Hasselblad mixed things up today by announcing a new “ultra luxury” APS-C mirroress camera. Sounds like Earth-shattering news, right? Take a little closer, and you’ll notice that it’s not as monumental as it sounds. Basically, the company has taken a page from Leica’s book by playing the rebranding game. Just as Leica -Lux compact cameras are essentially rebranded Panasonic Lumix bodies, the new Hasselblad Lunar is a dressed-up version of the Sony NEX-7.



The specs are idential: a 24.3 megapixel APS-C sensor, an ISO range of 100-16000, 0.02 second shutter lag, a 3-inch LCD screen, a built-in EVF, 25 AF points, Sony E and A mount compatibility, and 10fps continuous shooting.

Design-wise, the camera’s name and look seems to pay homage to the fact that Hasselblad cameras were used on the moon (and left there). The Italian designs feature handgrips made of real wood, and bodies constructed using carbon fiber, titanium, leather, gold, and other precious metals (these are most definitely needs, not wants, in case you’re wondering).

The Lunar is basically a whole series of Leica-style special edition cameras, with different colors and materials. We hear there’s 47 different looks based on different style combinations.

Here are some more views of the camera:

Now for the price. In case the fact that gold was used to build this camera didn’t tip you off: this camera is expensive. It’ll carry an astronomical (pun intended) price tag of €5,000, or around $6,500. The NEX-7 only costs around $1,100, so if you were thinking about purchasing six of them, you should change plans and get a Lunar instead.