Question:
Current issue of Outdoor Photography was very favorable on this camera. I am thinking of it as my "landscape" camera. As opposed to going with a wide angle 35MM lens (such as the 17-35 Canon) I am thinking that this will take "truer" wide angle pictures. Also, getting Panoramic is a plus. Any comments?
Response:
Current issue of Outdoor Photography was very favorable on this camera. I am thinking of it as my "landscape" camera. As opposed to going with a wide angle 35MM lens (such as the 17-35 Canon) I am thinking that this will take "truer" wide angle pictures. Also, getting Panoramic is a plus. Any comments?
The XPan is a curious camera. I’ve owned one for a few months now and have both liked and disliked it. The good things are: 1) The ability to mix normal and panoramic frames is excellent. I used the XPan as the only 35mm camera on my trip to the Southwest USA in April and felt like having two focal lengths with just the one 45mm lens I had. Also, you get (sort of a) medium format quality with a relativity small camera, whenever you want it. 2) I have been surprised that with the XPan I can take hand-held shots with much longer shutter speeds than with a SLR camera. I’ve even taken 1/8 sec hand-held shots with it and managed to keep them sharp. The lack of mirror flap really seems to make a difference (or maybe its the heaviness of the XPan that also helps). 3) I found the rangefinder focusing to the much better what I had anticipated. It seems that my focusing accuracy it better (compared to a SLR matte screen/split prism focusing), especially at long distances. The bringthness of the viewfinder helps also here. However, there are also some shortcomings: 1) When using the 45mm lens in the panoramic mode, the light fall-off on the sides of the image is noticeable and you’ll need to buy and use the centre filter that eats one stop of the lens’ speed. This means you’ll have an effective speed of f5,6 as the fastest aperture you can use. 2) In my opinion Hasselblad made a big mistake in not including the shutter speed in the viewfinder. The metered shutter speed is indicated only on the back panel LCD. This means that when I take a photo, I need to press the shutter release button halfway to take a reading, keep the button halfway pressed, look the back panel LCD for shutter speed and if it’s too long for me to hold, change to aperture and redo the whole thing (if I’m not willing to figure out the new shutter speed in my head). This makes it difficult to use the camera for quick shots, unless the lighting conditions are well known in beforehand. Anyway, it seems to be a great camera and the panoramic image format stirs you mind to think you subjects in a new way. I have two pictures taken with the XPan on my webpage, the first one can be found here (http://www.geocities.com/SoHo/Workshop/8943/p114.html) and the second one is right next to it. They are both taken without the correcting centre filter (you’ll see the darkening in the corners due to the light fall-off). -Mikko Oksalahti
Response:
The sun ray photo #3 is awesome! The rest are great too! GW. – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – I have two pictures taken with the XPan on my webpage, the first one can be found here (http://www.geocities.com/SoHo/Workshop/8943/p114.html) and the second one is right next to it. They are both taken without the correcting centre filter (you’ll see the darkening in the corners due to the light fall-off). -Mikko Oksalahti
Response:
Kevin, Remember than when in panoramic mode the XPan is a wide-format camera, not a wide-angle camera. I have an XPan and am working on a review for a major magazine. So far I’m a very satified user. Have a a look at my web and follow the links, for some comments and XPan pictures. Michael
Response:
Current issue of Outdoor Photography was very favorable on this camera. I am thinking of it as my "landscape" camera. As opposed to going with a wide angle 35MM lens (such as the 17-35 Canon) I am thinking that this will take "truer" wide angle pictures. Also, getting Panoramic is a plus. Any comments?
How about a Fuji GWS690III medium format camera instead? It will give you a negative about 85mm wide. You can crop off the top and bottom and still end up with a larger negative than the XPan. The Fuji has a 65mm lens (equivalent to a 28mm on a 35mm camera). The XPan has a 45mm lens, but only produces a neg 65mm wide. The Fuji also costs much less, and you get the bonus of a full 6×9cm negative (about 6x larger than 35mm) when you don’t want a panoramic shot. Downside: no meter in the Fuji and no interchangeable lenses. However, you could buy the GW690III (90mm lens) and the GWS690III and a light meter and have no more money tied up than the XPan with both lenses. BTW, the XPan is made by Fuji. RR
Response:
I would be interested in seeing a comparison of the Hassey SWCM and the Xpan. The Xpan with its 45mm lens on a 66mm wide format must be close to the 38mm lens on the 55mm wide frame. My question is the Xpan image close to the SWCM image it were cropped in the same ratio? Joe McCary
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