Newbie. Looking to expand my kit and knowledge

[Ti29er]

Firstly, I’ll say hello. Which I guess is customary in most every society!
I have an old manual 501c and accompanying 80mm.
If you were to purchase 2 more lenses, what would they be?
I was thinking along the lines of 50mm and 150mm or for landscapes.
Thereafter do you then have the negatives scanned and have a cd of images produced at the sam time?
I can then stitch images together for panoramics etc should I wish to thereafter.
This is how I see it panning out (pardon the pun) but am I correct?
Thanks
Tim


PLease, do not use black print for letters.

 

[polypal]

Firstly, I’ll say hello. Which I guess is customary in most every society!
I have an old manual 501c and accompanying 80mm.
If you were to purchase 2 more lenses, what would they be?
I was thinking along the lines of 50mm and 150mm or for landscapes.
Thereafter do you then have the negatives scanned and have a cd of images produced at the sam time?
I can then stitch images together for panoramics etc should I wish to thereafter.
This is how I see it panning out (pardon the pun) but am I correct?
Thanks
Tim

OK.

 

[Ti29er]

Useful.

 

[wbulte]

Useful.

Very. But to answer your question, sortof: I would buy a 50mm first.

Basically because I like wide-angle lenses. And because I use my 50 the most.

But no-one can really answer this kind of question, as it is very much a matter of personal taste and the work you want to do with it.

There are multiple threads on this forum (one called something like "my favourite lens") that go into (deep) discussions on what lenses people prefer. Might be interesting reading.

Wilko

 

[Ti29er]

Thanks.
I really know nothing about 'Blad lenses!
I just bought the body and 80mm to do some jobs with a while back. It paid for its self several times over but now I need more knowledge on which are the better lenses optically that will fit the body well as I want to try and take more landscapes with it and the 50mm and the 150mm seemed like ideal focal lengths.
Any thoughts?
Thanks
Tim

 

[polypal]

Welcome Tim!

Sorry Tim,

I forgot to welcome you as a new user to hasselbladinfo forum.
Your black print post asked my attention where instead I should have welcomed you.

Like Wilko wrote lenses are a personal thing.

Carl Zeiss only made two kinds of lenses for Hasselblad:
Very good ones and even better ones.

Except for the wide angles most other lenses were improved only with small steps.
WA lenses are an exception. As soon as floating elements designs are introduced their performance has seen great improvement.
Despite that older designs are still being sold and used frequently.





Different generations of lenses and bodies:

Left: Later 500 CM with CF style 80 mm lens.

Right: Early 500CM body with C series 40 mm lens.
This 40 mm lens has seen two newer generations now but these large wide angles are still being used
despite their expensive filter size B 104!

 

[Ti29er]

Thanks.
That's one Hell of a lens! And like you say, the filter size is going to cost!
Do I need to look for a particular set of numbers or codes pre / suffixing these WA lenses with the floating elements if there is a big difference in quality?
The 150mm. Is there a particular model that's going to be available 2nd hand that you'd be looking out for in my position? Or would a 250mm (?) be far better for compressing mountain scenes IYO?
Were it 35mm, I'd be looking at 28mm and 180mm or thereabouts I guess.
Thanks
Tim

 

[polypal]

50 mm Wide angle lenses

The 50 mm for the V series starts as a lens with silver barrel and early coating.

Early seventies saw the arrival of T* multicoating.
The silver lenses got T*. Only a limited amount of these lenses were made.

Next step is the switch from silver to black barrel.
All black 50 mm lenses have T* coating.

In 1982 Zeiss changed the barrels again and also fitted a different shutter.
This lens was the last 50 mm WA without FLE.
In 1989 the first 50 mm lens with FLE for the 500 series cameras was introduced.

That lens was later fitted in a different barrel that changed the filter size from B60 to B 70.


To get some idea of the evolution of Zeiss lenses for Hasselblad go to:
http://hasselbladinfo.com/forum/showthread.php?t=3555

Any questions just ask.
Do not forget even the first generation of 50 mm WA lenses are very, very good lenses.



50 mm silver barrel lens with T*, the rare one!

 

[polypal]

Were it 35mm, I'd be looking at 28mm and 180mm or thereabouts I guess.

Tim

A rough guide to convert focal length from 35 to MF is the multiply with 1.6 giving around 45 or 50 mm for a 28 mm in MF.
The 180 is about 300 mm.

You hit the jackpot with that one.
The 300 mm only exists as a TPP lens of which only 43 pieces were made.
Zeiss did not have enough of the special glass used for this lens to make more lenses.
At 25.000 euro ist is a bargain.

Better settle for the 250 or the 350 lenses.
From the C series these can be found at very friendly prices.

 

[Ti29er]

Thank you everyone.
I'll get to work looking out for these lenses and report back with some examples.
Here is where I live, it needs updating!

Tim

 

[cs_foto]

i have both 50mm CF and 150mm CF, the 50mm is amazingly sharp, i love that lens, on the other hand is a bit tricky with distorsions, specially for full frame 6x6cm images... you have to play a lot with the horizon.. at least from my experience, in fact if someone knows some tips feel free to share

the 150mm is a perfect portrait lens, short distance though, a little compression, if any at all...

never tried longer lenses but definetely would love to use something in the 500mm range

 

[polypal]

Horizon

There are two ways to make life easier with the horizon thing:

Use a spirit level to align the camera. This works best with a tripod. Hasselblad part no is 43117

Hand held shooting is made easier when using a screen with a grid.
The latest is the Acute Matte "D" Hasselblad part no 42217

Older screens that also have a grid:
42250 (not Acute Matte) and 42170 Acute Matte (non D)

 

[Ti29er]

I came across this 50mm lens.
It's my 1st such search for a 'blad lens and wanted you opinion if you have one.
Thanks
Tim

 

[polypal]

Macro?

Mr Hassey or who ever is selling this lens obviously does not know what he is offering for sale.
My guess is he mistook the scale and the control of the floating lens elements for a macro function.
This is not a macro lens.

If the sellers knowledge is not sufficient to describe correctly what he is offering the buyer is probably in for more surprises.

The lens of this type is the early version of the wide angle with floating elements.
Floating elements help to improve the performance of the lens when focused at close range.
Non floating element lenses show a remarkable loss of IQ when focused at short distance.
The edges and corners are suffering from loss of resolution and loss of light.
Is it dramatically bad? NO!
Older lenses without FLE are still being used and deliver great images.


Older second generation 50 mm Distagon lens: http://hasselbladinfo.com/forum/showthread.php?t=3556

 

[Ti29er]

The lens seems to have a front focusing ring that has 0.5 to infinity markers upon it.
Is tat what he means I wonder?

Tim

 

[polypal]

I think he does mean that scale.

 

[cs_foto]

There are two ways to make life easier with the horizon thing:

Use a spirit level to align the camera. This works best with a tripod. Hasselblad part no is 43117

Hand held shooting is made easier when using a screen with a grid.
The latest is the Acute Matte "D" Hasselblad part no 42217

Older screens that also have a grid:
42250 (not Acute Matte) and 42170 Acute Matte (non D)

Thanks, what i meant was that you have to play a lot with where you position the horizon in order to get rid of the heavy optical distorsions (converging lines)

 

[polypal]

Horizon

That is another thing with horizon.

Most people have problems aligning the horizon in parallel with the picture.

For some reason I am always lucky in this respect.
I took the pictures from my new house with an SWC without finder.
Pure point and shoot technique. They turned out just fine

 

[jotloob]

Most people have problems aligning the horizon in parallel with the picture.

I have this problem only when I had 3 glasses of french MERLOT wine .
For the rest of my shootings I use a spirit level attached to the camera or
tripod .

Jürgen

 

[polypal]

What a coincidence!

I have the same problem but only after a few glasses of Chateau La Tour 1982.
Other years of this extraordinary wine do not give me problems.