Hasselblad lops $9,000 off pro camera price

Hasselblad's HD4-200MS medium-format camera

(Credit: Hasselblad)

Hasselblad has lowered the price of its high-end medium-format cameras from the upper stratosphere to the lower stratosphere.
The 60-megapixel HD4-60's list price is now $30,995, down $9,000, the company said Friday. And the HDR-200MS, a "multishot" model can combine four 50-megapixel shots into one higher-quality image to compensate for image sensor shortcomings, was cut $8,000 to $35,995.
Lower down the line, but geared and priced for professional photographers, the HD4-31 with a 35-90mm lens is down $3,595 to $15,995.
Hasselblad specializes in medium-format cameras, which in an earlier era meant larger frames of film for higher-quality photos but today means larger digital image sensors. Because large image sensors are so expensive, the transition to film to digital was terminal for some camera makers.
Hasselblad competes with a handful of other companies including Pentax, which entered the medium-format digital market only recently, and Phase One, which sells products under its own name and the Mamiya brand it controls. The cameras face plenty of competition from higher-end SLRs, too, such as Nikon's new 36-megapixel D800 and D800E models.




(courtesy:cnet.com)