April 26, 2010
by Adam Freedman 
Hasselblad HCD 4-5,6/35-90 mm lens
First, I want to thank John Williams and HotWire Digital www.hotwire-digital.com for
allowing me to try this amazing lens. [Editor's note: This is one of our most popular lenses]
I spent 5 days with the HASSELBLAD HCD 35-90 F4-5.6 ZOOM LENS,
which is Hasselblad’s newest edition to their lens lineup for the
medium format H-System and is a digital only lens.
The lens arrived at my office on Friday and I had it attached to the
H4D 40 in minutes. My first impression of the lens is that for a lens
that is as large as it is, it weighs very little and is extremely well
balanced on the camera body. This surprised me, I use the 50-110 and it
is a beast, this lens was effortless to use and easy to hand hold for an
extended period of time.
The auto focus was very fast, and incredibly accurate, manual focus
was simple with just the right amount of resistance in the focus
process. At first I was a little concerned about the 4.0-5.6 aperture
range, especially with how wide angle this lens is. It is a really well
designed and thought out lens, you do not reach f5 until around 55 – 60
mm, so the aperture range transitions proportionately throughout the
zoom range. This is impressive. My primary work is fashion and beauty
photography, so 35 – 90 mm is not necessarily a zoom range I would
gravitate towards, this lens is the exception, it is more than up to the
task, and would be a great addition for larger shoots that need to
cover several models and include architecture or other subject matter.
Sessions that include large objects like cars and a model(s) is an ideal
use for this lens. In fact, I used it for a shoot in a shop that builds
custom race cars, with cars, tools, machinery and a model. I have to
say by the end of the day I wanted to keep the lens. It is the best
super wide angle zoom I have ever used. If you shoot architecture or
landscape photography I would call it a must own.
The quality of the images was on par with both my 80mm f/2.8 and my
50-110 f/3.5-4.5. I did think that this lens was slightly better at
controlling chromatic aberrations and vignetting, probably attributable
to the lens being newer in the lineup and having been created
specifically for digital. The real joy in this lens is its light weight
for its size. Be ready to spend some money on a filter, you will need
an ultra thin 95mm UV filter to protect this baby.
In summary, the lens is awesome; will it be the next lens in my kit?
No, probably not, the work I do, I need the compression of a longer
focal length more than a super wide angle zoom. I will probably add the
210mm or 300mm next to my camera bag. If you need a wide angle lens
and can afford the $7000 plus price tag it is worth every penny. Think
of it this way, if you are looking at the 35mm f/3.5 for $3500 plus,
take a real long look at the 35-90 f/4-5.6. You will pay more, but does
it really cost you more? You get a 35mm f/4, close enough to the f/3.5
of the prime lens, you also get 36-90mm of additional coverage you do
not get with the prime lens. So, if you need another lens in that
36-90mm zoom range add its cost to what you are going to spend on the
35mm prime the cost is now similar, but you get more from the 35-90.
Adam E. Freedman, Professional Photographer
www.aefreedman.com
www.aefreedman.me
www.aefreedman.us
© 2010 Adam Freedman
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