H5D-50c mod to scan 120 film

[dave.gt]

Yes, I have asked this question before... Nikon has a 35mm film/slide attachment for the 850 camera and 60mm micro lens. It is set up for the minimum focus distance and attaches directly to the front of the lens.

I know there are very knowledgeable people here with amazing creative abilities. There are many reasons for me to eschew a Nikon rig, so I want to add scanning capability to the studio's H5D for 120 film.

In my mind, it should be simple. Practically, I need help with the pieces to put together!

Anyone like to help create a Hasselblad scanner?

 

[Charles S]

Yes, I have asked this question before... Nikon has a 35mm film/slide attachment for the 850 camera and 60mm micro lens. It is set up for the minimum focus distance and attaches directly to the front of the lens.

I know there are very knowledgeable people here with amazing creative abilities. There are many reasons for me to eschew a Nikon rig, so I want to add scanning capability to the studio's H5D for 120 film.

In my mind, it should be simple. Practically, I need help with the pieces to put together!

Anyone like to help create a Hasselblad scanner?

 

[dougpeterson]

https://dtdch.com/film-scanning-kit/

As used by Disney, Pixar, Library of Congress, Center for Creative Photography, Getty, Irving Penn foundation and other high-end high-volume facilities.

Typically used by institutions but we do have a handful of individual users.

While use with a DT RCam or Phase One iXG system is ideal for a variety of workflow and image quality reasons it’s also compatible with any camera.

 

[Shashin]

A back light with a mask for the film can work very well. You simply want to have a way to hold the film flat. The illumination should be even, but a good light box should work for that. Color slides and B&W are pretty simple. Color negative can be trickier because of the orange mask. I would probably try to get the camera WB to eliminate the color. Simply use an unexposed piece of film with auto WB might do the trick--I have not tried that, but WB should be able to cope with that.

 

[jng]

Dave,

I assume you're looking for a reasonable-cost solution to digitize 6x6 film? As noted by others here, a simple light box and copy stand can work well, especially if you don't intend to scan huge numbers of frames. The copy stand would need to be sturdy enough to hold your H5. I found the following copy stand on B&H (but didn't pull the trigger owing to lack of space in my house): https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/93109-REG/Kaiser_205510_Copy_Stand_RS_1.html.

You also need a way to make sure your sensor and film are parallel - there are some specific devices for this (https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/157407-REG/Versalab_PARALLEL_Parallel_Alignment_Gauge.html) but an accurate bubble level will also do the job (level the camera and level the light box).

The remaining issue is how to keep the film flat for "scanning." Two solutions I've used include a negative carrier from an enlarger (also helps to mask out stray light from outside the film area) or sandwiching the film between a 4x5 negative carrier glass and the light box surface itself. I place the emulsion side up facing the glass, so that Newton rings are avoided with the glossy side of the film against the frosted plastic of the light box. Then, after straightening things up in Photoshop I invert the image left-to-right.

Because of the aforementioned domestic space issues, when I need to digitize negatives I just hang my camera from a tripod over the light box, which sits on a small end table. It's a total Rube Goldberg contraption but seems to work and causes bemusement in my lovely wife. Thus the only added expense involves the pennies, dimes, nickels and quarters that I put under the light box feet to level it.

I recall that you have a darkroom at home? If so, you may be able to use your enlarger as a copy stand if you can remove the enlarger head and mount your camera to the rail. Oh, and you'll need either a decent macro lens and/or lens extension that allows you to shoot somewhere between 1:1 and 1:2, in order to maximize the sensor area occupied by the frame you're scanning.

Good luck!

John

 

[sog1927]

Yes, I have asked this question before... Nikon has a 35mm film/slide attachment for the 850 camera and 60mm micro lens. It is set up for the minimum focus distance and attaches directly to the front of the lens.

I know there are very knowledgeable people here with amazing creative abilities. There are many reasons for me to eschew a Nikon rig, so I want to add scanning capability to the studio's H5D for 120 film.

In my mind, it should be simple. Practically, I need help with the pieces to put together!

Anyone like to help create a Hasselblad scanner?

This is easy ;-). Hasselblad made a lens hood/slide duplicator attachment for the V-series auto-bellows. So, you need the CF lens adapter, an auto-bellows (cheap on Ebay), the hood/slide-duplicator (more difficult to find, but not impossible, the 120 Macro-Planar or 135 Macro-Plana r(the 135 only goes to 1:1 on the bellows, so you'll need some tubes to make it work for, say, 35mm slides), and you're set.

 

[jng]

This is easy ;-). Hasselblad made a lens hood/slide duplicator attachment for the V-series auto-bellows. So, you need the CF lens adapter, an auto-bellows (cheap on Ebay), the hood/slide-duplicator (more difficult to find, but not impossible, the 120 Macro-Planar or 135 Macro-Plana r(the 135 only goes to 1:1 on the bellows, so you'll need some tubes to make it work for, say, 35mm slides), and you're set.

Brilliant! I hadn't known about this gizmo, which would be perfect for my V/IQ160 system but perhaps a bit more involved for Dave's more modern H5 (I already have the 120 Makro-Planar, for starters).

Just when I thought I was done treasure hunting for old V system components, they pull me back in!

- John

 

[sog1927]

Brilliant! I hadn't known about this gizmo, which would be perfect for my V/IQ160 system but perhaps a bit more involved for Dave's more modern H5 (I already have the 120 Makro-Planar, for starters).

Just when I thought I was done treasure hunting for old V system components, they pull me back in!

- John

The only additional component for Dave would be the CF adapter (which is a bit pricey, but lets you use the leaf shutter in the Macro Planar).

 

[dave.gt]

Wow, thank you all for the input. I have learned a lot. Today has been very difficult, very hard, but this afternoon, I put all of that aside and spent hours studying the alternatives and experimenting to see what did not work.

It appears that I have two alternatives: DT's Scanning Kit"(amazing top of the line solution), and the brilliant slide duplicator setup by sog1927(obviously less expensive but quite cool).

Cost is the major factor here for me.

The other side of the scan problem I have is scanning prints from old family albums and such. I guess only a flat bed scanner will do for that.

Guess I need a paying gig to cover all this!

Thanks to all for your suggestions.

 

[dougpeterson]

Wow, thank you all for the input. I have learned a lot. Today has been very difficult, very hard, but this afternoon, I put all of that aside and spent hours studying the alternatives and experimenting to see what did not work.

It appears that I have two alternatives: DT's Scanning Kit"(amazing top of the line solution), and the brilliant slide duplicator setup by sog1927(obviously less expensive but quite cool).

Cost is the major factor here for me.

The other side of the scan problem I have is scanning prints from old family albums and such. I guess only a flat bed scanner will do for that.

Guess I need a paying gig to cover all this!

Thanks to all for your suggestions.

The DT Film Scanning Kit is a component of the DT Atom which is also the best print scanner you can buy (it also has accessories to scan books, maps, and objects, which are less relevant to your needs).

MUCH faster than a flatbed, with significantly better quality.

 

[jng]

The DT Film Scanning Kit is a component of the DT Atom which is also the best print scanner you can buy (it also has accessories to scan books, maps, and objects, which are less relevant to your needs).

MUCH faster than a flatbed, with significantly better quality.

Doug: OP stated that cost is a factor, so to put things in perspective, what would be the cost of these beautiful rigs, minus the actual camera?

Dave: if you're getting into this for fun (vs. paying work), I suggest you not over-think it, at least not to start with. You already have two of the things you need for scanning film: a great camera and a sturdy tripod+head . Add a light box and some kind of negative holder, and you'll be in business for I'm guessing less than 50 bucks. You can probably also find a used copy stand for not much $$ if you search around a bit online.

The Epson flatbed scanners ($200-1000) might be a reasonable and less clumsy solution for both film and print scanning, especially if your goal is not museum-quality reproduction and the final output is for the web or computer screen.

If you need to scan stacks of old family pix, you should look into the Fast Foto scanner by Epson for around $600 (https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/prod...b246201_fastfoto_ff_640_high_speed_photo.html). My wife got one to archive our treasure of family photos. I initially poo-poo'd the idea but the quality is actually pretty good (certainly better than these prints will look in another 30 years) and unlike a flatbed scanner it can get through a stack in very little time at all and even record information from the backs of the photos - a very useful way of preserving the old-school metadata. The Fast Foto scanner received a good review on Luminous Landscape back in January (https://luminous-landscape.com/epson-fastfoto-ff640-scanner/).

John

 

[dave.gt]

Doug: OP stated that cost is a factor, so to put things in perspective, what would be the cost of these beautiful rigs, minus the actual camera?

Dave: if you're getting into this for fun (vs. paying work), I suggest you not over-think it, at least not to start with. You already have two of the things you need for scanning film: a great camera and a sturdy tripod+head . Add a light box and some kind of negative holder, and you'll be in business for I'm guessing less than 50 bucks. You can probably also find a used copy stand for not much $$ if you search around a bit online.

The Epson flatbed scanners ($200-1000) might be a reasonable and less clumsy solution for both film and print scanning, especially if your goal is not museum-quality reproduction and the final output is for the web or computer screen.

If you need to scan stacks of old family pix, you should look into the Fast Foto scanner by Epson for around $600 (https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/prod...b246201_fastfoto_ff_640_high_speed_photo.html). My wife got one to archive our treasure of family photos. I initially poo-poo'd the idea but the quality is actually pretty good (certainly better than these prints will look in another 30 years) and unlike a flatbed scanner it can get through a stack in very little time at all and even record information from the backs of the photos - a very useful way of preserving the old-school metadata. The Fast Foto scanner received a good review on Luminous Landscape back in January (https://luminous-landscape.com/epson-fastfoto-ff640-scanner/).

John

Ohhh...cool! All great things to consider, John.

My experiments this weekend have all failed to equal or exceed the scans my buddy gets from my images at his photo shop. It was well worth the time and effort to find what does not work.

It is always my desire to make the best possible image every time. It is also obvious that not all things in my huge archive (closet full of banker's boxes) need to be if the highest quality scans or even scanned at all. In light of that, I will need to match scanning equipment with the items to be scanned. Prints, negatives, slides, 100-yr old family photos, hundreds of hand-written poems by my Mom as she recovered from a horrible disease, and much more.

The contemplated end use will dictate what to do with the scans. I made six books last year. More are planned. Saving digital files for family? Good luck on that 50 years from now. All the hundreds of CDs in my boxed archive will not easily be accessed by our grandchildrens' own family in a decade or so.

Being a caretaker and guardian of important family historical documents is not easy. Many decisions need to be made. I am convinced that the studio's H5D-50c is the key to preserving our family records. A noble thing!

But I will make my best effort, hopefully without a room full of scanners, equipment and the boxes stacked in my little room around me now.

 

[docmoore]

Dave,

This may suffice for the stuff you have in mind.

https://www.getdpi.com/forum/large-format-cameras/57262-ipad-a7r-scanner.html?highlight=

Very quick way to see if the workflow is worth the effort.

Regards,

Bob