Photokina 2002: Kodak Professional has today announced the new DCS Pro Back 645H. The 645H is fully compatible with the new Hasselblad H1 camera system and delivers 16 megapixels of resolution. The 645H is completely portable with a built-in power supply, LCD monitor and storage slots. The 645H has a user selectable ISO sensitivity range of 100 to 400. The suggested U.S. list price is $11,995.00.

Press Release:

New Kodak Professional DCS Pro Back 645H Delivers Portability,
Image Quality in Medium Format for Hasselblad H1 Camera System

Delivers Exceptional Camera Body-Digital Back Integration and 16 MP Resolution

COLOGNE, Germany, September 24 Kodak Professional, a division of Eastman Kodak Company, today announced its latest digital camera back for the 645 format. The Kodak Professional DCS Pro Back 645H digital camera back is compatible with the new Hasselblad H1 camera system, and delivers the superior resolution, portability and functionality found in the award-winning DCS 645M and 645C digital backs.

Kodak Professional's newest digital camera back features 16-megapixel resolution, an on-board power source, fully featured LCD display and all of the other attributes of the company's 645-format digital camera backs. It delivers unfettered freedom of operation for fashion, portrait and wedding photographers - either in the studio or on location.

Hasselblad's new H1 645-format camera features very fast and accurate auto focus functionality, as well as an integral fill flash. The Pro Back 645H back's overall design offers photographers all the advantages of Kodak digital imaging while using a Hasselblad camera body specifically designed to host either a digital back or a film magazine.

"Kodak Professional has a history of leadership in digital camera backs, and with the introduction of our 645H back, we once again advance our broad portfolio of digital solutions to meet the needs of our customers," said Stephen Noble, Worldwide Product Manager, Kodak Professional. "By pairing Hasselblad's new H1 camera system with the portability, functionality and image quality of our medium-format digital backs, we have created an ideal digital solution for professional photographers on the go."

The H1 camera body's contemporary design is specially designed for both digital backs and film magazines. It features an all-electronic user interface that communicates with lenses, film magazines and the viewfinder. The LCD on the camera back displays information to provide photographers with quick access to histograms, format and white balance status. An added benefit for photographers is that the body is designed as a modular system that can grow with photographers as their shooting needs change.

"Kodak Professional brought the industry's first digital camera back to market, and we wanted to work with them to make our camera a reality," said Patrik Mark, Vice President of Business Development, Hasselblad. "Our ambition has always been to build a camera that gives photographers true medium-format digital portability. With the development of the DCS Pro Back 645H back, portable medium-format digital photography has taken a major step forward."
This totally portable, feature-rich medium-format back is supported by Kodak Professional DCS Capture Studio, Photo Desk, and Camera Manager software, and the innovative DCS Custom Looks profiles. It processes Kodak's acclaimed DCR RAW and ERI-JPEG file formats. The ERI-JPEG file format combines the ease-of-use of JPEG files with the image quality and color/exposure control of Kodak's highly regarded DCR format raw camera files to create the best possible images. In addition, it functions with the Kodak ProShots system software in a complete digital workflow, linking photographer, lab and customer.

With an equivalent ISO of 100-400, the 645H back helps photographers shoot in a variety of challenging lighting situations. It is compatible with many of the specialized digital back H1 camera functions and provides overall creative flexibility for zooming, cropping and re-purposing. An anti-aliasing filter is available as an option.

The Kodak Professional DCS Pro Back 645H digital camera back will be available in November, to coincide with availability of the Hasselbald H1 camera system, through dealers of Kodak Professional digital photography products. The suggested U.S. list price is $11,995.00.