rollei

Rollei 6008i Camera Review - Commentary on the Rollei 6008i - also reflects my opinion about the camera well.

Comparison of Rollei 6008 and Hasselblad System

Since I recently saw someone search for "Rollei and Hasselblad comparison" coming to this site, I got to thinking about why I actually have a Rollei 6008 and no Hasselblad. With the M6, the Hasselblad would fit much better - both mechanical. The Rollei, on the other hand, is a high-tech monster. Ok, one reason was that the Rollei was sitting in the window and the price was good, sure. But I could have left it there and waited for a Hasselblad. So why Rollei?

For me, the Rollei is the crown of the development of cameras with manual focus in many respects. I couldn't imagine what else you could put into it. The Rollei has a whole range of special features compared to many other MF cameras. Top of the list is the light metering even with the light shaft. But it's not just that alone, but also the way the exposure is measured and controlled. That's exactly how I always imagined it: a free choice of metering mode, arbitrarily combinable with aperture priority, shutter speed priority, or manual follow-up metering. Ok, it also has a program auto mode for hectic use. Just set the settings to automatic for what should be automatic - if both aperture and shutter speed are set to automatic, it's a program auto. No silly mode dial.

Then there are of course the other Rollei features that convinced me: built-in motor (it's not fast, but it's built-in and therefore compact). The roller blind on the magazines is also a great thing, which means no more lost sliders. The long film path in the magazines helps against the annoying film flatness problem of classic Hasselblad and Zeiss magazines. The electronic transmission of film speed from the magazine to the camera makes magazine changes with different speeds practical and quick.

And then the Rollei of course has the "fine points": the 1/1000th second with the PQS lenses, for example. The purely electronic signal transmission, which required no change to the bayonet even with the new AF lenses. The absolutely excellent Zeiss calculations that produce really fine lenses - even though I only have a single lens (the 2.8/80 PQS). And the whole thing also has a robust housing.

My conclusion: of course, one of the large Hasselblad models with integrated exposure metering and an additional winder would have many of the Rollei's features, but definitely not all of them. And not in this very pleasant to operate form. And certainly not at the used price I paid for it.

Hmm. I really need to go out with the Rollei again soon.