Hasselblad Lunar

[Greg]

Now that we have come down to a boil after steam coming out our ears, let's analyze this.  We really haven't approached this from the Sony point of view.  How many cameras does Sony actually feel will sell using their components.  Surely they did market studies to try and find out.  Many have wondered why Hasselblad did not come out with a digital XPan.  The market for such a camera is pretty small even though they could have placed two full frame sensors side-by-side fairly easily.  But consider this.  How about stacking two full frame sensors one above the other or lengthwise side-by-side.  Most of us could come up with better alternatives than both of those companies did.  Two Sony sensors stitched together electronically would yield around 48 megapixels.  You might not even want it to use existing H lenses.  Zeiss branded lenses could have been used for the new camera.  Loyal Hassy users would welcome the return of Zeiss lenses.

Sony certainly has the resources to bring any electronic component to the market with ease.  Hasselblad could have specified exact requirements and Sony could have produced them as a true partner in the project.  Aluminum, stainless steel, brass, or magnesium could be machined to make a very strong body.  And no one believes it would take hours or $300.00 per body.  After all, they produce blanks leaving a small amount of metal to be machined away.  Well, I may not know what I'm talking about, but my Eastern Kentucky horse sense tells me there were a lot of better alternatives than the genius's at Hasselblad headquarters brought us.  

Evidently Mr. Hansen has felt the full force of the fury created by his blunder.  But I'm sure he still has not admitted it to himself.  It's just that we photographers really don't know what we want or need.  How presumptuous of us!  Yes, I'm still pretty mad, but it has sort of morphed into a sadness to see the beginning of the demise of a company we have loved and respected for decades.  

Greg      

[fotografz]

This is a distinguished Victor Hasselblad mating with one of the Kardashian tramps ... and the marriage has lasted about 72 hours.

Here is the legacy:

"His famed career started in 1940, when a German military aeroplane was shot down over Swedish terrotory. The army found an aerial camera inside the plane, and the Royal Swedish Air Force asked Victor Hasselblad if he could "make a camera like this?" He replied: "No, I can make one better."

Here is what it has become:

"The legacy of his famed career came to an abrupt end in 2012, when a Hasselblad executive's trophy wife found a piece of Euro-trash in a flea market, and asked if a camera could be made like it?. "No, we can make it even trashier".

Sorry Victor, I feel for you man.

-Marc

[Dustbak]

Some lightheartedness... http://www.lensrentals.com/blog/2012/09/product-announcement-lensrentals-looney

[fotografz]

We may make light of this, but it may come back and bite all of us ... and then we won't be laughing so much.

I spent my whole advertising career managing Brands. A career that also allowed me to work with some of the best photographers and cinematographers in the world. Creative people who kindled a love of photography to point that I became one. People like many of you here.

I have lived through similar instances of greed and avarice that destroyed a brand reputation that took decades to establish. Hasselblad is on the cusp of doing something similar. The lack of humility in the face of universally withering criticism of what has already been nick-named the "Loony"  ... the arrogant response from the top dogs, are chief indicators of a brand about to be milked for short term profit ... minimal investment, third party makers, brief nods to core products which will morph into total abandonment of the core product development ... spiraling into total destruction. This isn't new, it is bad Brand history repeating itself.

I'm not sure that even a united voice from their customer base can alter this path. The corporate world is rife with yes men and cowards who tremble under the thumb of financial tyrants.

Am I over-reacting, am I making to much of it?  We'll see ... but mark my words ... I've seen this more than once, and it has never ended well for anyone except the few doing the milking.

As a side note, we now know why the battery for the H4D/60 never came to light ... and we know what happened to David ... in retrospect who's misfortune may have been a lucky break for him.

-Marc



 

[Dustbak]

Marc,


I completely agree with you but cannot do anything else but be light about it. I have worked for the 5th largest communications network in the world (the one that has been responsible for the Intel tune amongst others) and have seen brands go down in flames for less.

Even if this becomes a financial success the damage to the brands credibility has already been done....

I must have missed the reason why the H4D60's battery solution never came to fruition?? Do you care to enlighten me?

[Greg]

Marc,

Hasselblad loyalists aren't laughing.  What I am seeing is a universal sadness coming from loyal Hasselblad customers who, like you, know this is the beginning of the end for a venerable and honored company.  The ones laughing are the outsiders who have always bashed Hasselblad for one reason or another.  In my opinion they are not "on the cusp", they have gone over the precipice.  Can you imagine the morale of the existing employes of Hasselblad (The ones that are left!).  One would think that the investors who purchased Hasselblad would find ways to make money in a way that would perpetuate the company rather than just shut it down.  It reminds me of a fire sale where assets are sold for pennies on the dollar.  Just sad, very sad.

Greg  

[gss]

Take it easy, guys. Do all your shoots turn out awesome?

No they don't, but most of us have the sense not to show our bad ones, much less crow about them.

[fotografz]

Oh, Hasselblad could undo this if they wished, but they won't. The only thing worse than blind ignorance is arrogant blind ignorance.

Yes, anyone can make a mistake, but when we screw up, we do a re-shoot. We own up to the error and make good on it.

I seriously doubt Hasselblad will do the same.

But they could, and their loyal users would think all the more of them for it.

Who cares about the Hassey detractors ... they'll never buy into the system anyway.

We are the ones that count. We are the ones that will either upgrade to the H5D or not.

Like many of you, I can think of many other ways Hasselblad could have expanded into other markets without corrupting the Brand.
Not one of those ideas would be anywhere near what they are doing.

-Marc

[Ralf Mueller]

I was quite enthusiastic after the H5D announcement and seriously considering an upgrade of my "aged" H3DII or the purchase
of something new spinning off a colaboration with Fuji. But this "thing" makes me stop investing into HB for the next two years.
I want to know first where this company is directed to and will wait until photokina 2014. Either they acknowledge that this "thing" is
the wrong direction to go and come up with something serious for photographers to use or it is the end of my liaison with HB.
Meanwhile i will use my H3DII and invest in some lighting, the new Profoto B4 Air or Broncolor Move 1200 seem a better alternative
than this "thing" from Hasselblad.

Just my thoughts,
Ralf

[davidthescot]

If you buy a Canon or Nikon system you buy something to use as a tool with the knowledge that there is a huge pool of users out there willing to buy your kit on Ebay (sadly with the possible exception of the D3X after the D800 launch) so it is not money wasted.  With Hasselblad, in the past, this has been sort of true but now I am worried, really worried, as I cannot afford to ditch a £40,000 investment and for what?

The truth is that the HB MFD system is still a great system but we are all worried about the strategic direction of the business and the reliability of our investment.  We are all business people and understand the mechanics of running a successful business (quality, value, service, communications, financial viability and so on).  Is HB going the same way as Rollei and is our investment going to be worthless?  Do we need to start again with an inferior but still valuable system (P1 etc)?  HB needs to wake up and tell us the truth - for once!

[Greg]

Same for me.  From all the user perspectives I have seen so far, it looks as if Hasselblad has now killed off their loyal MFD customer base.  No more H for me.  How could anyone invest any more money in a company that just shot themselves in the head.  (I could have said "shot themselves in the foot", but head sounds more appropriate.)  If management could comprehend this outcome, they would be wise to ditch their plan for the Lunar.  But we have seen they have no brains.  Does not bode well for the company.

Greg

[martinnz]

I am very much of the same feeling. I have worked my way up through the Hasselblad line and had plans to upgrade my H3d39 later this year. Definitely on hold now. It does not feel like the right time to invest in this company. I hope that Hasselblad do take note of the comments made on the forums. It seems a bit odd that they would chase a new market that is already awash with some serious competition now. Never mind when that actually get to the launch date. If they go down this track I really think it will fail.   

[david distefano]

back in the late '50's and thru the 60's i would go with my dad on saturdays when he would shoot weddings with his hasselblad. i would go into his darkroom when he would print his b&w model images from his hasselblad negatives. i remember looking down the waist level finder of the hasselblad on a tripod and seeing the larger image. in the late 70's i was able to purchase my first hasselblad. i thought i died and went to heaven. i was never going to be a professional like most of you are but my dad always said get the best equipment. and for photography hasselblad was the best.  that lasted for about 4 years until a thief got their hands on it. about 5 years ago after shooting large format i decided to add mf to my mix. so i picked the the 503 with the cfv16 back as well as an a12 back to shoot film. as i read this thread i really feel for the photographers who make their living with their equipment. they have such a large investment in equipment that anything that reduces its resale value in the future hurts their business.
hasselblad used to equal the best. this lunar camera would never had past muster if victor were alive and running the company. rolls royce doesn't sell a scion with their name on it. it would ruin their reputation. haselblad needs to rethink this direction!

[maxnardi]

Why for the hell had not it come out with a digital X-Pan with legacy compatibility to the old lenses??

For 6K€ they could have done it for sure using an "old" H3D Sensor maybe: 22mpx on a wide format are still enough for us (maybe not the mpx fanboys that really dont understand anything)....

for me it's a big auto goal on the brand name.

They come out with a arguable design applied to a consumer product with no back compatibility on brand cameras and systems so no added value.
The true pana-leica strenght is that they can take advantage of the high grade leica glass... here nothing.

I'm evaluating to trade in my h3d to a h4d or h5d camera but now this add thinking to my already doubt about keeping on H or going on Leica S (glass compatibility ) or pentax 645d....

sorry about it.

[peterbkk]

Maybe we should look at this a little more positively.

As has been said earlier in this thread, an investment in H Series is no small commitment.  My previous Hasselblad V system served me well for over 15 years.  Even with digital's more dynamic technological advances, I still expect to get at least 5 years out of my H4D system.  

What was I worried about when I slapped down my credit card on the $30K purchase of the H4D?  (actually, i was really worried that the card would bounce, embarrassing the heck out of me)  I was worried about the longevity of Hasselblad.   What if the company dies in the next couple of years?  I knew about their ownership issues and earlier financial problems.   Would there be a service organisation to support my system?  Spare parts?  New features?  A decent second-hand resale market?

News about the H5D was good.  Told me that they had some money for R&D.  But, in these crazy economic times, would an upgraded model be enough?

But, news about the Lunar, while at first glance had me scratching my head, was even better news.  

Why?  Now, Hasselblad has a second source of revenue.  Backed up by Sony's huge marketing engine and deep pockets, Hasselblad should be able to make some money from the Lunar.  

Why will the Lunar make money?  Don't under-estimate the capacity of the luxury brand market.  Have you ever seen the queues outside a Louis Vuitton shop?  For a rather plain and ugly handbag, with unbranded functional equivalents selling for a tenth of the LV price.  There will always be people rich enough and foolish enough to waste money on a branded product for bragging rights. And that market is growing. If Hasselblad can tap into some of that money, it'll help keep the company growing.   I can imagine a lot of young and not-so-young rich kids showing off their "Hasselblad" at the club.  And, some of that revenue will spill over into R&D on the professional cameras so we will continue to see innovation, quality and new features in our favourite camera range.

I don't think we should worry about this being the beginning of the end.  Why?  To maintain the perceived brand value that sells these over-priced, rebranded cameras, Hasselblad must continue to be seen to be the camera that professionals use.  The only way Hasselblad and Sony can keep selling the Lunar (and future branded models) is by maintaining a healthy, strong position in the professional photography market.  This means R&D, investment and new models, lenses and features in the professional system.  All good news.

Should we loyal Hasselblad owners feel a little miffed at what we see as the potential dilution of the brand value.  Maybe a little.  But only a little.  We should be grateful that Hasselblad management have found a way to keep the company in business...

Regards
Peter