medium-format

Phase One takes lead in camera sensor test

Medium-format digital cameras, which have larger sensors and higher price tags than even high-end SLRs, didn't fare so well in earlier tests of sensor quality by measurement firm DxO Labs, but Phase One's newly tested top-end technology has risen to the top of the DxOMark Sensor test.

Phase One's 60-megapixel P65+ camera scored 89.1 on the test, edging out the Nikon D3X, which scored 88, according to data released Thursday. In addition, the 51.7-megapixel Hasselblad H3DII 50, an older model than Phase One's, scored 78.2. Click here to compare the two models and Nikon's D3X.

The DxOMark sensor test measures a camera sensor's dynamic range, color depth, and low-light performance. DxO Labs cautions that differences of less than 5 points aren't really distinguishable, and of course many other factors including price, lens quality, autofocus, and resolution factor into overall camera quality.

The P65+ features the best color performance yet, but DxO Labs said its comparatively good performance in low-light conditions helped it carry the day. … Read more

Phase One takes driver's seat in Mamiya camera partnership

Phase One, a Copenhagen-based maker of professional-grade digital camera technology, has invested in and assumed some control over Japanese camera maker Mamiya.

Phase One and Mamiya already had a partnership for one medium-format camera through a partnership begun in 2006, but now the alliance is much tighter, with Phase One in the driver's seat for some key areas, Phase One said Wednesday.

"Phase One is making a significant financial investment in Mamiya Digital Imaging, thus becoming a major shareholder in the company behind the Mamiya brand of medium-format cameras and lenses," Phase One said in a statement. &… Read more

Sensor quality: SLRs erode medium-format lead

It looks like Canon and Nikon weren't blowing smoke when they said their high-end SLRs cameras will compete with medium-format digital cameras used almost exclusively by professionals.

Given the image quality advantages that SLRs with larger "full-frame" sensors have over mainstream and much less expensive models with smaller processors, one might have expected another quantum leap from costly high-end medium-format digital cameras with sensors twice the area of top-end SLRs. Not so, according to new DxOMark Sensor test results set for release Tuesday by French test and measurement firm DxO Labs.

The company tested image sensors from several medium-format cameras--the Mamiya ZD Back, Leaf Aptus 75S, Hasselblad H3DII 39, and Phase One P45+. These are the sorts of cameras used by fashion photographers and others who need lush tones, fine detail, and lots of megapixels to handle big photos such as magazine spreads.

But none outperformed the Nikon D3X SLR, whose score of 88 gives it the current top rank on DxO's sensor tests. … Read more

Phase One releases pro version of raw photo editor

Phase One has begun selling Capture One 4 Pro, the newest incarnation of the company's higher-end photo editing software.

The software is designed to handle the raw images from higher-end cameras--in particular Phase One's highly regarded medium-format models with up to 65-megapixel resolution, but other manufacturers' models as well. The pro version costs $399 or 299 euros, compared to $129 or 99 euros for the standard version, the Copenhagen-based company said.

Capture One Pro version has several features missing from the standard version: it can correct some lens problems such as distortion, purple fringing, vignetting, and chromatic aberration … Read more

Leica goes medium format with its new DSLR

Leica has announced a new medium-format DSLR camera and lens system, the Leica S2. The S2 uses Kodak's 37.5MP CCD sensor with a 3:2 aspect ratio. The sensor measures 30x45mm--56 percent larger than a 35mm full-frame sensor, which measures 27x36mm, and smaller than the 36x48mm sensor found in some other medium-format digital backs.

The S2's body is dust and moisture sealed, with Leica's new S-system bayonet lens mount, for the new line of S series lenses. The new line of lenses will feature metal construction and weatherproofing. The S2 body will have a focal-plane shutter … Read more

Phase One announces lenses for its pro camera

Phase One is fleshing out its transformation from a maker of high-end image sensors for others' cameras into a maker of full-on cameras.

At the Photokina camera show in Germany, the company announced "successful alliances" with Leica Camera, Mamiya, and Hartblei to bring third-party lenses to its Phase One 645 camera system, and it said it will begin selling several lenses of its own by the end of the year. Those lens models are a 28mm f4.5, a 45mm f2.8, an 80mm f2.8, a 120mm f4.0, a 150mm f2.8, and a 75-150mm f4.… Read more

Got $18,000? Grab a Hasselblad camera while it's cheap

Is Hasselblad feeling some pressure from the more plebian realm of 35mm SLR cameras?

That's the thought I had when I got a promotional e-mail from the high-end camera maker offering a 31-megapixel H3D-II and an 80mm lens for $17,995--a lower price, the company is eager to note. The tagline of the promotion: "If you thought you couldn't afford a Hasselblad, think again."

Those of you who aren't photographers for Vogue advertisers or astronauts taking snapshots of the moon might not be familiar with the Hasselblad name, but it's a prestigious brand … Read more

60MP is the new 50MP

Less than two weeks ago, Kodak announced its new 50MP medium-format sensor, and only a few days ago Hasselblad announced its H3DII-50 camera based on it. The Hasselblad H3DII-50 became the highest resolution digital camera back, but it didn't last long; it was a short stay at the top.

Phase One has now announced its P65+ digital back and P65+ camera system with a whopping 60MP sensor. It is the first full-frame 645 film-format-sized sensor, measuring 40.4mm by 53.9mm. The current crop of 39MP backs, and the new Hasselblad 50MP back, measure 36mm by 48mm. Having a … Read more

Kodak's 50-megapixel medium-format sensor

update: 7/10/08: I made some errors in the original post, which I've corrected, plus added Kodak's comment.

You thought Sony's 24-megapixel CMOS was high res? Well, as Kodak's announcement on Tuesday of a 50-megapixel CCD shows, there's always room for more--pixels, that is.

Granted, that's a bit of an apples-to-oranges comparison. Sony's chip is designed for full-frame dSLR cameras, those with a sensor the size of a 35mm film frame (24x36mm), which generally go into pro-level handheld cameras. In contrast, Kodak's KAF-50100 CCD is 49.1x36.8mm, for medium-format … Read more

Fuji camera kickin' it old school at PMA

Check out this beauty from Fujifilm, a 6x7 medium format camera with a tres old school bellows collapsing lens and, wait for it, film! (6x7, by the way, refers to the size in centimeters of the negative, so a 6cm by 7cm is over four times as large as old 35mm negatives.)

I used to own a smaller version (645, or 6cm by 4.5cm) of one of their rangefinders and it was a beautiful machine (unfortunately stolen by someone who didn't realize what they had I'm quite sure). Fuji rangefinders have always been known for their second-to-none … Read more