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a MEDIUM-FORMAT sized rabbit hole | Hasselblad 907x vs 500cm

Troy Mairs

4,516 views

Hasselblad goes Head-to-Head. The final verdict after a few years going down a Medium-Format sized rabbit hole. In this video we compare and contrast Hasselblad's medium format digital sensor (Hasselblad 907x) to Hasselblad's Film flagship camera (Hasselblad 500) shot on Porta 800-120 film stock. Color Charts, Landscape, Street, and Portrait Photography all wrapped up in one tidy comparison video. SPOILER: The answer wasn't as clear as I had hoped.

In this video:
Hasselblad 907x - https://www.hasselblad.com/v-system/9...
Hasselblad XCD 90mm f/3.2 Lens - https://www.hasselblad.com/x-system/l...
Hasselblad 500c/m - https://www.hasselblad.com/about/hist...
Kodak Porta 800 film - https://bhpho.to/4eF7KRd

Shot on:
Sony FX3 - https://amzn.to/47p5r1q
Sony 24-70 GM II - https://amzn.to/3ucGiZM
Polar Pro Helix NDs - https://bhpho.to/3OuU9Bb

On Screen Graphics:
Motion VFX Graphics - https://mvfx.co/TroyMairs

Chapters:
00:00 the "Insatiable rabbit-hole"
01:59 Color Charts
03:38 Portraits Take 01
04:38 Landscape
07:05 Street
07:30 Portrait Take 02
08:09 the bottom of the Rabbit-Hole

20 Comments

@cesarl83 1 year ago Pinned

Hey Troy, great video. I'm thinking about getting a CFV100C. I'm curious if you've tried comparing film Vs the CFV100C back on the film camera with the same lens.

@IshkhanGhazarian 1 year ago

this was a fun one to watch, great to see the comparison!

@michaelstears5260 11 months ago

As others have mentioned, it is really hard to compare film scans to digital because the same negative can look drastically different based on the scanner used and the adjustments made while scanning. I think the "best" comparison for color would be made from an optical c print of the negative scanned on a calibrated flatbed scanner. But that's my humble opinion.

@portrait_mav 1 month ago

Thanks for this! Can you do a video with the 100C sensor on the 500cm body? 🤠

@susanrainey9694 1 year ago

This is the test I was waiting for!!! Thank you. If you ever do a test with the digital back on the 500 series, please post. That might help the character issue that the older V lenses magically have.

@Pembers357 1 month ago

Given the crop format of the digital sensor, I suspect the most comparable lens to the 80mm on the 500CM is actually the XCD 65mm. Both are equivalent to 50mm.

@tommymonolo 1 year ago

Great video man… I have a 500cm too and I’m so happy you done this test as I much prefer the 500 by a mile it’s just much richer honest and warm.
Peace ✌️
Tommy.

@Finn-jy3bq 1 year ago

Great comparsion! 🙌🙌🙌Here are some suggestions. The resolution comparison should take into account the focal length and censor size (44mmX33mm and 56mmX56mm), so to compare the resolution, you should have the similar focal length. And for the colour comparison part, the scans from the lab were already colour adjusted, it is suggested to scan ur own negatives and remove the colour mask on ur own, so the colour will be straight "FILM COLOUR" rather than the scan colour from the lab (which just some film look preset). By the way, you can do a self-timer on the lens in 500 series cameras, there is a V, X and M. Pull the level from M to V and change the shutter mode to the T, and it will release after 10 seconds.

@jimseibyl5140 7 months ago

Can you do a test with the CFV shot on 907x compared to results using the CFv on the 500 camera?? I wonder how the older glass affects the image……I just got a CFv but plan on using that with my 500 system.

@GermanAutoNut 1 year ago

The other piece that would be interesting is to have the digital back on the 500. Optics can always play a pivotal role on color shift, clarity and noise. Great exercise nonetheless. 🎉😊

@tombube49 1 year ago

I love my CFV100c on my 500cm with the old lenses, but with Film there is some magic

@thefilmplane.7787 1 year ago

There’s is a timer on the lens to take a selfie picture, you have 10 seconds to take the shot

@euphonia001 1 year ago

Great vid!

@SteveHarrisPhoto 1 year ago

Great comparison, always tempted with the 907 but given your review I think I will stick with the 500CM, much better images overall

@baekmedier 1 year ago (edited)

What is the reason to shoot iso 800 film ? you get more grain the higher iso film you shoot.
Ground rule would be that digital saves shadows better. And the film saves highlights better

@dmystify1381 1 year ago

that was interesting...seems the portra likes the reds..I have come across the same types of problems with the digital sensor...favouring greens....cooler.....but then I find the clouds can be offish also ranging from tinted greens & blue-ish tints rather than...white...or...grey/dark grey clouds,in saying that...the in-house wb dropper does work a treat at time of shooting & I get better results.I am currently toying with edits removing the blues mostly in the HSL module.The portrait you shot I liked, & as You stated, the film was more punchier.Lending itself to the reds again🤷‍♀,I dont know...im no expert.

@Dale.m.photoimages 1 year ago

Can not really compare non processed raw digital files to film.

@juergenweissenfels6173 1 year ago

I find it difficult to compare colors from analog and digital. Every scan is just an interpretation of the negative. Otherwise a good video.

@DoggoCatto-xz2jg 1 year ago

Nice comparison, though the white balance and color comparison portion is a bit superfluous. Film stock, lens coatings, lighting on the day, which developer, development method, which brand of scanner, how the operator white balances the scan... etc all affects color rendition on digital files from film. 2 people with 2 identical cameras shooting the same film stock on the same day will have different colors.