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Panorama camera
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Hi all
I am toying with the idea of purchasing the Hasselblad Panorama camera which can also be used to photograph single frame shots. The parorama effect comes from shooting two 35mm frames side4 by side.
Does anyone who has used this camera know if it compares with proper parorama cameras where the lens rolls across the film plane.
Regards :?:
If you are talking about hasselblad’s xpan I can only say it’s one of the best cameras I’ve ever worked with. There are 3 lenses that are especially made for this camera (90mm, 45mm and a wide angle, 30mm I think) and a centre spot filter to allow for even exposure in panorama format. I can only recommend this piece of equipment, but if I’m not mistaken it has been discontinued.
Yeah, XPan is out of production as far as I know. Don’t forget, it’s a range finder i.e. you won’t see through the lens like an SLR so there’s more of an art to framing the shot and the same when you use graduated filters.
It’s meant to be a fantastic camera alright. Although alot of pro’s are actually using digital SLR’s and stitching the pics together. Just make sure you get the appropriate tripod head so the camera pivots around the axis of the camera/lens so everything lines up properly.
The XPan is a gazillion times more portable and cheaper to run than a medium format Panoramic camera like the I think it’s Fuji GX 617 or something like that. Results will obviously be superb but it would be OTT for most.
How pro are you willing to go so to speak? You’ll need deep pockets for a 617.
The camera uses lead solder in its manufacture of its circuit boards. Which is now banned by the EU. Its too expensive for Hasselblad to redesign a specialised film camera like this. There was a relatively cheap one advertised for weeks on end in buyandsell. The guy was selling a 45mm lens and a 90mm lens, I’d take the 90mm if you wanted to deal.
Anyway its a most amazing camera and produces the most amazing negatives, so sharp.
Why not call out to http://www.dml.ie and dribble on their display case. I think they would hire you one.
Hi Guys
Thanks for the help and information regarding the Hasselblad XPAn. Right enough, it is discontinued due to lead content and the EU directive.
The problem I find with stitching in photoshop is a lot of work has to be done in getting correct exposure / brightness etc in different side-by-side shots. I personally believe that all or most of the work should be done inside the camera.
Regards
Mike
:roll:mike grehan wrote:
The problem I find with stitching in photoshop is a lot of work has to be done in getting correct exposure / brightness etc in different side-by-side shots. I personally believe that all or most of the work should be done inside the camera.
I wholeheartedly agree with you on the philosophy of doing most of the work in the camera! I would have thought if you shoot on manual exposure, it would keep the exposure consistent across the various frames you want to stitch and lead to a natural transition from darker to lighter (or vice – versa) areas?
mike grehan wrote:
The problem I find with stitching in photoshop is a lot of work has to be done in getting correct exposure / brightness etc in different side-by-side shots. I personally believe that all or most of the work should be done inside the camera.
Mike, you’re right there. Heres a book you might be interested in http://www.rotovision.com/description.asp?isbn=2-88046-692-X#
Even second hand X-Pan are pricey, particularly when you add lenses, They do give brilliant results. They are very heavy they feel like solid steel. Have a look some of our xpan shots:
http://www.allmono.com/search.php?search_type=search&keywords=5%3A2+65%3A24I would suggest (assuming you have an SLR or DigitalSLR) to buy the widest lens you can find and experiment with the panoramic format by cropping your images to a ratio of 65:24 (as xpan film on 35mm is 65mm wide x 24mm high)
Ideally if film is your thing get a second hand Haselblad 500CM and a 40, 50 or 80mm lens this will give you 60x60mm nearly the same width as the xpan (65) then you can tape off the view finder ground glass screen to the 65:24 format, needless to say this will be a much more versatile solution, also less distortion at the edges of images too!* (You could always get a digital back at a later stage)
If its mega resolution you crave, obviously the Fuji GX617 or similar is the thing.
* Using wide lenses (45mm) on the X-Pan – then about 5mm on each side is a little bit iffy, for example in a crowd scene you would notice people heads looking stretched horizontally, strangely enough there is virtually no distortion from a 50mm lens on a Hasselblad 6×6 camera.
Andr? wrote:
If its mega resolution you crave, obviously the Fuji GX617 or similar is the thing.
Yes that is indeed a great camera. Alternatively, if you want to shoot 6×17 digitally and create 160Mp images and happen to have a ?28,900.00 lying around you could always get yourself a Seitz 6×17 Digital panorama camera.
Although Seitz say that “We designed this camera to meet the expectations of those photographers who like to take their equipment on exploratory adventures.” I think you’ll agree it is a little on the large side :D
Thorsten wrote:
Although Seitz say that “We designed this camera to meet the expectations of those photographers who like to take their equipment on exploratory adventures.” I think you’ll agree it is a little on the large side :D
:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:
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