Hasselblad 500C

The Porsche 911 of cameras.

 
 

Hasselblad 500C with 80mm f/2.8 Carl Zeiss Planar C lens. An early example, made in 1958. (Color photos were made with a Nikon F, 55mm f/3.5 Micro-Nikkor-P.C, and Portra 400.)

 
 

The Hasselblad and the Porsche 911

  • High performance.

  • Object of desire.

  • Subdued yet unmistakable look, consistent over decades.

  • Practical for daily use.

  • Sold a lot, not rare.

  • The company name is the full name of the originator:

    • Victor Hasselblad AB

    • Dr.-Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG.

 
 

Philadelphia Museum of Art. Hasselblad 500C, 80mm f/2.8 Planar C, Tri-X, 2024.

 

Hasselblad 500C with 80mm f/2.8 Carl Zeiss Planar C lens

 
 

Scandinavian design

The Hasselblad is made in Sweden and has an elegantly simple design. It is modular, with a full range of attachments and accessories, but it has way fewer knobs, buttons, and tabs than modular medium format cameras from Japan.

Example: The waist level finder. It slides on and off and the film back holds it in place. No button, no latch… super clean.

 
 

Roppongi, Tokyo. Hasselblad 500C, 80mm f/2.8 Planar C, Verichrome Pan, early 2000s.

 
 

Small updates

The overall design of the Hasselblad 500-series didn’t change during its production run, but updates were made including:

  • Lenses finished in black instead of silver.

  • Winding cranks for the body and backs.

  • Backs with holders for the dark slide.

  • Waist level finders with an improved folding mechanism, and black plastic tab-handles.

  • Interchangeable focus screens.

  • Metering.

I like the pure, clean original best.

 
 

Arcade Building, Glen Echo Park (Glen Echo. Md.) Hasselblad 500C, 80mm f/2.8 Planar C, 2025.

Roppongi, Tokyo Hasselblad 500C, 80mm f/2.8 Planar C, Verichrome Pan, mid 2000s.

 
 

Evolution

1948: The original Hasselblad. A trailblazing design. The first medium format camera with the body, back, viewer, and lens as interchangeable modules. In 1952 the 1000F model kept the same overall design, with an improved shutter.

1957: The 500C is the first of what later became known as the 500 series. It replaced the 1000F’s focal plane shutter with a leaf shutter and established the long-running Hasselblad paradigm.

2013: End of Hasselblad 500 series production. A 56-year run.

(Dates for Hasselblad models are in Freytag 1972, Hunt, 2025, McKeown 1996, Nordin 1998, and the Hasselblad corporate website.)

 
 

Hasselblad 500C with 80mm f/2.8 Carl Zeiss Planar C lens

 
 

Roppongi, Tokyo Hasselblad 500C, 80mm f/2.8 Planar C, Verichrome Pan, mid 2000s.

 
 

Using the Hasselblad

Handling is excellent, and the Hasselblad is a robust camera; a medium format Nikon F equivalent. It excels at field use (Lu, 2024). Compared to a TLR, the camera angle is not as low.

The Hasselblad is noisy. So is the Bronica, my other medium format SLR. When making an exposure, the leaf shutter, rear auxiliary shutter, aperture, and mirror are all set into motion and the result is a loud and distinctive ‘crunch’. Enthusiasts appreciate this! But in some settings it could be intrusive.

 
 

Hasselblad 500C with 80mm f/2.8 Carl Zeiss Planar C lens

 
 

Maintenance and repair

This camera has had maintenance. A few years ago, the light seals on the back wore out. That prompted a general overhaul that included the body and lens as well.

 

Contact sheet. Hasslblad 500C, 80mm f/2.8 Planar C, Plus-X, 2004. A print from this contact sheet is in the portfolio, ‘Tokyo urban portraits’.

 

References / further reading

Camera manual: orphancameras.com

More references:

Emanuel, W.D. 1969. Hasselblad Guide, 3rd ed. London: Focal Press. Reprinted 1988 by A Photographers Place, New York.

Freytag, H. 1972. The Hasselblad Way, 4th ed. London: Focal Press.

p. 13 has a chart, ‘The Hasselblad Evolution’ giving the dates and essential features of each model from the 1600F to the 500C/M. The date for the 500C/M is 1971 but other sources including the Hasselblad website quote 1970.

Hasselblad 500 Series. The company’s historical information: hasselblad dot com/about/history/500-series/

Hunt, B. 2024. Film Camera Zen: A Guide to Finding the Perfect Film Camera. Los Angeles: Chronicle Chroma. A Hasselblad is on the cover, and it’s written up on pp. 52-57.

Karlsten, E. (text), V. Hasselblad, P. Halsman, L. Nilsson, et al. (photos). 1981. Hasselblad. Stockholm: Gullers International.

Victor Hasselblad is described as a visionary who had the ability to ‘attract talented employees and to inspire them to share his own enthusiasm’ (pp. 22, 35).

Lu, Sissi. 2024. Don’t Fall ! ｜Taking My Camera to Ski with Me. (YouTube) www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rt8CX2oklls&t=13s

Don’t miss the first 40 seconds — Hasselblad film loading in the field.

McKeown, J.M. and J.C. 1996. McKeown’s Price Guide to Antique and Classic Cameras, 1997-1998. Grantsburg, Wis.: Centennial Photo.

Nordin, R. 1998. Hasselblad System Compendium. West Sussex, England: Hove Books. This is a very detailed, well-researched source.

Porschardt, U. 2017. Porsche 911: The Ultimate Sportscar as Cultural Icon. Berlin: Die Gestalten Verlag. An elaboration of the Porsche 911 mystique.

Pritchard, Michael. 2014. A History of Photography in 50 Cameras. Buffalo, N.Y.: Firefly Books. The Hasselblad is camera no. 31.