Hasselblad Happiness

Posted byandytree101Posted inCameras, Dorset, 6X6

I’m very lucky to own a Hasselblad 501CM with a Zeiss 80mm CFE lens. It’s a wonderful camera and lens. It’s performance is faultless. I also have a stash of 120 film that is slowly going out of date, so I decided to give myself a “kick up the rear” recently and get out and use it. It is a fact that it’s size and weight mean that it’s not the ideal choice for a wander about, neither is it the easiest camera to use without a tripod, and that’s another tool I don’t use as often as I should! I loaded up a roll of “just out of date” Ilford Delta 100 and set off, without said tripod having deciding to go hand-held.

Anyone who has read this blog for a while will know that Poole is a nearby town that I get to at least once a month, when I need to go to the bank etc. It’s also an interesting and varied town with plenty to photograph. I took my usual walk.

When photographers use large format they often refer to “the dance” – meaning the “performance” that leads up to pressing the shutter release to make the exposure. Using the Hasselblad requires a dance with less steps but after an absence of best part of a year requires a bit of a refresh! The first film I loaded was a bit of a fumble! I’ve since used more rolls and I’m back up to speed.

I developed the film in my home made FX21, and am very pleased with the negs. At 1+9 I gave 14 mins at 20°C. Good contrast and sharpness, maybe a tiny bit more grain than FX55, but very little, and in the 120 format it’s almost non-existent anyway. I find all the Ilford films lay nice and flat for scanning and this was no exception. The scans needed next to no work after.

So I’ve reintroduced myself to the Hasselblad! I have a stash of 120 colour film that I would like to use and have set myself a little summer project, which will involve using that up with the camera. This could be “Summer of Hasselblad”!

12 thoughts on “Hasselblad Happiness”

    1. Hi Ian, I think it’s pretty universal really. I don’t think we should feel guilty about it, I always say to people it’s like woodwork – if you meet someone who is passionate about making things in wood, and good at it, they won’t just have one way of cutting the wood they will have several, they won’t just have one chisel either. They are all tools with their own nuances. Different cameras are tools of photographers. At least that’s my story and I’m sticking to it! 🙂 When I was younger (and couldn’t afford one) I always fancied a C330 that lingered in a local camera shop window for a few years. Eventually I must have sold and I forgot about… until later in life, finally got one, used it little and in a fit of poor judgement part exchanged it for something else! Such is life!! – Cheers Andy

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      1. I know they’re just tools, but don’t they look sexy af! Even better when you know how to use them. Also the perfect conversation starters too.

        I was influenced by Vivian Mayer and got I to the way the camera we use shapes our photography. The fact of looking down being so much les confrontational.

        When I go out with the C220 I almost feel like a proper photographer!

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    1. Hi Nick! Very kind! Thank you! Yes, I always intend to have good negatives rather than a box of film in the fridge, but “the mind is strong but the body is weak!” lol I have set myself a little project that hopefully will give me a jolt in the right direction!! Here’s to sunny days!!! Cheers Andy

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  3. I’ve got a Richoflex Diacord TLR which is probably lighter and a bit smaller than a Hassy, but still not light or small. Because of “the dance” and the size I rarely use it, as my 35mm machines are much easier for day-to-day action. But I do enjoy the results when I take it out.

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    1. Hi Shawn! It’s a common theme, they are lovely cameras, in fact only today I was looking at another Rolleicord! Luckily I had a sudden attack of common sense and for once didn’t buy it! I’ve had one before and I know after a couple of rolls it would go in the cupboard, and I’d feel bad about not using it!! There will be the right day and the right time to get a roll of film in the Diacord and enjoy using it!! Cheers Andy

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  5. I joined the past days with a Summer of Hasselblad (start). I even took a tripod on the trip, but never used it. This time – very new for me, I even took two more lenses beside the standard with me and I used them all. I love to dance with my hassi – but ja, it’s not rally an every day camera.

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    1. Hi Juna! I agree they are not the best “everyday camera”, but when we get out with them and put the effort in, the results are often rewarding. In a strange way I enjoy the fact the viewfinder image is horizontally flipped I think it makes me concentrate of composition more! I only have one other lens, a small telephoto, but that combined with the other back, the camera, the meter and so on, does make for a hefty camera bag – You have some very good images on your website too, congratulations! – Cheers Andy

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