Hasselblad H1D Vs. Mamiya 645 AFD II

[kittybuddha]

This is a follow-up question to my post "Can't find a digital back." After a

lot research I'd finally decided on the Mamiya 645 AFD II with three lenses.

Today I found a Hasselblad H1D for around the same price. I didn't choose

Hasselblad the first time because the Mamiya was lower in price. I'm not

certain the lenses are that much different (I could be VERY wrong). It's my

understanding that the Hasselblad lenses are made by Fuji now & not Zeiss.

The H1D I found comes with a 22MP digital back & 40 GB's of storage. I had

planned on purchasing a Leaf 65 (28MP) back for the Mamiya. Any advice would

be appreciated (again).

[carl_keeley]

Does the H1 come with 3 lenses too? Or just the standard?

What and where are you shooting?

[kittybuddha]

Thanks, Carl. With the Mamiya I can buy a: 55-110mm zoom, 105-210 mm zoom & a 150mm prime lens. The Hasselblad comes with the standard 80mm lens & I can buy the 50-110mm & a 150mm prime lens. Both of these systems (as described) are approximately the same price. I'll be shooting fashion, portraits & some location (advertising) stuff.

[fotografz]

Skyy, These are different types of cameras:

 

 

The H1 is a leaf shutter system and the Mamiya is a focal plane camera. Top shutter speed

on the H is 1/800th but it flash syncs at all those speeds all the way up to 1/800th. The

Mamiya has a top shutter speed of 1/4000th but tops out at a 1/125th flash sync.

 

The Mamiya AFD-II is the latest version of that camera. The H1 is now 2 generations old ...

H2D & H3D are current models, ( not that the H1 isn't excellent ).

 

 

LENSES:

 

Comparible depending on what criteria you subscribe to. If you include manual focus

lenses, there are more available for the Mamiya, and they are less expensive. If you get the

CF adapter for the H camera, then all Zeiss manual focus lenses from the 500 V series

work with fully automatic aperture control.

 

 

DIGITAL BACKS:

 

Is the Hasselblad back a CFH/22 or CF/22? CF in the name means it accepts a CF card for

shooting unthethered. All Hasselblad 22 meg backs are 49X36.7 sized sensors with 9

micron sized pixes that shoot up to ISO 400. 8 Bit files produce 66 meg tiffs.

 

OR, do you have to use the fire wire 400, 40 gig Imacon Image Bank to shoot portable? If

you have to use the Image Bank, then be aware that it requires carrying around the Image

Bank tethered to the back at all times. That Imacon Image Bank is fairly large and since has

been replaced with a 100 gig, firewire 800 version the size of a pack of cigarettes ... which

does NOT work on the back you are considering.

 

The Aptus 65: This is a 44X33 sized sensor that produces a 8 bit, 80 meg tiff file. The

slightly smaller sensor size means there is a crop factor to the lens focal length. The

Aptus has a top ISO of 800 compared to the Hasselblad's 400. The 800 is quite good on

the Aptus BTW.

 

RECOMMENDATION:

 

This is opinion based on currently owning and using an Aptus 75 on a Mamiya AFD-II with

an array of Mamiya AF lenses and some manual lenses also ... plus a Hasselblad H2D/CFH

22 and H3D/39 with an array of H/C lenses as well as use of all my Zeiss CFi and CFE

glass via the CF Adapter.

 

Of the two considerations you are looking at, I'd recommend the Mamiya AFD-II and Aptus

65 back. It's simply more up-to-date compared to the H1 (especially if you must use the

Image Bank with the 22 meg back). As I mentioned in an earilier post, I'd push for the

Aptus 65s version which is a faster acting back.

 

Things I don't like about the Mamiya AFD-II:

 

The battery situation to run the camera is a PITA. It takes 6 AA batteries in the grip, and

runs low quickly even with well conditioned 2900 mAh rechargables. I strongly suggest

getting 2 extra battery grip inserts for quick change out while shooting.

 

There is a bug in the system as of now when using a Metz flash with the recommended

SCA 3952 Metz Module. It defaults to ISO 100 and nothing you can do will change it.

 

The AF is good, but not as good as the H2 and H3 cameras I use. They are faster.

 

I'm not as fond of some Mamiya 645 glass, especially the zooms. The fixed focal length 55

is very good, and my 210/4 APO is excellent. But, frankly, I'm splitting hairs here.

 

As a note: either of these cameras blows away my Canon 1DsMKII by a wide margin.

[carl_keeley]

Wow! what a great post ;-)

[kittybuddha]

Thank you so much, Marc! You definitely helped me make my decision. I'm going with the Mamiya AFD II with the Leaf Aptus 65s back. When I ordered it from Calumet today I got a free upgrade from the 65 to the 65s saving approx. $3,000.00! Right now, I'm going to go with the 55-110mm & the 105-210mm plus the 150mm fixed focal lens. Take Care.

[fotografz]

Post photos when you get it up and running Skyy.

 

That's a "Killer-Diller-Thriller-Chiller" digital back : -)

[vital1]

i would die to choose the afdII rather the h1. $0.2 :)

[kittybuddha]

Thanks, Marc. I'll post after my first use. Unfortunately it could take 8-10 weeks to get my Leaf back.

[colin_elliott]

Once again, Marc has shared so freely with all, his expertise, knowledge and insight on things MF digital.

 

Whether we act on, buy as a result of, or 'merely' read his suggestions, we are all the more and better informed.

 

Thanks again Marc

 

Colin

[nathaniel_brown1]

This is a bit of a variant on the post, but if it was a H2 vs a 645 AFD II.. minus the factor of 2x price would the Mamiya still be the better choice?