The Hasselblad 500C series of medium format film cameras was undoubtedly one of the best film cameras and certainly the most revolutionary cameras for Hasselblad and for the industry as a whole. It was the first of the Hasselblad 500 series and was modified many times throughout the years. This was a testament to the fact that Hasselblad had done a lot of things right with the 500C but it was not a perfect one.
Following the various modifications to the 500C, the company released the Hasselblad 500C/M in the year 1970. The camera featured an easily interchangeable focusing screen and an optional prism viewfinder with a built-in light meter. Besides these modifications, the 500C/M still retained the modular design along with the leaf shutter design and the A12 film back that produces twelve 6×6 negatives on 120 roll film.
Verdict: 4.5/5 — A beautiful camera and a brilliant piece of engineering that forces you to slow down in the best way. Best for: photographers who want the definitive medium format experience and don’t mind the price of entry.
Who is the Hasselblad 500C/M for?
The Hasselblad 500C/M is not a camera that you’d go for just because you want to try out film photography. A medium format camera requires some deep pockets, and good skills to work with. Medium format cameras can get sophisticated to use if you have no prior experience. Unless you have good experience with photography, and especially film photography, I do not recommend that you get this camera.
That said, the Hasselblad 500 C/M is primarily a studio camera perfect for professional indoor photography. However, despite the larger body, it is light enough to be carried around. So if you feel like trying out some landscape or street photography, you can do so. But keep in mind that it will be a slow process.
Lens: 80mm f/2.8 Carl Zeiss Planar T*
Body Weight Body: 600g, With 80mm: 1.5kg
Dimensions: 170mm x 109mm x 104mm (Box)
Hasselblad 500C/M features
| Model | Hasselblad 500C/M |
| Release date | 1970 |
| Lens mount | Hasselblad V-mount (Bayonet 60) |
| Dimensions | 170 x 109 x 104 mm |
| Weight (body only) | 600 g |
| Shutter | In lens leaf shutter
Mechanical B, 1 sec – 1/500s |
| ISO range | 6 – 6400 |
| Battery | None |
| Viewfinder coverage | 100% |
Design
The Hasselblad 500 series is a modular camera system. The camera can be conveniently taken apart and broken down into the body, the lens, an A12 film back, waist level finder, ground glass focus screen, and even the film advance knob. This modular design makes the camera extremely customizable as far as accessories are concerned.
You can also check out our 7 Must-Have Camera Accessories here.
When shooting outdoors, the waist-level viewfinder comes in quite handy. But, when you need to shoot indoors – let’s say for a portrait session, you can replace the waist-level viewfinder with a prism viewfinder.
If you come across a situation where you’d want to switch to a different film midway through, that’s possible too with the camera’s modular design. If you have an extra film back, you can replace it without even having to take the film out first. How convenient is that? However, keep in mind that you’ll need to use the dark slide to protect the unexposed film.
With the older Hasselblad 500C, you had to take it to a technician if you wanted to replace the focusing screen. With the 500C/M, they made this a lot easier as you can conveniently replace the screen at home. And there’s no extra calibration needed either.
Metering
Being a purely mechanical camera, the Hasselblad 500C/M has no metering system by default. Have a light meter handy, or stick to the Sunny 16 rule if you want to nail your exposure. But thanks to the modular design of the camera, there is a workaround though. You can replace the waist-level viewfinder with a prism viewfinder that has a built-in exposure meter to assist you.
Shutter
If you are familiar with the Hasselblad camera system, you must be aware that they utilize a different shutter system than the ones which we find in our SLRs, DSLRs, and mirrorless cameras. Replacing the focal plane shutter from the Hasselblad 1000F camera, the 500C series of cameras utilize a leaf shutter design with its range of high-quality Carl Zeiss lenses.
While the focal plane shutter is placed right in front of the camera’s focal plane, the leaf shutter design has the shutter mechanism on the lens. This allows for flash synchronization at all shutter speeds with the use of electronic flash. The faster sync speed was one of the prime reasons why many professionals preferred this camera.
Viewfinder
The standard Hasselblad 500C/M was shipped with the waist-level viewfinder. The viewfinder is bright and large which makes composing the images so much easier. It is also important to note that when using this viewfinder, the images appear flipped. If you’re new to this, it can take some time to get used to. And once you do, the experience is really unique. I simply love it.
In case you are getting the Hasselblad 500C/M for studio work that requires shooting from eye level, the waist-level viewfinder won’t be that useful. Better look for the prism viewfinder. While it will allow you to shoot from eye level, the images won’t be flipped either. And there’s the benefit of having an exposure meter too.