Photo: How to Load a Hasselblad Film Back

Hasselblad A12 Film Backs on eBay:
rover.ebay.com/rover/1/711-532...
OK, I know there are several such videos on KZbin. I hope mine is clear and close-up, by comparison. I wanted to round out my Hasselblad coverage, so here it is.

[@ilovesloths1235]

I watched the video without the sound so I'm not sure if it was mentioned. Anyways remember to cock the shutter before the back is attached. Otherwise camera will rewind your film to the next frame, wasting the first one.

[@mike.thomas]

No, I think I failed to mention that. It was never an issue for me because I always kept bodies and lenses cocked. Still, it’s a good pointer!

[@escho14]

As someone who has owned a 500cm for several years, I have to keep coming back to this video to make sure I’m not loading it backwards… probably just means I don’t use my camera enough.

[@johnward2964]

Wow....this video is over 10 years old but like a Hasselblad it is still relevant and mighty useful. Thanks for posting this.

[@mike.thomas]

I hope people keep shooting Hasselblads. They are one of the best systems out there, for sure.

[@Mojave511]

Still a valuable resource years later. It had been a while and I needed a quick refresher, 👌

[@mike.thomas]

I love hearing that. Thanks for taking the time to comment!

[@danem2215]

I'm always very impressed by the design and engineering of Hasselblads; the film backs are a little marvel of their own. Hope to have one of these someday

[@MrJimckorn]

my first roll was loaded into my newly purchased Hasselblad thanks to you. other tutorials were not as good as yours.

[@mike.thomas]

I love hearing that. Thanks for taking the time to comment! Happy shooting 👍

[@marlonb.8243]

Thank you so much this tutorial. I need a refresher every now and then.

[@davidselby8115]

Have watched this many times but it’s always a great reminder- very clear and very helpful

[@LordElronIII]

This is the best how to load a Hasselblad video I have found.

[@firemusic82]

Nicely done. I've seen pretty much every "how to load film" video regarding the Hasselblad, yet they never get boring. Makes me want to make one myself : )

[@elladreyfus3820]

Thanks Mike! I haven't touched my HB in 3 years and needed a refresher in loading. Very useful indeed.

[@mike.thomas]

Glad it was helpful :-)

[@pilotemtnils]

Thanks so much, we just found 2 bodies with several lenses at work that were used years ago and forgotten about, had to refresh my memory on the usage, your video was just what I needed, thank you....8 years later....but thank you just the same :)

[@mike.thomas]

Nils Granholm So glad it helped!

[@waltereaton6404]

Great post, Mike! Thanks for the info and tips!

[@nyeevans13]

Good job Mike it's all flooding back now after your help.

[@TheRobertSt]

Thank you for the Hasselblad film magazine Loading! I have a couple of Hasselblads that I seldon use, so it was good to have a look at this small turorial!

[@erikvelastegui4311]

This is best film loading video for this camera I have seen yet!

[@mike.thomas]

Thank you. I appreciate you taking the time to make your nice comment :-)

[@markham56]

I owned a 500 C/M over 20 years ago and knew its operation well. I just bought a replacement and needed a refresher course. Thanks! Oh, I also learned something I never knew as well. Good tutorial.

[@mike.thomas]

Markham White Glad my video was helpful. I have a tony of Hassy videos, in case you need other refreshers :-). Have fun with your new-old camera. Best camera ever.

[@katebeever1621]

This is so clear and helpful. Thank you!

[@alexiafernandez6871]

You are super helpful. Helped my friend out so much! Now she knows how to load film on her Hasselblad!

[@mike.thomas]

Alexia Fernandez Glad my video was helpful. There's another one for what to do when you've shot all the frames.

[@jasmine6086]

I've watched this video a few times to load my first roll of film on a Hasselblad and I'm watching it again to load a second roll. This video is concise and easy to follow. Thanks for keeping this up after all these years!

[@mike.thomas]

I will leave this up forever. It is one of my most watched videos :-)

[@denissavescu]

Thank you ! very useful !!! tomorrow I will get my first Hasselblad!! I’m so excited!!!!!

[@viewfromthenorth92]

Excellent tutorial video. Thank you. Tim.

[@jessicaceason8017]

I referenced this video back in 2013. Found it again in 2021. Thanks for the help!

[@SteveMillerhuntingforfood]

Mike, thank you for this quick and useful tutorial. Just bought my first 501c and your video is perfect for learning how to load. I'll shoot my first roll tomorrow morning. Hoping for good light.

[@mike.thomas]

Glad to hear it was useful. 🤞 for light.

[@ckrug32]

Thanks Mike! Informative and to the point.

[@brigittetijssen-hendrikx7295]

Thanks !It's all very clear to me now.Just shot my first film with a Hasselblad !Yeahhh.

[@cosmic-fortytwo]

Thank you that was super helpful. I just shot a roll of Tri-X with the film loaded backwards so I exposed a lot of pretty pictures onto black paper. Sigh. Now I refer to your video whenever I get this camera out. Cheers!

[@MrsJoysAbFabTreats]

I hadn't loaded one in a while and this was most helpful. Thanks!

[@mike.thomas]

+Mrs. Joy's Absolutely Fabulous Treats Glad you found it helpful!

[@pascalmoreaux4363]

Very good reminder indeed, thank you! I used Hasselblad 30 years ago when I was a student, had never used since ;-)

[@macgruder]

I just got a hasselblad and this was VERY helpful. Thank you

[@mike.thomas]

+macgruder Glad to hear it!

[@andrerenault4134]

This was reeeeaaally helpful! Thank you…

[@DalyVideo]

This was great. I just loaded my first roll of 120 in my new 500c/m!!! :) You made it so incredibly easy. Thanks a bunch, Mike!

[@mike.thomas]

Congrats! You will be blown away by results from the Hasselblad.

[@mike.thomas]

Hey, that's really great to hear! Glad you found it useful.

[@JonHowardPhotos]

This is great. Thanks. Well done and some really good “learned from experience” tips for me. I inherited a 500C and am testing to be sure it all works before I sell it. And I’m flat out lost.

[@mike.thomas]

I’m sure you will enjoy the camera. They are very well designed and the lenses are fantastic.

[@CARANDTRAIN]

Thank you again. I always watch your video before loading a film. Just in case.

[@PerPettersson]

Thank for making this how to video, Mike. Just about to load my Hasselblad for the first time and I'm now glad I didn't just "do it".

[@mike.thomas]

Glad you found it. Loading a Hassy is an art, and you also have to hold your mouth the right way (I only had one camera, so no video of that).

[@alexs.362]

Glad I watched this, I have a YashicaMat and the roll loads face down not face up. So, force of habit I loaded the hasselblad the same way and felt as if something looked horrible wrong. I watched this video, and saw the error of my ways. Thanks!

[@juliagratacosicamos5054]

Very useful, greetings from Barcelona!

[@mcrdaveabc]

An excellent demo, thank you

[@mike.thomas]

Glad you found it useful!

[@barrettwbenton]

BIG thanks for this, Mike. I actually inherited a 500C/M recently, and, being a lifelong 35mm devotee, hadn't handled anything medium-format in ages, so this came in quite handy.

[@theofay]

Absolutely useful. And thanks for taking the time. I hadn't done it in so long, I had forgotten. But you know what? I've noticed that even my 20 megapixel Canon's images look "flat" compared to the 2 1/4". ALSO... Shooting with ektachrome, and then processing cibachrome (good luck finding anyone who knows how to do that correctly still) you will find that the surreal quality, the blue of the sky is SO REAL it's as freaky as watching a technicolor film...

[@antonioburke9559]

Thank you great information on the Hasselbald.

[@MatthewTRader]

Very well explained and demonstrated. So helpfu. Thank you!

[@mike.thomas]

Glad to hear it. Thanks for your comment!

[@flutterbydragonfly]

Thanks Mike. I just loaded my first roll of film into my Hassie back. Here we go!

[@mike.thomas]

Debi B 👍👍👍

[@garymclaughlin4457]

Great video and very helpful

[@anna-matilda5440]

Thanks Fr.o.m. Sweden Gothenburg were The Camera Hasselblad was born!✨

[@jaaphofman3385]

it was very useful for me. Yesterday I have bought a Hasselblad 500 CM

[@mike.thomas]

+Jaap Hofman Congrats!

[@rrrashen]

Thanks! Very useful and up to the point.

[@tebogohamese4087]

Thank you for this, from South Africa.

[@davidr7830]

Thank you for an excellent review.

[@mike.thomas]

Glad it was helpful! Thanks for your comment :-)

[@floriansteiner2612]

Thank you for the great and simple tutorial! Helped alot ;)

[@mike.thomas]

Glad it helped! Thanks for taking the time to comment :-)

[@proshotsfiji]

Good on ya mate! ....put my first one on back to front, now I know Thanks!

[@andyvan5692]

great video, the H system HM 16-32 loads simmilar, no silver tab, or winding knob,but has a captive crank-on\off style darkslide, you have to man-handle the takeup spool, but as soon as you switch on and hit the shutter it auto winds to frame one, there is even a darkslide shut warning on the body, a 6x4.5 format, but still a somewhat simple system, but with the H back it uses a cr2032 button cell battery (it does use the body battery-when ON the camera), but if you don't have this battery, you instantly lose the frame count\asa\data imprint and other settings, as this is 'stored' on the film mag's chip, and if you power it down (by taking the mag off), there goes the roll.

[@ProfessorOwen]

Just loaded my first roll of Portra! Awesome!

[@pattiejaneh]

thanks, there were a couple of features that I was not aware of so that was great to know.

[@mike.thomas]

+Pat Colgate Glad you found the vid useful.

[@mike.thomas]

Glad you liked it!

[@TheSajoshi56]

Thx, Excellent video, very useful

[@josednn]

Thank you very much for your videos!!

[@mike.thomas]

Thank you for your kind comment :-)

[@TheJennaStern]

terrific video. verrrrry helpful. signed, missingthefabshotsitookhavingloadedtheHasselbladwrong !

[@nige1rumsey]

Great video Mike, very clear. I didn't know about the little progress bar, they really thought of everything didn't they.

[@mike.thomas]

@nige1rumsey Glad you think so, Nigel. Yes Hasselblad seem to have bought of everything. Of all the camera systems I've shot, the Hasselblad is the best thought-out system of them all, and is incredibly versatile. I mean, consider that your can plug a modern 40+ megapixel back onto a 50 year-old camera.

[@samira8644]

Thank you! Very good explained. Maybe make another video on how to unload?

[@nwrob1]

I've shot quite a few rolls through mine and never noticed the red progress indicator! Thx!

[@benjx1]

So helpful! 🙏🏽

[@mike.thomas]

@nige1rumsey Yeah, when I've bothered to look I've noticed it isn't a perfect match from frame # to the progress indicator. Not sure why you aren't seeing *anything*, though. Seems like if your frame counter is working, the progress bar would probably be. You might want to see whether it turns red when you unload it.

[@andyvan5692]

also a special warning for the "12-on" backs (not the ones with A12 on it), you have to do the same things, but red window set the number one frame, but the real catch is you must 'ARM' the counter by rotating the windind knob the other way, it clicks to number one, then you are ALL SET to go, and "wind_off" as normal, only the wind-ON is the sticky part.

[@mike.thomas]

@fvgotch It all depends upon the camera or back you're shooting, and its format. 8 frames of 6x9, 12 frames of 6x6, 16 frames of 6x4.5, etc. Hasselblad backs indicate the number of frames in the back type: A12 gives you 12 (square) frames, A16 gives you 16.

[@AndresCuervoArt]

Thanks a lot! any ideas on where to get a cheap waist level finder? the prism 45 degree I have makes it really hard to see if image is in fact in focus or not...

[@Maliceofdallas]

First, great video! One thing you may want to add: With the 500c (and I'm guessing the 500c/m), one must be sure that the body is cocked BEFORE attaching the back, otherwise, if you crank it after attaching the back, you will lose your first frame. I've been told later models don't have this issue.

[@mike.thomas]

Good point. I guess I was so used to keeping Hasselblads cocked at all times that it didn’t even occur to me to mention it! Thanks :-)

[@ivaa7777JAWA]

Great video

[@marcy51990]

Thanks for this video!!!

[@mike.thomas]

Hi. Yes, it's just a regular 120 film spool from any roll of film. Once you have one, it will become the take-up spool for your first roll of film, and will be turned in with your film to be developed (and you'll use the now-empty one) for the next roll. If you have a photo shop nearby, I'll bet they can give you one.

[@alexbray1714]

Brilliant Thanks...loaded my first roll backwards...!

[@mike.thomas]

I'm sure you aren't the first. Happy shooting!

[@cathywaite844]

thank you so much easy to use

[@thegipso]

Thank you, very clear!

[@mike.thomas]

+Pier Luigi Giraudi Good to hear. Thanks for the comment.

[@JanKratochvilcom]

Thanks Mike !

[@freeridefitness]

Perfect tutorial thanks

[@mike.thomas]

@The1970sInfatuate Actually I wonder if you meant to ask this question on the instant film video (?). If so, the camera used there is a 500c/m. You can't use the Polaroid back on a 2000FCW -- it will damage the shutter.

[@theofay]

One LAst Thing... You may want to, since you have a knack for talking to the camera and explaining things... Maybe talk about switching back and forth in the midst of rolls being shot, and keeping the backs light-safe, efficiently swapping them out for one-another, and having a smooth shoot. Thanks again for the effort and patience,

[@carbo73]

thanks, I've just shoot about 3 rolls in my 500 EL/M and had some problems with first image being cut. It happened that I didn't know you have to alling the red arrow with the arrow in the backing paper.

[@Hector_Malot]

The Hasselblad magazine is a model of efficiency and ensures perfect tension and flatness of the film, as on the Linhof Roll film back. This is one of the secrets of the famous Hasselblad sharpness.

[@mike.thomas]

Glad it was of use!

[@AndresCuervoArt]

Probably a stupid question I got my first Hasselblad 500cm camera and when I was about to load film into back I noticed that there is no take up spool... is this a normal film spool and I should just waste 1 120mm roll take the film of the spool and use it? or is it a special kind of spool different from a 120mm film spool ? Its my first analog camera Im mostly a digital fellow trying to switch analog! bear with me here thank you all...

[@mike.thomas]

Glad to be of help. Signed, dontworryaboutiteveryonehasbotchedatleastonefilmload.

[@andreagnew]

Great video. Do the lens/body need to be cocked when attaching the film back?

[@The1970sInfatuate]

@mathomas1962 I heard you say that in the video. I was just wondering why the exposure didn't fill up the entire space on the print. That seems weird to have all the black space, and only the top corner contains the image.

[@andyvan5692]

one warning, the INSTANT the frame counter passes 1 the film crank on the back is able to turn again, like the mamiya RB67 and others, but without the interlock switch!, so ONLY use the BODY winding knob until the film's end!!; then use the winding knob to wind off the tail end of the backing paper to safety the film roll.

[@mike.thomas]

@kylehazachode Hehe. Thanks for the heads-up. It's a typo. I'll fix it.

[@mike.thomas]

@The1970sInfatuate The backs are identical between the two bodies, 500c/m and 2000FCW.

[@nathandoylemusic]

Awesome thanks SO much!

[@patricelongchamps9880]

Thanks so much for shearing

[@The1970sInfatuate]

Is this one the model with the 1/2000 maximum shutter speed?

[@marcsilber]

thanks mike great video

[@mike.thomas]

Appreciated. Thanks!

[@juengsharselle]

Hey everything worked, until the part where it needs to stop by it self. I kept on turning and Its already showing me the number 4? did is miss something or didn't load the film right?

[@jerometanguay8375]

hi there. loved your video! i recently took my 500c out, cleaned out the mirror etc. ready to go. question for you; i loaded my film, all is well i have the first frame in the window and the white dot, took it out took a few shots all is well but the red progress bar isn’t showing up in the opposite side of the magazine.., any idea? the frame numbers are themselves going up normally as i am at 7 out of twelve but no progression of the red ..

[@mike.thomas]

Hmm, not too sure about that. Perhaps that part of the mechanism is not working on that particular back? No idea really. Hopefully things are advancing fine and you’ll just have to live without the progress bar 🤷🏻‍♂️

[@kenlwc]

very useful! thanks!

[@daniel27794]

One question: if you have the red indicator , can you shoot? If so, how so multiple exposure is made ​​in a Hasselblad 500 cm ? Do not have to be white to white , it is white ( in the body ) to red (on chassis ) ? Thank you!

[@mike.thomas]

+Daniel Gil As I understand it, to do multiple-exposure with the V-Series, you take your first frame, then remove the back and wind only the body, and take the next shot.

[@timsbike1208]

7 seconds is what it would take be to load one and i remember as an assistant my mind was tuned to 12 frames. You always knew when to be beside the camera with the dark slide ready to change backs.

[@mike.thomas]

Wow, that’s cool! I certainly could never do it in 7 seconds, but time was never of the essence, like with a pro.

[@MarcS4R]

hi Mike, thanks for your instructions, i just loaded my first film, but i had to go a little past the arrow to create some extra tension on the film. the winding worked an now i am on (1). do you think i will still be able to shoot normally or will the film be misaligned now ?

[@mike.thomas]

MarcS4R Congrats! There are no frames on the film, if that's your concern (the exposures make the "frames"). There's just a certain amount of film on the roll. If you went way too far past the arrow, you just wouldn't get 12 full frames. My guess is you'll be just fine.