I can’t even begin to tell you how much joy the NONS Instax Back for Hasselblad brings me. Earlier this year, the company announced that it would be coming soon — and I was checking in with them with great anticipation. Since getting the NONS Instax Back for Hasselblad in for review, the joy that it’s given me has emanated out to the people around me in an infectious way. Whenever I’ve got instant film stuff in, it’s always guaranteed fun. But this is a really, really special one. I mean, how often do you really get to use an Instax back on a classic medium format camera?
Table of Contents
The Big Picture
I have to be very frank. I’m jaded with digital cameras. They’re all more or less flavors of the same base. And because of that, they’ve become very monotonous. But the NONS Instax Back for Hasselblad 500 series cameras is different. It takes your existing Hasselblad 500 series camera and breathes new life into it. So if you’ve already got one, you’re in serious luck. You can now shoot Instax Square film, and bring the small camera with you everywhere. If you are worried about shooting and developing film, that’s now gone. All you need to do instead is just shoot and print the Instax photo. Sure, Instax is expensive, but every shot you take with a Hasselblad camera is pretty much always worth it.
We’re giving the NONS Instax Back for Hasselblad 5 out of 5 stars, as well as our Editor’s Choice award. It’s really, really that incredible.
How Cool The NONS Instax Back for Hasselblad Is
This back isn’t made of metal in the way lots of Hasselblad’s own stuff was. Instead, this is made of both plastic and metal. It adds it a really nice hand grip on the left side that makes the entire process something very unique. Most cameras put the grip on the left. But with this back, you’ll focus the lens and shoot with the right hand and grip with the left. When you’re done, you’ll find a button on the back of the NONS, and then you’ll print your photographs.
The NONS Instax Back for Hasselblad connects to your Hasselblad 500 series camera in the way that any other camera back does. So make sure that the shutter is cocked, the right buttons are pressed, and all. Once that’s done, just remove the dark slide and get ready to shoot.
However, it also means that you can do cool things like double exposures with Instax! You can also use an off-camera flash, a variety of viewfinders, light meters testing for 800 ISO, and so much more. NONS has been really big on providing serious photographers with what they need to get the images they want. And truthfully, this was worth the wait in some many different ways.
The product, like everything else from NONS, isn’t weather-resistant. So don’t take the camera out into the rain. To me, that’s a bit sad. But I adore my Hasselblad 501C, so that nullifies all concerns.
Image Quality
You’re probably wondering about the results. Believe it or not, Instax Square is right around the size of 6×6 format. But in this case, you’re going to run into a few issues around the edges. They’ll be cut off, but that’s still just fine. You have to realize that you’re using Hasselblad lenses, a camera and that the experience is something completely different. It’s super carefree — and sometimes we really just need to do that and trust in our own image-making abilities instead of all the crazy features that digital cameras tend to put on us. To me, the joy just comes from the whole package.
And yes, it’s sharp. In fact, Instax film, in and of itself, is very sharp. It’s just that many of the lenses that have been around for a while just aren’t that great. However, this is Hasselblad glass — and old-school Hasselblad at that.
If you’re jaded with digital cameras the way that I am, then consider the NONS Instax Back for Hasselblad. Do this, especially if you own a Hasselblad 500 series camera.
Truly, there is no major reason why I’d recommend someone not get the NONS Instax Back for Hasselblad. If you’ve got one of these cameras laying around, break it out and try it. You can check out their website for more.