I read an interesting post on Steve Huff's blog site, written by Brett Price, who is a new Xpan user. I used to own one, but sold it. I figured this was a good time to revisit that camera.
(Click Here) to read Brett's post and see some of his images.
Brett makes a few interesting points about using the Xpan. He uses the same normal lens I had, which is a 45mm f4, which he finds very sharp. Brett doesn't think his style of imaging changed much going to the panoramic format, but does think it makes his shots more dramatic.
I always felt a little limited with a maximum aperture of f4. I did find my Xpan to produce sharp images, but nothing like my Leica, for example. It's possible that my Xpan needed a rangefinder adjustment. I'll never know, as I no longer own the camera. Unlike Brett, I found that I had to completely transform my thoughts on composition to make images that worked with the panoramic format. This was a process, and one that I was happy to go through. In fact, once I learned how to use it, I was sort of done with the camera. I still like to shoot panoramas once in a while, but use my Bronica ETRS with wide 35mm film back when the urge strikes me. I also have a Lomo Sprocket Rocket (see Amazon link below) that shoots in panoramic format; it's a very fun camera.
Here are some examples of my images I took with the Xpan I used to own:
Farm Implement, by Reed A. George
Hasselblad Xpan, 45mm f4 Lens
Barn Door, Uncommon Composition, by Reed A. George
Hasselblad Xpan, 45mm f4 Lens
Barn and Trees, by Reed A. George
Hasselblad Xpan, 45mm f4 Lens
Sculpture, Hirshhorn Museum, by Reed A. George
Hasselblad Xpan, 45mm f4 Lens
Yoko Ono's Wish Tree, Washington, DC, by Reed A. George
Hasselblad Xpan, 45mm f4 Lens
Do I miss the Xpan? Not particularly. But, here's one place that I really agree with Brett - if Hasselblad were to produce a digital Xpan, I would be sorely tempted to buy one.
DMC-365.blogspot.com
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