The Hasselblad X2D II 100C Got a Major Upgrade, Sort Of

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Recently, Capture One and Hasselblad www.thephoblographer.com/2026/07/02/hasselblad-raw-support-capture-one/ compatibility for their cameras and the software to be able to work together. To that end, we decided to do updates to our reviews. We previously updated another Hasselblad review, and now, we’re announcing the update to our X2D II 100C review. This camera is arguably one of the best on the market with LiDAR autofocus that outperforms so many others. With that said, I dove back into my archives to find images that I was commissioned to shoot at Pig Island 2025.

Hasselblad X2D II 100C Image Quality Update

It’s pretty universally well known that Capture One is the better software than Adobe Lightroom for editing photographs. With that said, I decided to take a look at just how good Hasselblad’s RAW files are in the software. I’ve known for a while that Fujifilm’s GFX raw files get so much more out of Capture One due to the partnership that the two companies have. But now how does Hasselblad do?

Hasselblad’s RAW files are more closely associated with being a blank slate: kind of like Sony. If you’ve ever wanted a totally blank slate to work on and then to just make the RAW files what you want through post-production. This will work well for you. But if you’re more of a person who works to get it right in-camera and that’s where your magic happens, then Fujifilm may be the better option for you.

This was an event shoot, so I’d typically make images in-camera, apply a preset, make small adjustments if needed, and then export.

Woman in sunglasses eating grilled meat outdoors, with people and event tents blurred in the background.

Two people in chef uniforms serve food outdoors, one smiling while plating and the other adding a sauce.

Two people wearing sunglasses eat hot dogs together at an outdoor event, with tents visible in the background.

Two people wearing sunglasses enjoy eating food outdoors on a sunny day, shown in a close-up shot.

Woman in sunglasses and sunhat eating food with a fork at an outdoor event, smiling.

A man wearing sunglasses eats food with a black plastic fork outdoors, holding a red cloth over his shoulder.

A man in a green shirt takes a big bite of food outdoors with trees and people in the background.

Person with glasses eating a sandwich outdoors, holding it with both hands, with people in the background.

Man in a cap eating a messy sandwich, cheeks puffed, with food and sauce on his mouth, outdoors.

Woman wearing sunglasses eats noodles with a fork at an outdoor event, holding a food tray close to her face.

Man with curly hair eating food with a fork outdoors, white tents and blue sky in the background.

Person wearing red sunglasses eats grilled meat on a stick at an outdoor event, with people and tents behind.

Woman with bright makeup and rings eats food at an outdoor event, holding a taco close to her mouth.

Woman in sunglasses eating food with a toothpick at an outdoor event, holding napkins in one hand.

A person with glasses and earrings eating a taco at an outdoor event, holding a food tray.

Person in sunglasses and red cap eating grilled meat outside on a sunny day, with trees in background.

In my tests, a few things became apparent:

From a severely underexposed image, you can recover a ton of exposure data but you’d ultimately need to turn the photograph into a black and white image. Just adjust the brightness, exposure, color channels, and the shadows.
Getting lost highlights back can be daunting. That clearly tells us that this is a digital RAW file and not something from a Canon sensor.
Phoblographer’s presets do a very good job with Hasselblad RAW files when you set the curve to linear response.
Skin tones can be a bit weird if the exposures are a bit off and you’re working to edit them to be better

These don’t feel like the most versatile RAW files; and that’s a shame if you’re paying a lot of money. At the same time, if you’re buying this camera, then you should know how to shoot. Regardless, it should also not mess up the TTL protocols from Profoto and Nikon.

Before you tell me, “Oh shoot manual flash,” know that I shouldn’t have to when shooting events for what I’m paying for a modern camera and a strobe these days. They should just work.

That problem could’ve been a pre-production issue, and we’ve never called the camera back in for testing. But I’m sure it will happen again in the future.

Thankfully my clients were happy with the images and I also shot this alongside a Nikon Zf. Still, the Zf gave me images that I felt were easier to edit. Even so, I didn’t really even need to do so.

Overall, I think the Hasselblad X2D II 100C does a solid job. And Capture One does a good job with RAW file work. But both Lightroom and Capture One can make editing the RAW files kind of tough. Neither of those issues have to do with the software though.

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