital Back? If not, there is a pain of learning to use how to shoot with a notebook. Apart from the Camera, u need to budget the price of a MacBook Pro. Right now, the cheapest MacBook pro is SGD 2K.

Denis is the right person to consult.

Thanks for the advice!

I'm currently shooting film with the Mamiya 645 AFD.

I have a MacBook (not pro - although I have an old G5 Pro which is not working anymore). Would that suffice?

Can the H3DII shoot untethered?

Tachyon · 26th August 2009

Originally Posted by sprewell

also, if you are shooting with mamiya.. do you happen to have an AF 45mm f2.8 to let go?

am shooting film with mamiya tho.

Sorry, nope. Mine are all MF lenses...

JacePhoto · 26th August 2009

Originally Posted by Tachyon

Thanks for the advice!

I'm currently shooting film with the Mamiya 645 AFD.

I have a MacBook (not pro - although I have an old G5 Pro which is not working anymore). Would that suffice?

Can the H3DII shoot untethered?

Yup. U can shoot untethered but its screen may not be sufficient to check for accuracy. If you are shooting from flim to digital, there are loads of experience curve... as i have found out.

First and foremost, you need to have the fireware 800 slot in yr MacBook. Also, ask Denis if you can try pre-load a version of phocus and see if it is compatible. I only found these out after the purchase, which led to some frustrations. FOrtunately, Denis, Lawrence and Boon Soon are always there to help.

Tachyon · 26th August 2009

Originally Posted by JacePhoto

First and foremost, you need to have the fireware 800 slot in yr MacBook. Also, ask Denis if you can try pre-load a version of phocus and see if it is compatible. I only found these out after the purchase, which led to some frustrations. FOrtunately, Denis, Lawrence and Boon Soon are always there to help.

Thank you for sharing - that's very important to know!

halcy0n · 26th August 2009

In my experience, operating Phocus to shoot tethered on my black macbook was painstakingly slow.... I could not view or scroll through the shots without lags. I eventually upgraded it to a second hand pre-unibody macbook pro.

sprewell · 26th August 2009

There is a firewire 800 downsize to 400 cable available also.

So if u have the old generation mbp, it still works.

JacePhoto · 26th August 2009

Originally Posted by sprewell

There is a firewire 800 downsize to 400 cable available also.

So if u have the old generation mbp, it still works.

cable quite hard to find, no?

I am using the cable... the downside is that electrical current drop occasionally. Then the macbook/ laptop doesnt communicate with the Hassy. You need to restart both the both notebook and dismantle the Hassy (digital back, top prism) and look like a total idiot in front of your client...

Right now, i insert, shoot, and the moment i finish, i unplug. Short term hardwork of plugging/ unplugging is better than client losing confidence in you via the cable signals.

Axeleaf · 27th August 2009

I dont do commercial work , so I am very happy with how the camera works with the CF cards .
Phocus works on PC and Macs , and , as with all computors the better ones work faster with the image processing .
The screen on the H3DII 31 is good enough for me to judge for sharpness .
No worst than a lot of digital Screens .
Already much better than shooting on film ...

24th August 2009	#1
Tachyon Member Join Date: Apr 2007 Posts: 420	User experience with Hasselblad H3DII-31? Thinking of moving up from Mamiya to H3DII-31. Been reading up on the camera but need a 'push' before plonking down $24,300 into the system. Any comments from users who have practical experience with it? Thanks and cheers! __________________ http://s201.photobucket.com/albums/aa19/Tachyon99/

24th August 2009	#2
sprewell Member Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Serangoon Central Posts: 785	Re: User experience with Hasselblad H3DII-31? Apart from the slight crop factor (slightly smaller sensor that 39mp), there isnt much difference compared to the 39mp. Using it for my commercial jobs and totally loving it. you using it for jobs or leisure?

25th August 2009	#4
madabouthass New Member Join Date: May 2009 Location: Holland Road Posts: 18	Re: User experience with Hasselblad H3DII-31? I have a H3DII and I am glad together with many others to have bought from Shriro . ( Denis has to give me a good discount on the 35-90mm I am looking at now !) The price difference is only due to conversion rates . ( you could always bargain the difference with Denis And the service is good . Besides , Denis organises Hasselblad Users gatherings FOC to provide an avenue for us to practice and learn how to make full use of the camera . Overseas users and Professionals that I have met include those from JB , Batam , Cambodia and India who make the pilgrimage every first Tuesday of the month for the HUG . Any way , the 31 is already better than 4x5 scanned film . . . and many times better than a full frame N of C .... do you need even better ?

25th August 2009	#7
Axeleaf Member Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Mid-western Posts: 89	Re: User experience with Hasselblad H3DII-31? H3DII 31 user here . Best camera that money can buy . The Fashion Guys use it . The Enthusiasts love it . The Bird people too . . . ( allows you to shoot with shorter lens , capture it , crop , and still have 16 million pixels of 16 bit low noise data for wall size enlargements .)

25th August 2009	#8
sprewell Member Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Serangoon Central Posts: 785	Re: User experience with Hasselblad H3DII-31? I kind of think h3dii-31 and the 35-90 zoom makes an awesome combi and overcomes the small (not major) issue of crop factor. Unless you want to go for distance..

25th August 2009	#9
halcy0n Member Join Date: Apr 2007 Posts: 442	Re: User experience with Hasselblad H3DII-31? I do honestly find the crop factor abit of a problem because the standard 80mm lens can be too tight sometimes. The 50mm would probably be closest to a "standard" focal length, but it is larger and heavier. If you wanted a comfortable wide angle, you would need to buy a 35mm instead of a 50mm, which is slightly more expensive. If you don't mind a second hand set, procentre in London seems to have a pretty decent stock of secondhand sets and prices (depends on the pound). __________________ www.flickr.com/photos/vurtopia

25th August 2009	#11
JacePhoto Member Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: New York City Posts: 2,766	Re: User experience with Hasselblad H3DII-31? if you are shooting on a Mamiya, are you using a Digital Back? If not, there is a pain of learning to use how to shoot with a notebook. Apart from the Camera, u need to budget the price of a MacBook Pro. Right now, the cheapest MacBook pro is SGD 2K. Denis is the right person to consult. __________________ free2shoot www.1000words.com.sg

26th August 2009	#12
sprewell Member Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Serangoon Central Posts: 785	Re: User experience with Hasselblad H3DII-31? also, if you are shooting with mamiya.. do you happen to have an AF 45mm f2.8 to let go? am shooting film with mamiya tho.

27th August 2009	#20
Axeleaf Member Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Mid-western Posts: 89	Re: User experience with Hasselblad H3DII-31? I dont do commercial work , so I am very happy with how the camera works with the CF cards . Phocus works on PC and Macs , and , as with all computors the better ones work faster with the image processing . The screen on the H3DII 31 is good enough for me to judge for sharpness . No worst than a lot of digital Screens . Already much better than shooting on film ...