Hasselblad XCD 3,5/30mm Review
Instead of the original packaging, we sell in an original bag from hazelblad, as you can see in the photos

package includes Lens + duralumin sun visor included, including a protective bag hasselblad made of calfskin

The Hasselblad XCD 3,5/30mm is the most expensive lens available for the X1D-50c mirrorless medium format camera. It's also the most ambitious in scope, capturing an ultra-wide field of view while maintaining a relatively compact design. Images captured with the lens are very sharp, although edges lag behind the center in fidelity and there's dimness at the corners. Still, it's a solid option for photographers who prefer a wide perspective.

Design

The XCD 3,5/30mm measures 3.5 by 3.3 inches, weighs 1.2 pounds, and supports 77mm front filters. It's a short, squat design, one that balances quite well on the X1D. The barrel is finished in black metal, with a rubberized focus ring, and a reversible metal hood is included. Getting the hood on or off is a little tight, but printed arrows will guide you to the correct position to get it correctly situated for the bayonet mount to work as intended.The X1D features an image sensor that's bigger than 35mm film, which means the 30mm lens covers a field of view that's wider than you'd expect. It just about matches the 23mm focal length on a 135 format system. But because its focal length is longer, you won't get quite as much perspective distortion when working close to a subject.

Hasselblad's mirrorless camera doesn't feature an in-body shutter. Instead it relies on leaf shutters, placed in the lenses themselves. There are some advantages to this choice—the 30mm's integral shutter can fire at durations from 60 minutes through 1/2,000-second, and can sync with strobes even when firing at its quickest speed. Systems with focal plane shutters are typically limited to 1/250-second sync. The leaf shutter also introduces much less vibration than a focal plane design, so long exposures shot from a tripod are crisper.

Both autofocus and manual focus are driven by a motor. But unlike most other mirrorless lenses, which typically follow the same design paradigm, the 30mm's focus ring offers resistance when turning it. It delivers a similar tactile feel as using a true mechanical manual focus system, which is a big plus.


The Hasselblad XCD 30mm F3.5 is a wide-angle prime lens designed for the company's 'digital medium format' cameras that includes the Hasselblad X1D II 50C and the new Hasselblad 907X 50C. We have used the latter camera with the lens for this test.

Digital medium format is not strictly the same as film medium format, with the sensor area of Hasselblad's compatible cameras measuring 44x33mm. There's a 0.79x magnification, meaning the lens has an equivalent 24mm focal length (to the full frame 36x24mm sensor format).

Depth of field is also different, with the maximum f/3.5 aperture providing an equivalent depth of field of around f/2.8. We would typically associate a 24mm f/2.8 (equivalent) lens like this with landscape photography. Only the XCD 21mm f/4 lens offers a wider angle of view in the Hasselblad line up.

In the Fujifilm GFX medium format series there is a direct competitor, the GF 30mm F3.5, which we tested recently. The list price of Hasselblad's lens is £3,588, which is more than twice the money you'll need for the Fujifilm lens, and indeed Pentax's closest lens, the 35mm f/3.5.

If you've used one of Hasselblad's XCD lenses then you'll be right at home with them all. There's a similar design and build quality, including a built-in 'leaf' shutter (rather than the shutter being in the camera).

There's also a high expectation on image quality too - XCD lenses typically excel in virtually all areas. So will the Hasselblad XCD 30mm F3.5 deliver too? Read on to find out.

Ease of Use
The Hasselblad XCD 30mm F3.5 is one of the smallest and lightest lenses in the XCD range. On the outside, you'd be hard pressed to tell the difference between this and the XCD 21mm f/4 lens.

Both have the same diameter, 77mm lens thread, though the 30mm F3.5 lens is fractionally lighter at 550g and shorter at 88mm. There's the distinct XCD minimalist look, an all-black exterior with a ridged manual focus ring.

This is an all-metal lens so it has that reassuring weight to it. Paired with the Hasselblad 907X 50C camera you're looking at around 1.3kg - that's about the same weight as an equivalent full-frame DSLR and lens pairing.