X1D 120mm Macro Lens and Other Announced X1D Lenses

[hcubell]

Has anyone heard whether the 120mm Macro lens has started to ship? Any update on the shipment dates for the other lenses announced by Hasselblad?

[ganesh]

http://www.hasselbladdigitalforum.com/index.php?topic=5158.0

[Imagecrazy]

This seems typical.  I gave up waiting months ago when we thought was eminent, and picked up the 90 instead.  Very happy with it.  But will wait until the 120 has actually shipped before putting in an order this time around.  Not going down that moving carrot path again.

[siddhaarta]

Hasselblad repeats their old errors. Making announcements (delivery end of June) and then not fulfilling them (deja vu X1D, XCD 30mm, GPS module, H-Adapter ...). Now they say "autumn", which means in Europe meteorologically between 09/01 and 11/30 and astronomically between 09/22 and 12/20. Feel free to guess.

Dealers (at least mine) apparently havo also no clue (I ordered my copy in April).

I lost any confidence that they will fulfill their further roadmap.

They should learn from Fujifilm, they promise and fulfill, lens after lens ...

... liked that with "moving carrot path", but careful Hasselblad, this is the best recipe to loose more and more clients

[hcubell]

I agree it's disappointing, but comparing Hasselblad to Fuji is unfair. Fuji is a very large operation with way more resources than Hasselblad. AFAIK, Fuji makes its own lenses, so Fuji is in control of the whole process from lens design to manufacture to packaging. Hasselblad depends upon a third party to produce lens prototypes and then manufacture the final versions of the lenses. I knew going in when I bought the X1D instead of the Fuji GFX that Hasselblad was not Fuji. New lenses would not appear nearly as quickly. Same for accessories. Same for the implementation of certain basic features that were in the GFX from Day 1, such as a live view histogram and playback of images in the EVF. Despite this, I still bought the X1D. And I have zero regrets. For what I shoot and the way I shoot, it's the best camera I have ever owned.

[siddhaarta]

I agree it's disappointing, but comparing Hasselblad to Fuji is unfair. Fuji is a very large operation with way more resources than Hasselblad. AFAIK, Fuji makes its own lenses, so Fuji is in control of the whole process from lens design to manufacture to packaging. Hasselblad depends upon a third party to produce lens prototypes and then manufacture the final versions of the lenses. I knew going in when I bought the X1D instead of the Fuji GFX that Hasselblad was not Fuji. New lenses would not appear nearly as quickly. Same for accessories. Same for the implementation of certain basic features that were in the GFX from Day 1, such as a live view histogram and playback of images in the EVF. Despite this, I still bought the X1D. And I have zero regrets. For what I shoot and the way I shoot, it's the best camera I have ever owned.

We have to agree to disagree on that one.

It's about management capacities, efficient planning and coordination processes and ... transparent communication with costumers. This has not much to do with company size.

And this is not about whether we like the camera or not. I love my X1D, but I waited and bought it only one week after the lens roadmap had been announced, because for me a macro lens and a super-wide lens is very important.

In this announcement from February they said, the 120mm will be ready for shipping end of June and the other lenses will be shipping within 12 months, meaning until February 2018. Nobody forced them to make this announcement and publish a roadmap. But if you do that, you better fulfill your promises.

So after that I (naively) decided, I can wait so long (macro in the summer, super-wide next spring), although Fuji had the macro already shipping and promised the super-wide much, much earlier.

[satijntje]

Don't forget that Hasselblad Gothenburg is 70 people only!
That is all, cleaning ladies and reception lady included :-)

John

[siddhaarta]

New expected availability at B&H: Oct 24

[BradP]

Double checked that, and it seems true.   

H's X1D framework should clearly be superior, anyone handling the camera can see that.  One can understand an occasional delay in an announced schedule.  Even a double delay if there is a good understandable reason.  Repeated announced delays are not a good foundation of a loyal partnership with those who really fund the partnership (i.e. customers).  I hope this pattern changes. 

[rem]

satijntje, ther is no reception lady in Gothenburg ;-)

[BradP]

70 people are all?  Well if so I have a newfound respect for Hasselblad.   And I really mean that.

I don't need photography, I simply want to do it as well as I can at this stage of my life.  I guess I have been fortunate.  Earlier I worked in a highly leveraged business quite similar to H's (if 70 is a close number) and it grew tenfold.  One of the secrets to that success was to underpromise whenever possible, and overdeliver.  The perfect state was promise exactly what you deliver.  The path to worse was overpromise and underdeliver. 

Whatever.  There has only been one announced delay by H in the 120mm by my recount.  Autumn extends another 2 months and 3 weeks.  Retailers could be the font of confusion for the 120.  I guess I am jumpy because the 120mm Macro was an essential part of why I bought into the platform, and I'm getting impatient.  Sorry about that.

[Snuffels]

BH Photo now has the expected date as October 24th.  Yet another delay.

Now all they have is that annoying "coming soon" note.  No expected arrival. 

[hugenoot]

Today Hasselblad Netherlands told me 'no delivery' of the 120mm Macro this year in the Netherlands...

[siddhaarta]

I have heard the same thing from my german dealer.

Very disappointed ...

[hcubell]

Strange, as there is a report about the 120mm lens at Luminous Landscape from someone who claims to have received one.