My Hasselblad 907x 100c is a beautiful camera, but its design creates a real problem for outdoor shooting. It has no EVF, relies entirely on its rear LCD for composition and that screen becomes a mirror in bright sunlight.
You see nothing even setting brightness level to maximum. Framing becomes a guessing game, let alone exposure and focusing.
In my search for a fix, I found an online discussion forum on this topic. Mostly there were two possible solutions: either an add-on optical magnification hood; or some sort of foldable screen shade, very common amongst videographers.
I found that most third-party accessories were not favorable to the 907x 100c’s aesthetic. They were wrong for this camera, out of place against the Hasselblad’s classic design.
Furthermore, they are fixed in place through rubber straps, industrial looking brackets attached to the tripod mount or – God forbid – glued to the camera with adhesives.
The other – more practical – problem is that, since this camera has almost no external controls, I need constant access to the LCD to adjust settings and focus points. A permanent hood blocking access to the rear touchscreen isn’t workable.
The breakthrough
It came with a product with an oddball name: the GGSFOTO LCD Portable Ocular. Found via Taobao – China’s answer to Amazon, but on steroids – this clever device uses magnetic strips for a clean, removable mount.
Assuming you are ok sticking these magnetic strips to the back of your camera. I actually don’t mind because they look subtle to me. And I’m confident any glue remains can be rubbed off with alcohol if I am to remove them all.
This hood functions as both a foldable shade and a magnification loupe, the later effectively creating a makeshift EVF. Touchscreen access is still possible by removing the magnetically fixed hood. It’s a practical solution.
At this stage I guess you’d already realized this thing’s design is inspired by Hasselblad’s iconic 500CM waist-level finders. I found the built quality exceeding my expectations. It’s entirely made of metal. The leatherette could be improved, it appears to have shrunken a bit. There’s a tiny gap along the edges. But overall it’s okay.
The magnification lens is actually an interesting feature. It comes to place by flicking a switch. I’m not sure if I’m going to use it as of now, but I reckon if one day I decide to shell out the ludicrous €749 for Hasselblad’s external grip – which features a shutter button plus a bunch of external controls – I can effectively turn the 907x 100c into a normal camera.
Meaning not limited to shooting waist-level through the LCD, but shooting normally with a grip, external controls and a (makeshift) EVF. Looking through the magnification loupe, you see a gigantic screen, bigger than any EVF out there. Feels like watching a movie from a front row seat. Quality wise it’s not the same as a proper EVF, as you get to see the square pixels of the screen.
More photos below.
Looking forward to use it on the field. I’m positive it will work well!
Thanks so much for posting this! I purchased two of these for my Hasselblad 907 CFV 100 camera. I only put the magnetic strips on the top and sides of the LCD screen and that still works fine. Also I am replacing the leatherette on the ocular viewfinder with real Epsom black leather on one and grey on the other. The guys I am using here in Singapore had to make a cutter mold to accurately stamp out the leather which I agreed to pay for. If you want to upgrade your leather on the viewfinder and also get rid of the little chrome logo – which just peels off btw, please feel free to contact me and I will put you in touch with my guys here. They reskinned my Leica M10R and did a great job so I hope that this turns out well. They are charging me S$90 for the mould and S$ 65 for the leather including the installation. When they finish I will send you some photos if you like. This small accessory really adds value to actually using our cameras – thanks again for kindly sharing this.