Robert Randall wrote:
I just had a demo with an H3D 50. I shot tethered to a Mac dual 3Ghz duop core Xenon running Phocus software. It absolutely rocked! I've been shooting Leaf on H2 for a few years, and it seems Hblad has caught up. With the demise of Rollie, and the firing of the Leaf rep without a replacement, it seems the writing is on the wall for Leaf. I need to make a decision between Phase and Hblad, so I'm wondering if anyone has experience with both. Obviously I will demo a Phase as well, but I absolutely hate the Mamiya platform, and the Hblad is no longer available to Phase.

Anyone?

You can still use a phase back on the H2. I think your rental options are going to be better with Hasselblad. I don't know much about the digital tech scene though.

Justin
www.justinbermanphotography.com

Digital Soup wrote:
Duop core is hard core.

How did it feel in your hands?

Hey soup, how you been?

It doesn't feel any different than the H2, which is cool. It uses a 800 fire wire connection, so its a bit quicker than my Leaf. The software was easy to understand, and has a nicer interface than the Leaf. The files processed to Tiff so quickly, I had to double check they were done. The 50 produces files that are approximately 8000X6000, 143 MB 8 bit tif. A little small for my needs, so I think Stephen is right, the 60 is a must.

Robert Randall wrote:
Hey soup, how you been?

It doesn't feel any different than the H2, which is cool. It uses a 800 fire wire connection, so its a bit quicker than my Leaf. The software was easy to understand, and has a nicer interface than the Leaf. The files processed to Tiff so quickly, I had to double check they were done. The 50 produces files that are approximately 8000X6000, 143 MB 8 bit tif. A little small for my needs, so I think Stephen is right, the 60 is a must.

the phase and 60 are larger sensors also. 

And do you actually use 8bit? 

Stephen Eastwood
http://www.PhotographersPortfolio.com

Stan Glass wrote:
I am still using the Leaf Aptus II-10 backs on the Contax 645 cameras.  I buy them in mint condition and stock them so if they break they get junked for parts.  I love the look of the Leaf backs compared to the H3D, they lenses are not quote the same, Contax wins.

I am looking at new Phase P65+ backs in June as the Leafs will be ready to trade.

Hasselblad = Proprietary systems

I wish Hblad hadn't reigned in their system, because I have a feeling i would like the Phase better than the Hblad back, but I simply hate the Mamiya. I suppose i could buy up H2's for backup, but that seems like a technologically backward move to me.

Robert Randall wrote:
I just had a demo with an H3D 50. I shot tethered to a Mac dual 3Ghz duop core Xenon running Phocus software. It absolutely rocked! I've been shooting Leaf on H2 for a few years, and it seems Hblad has caught up. With the demise of Rollie, and the firing of the Leaf rep without a replacement, it seems the writing is on the wall for Leaf. I need to make a decision between Phase and Hblad, so I'm wondering if anyone has experience with both. Obviously I will demo a Phase as well, but I absolutely hate the Mamiya platform, and the Hblad is no longer available to Phase.

Anyone?

I hate you.. jealious...lol..

Iam sure you rocked it !

Happy easter  Buddy!

StephenEastwood wrote:
the phase and 60 are larger sensors also. 

And do you actually use 8bit? 

Stephen Eastwood
http://www.PhotographersPortfolio.com

Stephen... In May I will have spent 20 years riding a computer. I've had luminaries such as Jeff Schewe in my studio trying to convince me to see what he sees in a 16 bit file. It simply ain't there. I wouldn't waste my time or computer space running 16 bit for anyone or any reason, except one... if they ever produce a 16 bit output device, I'll check it out, but I won't promise a thing.

Robert Randall wrote:
Stephen... In May I will have spent 20 years riding a computer. I've had luminaries such as Jeff Schewe in my studio trying to convince me to see what he sees in a 16 bit file. It simply ain't there. I wouldn't waste my time or computer space running 16 bit for anyone or any reason, except one... if they ever produce a 16 bit output device, I'll check it out, but I won't promise a thing.

charging clients for the extra is worth a lot.

Just saying.  You shoot a 16it capture, you save a 16 bit file, you use a BluRay for backup, all costs more time and money and all gets charged accordingly, margins go up.  Capture fees, storage fees, burn fees, conversion fees, processing fees, retouching fees, all marked up on average.

Stephen Eastwood
http://www.PhotographersPortfolio.com

Robert Randall wrote:
if they ever produce a 16 bit output device, I'll check it out, but I won't promise a thing.

canon can print a 16bit near adobe rgb gamut on the IPF printers.  What you need is a IPF 9100 60inch wide format printer 

Stephen Eastwood
http://www.PhotographersPortfolio.com

Robert Randall wrote:
Stephen... In May I will have spent 20 years riding a computer. I've had luminaries such as Jeff Schewe in my studio trying to convince me to see what he sees in a 16 bit file. It simply ain't there. I wouldn't waste my time or computer space running 16 bit for anyone or any reason, except one... if they ever produce a 16 bit output device, I'll check it out, but I won't promise a thing.

Storage has become very cheap, though. I can see your point, but it seems to me that shooting 16 bit now future-proofs your images.

Stephen Melvin wrote:

Storage has become very cheap, though. I can see your point, but it seems to me that shooting 16 bit now future-proofs your images.

Its all raw, 8 or 16 bit is a post process decision, at least up until now it has been.

StephenEastwood wrote:

canon can print a 16bit near adobe rgb gamut on the IPF printers.  What you need is a IPF 9100 60inch wide format printer 

Stephen Eastwood
http://www.PhotographersPortfolio.com

Right now I'm all Epson, but as soon as image print comes up with a rip for the Canon, I'm probably moving over.

Robert Randall wrote:
Right now I'm all Epson, but as soon as image print comes up with a rip for the Canon, I'm probably moving over.

canon has its own very good software rip equivalent included free, have you ever tried it?  All you need to do for the IPF printers is create a custom calibration per media like any printer out.  They put a lot of energy into the printer line in the past 4 years to outdo the Epsons, since Epson had such a lock on that market  

Stephen Eastwood
http://www.PhotographersPortfolio.com

Robert Randall wrote:
Hey soup, how you been?

It doesn't feel any different than the H2, which is cool. It uses a 800 fire wire connection, so its a bit quicker than my Leaf. The software was easy to understand, and has a nicer interface than the Leaf. The files processed to Tiff so quickly, I had to double check they were done. The 50 produces files that are approximately 8000X6000, 143 MB 8 bit tif. A little small for my needs, so I think Stephen is right, the 60 is a must.

Nice to See ya Robert. L.A. is a blast. That 60 sounds impressive. I wonder if you can down loud sound effect for the actuation, so that it sounds like a rocket being launched when you push the shutter? Would be fun around models

Digital Soup wrote:

Nice to See ya Robert. L.A. is a blast. That 60 sounds impressive. I wonder if you can down loud sound effect for the actuation, so that it sounds like a rocket being launched when you push the shutter? Would be fun around models

I already have that on an 8 track tape in my pants... it would just confuse them.

Jarrad Kevin wrote:
Just curious, what is it bout the Mamiya platform you dislike so much?

sync.

lenses, sync, body design, sync. 

I am not in sync with it

Stephen Eastwood
http://www.PhotographersPortfolio.com

StephenEastwood wrote:

sync.

lenses, sync, body design, sync. 

I am not in sync with it

Stephen Eastwood
http://www.PhotographersPortfolio.com

Aren't they coming out with some Leaf shutter lenses soon?

Which Medium Format body do you prefer?

Jarrad Kevin wrote:
Aren't they coming out with some Leaf shutter lenses soon?

Which Medium Format body do you prefer?

I use the H2's now, I preferred the contax way back when for glass, but not sync, and have yet to find a body I like that much, but am used to the H2.  So far I only actually care about three lenses, the 210, 300 and 120, if I were to use a wide, its usually a 120, but I could see maybe as wide as a 55, but for me and what I need that is rare, so any leaf lens that is not at least a 210 but more like a 300 is not useful for what I want it for.

Stephen Eastwood
http://www.PhotographersPortfolio.com

Jarrad Kevin wrote:

Aren't they coming out with some Leaf shutter lenses soon?

Which Medium Format body do you prefer?

They could be coming out with diamond plated leaf shutters and i still wouldn't like that cheap thunky hunk of crap... and what Stephen said too.

StephenEastwood wrote:

I use the H2's now, I preferred the contax way back when for glass, but not sync, and have yet to find a body I like that much, but am used to the H2.  So far I only actually care about three lenses, the 210, 300 and 120, if I were to use a wide, its usually a 120, but I could see maybe as wide as a 55, but for me and what I need that is rare, so any leaf lens that is not at least a 210 but more like a 300 is not useful for what I want it for.

Stephen Eastwood
http://www.PhotographersPortfolio.com

and I use the 35mm for portraits... go figure.

Robert Randall wrote:
and I use the 35mm for portraits... go figure.

you like wide, I like long, maybe we are making up for something 


I also saw you using a wide lens on the canon in your video, was that a 17-40 or 16-35?


Stephen Eastwood
http://www.PhotographersPortfolio.com

Cody Photography wrote:
Robert

I shoot an H2 with a Leaf 75 and love the results, but like the possibility of the Hasselblad HTS for architecture.  I have not tried it yet but it seems to make more sense if you have the DAC/Phocus software.

When I bought the H2/Leaf combo at the time the Hasselblad software was supposedly not that great, so I opted for the Leaf.  It sounds like your experience refutes that, so that along with your comment about the possible demise of Leaf has set me thinking. Do you really think Leaf will disappear?

Don

Hblad screwed them all when they took their product off the shelf, and then when Leaf decided to go with Rollie, that was a death knell as far as I can tell. They have no platform to put their back on. As I said earlier, choosing to buy H2 used is not an option for me, and I'm sure the people at Leaf know that is a similar thought for a lot of guys. I can't think of a viable platform out there, and i don't think Mamiya wants to piss Phase off, although, Phase would be in a lurch without Mamiya. The opnly salvation I can think of for Leaf, is toborrow Kodak money, and build their own camera. If they built one as well as they made their back, I would buy into it.

Robert Randall wrote:
I can't think of a viable platform out there

lets start a petition to get Canon to enter the DB market and make backs and body lens line  I am in!!!



Stephen Eastwood
http://www.PhotographersPortfolio.com

Cody Photography wrote:
That's a good point.  Mamiya is now in bed with Phase (I'm not sure who's on top).  Franke Heidke who I believe is the builder for Sinar/Leaf Hy6 is in trouble, and Hassy has frozen Leaf out, so that doesn't leave much.

Did you like the look you got with the Hassy back?  It sounds like operationally the software is a little easier to use than the Leaf?

I did like the look, very similar to the Leaf. I had everything set up as default, so there wasn't a ton of anything affecting the image, including very little sharpening, which in the past with hblad, was a major problem.

All in all, it was a surprisingly good experience. Dodd Camera in chicago is renting the unit for $350.oo a day, which is cheap by comparison to the Phase and Leaf at $500.00 per day.

StephenEastwood wrote:
lets start a petition to get Canon to enter the DB market and make backs and body lens line  I am in!!!



Stephen Eastwood
http://www.PhotographersPortfolio.com

At the rate Nikon is going, you're going to become an explorer of darkness pretty soon, we might have better luck with them!

Robert Randall wrote:
At the rate Nikon is going, you're going to become an explorer of darkness pretty soon, we might have better luck with them!

Stephen Eastwood
http://www.PhotographersPortfolio.com

StephenEastwood wrote:




Stephen Eastwood
http://www.PhotographersPortfolio.com

Don't be mad, get even!

Robert Randall wrote:
I just had a demo with an H3D 50. I shot tethered to a Mac dual 3Ghz duop core Xenon running Phocus software. It absolutely rocked! I've been shooting Leaf on H2 for a few years, and it seems Hblad has caught up. With the demise of Rollie, and the firing of the Leaf rep without a replacement, it seems the writing is on the wall for Leaf. I need to make a decision between Phase and Hblad, so I'm wondering if anyone has experience with both. Obviously I will demo a Phase as well, but I absolutely hate the Mamiya platform, and the Hblad is no longer available to Phase.

Anyone?

::leaves thread dripping with envy and goes to kick rocks down the street::

Cody Photography wrote:
Mamiya is now in bed with Phase (I'm not sure who's on top).

Phase appear to be on top right now to judge by the recent press release http://phaseone.com/

JaMmCaT Photography wrote:
Its really a shame that the H-series Hasselblads are THE UGLIEST medium format cameras out there. They look and feel cheap in comparison to the V system, and any other modern 645 MF system. Bleh.

Are you sure? The reason I ask is because I just went to your mm page where I found the first installment of the Jamcat equivilent of War And Peace. I got through part of chapter one before I quit reading. I quit because I realized two things, I was bored out of my mind, and you seem to contradict yourself frequently. I decided at that point to take a look at your pictures, where I couldn't help but notice they were a contradiction to your contradictions. I figured since you're a student, the contradictions are born of either youthful exhuberance combined with inexperience and a measure of stupidity, or you study philsophy, which in the real world is a complete waste of your parents money, but will allow you to nail the duality of man thing well enough so that when you make contradtictory statements, you think you don't look stupid.

Whew, that was a long sentence!

Anyhow, with regard to the H2, I've actually worked with every medium format camera known to mankind, including that stupid abortion out of Russia, and I dare say, you must be brain dead. So I repeat, noting your proclivity for contradiction... Are you sure?