For color or black-and-white prints, RC- or fiber-based, made on chemical-based paper (such as silver-halide), use PEC-12 photographic emulsion cleaner ($10 for 4 ounces, street), a nonwater-based cleaning solution made by Photographic Solutions (www.photosol.com; 800-637-3212). Apply it to a soft cloth or Q-tip, and wipe affected areas.

Rare or valuable prints should be evaluated by a photo conservator prior to cleaning. Do not use PEC-12 on prints from the 19th or early 20th century, as it may dissolve away some of the emulsion.

Do not use PEC-12 or any other liquid on inkjet prints, either, because the paper is very absorbent. Use cotton swabs, white cotton gloves or a microfiber cloth to clean them. You can protect important inkjet prints by applying ECO Print Shield ($15, street), which makes the surface easier to clean later and may improve resistance to fading or staining from exposure to direct sunlight or corrosive gases (Premier Imaging Products; www.premierimagingproducts.com; 800-508-5122).

Dye-sublimation (dye-sub) prints are more resistant to damage by liquids than are inkjet prints, but try PEC-12 on an unimportant print first to be sure.

NEGATIVES

For recent color or black-and-white negatives, apply PEC-12 with pads, a cotton diaper, or a soft well-washed cotton cloth. PEC-12 may also work on pre-1960 negatives, but refrain from using it with acetate-based safety films manufactured prior to 1960.
Whatever you use, try your technique on an unimportant negative first. Have a photo conservator look at anything irreplaceable, especially older film from the turn of the last century.

SLIDES

Use PEC-12 on Ektachrome, Koda-chrome, Fujichrome or other slides, as well as on 21⁄4- and 4×5-inch transparencies. Apply it with a soft cotton cloth, cotton balls, or Q-tips moistened in the liquid. Never spray the image directly. Do not use PEC-12 on varnished slides, such as Kodachromes of the ’40s and ’50s. A varnished slide shows an iridescent “oil-on-water” effect when held to the light at certain angles.

If your slides are moldy, remove them from the cardboard mounts and clean them with PEC-12, which removes mold and spores. You can also use pure isopropyl alcohol, which is safer and less chemically reactive than ethyl alcohol. Avoid methyl (wood) alcohol, which is toxic and much more chemically reactive.

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Rochester Institute of Technology, and Leica Camera, proclaimed May 6, 2008 as Leica Day. The daylong event, hosted by RIT, was celebrated with speeches, lectures, tours, slide shows, seminars and parties. Andreas Kaufmann, the CEO of Leica Camera in Solms, Germany was there do donate 20 classic Leica M4-2 and M4-P cameras, each fitted with a brand new Leica Summarit-M lens (valued at $50,000), to RIT’s School of Photographic Arts and Sciences “to assure that analog photography continues to be a key element of photographic education at the highest levels.” Eastman Kodak Company also donated 400 rolls of their new Portra 400NC film to help support the program.

At the event, Kaufmann took the time to give us some insight about what’s happening at Leica:

PopPhoto: There’s been a persistent rumor on the Internet that there will be a future Leica M rangefinder camera with a full-frame (24x36mm) sensor. Indeed, some Leica fans have speculated that it will be a CMOS sensor rather than the CCD sensor as in the M8. Can you comment on either of these conjectures?

Kaufmann: The Kodak CCD sensor presently used in the Leica M8 is of exceptionally high quality and using a CMOS sensor would be problematic for us because the firmware and software to support it would have to be completely redesigned. From an engineering point of view it doesn’t make sense for us, and neither does using a full-frame CCD sensor.

The reason we settled on a slightly smaller sensor with a 1.33 conversion factor is due to the short back-focus of Leica M lenses. By using micro lenses and a very thin sensor cover glass we get excellent off-axis performance with this system without resorting to extensive software.

PopPhoto: In testing the Leica M8, I found its performance to be outstanding at ISO 320 and very good at ISO 640, but with noticeable noise at ISO 1250. Many late-model DSLRs from other leading makers now claim to deliver topnotch performance in the ISO 1600-3200 range. Will Leica do anything to provide enhanced performance at higher ISOs in a future M model?

Kaufmann: The fundamental concept of the Leica M is delivering the pure image captured by the lens, and this is not possible if you adopt the philosophy of using extensive software to massage an imperfect image. When you take such images and drill down into them, you may find certain things you don’t like. We are committed to enhancing the performance of all Leica cameras at higher ISOs, but we will do so very gradually.

Basically we provide Leica M photographers with professional caliber low-light performance the traditional Leica way, with our outstanding line of f/2 Summicron and f/1.4 Summilux lenses and the f/1.0 Noctilux. And there will be more to come!

PopPhoto: You have recently announced a smoother shutter release, quieter-firing shutter, and a scratch resistant sapphire glass on the LCD as part of an upgrade program for M8 owners, who can retrofit all these items into their present cameras at a cost of around $1,500 starting in August.

Do you also foresee the possibility of upgrading the M8 with an improved image-capture sensor when one becomes available as has been suggested by some experts?

Kaufmann: So long as the architecture of the M8 is retained in a future model, it is theoretically possible to upgrade the CCD, but that would have to include the whole sensor board and supporting electronics package, not just the sensor itself. The big question is whether it would be economically feasible to do so given our relatively low production numbers that do not permit economies of scale.

Our goal, particularly with the digital M is to create a system with a longer life cycle, and the limits we bump up against are often economic rather than technical. I doubt whether this will be possible with the M8, but if we can do this at a viable cost with a future M camera, we will consider it.

PopPhoto: Do you have any definite plans on expanding the Leica M camera or lens line in the near future and if so can you say anything specific about it?

Kaufmann: We definitely will expand and enhance the Leica M lens line in the near future and there will be some very exciting things shown at the Photokina exposition in Cologne this fall. We will make more detailed announcements on this later this summer, but for the time being all I can tell you is what you already know — high performance wide-angle and ultra speed lenses are a longstanding Leica tradition, and we have been expanding our M line with lenses delivering high performance at more moderate prices to extend the reach of the entire M system. Incidentally we will show something else significant for the M system at Photokina, not just lenses.

PopPhoto: Leica already has a digital SLR, the Digilux 3 that uses the Four Thirds system and is made in cooperation with Panasonic. Will there be a new Leica DSLR shown at Photokina? And if so will it use the Four Thirds system, or are you planning to get into the APS-C (consumer DSLR) or full-frame (24x36mm pro DSLR) arena?

Kaufmann: Again, I cannot say anything very specific until July, but I can tell you we are seriously investigating the possibility of producing one or more true Leica DSLR cameras, possibly in a format other than Four Thirds. Nikon rumors aside, Leica is the only company that now offers both DSLR and digital rangefinder systems, and we know the market wants DSLRs with autofocus lenses. So if this is going to happen we know that our engineers and design partners definitely have their work cut out for them.

PopPhoto: Are there any forthcoming Leica digital point-and-shoot cameras you can talk about?

Kaufmann: As you know Leica point-and-shoot cameras are a joint venture of Panasonic and Leica, and we plan to expand the range going forward to satisfy the demands of the market. I am flattered that this giant world-class electronics manufacturer chose us to partner with, but we have also helped Panasonic achieve its distinctive brand identification by using Leica lenses. The compact Leica D-Lux 3 is a nearly perfect design — you could add a hot shoe or maybe improve the already good lens.

Personally I don’t think that cramming, say, 12 megapixels into the sensor and then tweaking the image with software is the way to go. We want to deliver a pure image to the sensor and let the photographer decide. That’s why you may see some exciting point-and-shoot developments by the end of next year that reflect the Leica tradition. I’m sorry I can’t say more about it now.

PopPhoto: Is there anything else that Leica is working on you can talk about, or any overarching goal for the future of the company under your direction?

Kaufmann: Overall, Leica is presently operating in four distinct imaging sectors, the M system, digital SLRs, lenses, and digital image capture, and our plan over the next few years is to expand substantially in all these sectors at once. It’s an ambitions goal that will involve spending more than 30 million euros, which is a lot of money for a medium-sized company.

We are also working on developing high-resolution products for the professional imaging market and we’re rediscovering a few traditional product categories that Leica was famous for. To say that all this is challenging is an understatement, and things never roll out as rapidly as one would wish. However with an R&D staff of 90 dedicated people, and a firm commitment to realizing our full potential, we believe we can do it all, and do it to the Leica standard of excellence.

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It is with profound sadness that we note the passing of Herbert Keppler, whose extraordinary brilliance and uncommon devotion in his lifelong work as an editor, publisher, mentor, and true and generous friend made him one of the most revered, respected, and beloved members of the photographic community.

To state that Keppler was a positive force who helped advance the industry he loved so deeply, that he was a tireless advocate and thought-provoking guide for millions of amateur photographers all over the world, and that he was a practical camera design and marketing genius whose advice was eagerly sought and implemented by countless photographic manufacturers, distributors, and retailers, is merely to scratch the surface of his remarkable achievements. Knowing him was a privilege, and working with him an honor. He was a magnificent human being, not only in what he did, but also in who he was. We will sorely miss his puckish sense of humor, his joie de vivre, his unfailing loyalty, his kindness, and his staunch integrity. But most of all we will miss him-because we know we will not see his like again.

Herbert Keppler did so much for the photographic industry over the course of his illustrious 57-year career-37 years at Modern Photography and 20 years at Popular Photography-and gave such an immense amount of heartfelt support and advice to photo enthusiasts worldwide that assessing his unique accomplishment is a daunting task.

The son of Victor Keppler, the renowned and brilliantly successful photographer and commercial illustrator, he developed an early passion for photography. By the time he was a teenager, he was shooting and printing portraits of his classmates at the Admiral Farragut Academy and selling them to their parents.

After earning a Bachelor of the Arts degree at Harvard, Keppler was commissioned as an ensign in the U.S. Navy at the tail end of World War II, served as an officer aboard an LCS (landing craft support ship), and eventually became a lieutenant, the commanding officer of a crew of 65. Aware that his crew of seasoned veterans of the Pacific campaign knew much more about operating a ship than he did, Keppler addressed them with his signature combination of leadership and humility: ” I know I have a lot to learn about the way this ship runs, and I really need your help. If you help me, I will do my level best to help you.”

Later, when his men were reluctant to take on a particularly onerous and dangerous maintenance task, Keppler took up the proper tools and began doing it himself. “Sir, what are you doing?” a crewmember asked incredulously. “I wouldn’t ask you to do anything I wouldn’t do myself,” he replied. The crew promptly rose to the challenge and did what was required.

These incidents have nothing to do with photography per se, but they say volumes about the character of the man who was to become one of the most influential people in shaping the photographic industry for over half a century.

After the war, Herbert Keppler went into newspaper and magazine journalism. He was a reporter for the old New York Sun, which helped hone his natural writing skills, and he worked for Footwear News, a trade magazine. Finally, in 1950 his journalistic talent and photographic passion came together and he became an associate editor at a new photographic magazine called Modern Photography. “It was a shoestring operation in those days,” recalled Keppler, “with one typewriter, a folding table for a desk, and no private offices. The chain of command was a little fuzzy, but I knew one thing for sure-I wasn’t the boss.”

That was to change over the years as Keppler rose through the ranks and put his indelible stamp on the magazine that was to be the archrival of Popular Photography for 39 years. By the time Keppler left Modern in 1987, he had utterly transformed the magazine into one of the most respected, admired, and financially successful publications of its kind in the world.

A book could and probably should be written about Keppler’s distinguished career at Modern Photography over nearly four decades, but here are some of the highlights of what he accomplished from the time he joined the staff as associate editor in 1950 and left Modern Photography as Editorial Director and Publisher to become Vice President and Publishing Director of Popular Photography in 1987.

He established a system of objective camera and lens testing based on scientific measurements of shutter speeds, lines-per-millimeter resolution, exposure accuracy, etc.; enlisted the aid of trained experts in optics and camera testing to create a comprehensive testing protocol; and published the test methods and criteria, enabling readers to compare the performance of the leading cameras and lenses on the market. He made sure this program was carried out with the utmost integrity, a vast advance over the bad old days when only advertisers received favorable reviews in many photo magazines.

He was an early and tireless champion of the single-lens reflex camera (SLR), writing an extremely popular series of SLR columns explaining their numerous advantages over the then-dominant 35mm rangefinder cameras, including their upside potential for future development. By the early 1960s, it was clear that Keppler had been right, and the 35mm SLR became the camera type of choice among serious enthusiasts and professionals until the dawn of the digital era. His SLR columns continued, offering honest, straightforward advice on a wide variety of topics, always in his inimitably direct homespun style that endeared him to generations of readers.

He was one of the first photo magazine journalists to recognize the vast potential of the Japanese photographic industry and to write extensively about the excellence and technical ingenuity of Japanese cameras and lenses. He first went to Japan in 1956, and returned every two years thereafter, establishing close personal ties with leading members of the Japanese camera industry from corporate heads to senior engineers. All considered him a trusted friend and colleague, and for more than 40 years he gave consistently excellent advice to Japanese photographic companies based on his unparalleled knowledge of the American market and practical camera design.

He established a Mail Order Code of Ethics in response to widespread abuses, and saw to it that advertisers that engaged in shady practices were removed from the magazine. He also set up enforcement procedures to help insure that readers’ issues with advertisers were addressed and resolved.

He assembled a staff of experienced hands-on experts qualified to write knowledgably about subjects including film and processing, darkroom work, lighting, composition, camera and lens design, as well as specific picture taking techniques. He oversaw every piece of editorial content that went into the magazine each month and balanced it with excellent picture portfolios, many by some of the most outstanding photographers of the day.

He developed a layered structure of editorial presentation so that busy readers could access much of the content of each article by just scanning the headlines and picture captions. Readers could then choose to peruse the entire text if the subject interested them, and when they had the time. This profound understanding of the reader and the reader’s needs and wants was pioneering at the time, and looked forward to the concise, content-rich editorial presentation that characterizes much of today’s magazine journalism.

The 20 years that elapsed since Herbert Keppler joined Popular Photography were equally productive, as he had the opportunity to update and enhance many of the concepts initiated and perfected at Modern Photography and bring them to an even higher state of fruition. One of his most significant accomplishments was to bring the benefits of a state-of-the-art, on-site test lab to Popular Photography, vastly enhancing the testing capability of the magazine and consolidating its unequalled reputation as a source of accurate high-level information. Under his masterful guidance, working closely with excellent editors in chief and staff members past and present, Keppler provided the underpinning of the magazine’s format and structure, enabling it, under the leadership of John Owens, the current Editor in Chief, to make a smooth transition to the digital era. Indeed, the fact that Popular Photography is still widely acclaimed as the world’s premier imaging magazine in the digital era is due in no small measure to Keppler’s influence and input.

Herbert Keppler, affectionately known as Burt to his close friends and colleagues, was given countless honorary awards and titles throughout his long and distinguished career-and over the years he was widely hailed as “Mr. Photography” and “The Conscience of the Industry.” He was among only a handful of Americans to receive one of the highest awards to be bestowed upon a foreigner by the Emperor of Japan for his notable contribution to the Japanese photographic industry and its phenomenal success in the U.S. He was also presented with “The Order of the Sacred Treasure, Gold Rays with Rosette” at a splendid conferment ceremony held at the Japanese Consulate in New York on December 9, 2002, by Ambassador Yoshihiro Nishida, Consul General of Japan.

While Herbert Keppler was certainly appreciative of all the recognition that came his way, there are no official honors given for his two most significant personal attributes-integrity and compassion. What probably mattered to him most is that millions of photography enthusiasts all over the world thought of him as “Kind Old Uncle Burt,” the man whose sage, warm-hearted advice and counsel helped them get more out of their photography for more than half a century.
Please visit popphoto.com/keppler for contined tributes and expanded coverage honoring Herbert Keppler -The Editors

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They promise wider and longer shooting at a lunch-pail price. But are they any good?

AN ADD-ON ARSENAL: (Below) Nikon Coolpix 5700 with, from left: adapter ring, 0.8X wide-angle converter, 1.5X teleconverter, and fisheye converter. They’re big and fairly pricey ($130-$200), but deliver high image quality.

So your slick new 5-megapixel point-and-shoot has a great zoom lens, but it doesn’t go wide enough to get that great everybody-around-the-table shot? Or you wish it were longer at the tele end so you can bring in those distant mountains without losing picture quality by going to digital zoom? One good way around these optical limitations is a wide-angle- or telephoto-conversion lens, a moderately priced( $39-$130) optical device that mounts in front of your digital camera’s zoom lens and widens or narrows its angle of view. Just mount the converter and frame your shot on the LCD screen-what you see is what you get. It sounds almost too good to be true. Is it?

Back in the heyday of twin-lens-reflexes and rangefinder 35s, wide-angle- and telephoto-converter lenses were considered cheap and nasty alternatives to interchangeable lenses (though Rollei, for example, produced very fine-and expensive-ones called Mutars). While a digital SLR is undoubtedly the best solution for anyone wanting the ultimate in optical flexibility, today’s digital converter lenses work much better than you might expect, partly because they perform better with the shorter-focal-length lenses used on most digital formats. They’ve got a few operational snags, but they’re generally very easy and satisfying to use and have a high bang-for-the-buck factor.

Digital converter lenses come in three basic flavors: 1) screw-mount units that use a threaded ring on or around your camera’s lens; 2) bracket-mount units that fit onto or into a tripod-socket-mounted adapter bracket; 3) magnetic-mount units held in place by a thin, powerful, ring-shaped magnet that attaches permanently to your camera’s front lens ring. Each of these systems is workable, and each has advantages and disadvantages. Optically, the screw-in system provides the most precise converter-to-lens alignment. That’s one reason the major camera companies like Canon, Minolta, Nikon, and Olympus, as well as several independent makers, offer screw-mount converters and adapters. The bracket- and magnetic-mount systems offer greater mounting flexibility and are really the only way to attach converter lenses to the legions of compact digital cameras lacking threaded accessory-mounting rings.

How good are the images?
In general, lens converters for digital cameras perform surprisingly well when used with digital cameras in the 3- to 5-megapixel range. Most deliver good enough image quality for 4×6, 5×7, or even 8×10 prints. When shooting at maximum aperture, however, there may be slight softness at the edges and corners of the frame, and most wide-angle converters do exhibit some barrel distortion. Some converter lenses, like the Nikon optics (left), are big, and may block the camera’s viewfinder and pop-up flash. As a class, screw-in converters by camera manufacturers for their models perform better than generic converters made by independent manufacturers-hardly surprising, since they are matched to specific lenses. But, these differences are smaller than I expected and I found only one sub-par performance: a magnetic-mount wide-angle converter (sold under the Bauer, Phoenix, and Sunpak labels) on a Canon PowerShot SD100. Other defects, such as color fringing, were not objectionable until the prints were enlarged to 11×14 or greater. Conclusion: Converter lenses for digital cameras are worthwhile and cost-effective in extending optical versatility, and they perform well enough for all but the most critical shooting applications.

Operational pluses and minuses:
Screw-mount converters:
Plus: Secure, precise mounting, less light falloff, close focusing not impaired.
Minus: Relatively large, some heavy enough to affect camera balance, may require adapter rings.
Bracket-mount converters:
Plus: Secure mounting, little light falloff or focusing restrictions.
Minus: Camera bulkier due to bracket, mounting takes extra time.
Magnetic-mount converters:
Plus: Quick, easy mounting, converters very light and small, may mount on more than one camera.
Minus: Permanently mounted magnetic rings must be precisely positioned, are hard to remove, some noticeable falloff in corners/ edges with certain camera/converter combinations.

CLOSE-UP CAVEAT: Shot at left, zoomed to the max with no converter, is tack sharp. Right-hand shot with teleconverter added gets you closer, but focus is a tad soft. Moral: Don’t use teleconverters at or near minimum focus distance – back off a bit.

TELE TERRIFIC: At normal distances (25 feet) maximum zoom, no converter shot (left) and same shot with 1.5X converter added (right) both show excellent detail. Wide-angle converters add barrel distortion, may show a touch of color fringing in big blowups.

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The original Hasselblad 1600F of 1948 was the world’s first 2-1/4 x 2-1/4 camera based on a compact, box-shaped body, to which lenses, backs, and finder modules could be fitted. This simple, elegant concept and 2-1/4-square format were maintained for over 50 years. Although shutters changed with various models, today’s V-series Hasselblads bear more than a passing resemblance to their illustrious forebears.

But for all their Rolls-Roycean panache and performance, the 2-1/4-square Hasselblads had reached the end of the line in terms of technological development. It was simply not feasible to produce an autofocusing, multimode, all-electronically controlled Hasselblad with full film and digital interfaces within the classic body. This led to a five-year development project for the H1, a Hasselblad for the 21st century.

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Format follows function
While Hasselblad maintained its signature modular design, excellent ergonomics, and unsurpassed quality, some things had to give. The most obvious is the format, which is 6×4.5cm (2-1/4 x 2-5/8) on 120/220 rollfilm instead of the time-honored, much-touted 2-1/4-square format provided by the still-current line of V-system Hasselblads. Given the performance of modern films and digital systems, the reduced format size should have little effect on image quality, provides more pictures per roll (16 on 120, 32 on 220), and helps keep camera size and weight down. However, the photographer’s ability to crop each square image into a horizontal or vertical format is lost, as is the ability to mount V-system lenses on the H1.

The second major change: All Hasselblad SLRs were made in Sweden, with German-made Carl Zeiss lenses and (in leaf-shutter models) Prontor/Compur shutters. The H1’s main body module is still made in Sweden, and many design elements (such as the unique electromagnetic interlens leaf shutters) are of Swedish origin. However, finder screens and cross-field AF-sensor technology are supplied by Minolta. The lenses, shutters, meter finder, and film magazines are all made by Fuji in Japan. Fuji’s engineers also had a hand in the H1’s design and production engineering. Indeed, Fuji is marketing a Fuji-branded version of the H1 in Japan only.

The Hasselblad H1 has a remarkable number of unique features in its class. Most important, it’s the first medium-format SLR to provide a complete electronic interface for compatible digital backs, with histograms displayed on the LCD atop the grip, and the ability to adjust gray balance and delete images, among other things. This month, we put the H1 through its paces as a film camera. In a future issue, we’ll assess its performance as a digital camera.

Grab the future
The first thing you notice when holding the H1 is its distinctive light-and-dark-gray color scheme with black accents, which looks sporty but “serious.” The second is its excellent feel. The integral right-hand grip is anatomically contoured and nestles very comfortably in your hand, with your right index finger falling naturally on the large shutter-release button atop the sloping front section. In shooting position, the camera feels substantial but not overly heavy, and (with the 80mm lens) it’s superbly balanced. The main mode-selection buttons arrayed along the main LCD panel atop the grip are all easily accessible.

Bring the camera to eye level and you see an extraordinarily large, bright, crisp viewing image with an AF-zone rectangle and spotmetering circle inscribed in the center, and a commendably clear, illuminated, full-information LCD panel below the viewing area. The H1’s prismless reflex finder, a modified Kepler type, sets a new standard for the class-it’s at least as bright and contrasty as that of its closest competitors, the Contax 645 and Mamiya 645 AFD. With a finder claimed to show 100 percent of the on-film image at nearly 1:1 with the 80mm lens, the image presented to the eye is significantly larger-this makes it much easier to evaluate details and focus manually.

Let’s load up
The H1’s snap-on film backs have built-in dark slides, a great convenience since you don’t have to remove and store a separate slide. The control buttons atop the back turn data imprinting on and off, set the frame counter to display the number of frames taken or remaining, set the film length (120 or 220), number of exposures (8, 16, or 32), and ISO (from 6 to 6400). There’s also a bar-code icon that sets film speed and ISO automatically when you load bar-coded films (Fuji is the only manufacturer currently offering this feature).

Remove the magazine’s film-holder insert, which comes off and loads in the usual way. Since the H1, like all Hasselblads, features an S-curved, reverse-curl film path, it’s especially important to wind it one complete turn so the paper leader is firmly affixed to the take-up spool. If you don’t, we discovered that the end of the paper leader can slip out of the take-up spool and the film won’t advance. If this happens, or if you forget to open the dark slide before shooting, you’ll get a warning in the viewfinder.

When the camera is turned on, the film automatically advances to the first frame as soon as the film holder is reattached and an H1 logo is displayed on the LCD atop the grip. Press the shutter-release button partway in and the LCD will display your present camera settings. Taking into consideration the vast array of settings and functions built into the H1, we found the camera controls logical, intuitive, and straightforward. For example, if you want to change the AF setting, press the AF button, and use the front control wheel behind the shutter release to scroll through the AF options: AFS (single-shot AF with focus priority), AFC (continuous AF with release priority), and MF (manual focus). To select your option, look at the top band on the LCD, where you’ll see two choices: “exit” and “save.” To save (that is, activate) the setting on display, press the button closest to the word “save” (in this case, the Drive button).

The same basic procedure is used to choose drive, flash, and intervalometer settings-you turn the front control dial to scroll through different sub-menus, press Enter, scroll to the specific setting you want, and press Save to activate it. Because the dot-matrix LCD displays words and easily understandable icons, we found the whole process of learning to control this electronically complex camera remarkably quick and user-friendly. The same basic system is used for metering settings, which are a function of the reflex finder unit. They’re controlled with buttons marked +/- (exposure compensation) and Exp (meter modes and patterns) on the finder’s right side, but still conveniently accessible.

Just shoot it
Okay, let’s do some shooting. Bring the H1 to eye level, press the shutter release partway in and, if you’re in an AF mode, the H1 will rapidly snap into focus. The very legible, illuminated dot-matrix LCD panel displays meter mode, meter pattern, aperture, shutter speed, film status, frame number, exposure compensation, focus-aid/confirmation LED arrows, and, if applicable, flash-ready and warning LEDs. Shutter-release action is very smooth and predictable, with a clear differentiation between the first part of the stroke (meter on, autofocus) and the follow-through (shutter firing) phase. When the shutter fires, you’ll hear a sharp “clack.” No, that’s not the sound of the shutter, but of the mirror flipping out of the light path and returning to viewing position. This is followed by a softer “ssst” as the film advances.

In fact, we found that the H1’s actual shutter noise is extremely low, but the “click” of taking a picture is fairly loud-typical of medium-format cameras with instant-return mirrors. More important, mirror-induced vibration (perceived as camera shake) is extraordinarily low, according to our tests. Hasselblad claims this is partly attributable to special circuitry that slows the mirror’s action just before exposure. In any case, we found the H1 to be an excellent choice among 2-1/4 SLRs for shooting handheld at slow speeds, as borne out by our field test results.

Focus on AF
Another area where the H1 excels is in AF performance. It’s the only medium-format autofocus SLR with a central cross-field AF sensor, and it certainly is a giant step ahead of all other medium-format cameras without cross sensors. In low light, with low-contrast subjects, it snaps into focus with speed and alacrity. Under unfavorable focusing conditions, it proved noticeably better than its competitors. Aiding its stellar performance is a near-infrared AF-aid light built into the grip, with a tested range of 7.3 meters (about 24 feet).

No AF system can autofocus under all conditions, and the H1 clearly indicates when it can’t. If your subject is too close, only the left-hand focus-confirmation arrow lights up. In other cases, when AF cannot be achieved, both AF arrows flash in warning. To focus manually, just keep the shutter button partially depressed and turn the manual focusing ring. However, you must then judge the sharpness of the finder screen image visually-the arrows confirm focus only in manual-focus (M) mode.

The H1’s built-in flash is a marvel of compact, integrated design. Push a tab on the left side of the finder housing to pop it up. When it’s fully charged, a lightning bolt (which also indicates low flash and flash OK) lights up in the finder. When the flash is in use, the metering system continues to read out the ambient light exposure and indicate the deviation from the correct exposure via the exposure-compensation scale. By turning the front wheel, we were able to easily balance the flash-to-ambient ratio to get any effect we wanted, from a hint of fill to an all-flash exposure. Brilliant!

This technique is easiest to use in A, S, or M modes. In P mode, the camera automatically selects a 1/60 sec exposure. This flash unit also reads TTL and OTF (off-the-film), and we found it to be extremely accurate. While its power output (Guide Number of 40 at ISO 100) is reasonable for a small built-in unit, it won’t cover the field of lenses shorter than 80mm-you’ll see light falloff with wide-angle lenses.

As our lab data suggest, the Hasselblad H1 provides a very high level of performance in terms of exposure and shutter-speed accuracy, autofocus speed, and (judging by the 80mm lens for starters) optical performance. These data are fully corroborated by its field performance, which we found generally outstanding. We shot close to 1000 pictures on a variety of color transparency, color negative, and black-and-white films. The H1 acquitted itself admirably, producing sharp, accurate available-light and flash exposures even under less-than-favorable conditions.

Nobody’s perfect
Criticisms? You have to be precise when installing the finder unit, lens, or film magazine. If you’re sloppy, what you’re mounting may seem to click in place, but the contacts on the module and body may not mate perfectly. Result: a strange reading on the grip LCD (such as “autofocus not possible with this lens,” when an AF lens is mounted). Once, the camera wouldn’t turn on at all; we cured the problem by removing the finder unit and remounting it properly, as suggested in the manual. Speaking of the manual, what we received with our H1 was a “preliminary version.” It’s a valiant effort, but we found it to be organizationally challenged in places, with a few rough edges. Hasselblad expects an improved manual to be in the hands of H1 owners by late this year.

So what, in the final analysis, do we think of the H1? Frankly, it’s the camera Hasselblad had to produce for the company to prosper in the future. On balance, they did a splendid job. No, it’s not all European, and it’s not compatible with 2-1/4-square Hasselblads. But, in our opinion, it is also the best integrated, most technologically advanced medium-format SLR on the planet, and the one best positioned to allow photographers to expand into today’s brave new world of combined film and digital photography.

How does the Hasselblad H1 stack up against competitors?
Contax 645
($4,000 street with 80mm f/2 Carl Zeiss Planar T* lens, meter prism and film back) A beautifully made modular SLR, the Contax features an optically excellent line of Carl Zeiss lenses, built-in motor drive with speeds up to 1.6 fps, multimode (but no program) metering, and a dedicated TTL autoflash system that provides preflash metering. Its pentaprism viewfinder is very bright and contrasty, and has manual focusing aids plus excellent finder readouts. It also has data-imprinting capability. The 645’s six-sensor (no cross sensor) autofocus system is adequate in bright light but less reliable in low light or with low-contrast subjects. Sync speed at 1/90 sec; 1/125 sec with TLA-series units.

Pentax 645nii
($2,500 street with 75mm f/2.8 Pentax-FA lens) Much less expensive than the H1, the 645nii is the most compact camera in its class, handles very well, and has a fine line of AF lenses. AF performance is quite good, but it has no cross-field sensor. It does have motor drive with speeds to 2 fps, excellent finder readouts, a fine-performing six-zone multipattern metering system with all the usual modes (including spot and metered manual), mirror-up function, comprehensive on-film data imprinting, and ten custom functions. However, the 645nii lacks interchangeable film backs (and, therefore, easy digital compatibility), the viewfinder is not as bright or contrasty as its rivals, and its focal-plane shutter syncs at a slow 1/60 sec.

Mamiya 645 AFD
($3,750 street with 80mm f/2.8 Mamiya AF lens) Distinctively styled, the 645 AFD is comfortably contoured, very well-balanced, has a bright, contrasty viewfinder (fixed prism; screens are user-interchangeable), and good three-sensor, H-pattern autofocus system that focuses very quickly but has no cross-field sensor. Its metering system, providing centerweighted, spot or dual-zone evaluative readings, performs well and has all the usual modes. It has interchangeable film backs with dark-slide storage slots, and, based on our tests, its lens line is of very high quality. Considering its overall performance and relatively moderate price, the 645 AFD is the H1’s top competitor, in our opinion.

Want more info? Call Hasselblad at 973-227-7320 or go to www.hasselbladusa.com.

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As a long-time photo enthusiast who supplements his income by shooting portraits and events, I gravitated to the Canon EOS 7D because of its rugged, weatherproof, magnesium-alloy body, pro-spec 150,000-cycle shutter, and its hi-res 18MP sensor that’s renowned for delivering superb imaging performance up to ISO 6400 and beyond. Another big plus is its ability to shoot bursts at a blistering 8 frames-per-sec, great for high-speed action, but also for capturing memorable moments such as the bride and groom walking down the aisle or having their first dance. It didn’t take me long to discover a lot of other reasons to love this camera. It’s handy size, excellent balance and ergonomic controls make it an easy all-day shooter, its big 3-inch, 920k-dot LCD lets me assess the finest details, and its brilliant eyelevel pentaprism finder facilitates precise composition and provides a big, bright approximately 100% view.

For me, one of the camera’s most useful features is the incredible choice of AF Mode options offered by its 19-zone AF system. The one I use most frequently is AF Point Expansion that highlights 4 points around the selected point and lights them up in the finder, making it much easier to track moving subjects. Shooting HD video at 1080p at 50/60p couldn’t be easier—just set the control on the back to video and push a button! Also, the versatile built-in flash can be used as part of a multi-flash setup, or to trigger my Canon Speedlite 580 EX IIs, all without requiring any extra accessories.

One of the great joys of shooting with the Canon EOS 7D is using it with the remarkable new Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II USM. This acclaimed high-speed zoom is the perfect complement to the APS-C-format EOS 7D, covering an equivalent focal-length range of 112mm to 320mm. That makes it ideal for everything from portraiture, where its gorgeous bokeh at wide apertures yields beautiful pictorial effects, to sports and wildlife, where its enhanced image stabilization (IS) eliminates the effects of camera shake, delivering a critical 4-stop advantage that’s crucial when I’m shooting handheld at long focal lengths. Its close minimum focusing distance (3.9 feet) also allowed me to get down to 1/5 life-size at 200mm to create stunning close-ups. Like all Canon L-series lenses it delivers exquisite sharpness, rugged, pro-caliber construction, and it’s sealed against moisture and dust so I can confidently take it wherever I take my Canon EOS 7D. Ultimately, there’s really only one way to experience what it’s like to shoot with this cutting-edge combo, and that’s to try it for yourself.

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After shooting extensively with this incomparable high-performance Canon combo, a seasoned enthusiast and successful part-time professional gives you some helpful hints and tips for getting the most out of this outstanding camera and a lens that sets a new performance standard for premium wide-aperture telephoto zooms.

EOS 7D Camera Tips

1. Exploit the Canon EOS 7D’s amazing range of AF modes by selecting the optimum mode for your subject. For example, using Point Expansion AF mode displays an illuminated 4-point area in the finder that’s helpful when you move the camera to track active subjects, and the 19-point Multi-Zone AF mode works best when subject movement is unpredictable.

2. Do you frequently shoot portraits or other subjects that call for a vertical grip? Consider augmenting your Canon EOS 7D with a great, affordable accessory, the Battery Grip BG-E7. I’ve found that it enhances the camera’s inherently good balance, provides a more convenient control set for shooting vertical pictures, and extends battery life by doubling the camera’s ample battery capacity.

3. Take advantage of the Canon EOS 7D’s well-placed AE Lock and AF Lock buttons on the back to enhance shooting speed, AF and exposure accuracy. Examples: Grab focus at a point, lock AF, recompose and shoot, or take a spot reading off a skin tone, lock exposure, recompose and shoot.

4. Push the Q (Quick Control) button, then scroll to the relevant icon to access frequently used settings like ISO shutter speed, exposure compensation, White Balance, etc. rather than going through menus. It’s a lot faster.

5. When shooting landscapes or architecture, hit the Info button twice to display a precision level. It works with horizontal and vertical subjects to help you achieve precise orientation.

Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L lens tips

1. Shoot frame-filling portraits, still life, and floral images at maximum aperture (f/2.8) to create dramatic pictorial effects with shallow depth of field and gorgeous_ bokeh._ Also, explore the lens’s enhanced ability to focus down to 1:5 in the near-macro range_._ For maximum AF precision at these times, use Spot AF, focus on an eye or other critical detail, hold focus, recompose, and shoot.

2. Deploy the Focus Limiter for faster AF performance with moving subjects. If you know the main subject will be at 10 feet (about 2.5m) or farther, set the focus limiter to 2.5m-to-infinity rather than full range (1.2m to infinity) to facilitate quicker focus.

3. Take advantage of the class-leading image-stabilization (IS) system of this lens to extend your shake-free handheld shooting range. It provides a 4-stop advantage, enabling you to use slower shutter speeds for creative effects even when you zoom to the longest telephoto settings (320mm equivalent with APS-C format Canons). Impressive.

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