Hasselblad to Minolta

[MizLiz]

My dad gave me a set of early 1960 Hasselblad camera body and lenses. The body needs TLC (which I don't know how to do). Some of the lenses are in very good shape.

Please forgive the stupid question, but does anyone know if I can use the lenses on my Minolta Maxxum 7 (maybe with a converter?) and would I really want to?

Thanks for your thoughts - Liz

[Photo-John]

Welcome to the site!

It's possible there's a converter. But that's not a practical solution. Even if you can find a converter, the auto focus won't work and the real strength of the Hasselblad is the larger film size. I would suggest you take the camera to a good, professional camera repair shop and have them go over the whole system and cean it all up. Then play with it! Medium format is wonderful. It will slow you down and make you more careful with your composition. Plus, if you aren't used to manual exposure, it will teach you a lot about the basic principles of photography.

[MizLiz]

Thank you for your answer and the welcome. I received the Hasselblad about 10 years ago and realized that although I wanted to use it for both sentimental value and quality value, I really am not the right type of person for the a manual medium-format camera. But, I just can't seem to part with it. Maybe it's just not the right time for the camera and me - I'm hopeful - maybe one day. It does have some pretty cool lenses and filters.

So, thanks for the advice - I think for now - I'll stick to my Maxxum - it works for me.

Liz

[photophorous]

Liz,

I don't know if you can connect the lenses to a Minolta body. There may be some sort of adapter for that, but it might not be worth using. I'm sure those lenses are not autofocus, and there's a good chance your light meter wouldn't function even if you can use the lenses. Hopefully someone else here can give you a better answer on that.

If there is nothing major wrong with the Hasselblad body, I would take it to a camera shop and have them do a CLA (Clean, Lube and Adjust). A working Hasselblad with several good lenses is a very nice thing to have. You should search around on Ebay and www.keh.com to get an idea of what it's worth, if you don't already know. The lenses are probably worth more than the body. If you don't want to shoot medium format, you could probably sell that stuff and have enough money to buy several good lenses for your Minolta.

Good luck,
Paul

[MizLiz]

Thanks Paul - I never heard of www.keh.com - $135 to fix the shutter problem on my 500c.

It's good to know, and if I ever break down and sell them, at least I have a good idea on pricing. :-)