Medium Format CCD Sensor for Under $500? A Fruit Study With The Phase One H20 Mounted To Mamiya RB67

[@Ivandotjpeg]

These classic backs are amazing. The crazy thing is once you hit medium format with CCD’s it’s hard to go back to full frame cameras. I own an X1DII, but enjoy using my RZ and RB with my P45+, P25+ and IQ280. The workflow is weird getting used to but it makes you stop and assess what you need to make the shot. The P and IQ series can be tethered but they are mostly “field-ready” with a crappy LCD. You’re totally right about CCD having that oomph look that you can’t get out of a CMOS.

[@camerandotclick]

I’ve taken less and less images as I’ve developed my eye and loved the ones I’ve taken even more as I’ve grown! Totally agreed

[@TheNathanMChannel]

Holy cow, you did it! You did exactly what I was obsessed with: somehow adapting my Mamiya RB67 gear to work with a digital back. (and not spending blues lawyer money to do so) I gave up on the idea myself for the most part, I didn't think there was anything out there that would work. I took it one small step closer, I adapted the lenses to work with a Canon 1Ds with a Fotodiox adapter. It's all kind of janky and super heavyweight, though. I think I should just stop fighting and just shoot film on it like it was designed to do, but I still think it's cool that you got it to shoot with a digital back. Nice.

[@camerandotclick]

I have also done some tests with Fotodiox adapters - really cool (but niche) piece of kit - I want to teach myself some 3D modeling so I can CNC some of my own parts

[@bigblue6083]

Amazing images. I am curious whether those images are as good as modern cmos camera with the same light setting. Would love to see a direct comparison. Thank.

[@camerandotclick]

Thank you - to my knowledge there is no CMOS sensor that's directly the same size (i.e. square) that's currently available. I've used to GFX 100S (which is CMOS) and plan to use the Hasselblad X2D within the next year. I'll keep your comments in mind for when I post some content using the GFX sensor.

[@eyesonly4451]

I never owned any of these older Phase One backs, but did eventually purchase both a Leaf Credo 60 and an IQ180. I still have the IQ180 affixed to an RZ67 Pro IID. No doubt that these older CCD backs can produce beautiful images. Their only (mostly marketing) downside was that have limited live view, and like operating at base design ISO or maybe up to ISO 100 max. Beyond ISO 100, they get noisy at an exponential rate. This means these older CCD backs are, for the most part, constrained to living out their remaining life in a studio, with a heavy dose of lighting.

[@camerandotclick]

Studio or metered meticulously outside - this one is actually bus-powered so I'm stuck tethered to the computer wherever I shoot with it

[@artjomkutuzov1350]

Yup but now we have lr ai noise cancellation it will virtually give you extra stop or two of that iso range if you really need to. But to be honest I used velvia 50 and portra 400 (rated at 200) on my V and never had an issue shooting in the field, so ccd with iso limitation is not a real problem for me. I also used iq3 100 and gfx50s ii and never really pushed iso that hard, only once when I shot moonlit portrait on 2.8 lens, and still it was way below expected range. Marketing of big companies makes us believe that we need that last tech, but in reality these classics are super capable.

[@Jim-BobWalton]

If you’re using Darktable (alas, not great on non-Intel Macs), then this also has a tethering option. If you’re just using it for capturing (not editing), does the back have any option for a card? If so, shooting blind, as you do with film, could be fun

[@KuijperRob]

Hi again after so long I bought the H5..what flash sync cable do you suggest to my 645 Super or what did you use on the RB67?seems both accept a female connector..a link would be great..thanks

[@가이포크스-f3d]

Could you tell me the tethering cable setting? Currently I have a p45 digital bag but I don't know how to do tethering connection shots

[@camerandotclick]

You will need the Phase One cable (it's FireWire) that attaches to a Mac capable of reading that information (typically something older, I'm using a Powerbook G4) along with the oldest version of Capture One that you can find that runs on the Mac.

[@MattWeddis]

They’re great results. I’m looking forward to seeing what else you shout with that set up.

[@camerandotclick]

Thank you! I shot two other projects with the camera so stay tuned!

[@johnjewell219]

Very interesting I missed how many megapixels the back is rated at??👍👏

[@camerandotclick]

Thank you - it is 4080x4080px so 16MP but they are "big" pixels so they read a lot more like medium format than 35mm.

[@davidyarosh5661]

I have used a leaf aptus vi 28 mp w a mamiya afd iii for 10 yrs. Ccd and superfilm like. ISO 200 w 80 mm mamiya lens. Brautiful color, 3 D like, heavy

[@camerandotclick]

Wow that sounds awesome - what did you photograph with it mainly?

[@andyvan5692]

great shots, and colour grading, wow, those colours pop!; I have used a phase one P45+ back (H101)- NOT the blimp, but the modified back for the H1 hassselblad camera, very nice files, IIq/TIFF, and photoshop can deal DIRECTLY (camera raw) with them(the iiq files too!); also the ixpressCFH for the H2f camera, Here you NEED flexcolor to convert to tiff!! (from 3F), but they Both use CF cards; shadow recovery and colours, fantastic, and the hc lenses are fantastic, leaf shutter, AF, and also you can get ext. tubes (16\32), tele convertors,and the tilt shift is done via an adaptor for ALL lenses, even the xcd (for X1D, X1Dii, X2D, 907X) via a convertor adaptor.

[@camerandotclick]

Thank you!

[@hautehussey]

I’m impressed you’re still able to get the Norman pack to work. Have you done any work on it to keep it working?

[@camerandotclick]

I bought it used so I assume the previous owner took good care of it. This was my first one and I bought 5 more to have enough power for wet plate and ultra large format in the future. So far, I've been able to run them all daisychained together with pc sync triggers without issue!

[@obscurazone]

Looking to sell my Nikon D800 and get stuck in with An RZ67 plus a digi back, but my plans are now almost immediately scuppered by the (frankly batshit) prices the backplate adaptors now go for - €2000 on average. Absolute insanity/daylight robbery. So yes. Thanks universe (and money grubbing leeches). I read lower down in the comments that you managed to get your camera with the adaptor included - my god you got lucky there. Guard it/look after it with your life. Great vid by the way! Cheers.

[@camerandotclick]

Thank you! yes just borrowing this kit from a friend - I believe he got the camera, lens, back, and firewire capable macbook for a cool $700! serendipitous for sure. I think it would be really cool to have access to something like this but I'm afraid pretty much anything new will be CMOS :(

[@KuijperRob]

Hi good vid..rare to find this stuff..I bought the Phase One H10 for Hasselblad and want to use it one 645 Super..but its firewire..would it still work with only a flash sync cable connected or must I use a Firewire 400/800 to controll it?im aware i might have to change to the Hasselblad maybe . ps yours is to be fit specific on the RB67?thanks

[@camerandotclick]

Thanks for the comment - H20 was designed for Hasselblad 500 series but there is an adapter plate for RB67 that is used here. The pc sync cord is required to synchronize the image data collection with shutter - firewire simply transfers the data to the computer. Does your H10 have an on-board memory? or must it be used tethered?

[@seb9997]

great vid and shots, subscribed. phase one phan

[@camerandotclick]

Thank you! More Phase One in the future (as soon as my wallet can handle it!)

[@xhornik]

Awesome video and interesting channel overall. Subscribed.

[@camerandotclick]

Glad you enjoyed! More to come

[@andyvan5692]

good topic, but another reason ccd's are so cheap, is that it is old tech, eg from the first hasselblads, mamiya 645DF, leaf, etc. the main reason is that ccd's don't have as good an iso performance (noise which makes files unusable), esp. after ~800 iso approx. also these where of the IEEEE and firewire 800 plug standards, for tethering, or, like early ixpress backs for hasselblads had an external hard drive/power source, a bit like the telescope cameras, the back was a sensor only (no lcd or controls, all done in software or via the body menu system.

[@camerandotclick]

Feels much more like film in that respect when you operate it - I rarely go over 200 ISO but appreciate the limitations of CCD. Helps me to think creatively!

[@ColtonMatocha]

I really love this video! Amazing results and very interesting images! I've been curious about adapting my Mamiya 645 Pro to work with a digital back, but I've been unable to find any info about rigging this up. Do you have any guidance?

[@camerandotclick]

Mamiya makes a 645 AF-D that’s digital so I would check that out first! It’s not as simple as slapping a back on the camera because there are mechanical pins that need to line up and engage each other

[@ColtonMatocha]

@@camerandotclick yeah. I just love my 645 Pro and would love to find a way to adapt it so that I can use it beyond film

[@camerandotclick]

You can try the lenses with a scanner back setup: see here kzbin.info/www/bejne/mJ2YhJaLhr-phMU

[@camerandotclick]

@@ColtonMatocha kzbin.info/www/bejne/mJ2YhJaLhr-phMU This video uses M645 lenses! Check it out

[@sheldonspock5566]

Good for you for doing this! Could you provide any details on the adapter plate you used to hook the digital back to the Mamiya? Is it the original Phase One that's kinda rare or did you use a third-party (perhaps 3D printed?) plate like the ones available on eBay, Made in China? Also I don't see any cables going from the back to the lens PC socket in order to trigger the image capture, how does it work with this setup?

[@camerandotclick]

Thanks! Absolutely -- I was using the original Phase One adapter plate (the person I got it from actually purchased the unit new in the early 2000s and it only had one owner so there was less of a chance that would slip through the cracks. That being said, you ~could~ 3D print an equivalent plate, but there is a small caveat with that. There is a small metal pin in the bottom right corner you would need to machine or fashion out of a hard material that engages the mechanical lock of the camera itself (i.e. the pin that the camera uses to mechanically know that there is a back attached). You could duplicate the measurements of a true phase one with the 3D printer and then glue in that pin in the proper position. There is also a metal lock underneath the back that engages a pin within the back that restricts it from firing unless properly matched the the adapter plate. Re: cables - I have a short pc sync cable that goes from the leaf shutter of the lens to the H20 unit itself (which has two female pc sync ports on the back). The second pc cable goes from the H20 back to my strobe radio trigger, which is wireless!

[@sheldonspock5566]

​@@camerandotclick Thx for replying, I appreciate that! You're lucky to have that adapter i just did a quick search and it's very rare and pricey, so hold onto it for dear life! :P On a side note I saw that Phase One still has plenty of documentation on how to use these backs on such old gear such as the RB67, which is quite impressive. Kudos for them. I hope i'll be able to be a Phase One user one day too :P Ah yes so you do have the cables, i couldn't see them on the video. Anyway keep up the good work 🙂

[@firstwitness5735]

audio is HORRIBLE - mono , heard in only on speaker/headphone.

[@karim2k]

Excellent video and thanks for sharing, you have to work on your public speaking skills and avoid making that pause in every sentence

[@camerandotclick]

I am the man in the arena as they say. Thank you for watching!

[@lwalto]

Ripping off Stephanie Sarley's work...

[@camerandotclick]

Haven't heard of it - can you share a link?