LEICA S with HCD f4 28mm

The widest Hasselblad H lens for the Leica S.

A review of using the HASSELBLAD HCD28mm with the LEICA S typ 007.

Gallery

Review

To use the Hasselblad HCD 28mm F4 (hereinafter referred to as HCD28) with the LEICA S Typ007 (including S2, S-E, S typ006, S3), you need to use the LEICA S adapter H released by Leica, and use it in the following configuration:

LEICA S +LEICA S adapter H +HCD28

With the above combination, you can shoot with autofocus (hereinafter referred to as AF) with the LEICA S.
The combination of the LEICA S Typ007 and HCD28 has an AF speed that is almost the same as the HASSELBLAD X2D+ XH-Adapter, which is not particularly fast, but is a sufficiently practical focus speed. The focus accuracy is the same as other lenses, and it stops properly when aiming at a subject with contrast.

For the 45mm x 30mm medium format digital sensor used by the LEICA S, multiplying it by a 35mm conversion factor of 0.8 makes it a wide-angle lens with a focal length equivalent to 22mm.

There is no noticeable distortion in the captured image, making it easy to use as a wide-angle lens. Due to the size of the image circulator, the image quality in the peripheral area is slightly inferior to the HC 35mm, but this is a trade-off with the size of the lens, and the HCD28 is very attractive when considering its wider range and portability.

The HCD 24mm F4.8, which is a wider-angle lens in the same HCD series, does not work properly with the Leica S + S AdapterH combination. Therefore, among the HASSELBLAD H lenses, the HCD28 is the widest lens that can be used with the LEICA S. The widest wide-angle lens in the genuine LEICA S lens is the SUPER ELMAR-S 24mm, and the next focal length is the ELMARIT-S 30mm, so the focal length of 28mm is a focal length that is not available in genuine Leica lenses.

The HCD lens series, which has a compact lens barrel, would have had more varieties if development of the Hasselblad H system had continued, but unfortunately, since the H system will end in 2023, it will end with the three currently released.

When using the LEICA S typ007 with the LEICA S adapter H and HCD28, the camera sometimes freezes due to poor communication between the camera and the lens. I have not encountered this problem with older lenses, the HC 35mm and HC 80mm, so I think it is a problem specific to this lens or the lenses I own. Even if I report it to LEICA, there is almost no improvement, so I do not report it, and when it freezes, I remove the battery and reset the camera.

The old HCD28 without the orange dot should also be able to use AF when combined with the Leica S and S adapter H, but depending on the version of the lens firmware, the Leica S may not recognize the lens, so it is essential to check the actual product when purchasing. If you own the LEICA S adapter H, the HCD28 is a good option.

HCD28mm lens configuration diagram (taken from the official Hasselblad page)

Elmarit-S 30mm lens configuration (taken from the official LEICA page)

Specification

Item	HCD 28mm	Elmarit-S 30mm
focal length(mm)	28.9	30
Maximum aperture	4	2.8
Minimum aperture	32	22
Lens configuration	9groups 12elements	9groups 13elements
Minimum distance(m)	0.35	0.5
Lens length(mm)	102	128
Lens max diameter(mm)	100	88
Filter diameter(mm)	95	82
Weight(g)	850	1060 1140(with central shutter)