A bit later at the lake - Z5ii & Laowa 180mm Macro

What is the second Voigtländer - one of their 50mm lenses?

Hi Hugh, yes it's the Voigtländer 50mm f/2.0 APO

We all know that bumblebees can't fly—except for the bumblebee
Z5ii & Laowa 180 Macro

Well, it’s been a winter of being inside here in northern Michigan, yet there are signs of spring. Still, no frogs yet.

Anyway, I have spent a lot of time looking at the various extension tubes for the Hasselblad X2D2, including two copies of the Hasselblad 9mm, an 11mm and 48mm tube by FotodioX, and of course the Cambo Actus Mini technical camera.

I am not a pixel-pepper at heart, but I did want to take a look in any case. I have many of the XCD lenses, so over the cold months, I tried all kinds of combinations.

I am not saying extension on the XCD lenses don’t work, they do, but IMO the results don’t look like they came out of a Hasselblad lens. Heaven knows I tried to make these extension tubes work for me. It would save a lot of time and expense.

However, when it comes to Hasselblad lenses I have to be honest with myself at the results. There are a reason Hasselblad makes such fine lenses and it’s not like we can mess with them and not pay a price. And I tried combinations of all the extension tubes and also focus stacking.

As for stacking, except for what I call very short stacks, focus stacking is not worth the trouble on Hasselblad, IMO, and I was a pioneer in focus stacking with my Nikon system, so that’s something I know.

If I want to stack focus, it is better to do it on the Nikon macros than on the Hasselblad. And I have come to the same conclusion with extensions. Yes, they work, but the result does not look like the XCD lenses by themselves. To me, it looks like I used a different camera/lens system.

I am not saying extensions don’t work for you; I have read your reports. I’m saying I can’t use them. Instead, I will concentrate on using the XCD lenses without extensions, and crop as I must.

I have made hundreds and hundreds of attempts and squinted my eyes hoping I didn’t see what I saw, the image degraded enough that in good faith I won’t go there, unless I have to, and I do once in a while. I hold my nose and magnify the image.

Instead, I will concentrate on cropping in as best I can and fall back on my Nikons and their macro lenses.

In the past I have posted that I did the same thing with filters for the Hasselblad XCD lenses. They messed with the Hasselblad Natural Color Solution big-time. I still have a bunch of filters, but don’t use them unless I am pushed in a corner. And Hasselblad’s own filters were no better, if not worse.

Again, I am not a pixel-peer, but I do have eyes and care very much what my lenses put out for me to see, in this case the altered  result of extension tubes. I can’t help but look, and if I do: Dissapointment.

Hasselblad XCD Extension Tubes

Well, it’s been a winter of being inside here in northern Michigan, yet there are signs of spring. Still, no frogs yet.

Anyway, I have spent a lot of time looking at the various extension tubes for the Hasselblad X2D2, including two copies of the Hasselblad 9mm, an 11mm and 48mm tube by FotodioX, and of course the Cambo Actus Mini technical camera.

I am not a pixel-pepper at heart, but I did want to take a look in any case. I have many of the XCD lenses, so over the cold months, I tried all kinds of combinations.

I am not saying extension on the XCD lenses don’t work, they do, but IMO the results don’t look like they came out of a Hasselblad lens. Heaven knows I tried to make these extension tubes work for me. It would save a lot of time and expense.

However, when it comes to Hasselblad lenses I have to be honest with myself at the results. There are a reason Hasselblad makes such fine lenses and it’s not like we can mess with them and not pay a price. And I tried combinations of all the extension tubes and also focus stacking.

As for stacking, except for what I call very short stacks, focus stacking is not worth the trouble on Hasselblad, IMO, and I was a pioneer in focus stacking with my Nikon system, so that’s something I know.

If I want to stack focus, it is better to do it on the Nikon macros than on the Hasselblad. And I have come to the same conclusion with extensions. Yes, they work, but the result does not look like the XCD lenses by themselves. To me, it looks like I used a different camera/lens system.

I am not saying extensions don’t work for you; I have read your reports. I’m saying I can’t use them. Instead, I will concentrate on using the XCD lenses without extensions, and crop as I must.

I have made hundreds and hundreds of attempts and squinted my eyes hoping I didn’t see what I saw, the image degraded enough that in good faith I won’t go there, unless I have to, and I do once in a while. I hold my nose and magnify the image.

Instead, I will concentrate on cropping in as best I can and fall back on my Nikons and their macro lenses.

In the past I have posted that I did the same thing with filters for the Hasselblad XCD lenses. They messed with the Hasselblad Natural Color Solution big-time. I still have a bunch of filters, but don’t use them unless I am pushed in a corner. And Hasselblad’s own filters were no better, if not worse.

Again, I am not a pixel-peer, but I do have eyes and care very much what my lenses put out for me to see, in this case the altered result of extension tubes. I can’t help but look, and if I do: Dissapointment.

After six months or so of testing XCD extension tubes, I am done with that wishful thinking and closing the door on that idea. I am back to working with lenses just as they are, no filters, no extensions, just the natural clarity of the lens itself. It’s a relief.

Now I can concentrate on photography and stop trying to push the envelope. I also, at least for now, decided I don’t need the convenience of the new XCD Zoom 35-100E lens. Not that it is not great, just not needed by me. I have all the primes and they offer better acuity, if not convenience..

And finally, after seriously testing and building secure camera cases tied into my SUV, I am NOT going to use them or leave my equipment in the care. It’s just not safe. I own most of the DeWalt battery-operated power tools, and it is crystal clear to me that if I leaved my strapped-down camera/lens case in the car, I could cut through the cables very quickly, so I am now ready for the spring and summer travel and shooting.

This has been my computer screen background for a little while now.

  Z6, 28mm 1.4e @f2.8

  Sharp corner to corner. Different behaviours at 1.4, 2.8, 5.6