Phase One 645AF & Phase One P65+ back ~ full review

Jun 9, 2009 | Flash, Location, News, Studio | 8 comments

My strategy to review a camera or lens puts my subjective observations at an equally important level as objective facts and figures. So when a Phase One camera and a couple of backs arrived I had a bit of product familiarity work to do. See how this camera got on in my fairly steady hands.

I have recently shot exclusively with a Phase One digital back on a Hasselblad H2 camera for a period of three years and I’ve also owned the Mamiya 645 camera system in the past. More recently I’ve been a Canon and Nikon shooter. I own a Nikon D700 and a Canon 5D mk2, a full set of pro optics for each system plus numerous Speedlights etc. I use the 35mm style DSLRs because my delegates use the same and it makes sense for me to do so too. I change my camera systems like I change my cars and I don’t think I’ve ever used one for more than 3 years. I Have not ruled out the prospect of a return to medium format shooting and for that reason I snapped up the chance to give this Phase One kit a thorough workout. My previous Phase One P25 back served me well for three years and performed flawlessly.

I chose to test the Phase One camera with the P65+ on of my ‘Big Flash in the Country’ lighting workshops. When shooting with big flash, and in my case I was using a couple of Broncolor Mobil kits, the pace of shooting is relaxed with plenty of time taken to consider the framing, exposure and lighting in each shot. Digital medium format kit is usually ideal for this kind of editorial grade work and the choice of locations was suitably varied too.

Rain soaked the kit but our determination to suceed was not dampened.

Rain soaked the kit but our determination to succeed was not dampened.

A 100%

A 100% crop from the shot above. ISO 200, 1/125th second at f/11

A second 100% crop from the image above.

A second 100% crop from the image above.

The first morning of the shoot was dismal. We had constant rain, dark, heavy skies with a strong breeze coming off the sea. By late afternoon the rain had eased up but the skies remained heavy. It is fair to say that all the kit got wet, really wet, on the shoot and we experienced no equipment failures at all. In order to give the kit a chance to shine I took it out for a second day of shooting this time in blazing sunlight.

What’s in the box

The camera and back if purchased as a kit come in a hard case made of super tough materials. You could probably drive a 4×4 over it without any problems. The case comes on wheels, has a stow away handle and is small enough to take on board an aircraft as hand luggage.

What’s not in the box

Nothing. Everything you need to take great shots is supplied.

I lit this shot using a pair of Broncolor Mobil heads. The grey skies were underexposed to add impact to the shot.

I lit this shot using a pair of Broncolor Mobil heads. The grey sky was underexposed to add impact to the shot. It is a shame it was full of colour noise when we processed it as it stopped us from adding more contrast.

The camera

The overall design of the camera is functional and feels comfortable to hold with the handgrip well molded. The shutter and power button is well placed although other buttons are not in logical easy access finger positions. There is a small lcd panel on the top plate that displays the necessary main user information.

The camera body seems fairly well made and feels robust although the choice of materials is far from luxurious. The plastics have a fairly rough texture and the panel fit for want of a better phrase is not perfect. Other medium format cameras I’ have used have felt and looked far more refined.

The Phase One 645AF is not unduly heavy and anyone who is used to using a full size pro 35mm system hand held will find this camera to be of a similar weight.

Viewfinder: The integration of the prism finder into the camera body dispenses a set of electrical contacts and the trouble that they can bring. The display information in the viewfinder is minimal but all the usual bases are covered including an exposure guide in a digital form. The custom settings set information is also in the display.

The camera is designed to be used in a pre programmed way and gives the user the opportunity to set the parameters and custom functions for specific ways of working. These get assigned as a custom set and can be recalled in an instant.

The camera’s power comes from a group of AA cells stored in the grip. The 6 batteries are inserted into a carriage that locks into place. The digital back needs it’s own battery and has to be switched on separately.

The camera behaves as is should in normal operation except for the auto focus system. My Nikon F801s that I bought 19 years ago way back in 1990 had a faster auto focus system than the Phase One 645AF camera. It shared the same spindle drive type of set up too. Any current £300+ DSLR is going to focus faster than this camera. AF technology is hardly rocket science so why the big let down? The 645AF lenses are light, the optics are uncomplicated, there are no leaf shutters etc. so it should be fairly easy to incorporate a decent AF system. There were times in the day that the lenses were trundling through focus, backwards and forwards many times and failed to lock. I resorted to using manual focus for most of my shots. All the lenses I used were a fast f/2.8 specification so I’m not sure how the system would cope with the zooms or indoors. On day two of my testing we were in open sunny conditions and still the AF was hunting. Phase One say that improving the autofocus system is a big priority in future camera development. I hope they get the chance to utilize the expert engineering that is present in the digital back body and extend the materials into the camera body. At the moment the camera and back casings are like chalk and cheese.

The lenses

All the three lenses I tried performed well producing super sharp images without fail. I think the resolution of the P65+ is a perfect match to the optical performance of the glass. The lenses are light, well made and although they are not cheap, they don’t leave you wanting more in terms of optical quality.

The 150mm f/2.8 is compact, super light and very easy to shoot with. The 80mm f/2.8 is considered the standard lens for this camera / back combination while the 45mm f/2.8 is a moderately wide angle lens with a great optical performance.

Around the corner is a new series of leaf shutter lenses. Phase One are at the advanced stages of product development and these optics will be a welcome addition to the 645 AF system. I have previously found that with RF triggering using leaf shutter lenses 1/250th second is the optimum. With a sync lead connection I found 1/500th useable without much light loss from the flash. This 1 or 2 stop advantage will be a significant help to location shooters.

Shot in the rain using a single Broncolor flash head in a striplight softbox.

Shot in the rain using a single Broncolor flash head in a striplight softbox.

A 100% crop from the picture above.

A 100% crop from the picture above.

The P65+ back

Just four buttons when pressed in the correct order are all that is needed to operate the P series backs. It is a system that I found very intuitive on my P25 and I’m glad to see that it is still here on the latest generation of Phase One backs.

The screen on the back of the P65+ is a bit of a let down. My shirt pocket compact camera has a better screen. The backlighting is dim, the colour gamut is very limited and the resolution is poor.

Unlike the camera, the back is beautifully made of strong well machined alloys. The attention to detail is what you would expect from an instrument of this calibere. It is a really well engineered bit of kit.

The power to the back is provided from a simple 2500 mAh rechargeable cell. I found the battery worked for most of the day and I would be happy to do a complete days shooting with just 1 spare battery. The charger that is supplied is very good too. It shows a digital readout of the remaining charge. It is a shame this percentage readout isn’t on the screen of the back too. I was surprised to see that the Phase One camera and the Phase One back don’t share the same power source. They don’t even share the same power button. I found myself switching the camera on only to find I couldn’t take a picture because I hadn’t switched the back on too. It is only a matter of time for Phase One to develop the camera to a higher level of engineering. This will come I’m sure but until then I have to report on the kit that’s in front of me.

This digital back is at the cutting edge of the resolution game with a full 60 million pixels in a true full frame 645 format. It is not at the cutting edge of signal to noise ratios though and the artifacts generated in the pictures often outweighed the pixel count.

This natural lighting balance was provided by one Mobil flash head.

This natural lighting balance was provided by two Mobil flash heads. The editorial nature of this kind of shot really suits medium format. Limbs tell the whole story. Stina's right leg is evenly lit by each flash, one from the left and one from the right. Stina's hair is also backlit from the flash head on the right. This light also created the highlight on her left shoulder. At first glance a shot like this can look natural but on further inspection all will be revealed.

Image quality

When Marko my picture editor first got his hands on my Phase One RAW format files from this camera he was astounded at the colour inaccuracy prior to adjustment. He showed me a set of previews that Capture One had created and it is true to say the skin tone rendition and the overall look of the pictures leaves a lot to be desired. The truth is that the auto white balance is next to useless on the P65+ back, just as it was with my P25 back a few years ago. I suppose the theory is that you are going to change the colour in the files anyway so it really doesn’t matter what it looks like in camera. The truth is it does if you are showing your client the images on the camera screen.

This is a screen grab of the capture one window showing the dismal in camera produced jpegs. Capture One redraws these previews automatically but it uses the same colour balance settings and applies the camera profile to the mix.

I resorted to using a daylight colour balance in camera at the end of the day and for day 2 of my testing and the problem was resolved. Another problem with some of my files was a degree of colour banding in the mid grey rendered sky. I was shooting at ISO 100 and the patterning is quite noticeable even at 25%. We tried various noise settings in the Capture One software but were unable to sort the problem. One of my files shot at ISO 800 showed unacceptable horizontal banding and terrible colour noise. If this was the result of an RF splat it wouldn’t surprise me. This could have been created by the Bristol Airport radar, as the woods we were shooting in were just at the end of the runway. Having all those pixels doesn’t help when objectionable noise can be viewed in the thumbnail.

This is the ISO 800 file in question. You can click on the picture to download a full resolution picture complete with exif to see what I mean.

This is the ISO 800 file in question. You can click on the picture to download a full resolution picture complete with exif to see what I mean. We left it as shot without any adjustments in Capture One.

Here is a low ISO shot for you to compare. You can download the full res file too by clicking on the picture. I shot this with the camera on top of my monopod held above my head. I focused on Stina's feet and then hoisted the camera into the air. The self timer did the rest.

Here is a low ISO shot for you to compare. You can download the full res file too by clicking on the picture. I shot this with the camera on top of my monopod held way above my head. I focused on Stina's feet and then triggered the self timer before hoisting the camera into position.

There is a feature option available that reduces the pixel count to just 12 million pixels at high ISO in favour of a far greater signal to noise ratio. It works by combining the signal values of four neighbouring pixel sites and using interpolation to create a reduced resolution output that exhibits up to two stops of signal to noise advantage. This process gives you smaller ISO 800 images with ISO 200 noise. My guess is, if you need 60 million pixel files you would stick to ISO 400 rather than shed resolution for high ISO convenience. With good lighting kit I had no problem sticking to ISO 100 or 200 even in dark woods.

Moire pattern has not been a factor of my photography for the past 18 months or so that I have been shooting on DSLRs but it is all over some of the fabrics in my P65+ images. I’ve never really found success with ‘software solutions’ when removing moiré patterns from pictures. Sometimes they remove the chroma only to leave concentric rings of luminance pattern. It comes down to the design of the anti aliasing filter used on the sensor. The stronger the filter the softer the image becomes. Moire manifests itself when the lens can resolve very fine repeating detail at or near the pixel pitch.

Good bits of the complete system

• Unparalleled resolution
• Excellent logic on the digital back
• Reliable operation in the rain
• Lightweight, pin sharp, fast lenses
• Excellent Low ISO picture quality
• Go anywhere, self contained design

Bad bits of the complete system

• Slow and insensitive auto focus
• Unusable auto white balance
• Small inadequate screen on the back
• Low flash sync speed
• Intermittent noise issues at 800 ISO – may be a one off problem
• Colour banding in mid tone neutrals
• Moire pattern on fabrics
• Needs Capture One software to process files supplied with the back.
• Two power supplies and two power buttons show a lack of integration.

Summary

If you need 60 million pixels from pictures taken hand held in all environments then this camera and back combination is well worth considering. It does represent a big financial investment and the numbers are scary. My previous experience of Phase One when I was a P series back customer was one of exemplary customer care and an ongoing customer / supplier partnership. I have no doubt that the same level of support is there today with generous upgrade options being made available when new lenses and a new camera body becomes available sometime soon.

Prices

The Phase One 645AF camera has a list price of €3990 and comes complete with the 80mm lens but not a digital back.

The complete package with the P65+ back as described here is €30,000. For that you get a very smart waterproof hard case, the camera body an 80mm lens and the back, You also get a battery charger, a couple of batteries, and the fully featured, excellent Capture One software.

Lens prices vary, but for example the 45mm f/2.8 lens has a list price of €1490

Results

Low ISO picture quality 8/10
High ISO picture quality 6/10
Build quality and handling 7/10
Value for money 6/10

Overall score 7/10

Update: I sent my RAW files to Phase One for analysis and apparently there was a fault with the back I was using. This fault was giving me excessive noise. Phase One are giving me access to another P65+ back to further test the high ISO and mid tone colour linearity. I’ll report back as soon as I can.

8 Comments

  1. valentinopt

    just got along this post…your p65+ might have been faulty as described, but then many described those problems, and I experienced it too on a p45+. So quality control seems poor.

    Reply
    • Damien

      Hi Valentinopt,

      I wrote that post way back in 2009 and I think the Phase One product line has moved on somewhat. I expect the secondhand stock of those backs will still exhibit those ‘character traits’ though. I’m about to buy a GFX. It’s the way forward for me :)

      Kind regards,

      Damien.

      Reply
  2. Marcin B

    Nice to read about MF camera which I’ll never buy :-)

    Reply
    • damien

      Hi Marcin,

      I know what you mean. The D800 is a game changer in the real world.

      Cheers, Damien.

      Reply
  3. Yanick

    I can’t wait to see how the Leica S2 perform in real life… i want one for sure!

    Reply
  4. damien

    Hi Simon,

    I won’t be investing in this camera / back combo. I think MF DSLRs have a future as long as they’re made to the same standards as 35mm style cameras.

    Reply
  5. Simon

    Obviously the level of detail at 100% crop is pretty amazing when compared with 12mp cameras like our Canon 5d Mk1s. But do social photographers need this level? Most probably not. I could make an argument for the 5d MkII when our Mk1s need replacing next year – simply because the 21mp gives you huge cropping latitude.

    But when you are spending 30k on kit like this, it amazes me that these defects exist. I would want anything less than 10 out 10 if spending this much.

    So Damien, will you invest? I’m guessing not….

    Reply
  6. Joseph Yarrow, Bristol Wedding Photographer

    Personally, I cannot believe that level of quality but I am used to shooting 12MP at max.

    Thanks for a REAL review of this system, unbiased, and real-world based.
    Joseph Yarrow

    Reply

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