Hasselblad set the camera industry a-twitter with its recently announced XCD 4/45P lens, the smallest and, at $1,099, most affordable optic available for its X1D II camera. Its angle of view—a little wider than standard—is adored among travel, documentary, and street photogs, and its optics are superb. For its price, size, and quality, the XCD 4/45P earns our Editors’ Choice.
Light and Compact Build
The XCD 4/45P is a featherweight in medium format terms. Despite having optics that can cover a sensor much larger than a standard full-frame camera, the lens measures just 2.1 by 3.2 inches (HD), weighs 11.3 ounces, and supports 62mm threaded filters.
It’s finished in basic black, with dust and splash protection matching that of the X1D camera body, adding to the system’s appeal for on-the-go photography. You get a carrying pouch with the lens, along with front and rear caps, but there’s no hood.
There’s also no in-lens stabilization, and the focus mode is controlled via the camera body, so the only control of note is the manual focus ring. It’s wrapped in rubber, finished with ridges so it’s comfortable to turn, even when wearing gloves.
In a departure from most lenses for mirrorless systems, which rely on electronic control for manual focus, the 45P’s focus ring is mechanically coupled. It delivers a real tactile resistance when setting the focus. The downside is that focus is a little slow and the lens makes some noise as the autofocus drives. The in-lens shutter is quieter, though, and supports exposures as short as 1/2,000-second and as long as 68 minutes.
The angle of view, roughly the same as a 35mm prime lens on a full-frame system, is well suited for reportage and is the favorite of many a street photographer. And, while the lens can’t focus close enough for true macro results, it can lock to subjects as close as 13.8 inches from the camera, good enough for 1:5.2 life-size projection onto the image sensor. You may not be able to lean in as often with this lens as with others, but you won’t often have to pull back away from your subject to get a shot either.
Ultra-Sharp Optics
I tested the XCD 4/45P’s resolution with Imatest software and the X1D II 50C camera. Resolution is excellent wide open (4,800 lines) and reaches outstanding levels at f/5.6 and f/8 (5,800 lines). Diffraction cuts into resolution a little bit at f/11, but you should still feel comfortable using it there without worry. There’s a more noticeable softening at f/16 (3,700 lines) and the minimum f/22 setting (2,400 lines).
There is a bit of dimming at the corners at f/4, giving photos a natural vignette, but it’s practically absent at narrower settings. Likewise, the lens doesn’t show any significant distortion, just a very slight pincushion effect.
Overall, the optics are outstanding. You can use the lens wide open and get good results, or stop down for more depth of field or better-looking sunstars. Even without a hood, I didn’t find flare to be a problem at all, and the lens delivered excellent images in strongly backlit scenes, even with the low winter sun prominently in the frame.
A Perfect Match
I walked away happy after spending some time with the XCD 4/45P. The lens offers a lot to like, including excellent resolution, a compact build, and a very attractive starting price. Going forward, it’s sure to be the default lens for many photographers buying into the Hasselblad X mirrorless system.
And it’s a good match with the X1D body design. The camera is just about as compact as medium format can get, and the moderate wide angle of view is just what many photographers want in a fixed focal length. The X1D II 50C itself can be frustrating to use due to generally slow performance and short battery life, but with lenses as good as this, you can understand why some photographers love it anyway.
The 4/45P’s biggest drawback may be its aperture. At f/4 it’s not going to blur backgrounds like an f/2.8 lens of the same focal length, though you can still get shots with bokeh as long as you have distance between foreground and background elements.
Hasselblad does have a slightly faster 45mm in its XCD series, the older XCD 3,5/45, priced at $2,695. I’ve not had a chance to use that particular lens, but given how much more it costs, and how good the 45P is, it just seems irrelevant.
Hasselblad still has some room to improve the X1D camera itself, but if you like its design enough to overlook its shortcomings, the XCD 4/45P should be one of the first lenses you think about adding to the system, and earns our Editors’ Choice.
