Back in October of 2015 when it was announced that DJI and Hasselblad would be forming a strategic partnership, thanks in part to DJI buying into a minority stake of the legendary Swedish camera maker, many wondered how these two companies would work together, and what that could look like. Well, we have our first glimpse.
Today the two firms announced in unison their first joint aerial photography package, pairing DJI’s M600 Drone with the Hasselblad A5D, creating the world’s first purchasable Medium Format Drone package.
‘Combining best-in-class aerial optics with the world’s most powerful aerial platform is a natural development for DJI and Hasselblad,” said Perry Oosting, CEO of Hasselblad, in a related statement. “We are delighted to provide this unique bundle to professional photographers, surveyors, and mappers.”
The M600 is one of DJI’s industrial drones meant for professional production work, and is capable of handling many large sensor cameras, though most use 35mm DSLRs. Combined with the DJI Ronin-MX, and the A5D, Hasselblad’s medium-format camera designed specifically for aerial photography, this package offers photographers a way to get some of the highest quality images ever possible from piloting a drone.
It’s worth noting that this pairing — the M600 and A5D, was possible before this announcement. Any photographer with the money for these products could have purchased both and done this. However, what makes this noteworthy is that it’s the first sign of what is to come with that DJI/Hasselblad partnership, and the new level of convenience for photographers looking to get the best still images from their drone possible.
It will be interesting to see if this has much traction in the market. The drone market is pretty heavily weighted towards videography and capturing video, so one does have to wonder about the appeal to the market of a medium-format still-image camera. That said, someone out there right now is likely fist bumping the air in excitement.
There was no pricing or availability included in this announcement, but given the cost of these two products individually — the M600 is $4,600 and the A5D, though no official price is published, shares much in common with the H5D-50c, which currently sells for $14,500 — it is safe to assume this will be a package for corporations or people with way too much extra money, not the hobbyists used to flying Phantom drones around for fun and occasional work.
If you are interested in learning more, you can read up on all the details, and even request a demo of the package over on the Hasselblad website, here.
