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If you are interested in what you can gain with the X2D and (4) multi shot, take a few minutes to read this article. Very detailed image comparisons. The two images were taken at ISO1600 indoors, so no there were no subject movement concerns. The results from this photographic process can be very rewarding, however the process to get from capture to final image is a bit tedious. Here is a link to the article.
Please post any comments or feedback.
Written by Paul Caldwell for Photos of Arkansas
I have written a new comparison article showing why photographers need to consider using Phocus instead of Lightroom for the best color output from the X2D.
The Phocus image is always on the left side of the comparisons. You can find the full article here:
This is a series I am working on, to show how Phocus can still provide the overall best look to all X2D images. The downside being, you have to work with Phocus, which is by far the most out of date raw conversion software on the market. Sure it’s free to download, but I would no problem paying for a version that allows the photographer to work in much more modern interface and have a program which is much more responsive.
This post was written by Paul Caldwell on 02/10/25. Please contact him if you have any questions or would like to use the information contained in the article.
I have written about using Focus Bracketing with the X2D on my main site, www.photosofarkansas.com. You can find the article here: https://photosofarkansas.com/2025/02/03/02-03-25-focus-bracketing-example-hasselblad-x2d-and-21mm-lens/
This image was taken in the fall of 2024, with the Hasselblad 21mm and X2D. I ended up taking 14 exposures in two different focus brackets since I knew that the sky would be over exposed, if I only shot for the trees in the foreground. To create the brackets, I used Helican Focus which did an excellent job. In the Gallery below you can see some close up crops from the master image. Click on any image to load a Lightbox gallery which will allow a 100% view.
Written by Paul Caldwell
I have published my first color comparison of Lightroom and Phocus on an X2D file. The article has several side by side comparisons of the same image. You can clearly see the advantages of Phocus over Lightroom. Some of the differences are minor but in many cases, I fell that Phocus can produce a much better look to the image. You can find the article by following the link below.
I have no fondness for working with Phocus desktop software. It’s by far the worst raw conversion software I have used. This is coming from years of working with Capture One, Lightroom, ACR, ON1, and many others. Phocus produces the best color from Hasselblad HNCS but getting there has to be the most trying experience I have found in all of my digital photograph work.
Just a quick follow up on this “Wonderfull” new solution from Hasselblad. Note I am not sponsored by Hasselblad, thus I am going to net out the actual problems with this solution and not give you a blue sky, everything is great write up.
First the positive, the solution does work, and gives a very good result. From the images I have reviewed the noise reduction is very effective. It’s basically the same as Adobe’s Denoise. If you were able to work with this new tool on a desktop, then I would be most pleased.
The issues however are:
The problem is that Phocus Desktop software is not able to work with these files correctly. Phocus desktop apparently applies a certain amount of noise reduction to all raw files when they are imported into the application. I have always felt this to be the case and Hasselblad has confirmed it. So if you bring in a raw file that has HNNR applied to it, then Phocus desktop will apply more noise reduction to a file that already has had noise reduction applied. Thus you will get the painterly look to finer details. There is not a way to stop this and if you slide “noise reduction” sliders in Phocus desktop all the way to the left to -10, the effect is still there. The sliders DO NOT affect the “built in noise reduction” Phocus applied to the raw file when you imported it.
So now you are left with Adobe Lr or ACR to work on the file. Neither of these programs are applying “built in noise reduction” when you import the raw file. But now you are left with a problem. Lightroom/ACR cannot obtain the best color from Hasselblad raw files. I have worked many side by side examples of this and each time Hasselblad Phocus always give the best look to the files.
Phocus has a better color result and shadow recovery. Lightroom always seems to block out shadows and take blacks to a very dark range.
There is no word from Hasselblad as to if they are going to update Phocus so that it can use the HNNR raws without adding additional noise.
NET, Hasselblad brings a very effect AI based noise reduction tool out, however by using it you no longer can use Hasselblad’s Phocus Desktop software without over applying noise reduction, thus destroying finer details and possibly giving a plastic look to the images.
From reading other photographers reports on the use of this tool, I have gleaned a bit more information.
Issues that have apparently come up from users who have tried this feature HNNR.
Amazing to me that Phocus, which is the stock Hasselblad raw software tool for both raw conversion and tethering has issues with another Hasselblad software feature. It’s as if one side of development is working and not talking to the other. WE ALL KNOW THAT THERE IS A BETA VERSION OF THE DESKTOP PHOCUS THAT GIVES YOU 400MP OUTPUT, so I wonder if this beta is being held up due to this new feature HNNR.
From others reports, it seems that Adobe ACR and Lr will import the the 3FR files with HNNR applied with no problems, and the noise reduction IS applied still. This is unlike any other imports of .FFF files which have been worked on in Phocus desktop software and all the adjustments made in Phocus are stripped when the .FFF is imported to Lr or opened in ACR.
My only hope is that by using the mobile version of Phocus and applying HNNR, some of the issues I have had with Hot Pixel noise will be reduced or totally removed. I am hoping to try out the software over the next few days with some images I took in the fall which have excessive noise in the shadows due to hot pixels.
Not sure what “year of the Snake frame” is but besides that, Hasselblad a couple of days ago announced a new “AI” driven noise reduction feature for Phocus Mobile 2 software that runs on the iPhone. They are calling it “Hasselblad Natural Noise Reduction”. Touting that it’s the first AI noise reduction to run on Mobile. Sound great! Not so. Here is why.
So is the workflow, to bring the raw into Phocus Mobile from the camera, fix the noise then send it back to the camera? All of this being done in the field? On a phone? Using Wifi and draining battery life?
So you take 200 images in a shoot, 1/2 of them could benefit from this noise reduction. Are you going to manually import 100 image or more images into the phone, add this feature and then send the images back to the camera.
Surely no one is going to attempt to work on a 100MP file on a iPhone and do any serious work.
I see the clear advantage to the image quality, just can’t see working with Mobile to get there.
Sorry, I just don’t see any point in this. You are shooting a 100MP camera I hope for a reason. TO GET LARGE FILES THAT CAN BE USED IN PRINTED MEDIA OR OTHER LARGE FORMAT NEEDS. Are you seriously going to try to work on raw files on a iPhone, with a tiny screen, no color management, no keyboard, no ability to really see the entire image at 100%? Come on Hasselblad. Instead of working on the desktop version of Phocus and adding this feature, instead they bring it out to the iPhone. So I also assume that since it’s AI driven you have to have a mobile connection to the internet as most AI programs needs this. So working in the field this is another no go.
Personally I find this insulting. Hasselblad has a great camera in the X2D and the various lenses that you can purchase to work with the system. The camera does have an issue with noise mainly hot pixels when you are working in any ISO range from 800 and up. This comes into play when you are forced to push the exposure a bit as the camera can get very full of hot pixels. Phocus Desktop has no solution for this, forcing you to export out of focus and using a noise reduction tool like Topaz. I would much rather be removing the noise at the raw level. Lr allows this with their “Denoise” setting, however Lr doesn’t allow for the best overall color from the X2D.
Phocus is broken anyway, it’s old and slow. The interface is terrible and it’s extremely hard to work through 1 image without getting the Mac spinning wheel of death. Even with it’s current set of warts, Phocus is still the best way to get color from the X2D and it would be most fitting if Hasselblad was able to add an AI Noise reduction to the Phocus Desktop version
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