Check out these gorgeous sample shots captured in Iceland with Phase One’s new 60MP IQ2 digital back

Landscape photographer Joe Cornish is a lucky man. He's one of the first people to test out Phase One's new IQ260 digital back and he got to shoot with it in the beautiful -- but cold -- outdoors of Iceland.

The 60-megapixel IQ260 is one of three new 645-format digital backs introduced by Phase One earlier this month, offering a claimed 13 f-stops of dynamic range and a whopping 16 bits of color. The IQ260 also has built-in wireless connectivity; a 3.2-inch, 1.15MP display on back with touch control; and an ISO range from ISO 35 to 3,200. To help protect against tough outdoor conditions, the backs are made from 100 percent aircraft grade aluminum with all connectors and ports protected by hatches and rubber covers.

"This country is a great opportunity to test the qualities of the IQ260," Cornish said about shooting with the camera back in the far west region of Iceland, which is dominated by a giant volcano called Snæfellsjökull. "When you have these bright, white, sunlit plumes of seawater with a white snow covered mountain behind and then deep dark shadows of black vulcanic rock, it really is a profound test. A pretty ultimate landscape test for any camera system."

The IQ260 is also incredibly expensive, with a starting price of $39,900. Image files out of a camera back with this much resolution are huge: between 60-70MB per shot. So while, unfortunately, we weren't able to post Cornish's full resolution shots here, the following web-sized images should give you some idea of this back's capabilities.

To see how Cornish captured the images while on location in Iceland, watch this video.

(Thanks to Phase One for sharing these photos with Imaging Resource!)