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Removing Fungus From A Pentax 50mm f/2

Removing Fungus From A Pentax 50mm f/2

By Steve Boylin. Picture the scene: you just found a bargain at a car boot sale or charity shop. A Pentax SLR with 50mm lens...

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The World's Shiniest Kine Exakta - Daniel Walsh // Staff Picks

The World's Shiniest Kine Exakta - Daniel Walsh // Staff Picks

Today, we’re talking about Dan’s (extremely shiny) Kine Exacta/Exakta Version 1.2.3. This camera is a later model of one of Ihagee Kamerwerks first production 35mm SLR cameras, and just so happens to have been doused with a gallon of Brasso. 

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The Adam's and Co. Half Plate w/ the Dallmeyer Pentac - Adam French // Staff Picks

The Adam's and Co. Half Plate w/ the Dallmeyer Pentac - Adam French // Staff Picks

In this staff pick, we are discussing the 'Adam's and Co.' Half Plate camera with the 8" f/2.9 Dallmeyer Pentac lens. Read how a unique soft and pictorial look adds a distinctive touch to Adam's photographic endeavours.

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Review: Hasselblad XPan

Intro:

The Hasselblad XPan – a legendary rangefinder with both panoramic and standard 35mm modes, which is interchangeable mid-roll! It’s a beast of a camera with a gorgeous viewfinder and excellent lenses. I shot a roll through it recently around South Leeds and was very happy with the results, so I thought I’d do a review on it here.

West Yorkshire Cameras Hasselblad XPan Review

A few good bits

Panoramic & normal 35mm modes – Unlike most panoramic cameras, the XPan has a nifty little switch next to the viewfinder which allows you to switch between panoramic & normal 35mm modes. Panoramic shooting can be quite restrictive and specific to certain needs so having this functions makes the XPan useable for every day situations as well.

Hasselblad optics – Not much else to say here! Hasselblad are obviously known for their quality, and the XPan lenses are no different. The images you get from them are fantastic.

Built like a tank – With a solid metal build, you could club an elephant to death with one of these and it’ll still be fully functional afterwards (although I’d advise strongly against doing so).

Automated wind on – For the lazy bunch out there, myself included. Some people may not like this due to it relying on electronics, but the electronics in these are very reliable, not like shoddy £20 camera electronics – these were actually built to last.

Metered & Auto modes – Again for the lazy bunch who can’t be bothered carrying a meter around too. Or if you’d rather focus on composing rather than the correct exposures. There is also a manual ISO override for pushing/pulling, and also a -2 to +2 exposure compensation dial.

West Yorkshire Cameras Hasselblad XPan Review
The switch to go between panoramic and standard 35mm modes.

A few bad bits

My hands hurt – It’s not the most ergonomic camera, it could definitely do with a hand grip on the right hand side. Not a major issue though, I’ve definitely held worse.

Vignette – Not so much a problem on negative film, but on slide film this can apparently be a problem, this is caused by the panoramic nature of the camera. Hasselblad released a filter specifically for the XPan which is basically a centre-weighted ND filter to counteract this.

West Yorkshire Cameras Hasselblad XPan Review

Sample images

Click to see higher resolutions.

All images shot on West Yorkshire Cameras C-41 Black & White film.

West Yorkshire Cameras Hasselblad XPan Review

West Yorkshire Cameras Hasselblad XPan Review

West Yorkshire Cameras Hasselblad XPan Review

West Yorkshire Cameras Hasselblad XPan Review

West Yorkshire Cameras Hasselblad XPan ReviewWest Yorkshire Cameras Hasselblad XPan Review

 

West Yorkshire Cameras Hasselblad XPan Review

West Yorkshire Cameras Hasselblad XPan Review

The bottom line

Brilliant finder, excellent build quality, and fantastic image quality. The best feature is of course the panoramic mode which can be switched on and off mid roll. A must have for panorama lovers.