A Bit of History

At the biennial Photokina trade show in Cologne, Germany last October,Franke and Heideckeannounced the Hy6 medium format camera. Simultaneous with this announcement both Sinar and Leaf announced that they would become OEM suppliers of the HY6 under their own brand names, bundled with their own digital backs.

Sidebar:The Hy6 medium format camera system is in fact “owned” by Jenoptik (www.jenoptik-los.com), who commissioned Franke and Heidecke to co-develop and then manufacture their camera. Franke and Heidecke, along with Sinar and Leaf are OEM suppliers of this Jenoptik camera system. Sinar is owned by Jenoptik.

A year has now passed, and Sinar has just started to ship their version of theHy6. I was fortunate to have received a full production test sample of the camera along with Sinar’s 33MPe-Motion 75digital back. Due to heavy demand for this press sample camera I was only able to work with it for a week before returning it to Sinar. This limited the time available for testing, and combine this with a case of bronchitis, jet lag after returning from Madagascar, and three teaching days during that week, and I had nowhere near enough time with the Sinar Hy6.

But, there are no excuses necessary. I was able to work with the camera in the field and the studio and make some initial determinations.

Old Timer Shed. Toronto, November, 2007

Sinar Hy6 with Xenotar 2.8/80 PQS lens and e75 back at ISO 50
Exposure unknown*

The e75 back, especially at ISO 50, is capability of very high image quality.
This example shows an ability to retain both highlight and shadow detail in an
extremely contrasty natural lighting situation.

Franke and Heideckeis the company that made (makes) Rollei cameras. Rollei has a long and illustrious past, and is one of the great names of the camera industry. Prior to the Hy6 their flagship medium format camera was the Rollei 6008. I owned one in the mid-1990s and used it with great pleasure and success for a number of years. The Zeiss and Schneider lenses which were available for it were nothing less than superb, and the camera itself was exceptionally well made and generously featured. I found the ergonomics to be first rate, and though I had been a Hasselblad V series user for decades I found that I preferred the 6008.

But then along came digital, and Rollei got sideswiped. Phase One did make a back for the 6008 for a time, but the brand languished. Rollei was more popular in Europe than North America during the 90s and early part of this decade, but over here their distribution was almost nonexistent. There were few dealers, no rental facilities to speak of, and so it remained a niche product at best.

With the Hy6 F&H seeks to address these issues. While they will be marketing the Hy6 under the Rollei brand themselves, Sinar, and Leaf (their version to be called the Afi) will likely be the primary sources for the camera, each with their own brand name attached.

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The Package

The Sinar Hy6 arrives in a large Pelican style case. Depending on the configuration purchased there will be a body only or a body plus back and 80mm Schneider Xenotar 80mm f/2.8 AF lens. If you are getting a complete system, that’s how it will arrive in the foam-fitted case, with the camera lens and back already assembled and ready to shoot.

In addition to a variety of expected cables the box arrives with a battery charger and two rechargeable Li-Ion batteries. These are Varta V290 batteries, one for the camera and one for the digital back. Fortunately these are the same and so there’s no confusion possible.

But, the charger only holds and charges one battery at a time. Since the trend in pro cameras these days is to provide a charger that handles two batteries (even when the camera or back only needs one) it is surprising to see only a single battery charger with the Sinar, especially since there are indeed two batteries that need charging.

Pros working on location don’t like surprises, and running out of juice is one of the nastier ones. Clients tend to get a bit miffed when this happens and the light is running out and the clock is ticking on expensive models. My suggestion to Sinar is to source a dual battery charger ASAP, and my suggestion to purchasers is to obtain at least two more chargers at the same time that you purchase a second set of batteries.

Of course I expect the camera battery to last a lot longer than the back battery, but that isn’t really the point. Pros go on a shoot with freshly charged batteries and don’t wait for them to run out on the job. Batteries get charged after every job whether they need it or not. With the Sinar and its single charger for two batteries this means waiting around for the first battery to finish before charging the second one. Not my idea of a good time. Buy a second charger.

The Camera

Pros

– A new MF platform for the medium format community

– Open system with back and supplier choices

– Good build quality. Light weight

– Backward compatibility with Rollei 6008 lenses

– Access to first rate Schneider optics

– High frame rates possible, only limited by back technology

– 56mm X 56mm frame size able to support larger future sensor sizes

Cons

– Late availability of reflex viewfinder. Mirror based not prism

– No lock on manual side controls

– Exposed circuit board inside grip

– Single battery charger