HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif. (March 24, 2024) - It’s been quite a while since I’ve seen her. As I was walking across the berm, something caught my eye to the right. As I locked focus, I realized that she was flying right at me. What a beautiful sight, made my morning.
HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif. (March 23, 2024) - The early morning light was so beautiful, and the Hasselblad X2D captured it wonderfully. Loving the Hasselblad color science…
HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif. (March 23, 2024) - The weather forecast showed cloudy weather until about 10:00 with a 30% chance of showers. There wasn’t a lot of wildlife action on this morning, however, there were moments of light that would come and go from behind the clouds. The image below was shot across PCH from the Wetlands during one of the brief break throughs. Shortly thereafter, it started dumping and I got soaked making my way back to the car.
CARSON, Calif. (March 21, 2024) - This is the first attempt at a Medium Format pano. The shot was taken at 06:15 with an RRS Pano rig. Shot with the Hasselblad X2D and 45mm lens, each frame was taken at 10s, f/8 at ISO 100. A total of 12 frames were combined and it yielded a 325 MP image.
CARSON, Calif. (March 18, 2024) - An early morning image with the Hasselblad X2D of the Student Union. Shot at 1/80th, ISO 3200 handheld.
HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif. (March 16, 2024) - Definitely not ideal conditions, but I have photographed this bridge for many years and can’t resist the temptation every time I’m there. However, this was the first time shooting it with the X2D and 45mm Hasselblad rig.
HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif. (March 16, 2024) - Got up early for the sunrise on this morning. It’s always a little hit or miss, but this morning was beautiful. Shot with the R5 from the PCH side.
HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif. (March 13, 2024) - With all the recent rainfall, I’m guessing the Wetlands will be in full bloom within a couple weeks. There are already areas that are showing signs of the Spring bloom. Hopefully the beautiful skies will also hang around until then.
One of the things that I read a lot about with the Hasselblad X2D is the Hasselblad Natural Color Solution (HNCS). This color management system is independently developed by Hasselblad. It empowers Hasselblad cameras to render genuine, true-to-life colors with smooth, detailed transitions to restore the world of colors as perceived by the human eye.
So, I kind of wrote this off to marketing jargon. One of the situations where most cameras fail to render color is ambient indoor situations. I had just gotten home from work and Wes hopped up on the bed and looked right into the lens. The following photos are pretty much out of the camera, with the exception of some cropping. But the colors are out of camera. All I can say is that I am now a believer in HNCS.
CARSON, Calif. (March 11, 2024) - Arrived to this scene at 05:30 in the morning and captured it with the Hasselblad X2D. It was obviously dark, but the lights created a wider range of light. For this reason, I actually shot this 1/3 of a stop under to preserve the highlights. This was captured handheld at 1/4 sec, at ISO 6400. Again, this medium format 100 MP sensor is amazing.
HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif. (March 9, 2024) - Just after sunrise, I noticed an Osprey on the hunt for breakfast. He had circled around for a while, and then took off toward Seapoint. I had not noticed his return, but heard the near by splash when he hit the water. I immediately swung over as he rose out of the water. A near by Gull was chasing him and actually force him to fly right by me. A pretty good morning at the Wetlands.
HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif. (March 9, 2024) - Got out this morning for the sunrise. Shot handheld with the Hasselblad X2D at ISO 64 as the sun was rising over the mountains. This 100MP sensor continues to amaze me…
CARSON, Calif. (March 6, 2024) - For over a year now, I’ve been following the progress and update of Hasselblad’s flagship camera. Recently, through firmware updates, the camera has finally become functional for my use case. That coupled with a good online find, I am now a proud owner of a Hasselblad X2D 100C. Because I have not owned an X Series Hasselblad, I needed to get a lens. Well, that is easier said than done as the X Series lenses are pretty hard to come by. The one that was available is the XCD 45mm f/4 P and I believe this is the least expensive offering in the lineup. It’s well built, but a bit noisy when focusing. Anyway, I’m just glad that I was able to get it.
So my first outing with it was on a work day. I got out of the office at around 06:30 and photographed a building on campus (nothing exciting). The following image was captured handheld at 1/80th, f/4 at ISO 64. Keep in mind that the f/4 aperture is “wide open” for this lens. After loading it on my iPad, I was floored by the resolution of this 100mp sensor. I couldn’t imagine something being that much better than the Hasselblad 50C digital back that I use with the 500 C/M, but wow! I couldn’t post the full res file online, so I took some crops. Note the legibility of the signage, especially at the edge of the frame. The sharpness and clarity speaks to the 7 stops of IBIS (In-Body Image Stabilization). The camera is absolutely amazing. I own many cameras, but this one is quickly becoming one of my favorites.
HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif. (March 3, 2024) - Woke up to some early morning rain, but by 08:00 it had cleared and the sun was out. I love scenes where the sun is hitting your subject with storm clouds in the background. So I grabbed the Hasselblad 500 C/M and headed down to the marina. Here are a few images from the morning.
