Why This One Camera Costs $40,000

The Hasselblad H6D-100c is a 100-megapixel medium format DSLR that costs $33,000 without a lens. Throw in a Hasselblad H lens and the resulting camera kit can easily cost over $40,000, or more than the average car. Here’s a 5-minute video by photographer Tyler Stalman that explores why a single camera can be worth this much.

Stalman points out that it’s a very, very small subset of professional photographers that actually need the resolution and image quality of a camera like the Hasselblad H6D-100c. Even for advertising, giant billboards can be effectively shot with far fewer megapixels than you might think since viewers are looking from so far away (Stalman points out that Apple’s Shot on iPhone campaign is successfully done with just 12 megapixels).

“There are diminishing returns as you spend more on your gear,” Stalman says. “A $1,000 camera has most of the important features that you’re going to find in a $5,000 camera.

“But there are always professionals that are pushing the technical requirements of this gear to its extreme, and it’s incredibly expensive to research, develop, and manufacturing that cutting edge of technology.”

You can take a closer look at the sample photos featured in this video in this Flickr album. You can also find more of Stalman’s videos by subscribing to his popular YouTube channel.

(via Tyler Stalman via ISO 1200)