Hasselblad Lens to EOS Camera Adapter

[bob_nemchin]

I've read about the availability of adapters to mount Hassy lenses on

Canon EOC 35 mm cameras. I can visualize the advantages of the

superior Hassy lenses together with the large number of exposures

available with 35 mm film. Also I can use my Hassy close up

attachments without having to buy separate 35 mm close up equip and

lenses. The adapter is available in eBay for about $75-80. Has

anyone had experience with this arrangement and with the quality of

photos that this adapter would produce?

[shambrick007]

"visualize the advantages of the superior Hassy lenses" - Really? On the smaller format after enlargemnt?

[ken_mccallum1]

I've been using a Hasselblad to EOS adapter for over a year. Purchased it on Ebay from a fellow in Hong Kong for around $90. Recently, I bought a Canon 20D digital camera body & use my 6 Hassy lenses along with a standard Canon lens that came with the camera and have acheived very good results. Prior to buying the digital back, I tested the hasselblad lenses against the Canon consumer grade lenses & found that the Hassy lenses offered much more contrast on 35mm film. The 20D now gives me an 8.2 MP camera back for only $1500... much cheaper than anything else on the market.

 

I'm sure the "experts" will all disagree. Spend the $80 and see for yourself. You'll need to use the aperature preview on your Hasselblad lens to set your aperature when shooting. It's easier to focus with the lens wide open. Otherwise, use your Canon EOS just like you would with any Canon lens in the manual focus mode with aperature priority.

 

Ken

[ben z]

"The 20D now gives me an 8.2 MP camera back for only $1500... much cheaper than anything else on the market.

I'm sure the "experts" will all disagree."

 

The 20D gives you an 8.2MP camera back for only $1500 _with a 15x22.5mm sensor_. Thus a 40mm Distagon which is the widest rectilinear lens you can get for the Hasselblad becomes a medium wide/standard on a full-frame 35mm body (or a 1Ds)and a short tele (35mm equiv of 64mm)on the 20D. It doesn't sound to melike a viable alternative to an MF digital back, but I'm not an expert.

[bob_nemchin]

Sheldon, Ken, and Ben: Thank you all for your prompt responses to my query. Sheldon, you make a good point, but I do not plan to make enlargements greater than 8.5 x 11 for portfolio purposes. For bigger enlargements, I use my Hassy or LF camera. My intent with the adapter is for close up photography, and to shoot lots of film inexpensively. 120 and 220 film and processing is getting too expensive on my retirement income. A Canon 20D is in my future, but no date yet.

Again many thanks to you all. Bob

[ken_mccallum1]

Bob,

 

In my area, the medium format processing has gotten too expensive for me and impossible to find. I finally lost patience when a local lab went out of business with three rolls of my film. Using the adapter & Shooting onto a 35mm format with my Hasselblad lenses was a good alternative since I already owned the lenses and a Canon EOS Elan.

 

Also, photography is one of my hobbies & I don't have $5000-$10,000 to spend on a camera back just in case I decide to blow a picture up to billboard size.

 

I hope this helps.

 

Ken

[ben z]

If you can't afford to have 120 film processed why not sell the Hasselblad lenses? If you bought second-hand you could get some very decent Canon glass in focal lengths that compensate the 1.6x crop, and still have cash left over. As an example the 85mm f/1.8 Canon is a very sharp lens, a full stop faster than an 80 Planar, has a diaphragm that couples with the camera, and costs less than $300 in mint condition. A 70-200/2.8 is a stop faster than the 150 or 180 Sonnars, likewise couples to the diaphragm, is a tack-sharp lens and costs less than $800 mint.

[bob_nemchin]

Ken and Ben; Thank you both for your additional comments. I now have enough information to make some informed judgements as to my course of action. The suggestion by Ben to sell the Hassy gear and use the funds for high quality 35mm lenses is very compelling (I still will hold on to my LF gear). However, there is an emotional aspect associated with owning Hassy gear, aside from the high quality of the photos, and it may be difficult to part with it. Looking forward at digital with its high quality photos, may be the deciding factor in moving away from medium format altogether. You all have given me something to ponder more intensely with this issue.

 

Bob

[audun_sjoeseth1]

Bob: I don't know what kind of Hasselblad lenses you have, but I have an exellent CFi100/3.5 and some tubes that I plan to use on my EOS-1N film body (and later on a Canon DSLR). I don't have a 100mm in Canon.

 

I also have a CF-FLE50/4, but that lens I'll only use on my Hasselblad to get wide angle of high quality. For my EOS (film or digital) I'll buy an EF50/2.5 macro.

 

I'll keep my Hasselblad an my 2 lenses for chromes (Provia 100F/Astia 100F) or B&W in the future even if I go digital :-)

[mazza]

Ive never seen anything from this adapter myself, but two day's ago I bought one off ebay for about $80. This is to use on my new Canon EOS 1DS body. The reason im doing it this way is just because I didn't have any money to spend on a lens for the DSLR and I had my Hasselblad equipment which was ready to use. I personally think this is as close as you can get to MF quality on a DSLR.

I only have one lens now, the 80 2,8 T* CF. but the great thing is that next time I wanne invest in a lens I'll buy a new/used Hasselblad lens and volla, I have upgraded two camera systems, in a way:) I'll post some test samples if you guys want when I get the adapter. I would recomend to go buy and adapter for sure.

[jasonm]

I use a cheap Nikon mount adapter I got off eBay on my Canon 20D. It's nice to be able to use my 24mm f/2.8 AI, 50mm f/1.2 AI and 105mm f/1.8 AIS. I don't mind the stopped down metering and the screen on the 20D is actually pretty damn good for focusing manually.

 

The Canon primes are really good so I'd be surprised if you get any sort of quality advantage by going this route.

 

-jason m

[mazza]

I got my adapter today and was really happy with it. The only "bad" thing Is that my camera is like a brick to hold now!

 

I just have a question when using Hasselblad lens on my EOS. I have to use the aperture priority right when shooting? And I need to set the f.number on the Hasselblad lens using DOP preview before I can shoot. Anything else I should know?

[bob_nemchin]

Thank you folks for adding to the comments on my question. I see it has generated a number of comments, most of them favorable, for the use of the adapter. I think that the cost of the adapter is relatively inexpensive, and provides more flexibility with the camera/lens options that I have available. You have convinced me to buy one. I will report on my experiences in a future communication.

 

Bob

[kelly_flanigan1]

Hasselblad Lens to XYZ adapters are as old as Hasselblad. Once there were Hasselblad focal plane lenses to Exakta VX 35mm lens adapters; for the first Kodak Ektars of the 1940's and early 1950's. Then there were adapters for Nikon F; screwmount slr; C mount movie; etc. <BR><BR>Cheap adapters "focus past infinity"; and use looser tolerances to give a lower cost adapter. More expensive adapters have tighter tolerances; and are made to focus spot on at infinity. <BR><BR>Sometimes these adapters will better a camermakers lens; other times it is a wash; or worse. <BR><BR>The DOF criteria is often wider for MF versus 35mm; ie the DOF tick marks are too wide for 35mm; when a MF lens is used. <BR><BR>Some setups are damn heavy; be carefull when using a huge heavy lens; dont ripp the lens mounts off ! :)

[william_markey]

<p>Since this thread is multiple years old, are there any experiences that anyone can talk about now after having the adapter for several years? Did you see any ACTUAL VISUAL improvement by using the Hassy lenses on the Canon cameras? I was looking at buying this adapter, but if using the Hassy lenses did not significantly improve the images from the Canon I see no point in buying it. Thanks for any responses!!</p>

[andre_hunt1]

<p>I have the canon 5D. I too am intersted in using hasselblad and zeiss glass with it, but we should all remember that therre are good to excellent glass lenses in the Hass. and Zeiss lines. IF you have the best glass, then it's pretty irresistible not to want to use them on a DSLR. However, note that the resolution of even the 21 megapixel full frame sensor on the Canon 5D is nowhere near what film is, and I am finding that many of my shots taken with the best of canon's lenses..the 24mmL prime, and the 70-200L still have a kind of softness to them. I can always change the settings to landscape, which adds sharpness to certain colors, etc. but aren't we being taken by these cameras to some degree? I am shooting raw, and if I leave the camera setting at standard, why shouldn't I get a very sharp picture with all that I'm using and paying for? Why do I need to add sharpness in the camera, or Lightroom, or Photoshop, when I'm using a massive tripod, locking the mirror up, and using a remote actuator to snap the shot? Also, if you mess with extreme situations, like shooting the golden gate bridge at night, you'll be dumbfounded at how many shots done this way remain unsharp...is it the reds in the bridge? Manual override doesn't improve the situation. Hang onto your film cameras....I actually bought the 5D for the video...with some projects in mind...only in standard mode does the video look the most natural, but it also looks soft. Why soft if I'm using all my sharp stuff? Image in the finder/eyepiece is very sharp, and I'v dialed in the eyepiece carefully.</p>