EXCERPT page containing first few paragraphs. 2024-05-09 16:54:19
UA_SEARCH_BOT_compatible_botmozilla/5.0 applewebkit/537.36 (khtml, like gecko; compatible; claudebot/1.0; +claudebot@anthropic.com) @ 18.116.239.195
For full access, subscribe here. Or click title to login. 
Software (Phocus)
Hasselblad supplies Phocus software with the H4D. Other Hasselblad users tell me that to get the best quality from H4D files, the Phocus software must be used. This is for reasons of the best color rendition, as well as lens corrections. I am inclined to agree on the color correction front (as compared to Lightroom 3).
In general, Phocus makes good use of CPU cores during interactive operations, and possibly the GPU (graphics) as well. Processing times were not particularly fast however; converting to 16-bit TIF on my 12-core 3.33GHz Mac Pro still took 10.4 seconds per file.
Phocus sometimes doesn’t play nice, it managed to degrade my Mac Pro so badly during one Export that I had to pull the power plug. See the hang issue further below.
In general, I consider Phocus nearly unusable for the way I work. This review was delayed for that reason; Phocus put too many roadblocks in my way; I had to laboriously sort through the images in Photoshop first.
Article continues for subscribers...
Diglloyd Medium Format is by yearly subscription. Subscribe now for about 33 cents a day ($120/year).
BEST DEAL: get full access to ALL 8 PUBLICATIONS for only about 75 cents a day!
Diglloyd Medium Format covers medium format camera systems, including the Hasselblad X1D and Fujifilm GFX.
These systems are hugely expensive, so make the right choice for your own needs (full frame vs medium format).
- In-depth lens evaluations covering behaviors not likely to be found anywhere else, based on real-world field shooting.
- How to configure menus and buttons and best operating practices, gotchas and how-to.
- Real world examples with insights found nowhere else. Make sharper images just by understanding lens and camera behaviors.
- Jaw-dropping image quality found nowhere else utilizing Retina-grade images up to 100 megapixels filling up to 5K display, plus large crops.
- Aperture series from wide open through stopped down, showing the full range of lens performance and bokeh.
- Optical quality analysis of field curvature, focus shift, sharpness, flare, distortion, and performance in the field.
