HASSELBLAD HC f3.5 50ｍｍ-II

A review and sample photos of the Hasselblad HC 50mm F3.5 Type 2 lens used with the HASSELBLAD X2D-100C and X1DII-50C.

Gallery
Review
Specification and more
Reference links

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Gallery

The example photos were taken with the X1DII + XH-Converter 0.8 and the X2D + XH-Converter 0.8

Review

1．Overview

The HASSELBLAD HC 50mm II is a standard lens for Hasselblad H-series cameras.

When used with H-series medium-format cameras, it covers up to 40.2 x 53.7mm on 645 film and digital sensors, equivalent to a focal length of approximately 33mm in 35mm format.

When used with HASSELBLAD X-series cameras, the X1D, X1DII, 907X, and X2D, it can be used via either the XH Adapter or the XH CONVERTER 0.8. It can also be used in conjunction with the CONVERTER H x1.7 teleconverter, enabling close-up photography using three types of EXTENSION TUBES H (13mm/26mm/52mm).

With the XH Lens Adapter, the focal length is approximately 40mm F3.5.

With the XH Converter 0.8, the focal length is 32mm F2.4.

With the XH Lens Adapter* and a 1.7x teleconverter, the focal length is 69.5mm, with a maximum aperture of F5.6.

The lens is a retrofocus lens with 11 elements in 7 groups. Holding it feels substantial, contrary to the impression given by its compact body. It is heavier and longer than the brighter, longer-focal-length HC 100mm F2.2. With the HC 50mm attached, the system weight is 1kg for the lens alone, plus the converter (175g or 430g) and camera (766g), bringing the total weight to 2-2.2kg, which is still on the light side for an X1D-II with an HC lens attached.

○Accessory compatibility

Compatible with Extension-Tube-H (H13/H26/H52) to shorten the minimum focusing distance.
IBIS functions when used with the X2D in combination with the XH Adapter.
IBIS functions when used with the X2D in combination with the XH CONVERTER 0.8.
Compatible with the CONVERTER H x1.7 teleconverter.
The image circle covers up to 645 format film.
Compatible with the HTS 1.5 TILT AND SHIFT ADAPTER for tilt-shift photography.
Compatible with LEICA S-series cameras using the genuine Leica mount adapter S-Adapter H.
Compatible with the genuine FUJIFILM H MOUNT ADAPTER G.

2．Usability

The HASSELBLAD HC 50mm II is a relatively recent purchase among my H-series lenses, and features an orange dot for autofocus on the X-series.

The firmware was a little old when I purchased it, so I updated it to firmware 19.1.0 and confirmed that autofocus was possible with the X H Lens Adapter and XH CONVERTER 0.8. When I checked the lens information on the X1DII, I found that the shutter release count was approximately 3,000.

The autofocus focusing speed is on the fast side for an HC lens, and the autofocus accuracy is not an issue, so I rarely use it in manual focus. Furthermore, the lens’s performance has improved with the 2-inch format, and with improved peripheral image quality and less noticeable distortion, I often take it with me for street snapshots and other landscape photography, and I frequently use it when I go on short trips or walks.

When it comes to backlight resistance, care must be taken when the sun is in the field of view, as contrast can decrease at certain angles. A hood is needed outdoors, but the hoods for H-series cameras are all large and bulky, so I use this lens without one.

I started using the HC 50-110 zoom, and this lens and the HC 50-110 have the same focal length and maximum aperture. Considering its convenience in the field, I often use the HC 50-110 zoom when traveling by car.

When this lens was renewed to the 2nd type, it would have been considered a better lens if it had been changed to an HCD lens to differentiate it from zoom lenses, had the maximum aperture been increased to 2-2.5, the lens barrel been made smaller and lighter, and the minimum focusing distance been shortened to around 0.35m.

The weakness of this lens is that its minimum focusing distance is 0.6m, which means you can’t get very close.
To compensate for this, the “Hasselblad Macro Converter for H Lenses,” which is said to be optimized for the HC50mm-2, increases the minimum focusing distance to 0.4m, but limits the maximum focusing distance to 0.6m. This product is therefore a high-performance extension tube. If the focusing range of the HC 50mm were to increase from 0.4m to infinity by attaching this converter, it was a product I would have purchased without hesitation.

3．Summary

In conclusion, to sum up the HASSELBLAD HC 50mm II, although it is large and heavy for a standard lens, it is on the lighter side of the H-series lenses. However, it has the disadvantage of being roughly the same length as the HC 100mm and longer and heavier than the HC 80mm.

This lens is mainly used in combination with the XH-Converter 0.8, which gives it a 32mm focal length in 35mm format.

The advantage of this combination is that it is lighter and smaller than the HC 35mm F3.5 + XH-Adapter, which has a similar focal length but gives it a 28mm focal length in 35mm format.

○AF support

Lens firmware 19.1.0 is required to operate autofocus (AF) when mounting HC/HCD series lenses to the X1D, X1DII, X2D, or 907X via a mount adapter (X H Lens Adapter, XH CONVERTER 0.8). There are conditions for applying lens firmware 19.1.0, and lenses with firmware 18.0.0 or later are required. Firmware 19.1.0 cannot be applied to lenses with older firmware 17.0.0 or earlier.

The AF compatibility status for X Series cameras can be summarized as follows:

All lenses with an orange dot are capable of AF.
- However, AF does not work on the HC120 and HC120-II. This is a lens limitation imposed by Hasselblad.
For non-orange dot lenses, it’s a bit more complicated.
- If AF is possible
  - Lens with lens firmware 18.0.0 or later.
  - Lenses from 2010 or later with serial numbers starting with V and firmware 18.0.0 or later.
- When AF is not possible
  - Lens with lens firmware earlier than 17.0.0.
  - Lenses manufactured before 2010 with serial numbers starting with S.
  - Fujinon brand lens.

There are exceptions to the above, and new firmware may be installed when the focus unit is replaced during lens repair.

The most reliable way to determine whether AF can be used with Hasselblad X series lenses is not just to determine from the serial number, but to attach the lens to a camera and check the actual lens firmware.

○About FUJINON lenes(HC 50mm)

The HC50mm Type 2 should have been renewed along with the orange dot lens with an improved shutter unit, so the FUJI film brand (SUPER EBC FUJINON) should not exist (the author has never seen it).
The HC50mm Type 1 is distributed under the FUJI film brand (SUPER EBC FUJINON) and the HASSELBLAD brand. The FUJI film brand does not support AF, and the HASSELBLAD brand depends on the firmware as described in the “AF Support” section.

FUJINON brand HC lenses are not supported by HASSELBLAD and are no longer supported by FUJI FILM, so they cannot be repaired in case of failure. The following is an example.
FUJI brand HC lenses are sold at low prices, but care should be taken when purchasing them.

Since HC lenses are manufactured by FUJIFILM, the FUJIFILM GFX series, which has the same sensor size as the X1D, X1DII, and 907X, also offers a mount adapter (H MOUNT ADAPTER G). This one is exclusively for MF (manual focus), but it can use the lens shutter as well as the mechanical shutter on the camera side.

Specification

Item	Type-2	Type-1
focal length(mm)	50	←
Maximum aperture	3.5	←
Minimum aperture	32	←
Lens configuration	7groups in 11elements	9groups in 10elements
Minimum distance(m)	0.6	←
Lens length(mm)	85	←
Lens max diameter(mm)	77	←
Filter diameter(mm)	77	←
Weight(g)	975	←

Reference links

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Update history

2025.9.20
2024.9.1
2024.03.24
2022.03.21