Amplis Photois the Canadian distributor for a number of professional photographic products, includingHasselbladandCreo-Leaf. In early May, 2005, thanks to Amplis, I had an opportunity to spend several hours examining a pre-productionAptus 22in the company ofIlan Carmi, Leaf'sProduct Marketing Managerfrom Israel.

The Aptus, which I am told will ship before the end of May in mounts for Hasselblad H and V models as well as the Mamiya 645, and the Contax 645 about a month later, comes in 17 and 22 Megapixel versions. While the model that I had a chance to examine (though in a limited environment), did not have its final firmware, and therefore several functions were not fully operational, in most respects the back was just about ready for prime time and so worthy of a first look.

And worthy it appears to be. First shown last fall, and originally scheduled for February shipment, though several months late the wait appears to be have been really worthwhile.

Here are the basics...