I built a perfect home film scanner

[@jessesenko]

Let me know if/how you scan! VIEWER FEEDBACK: use a mirror on the table to make sure that your camera is pointing straight down Use the enlarger film holder rather than making one! 🤦‍♂️ Mirror trick: 🤯. I love this community!

[@mtnphot]

It depends on how much quality you want. I use a slide holder that attaches to the end of a macro lens. the connection between the holder and filter thread is rigid so once I have focus, everything is good. keep the emulsion side away from the lens for consistent focusing. keep your light source as far away from the film as possible to make it even across the image. Make sure your film is clean. Otherwise you will spend all your time cloning dust of your digitzed image and no, the dust and scratches filter will not remove all the dust.

[@terryhope2074]

Quick tip for levelling the camera. Put a mirror on the base and adjust the camera until the reflection of the lens is in the middle of the viewfinder. oops, sorry Giovanni - you beat me to it, but good point, this sets the camera regardless of whether the base is level or not.

[@jessesenko]

This is incredible and makes perfect sense!

[@jeffreydouglas-sim6127]

".....and my God, you'd better have a library card....." Priceless......what a brilliant, inspirational video.

[@giovanni8120]

The camera alignment using the ball head should be done with a mirror, by focusing on the lens and centering it on the frame trough the reflection. That being because it will guarantee that it is co-planar with the scanning surface, what is more important than having it leveled.

[@jessesenko]

🤯 Amazing! Makes perfect sense! I've never heard of this. Definitely going to update my method.

[@VIC-LAN]

Dude. Love your story telling. So captivating. 👌🏾

[@toskabyss]

I don’t shoot film, nor do I think I ever will, however, I am filled with inspiration after watching this. Your creativity and unique approach to work makes me want to make things.

[@jessesenko]

Thanks! How bout you shoot a roll of film and I write a song?

[@georgesmith4509]

You DDDD DON'T shoot film. Horror! (LOL) I use both and a phone camera. The diference between film and digital is like the difference between CD and Vynal. The real beauty of film is that it can be expensive, which makes one think before one opens a firing salvo.

[@toskabyss]

Every once I like to record to tape and reel 2 reel every once in a while. I have to agree, I am almost always more thoughtful when doing that vs going directly to my hard drive on the computer!@@georgesmith4509

[@andydelphoto]

Your delivery and humor is extremely perfect. Great stuff 👍🏻👍🏻

[@jessesenko]

Thanks Andy! Means a lot!

[@BPantherPink]

My sentiments exactly !! Subbd for the great humour and great vdo'graphy !!

[@j.r.shartzer]

My parents made a big negative 38 years ago.

[@jessesenko]

*drum rimshot sound effect*

[@johnnyswatts]

Heyooooo!

[@Dubtee]

Lol same

[@marvinracer88]

The humor, the down to earth vibe and, why not, also the useful content! Sub'd; keep it up!

[@BackpackerCoach]

Your delivery and humor is legendary. And yes you probably have my old black and white film enlarger. I got my black and white film enlarger thinking I would make a dark room in my basement someday. LOL well, that never happen. So I sold it on ebay. I loved making my own black and white prints in high school in the 80s.

[@danienelphoto]

I have a film pic of my 3 year old son looking through MY Yashica.... taken about 12 years back. A fav to the day

[@jessesenko]

Can't you make them in camera? In Premiere I can have them render in the background and the render pauses anytime Premiere needs the processor bandwith. If i'm shooting on a red or something, i'll have premiere or Resolve do it the night of the shoot or in my hotel room so i'm ready to go when it's edit time. Thanks for watching, Aaron!

[@Peterb200295]

"It's the circle of light" was pure genius. Just like the rest of the video ofc!

[@arlo37]

What a hoot! Dude - your timing for this rig is perfect for me. And that sly, dry humour… priceless!

[@shedactivist]

Very cool. I have an old enlarger gathering dust, a son with a 3D printer, and I have a bunch of negatives that need to be scanned. Happy days ahead.

[@Bluebonnetbottoms]

This was my first time seeing your videos. I clicked on it not knowing what to expect other than some plans, and dude, I was thoroughly entertained, learned some cool stuff, laughed, and inspired to do more! Bravo! 👏

[@jessesenko]

Awesome! Thank you!

[@mikeshores8318]

You INSPIRED me to rethink how to design, create & build my own Film & Slide Scanner from items within my own reach. Thank you for making this video just for me. OK, for other DIY'rs out there, also!

[@jessesenko]

Been waiting so long for you to watch it!

[@thomasgunther]

I'm in the process of cleaning out old slides. They were taken by a relative of my wife and she inherited them. We went through thousands of slides (there! A tree! Another one! A flower!) and kept a handful for scanning. The contraption I use involves; a Nikon Coolpix P7700, inherited from the same person who took the slides, a medical daylight LED panel as a backlight, cut out cardboard to keep out stray light, a mini tripod that allows to point the camera straight down and another cardboard contraption to lift the backlight plus slide to the range of the camera's makro setting. Voila! This is good enough for me, even though the scans get blurry on th edges (a combination of the lenses limits and the slides not being completely plane in their frames). Thanks for showing your process!

[@jessesenko]

Thanks for sharing. You used the word “contraption” a few times so it sounds like my kind of setup!

[@dmitriysherbina1471]

We need more content like this, it’s about way of thinking and inspiration first of all. Never shot film till 2023 and already have few cameras from 60-90s and developed around 10 bnw rolls

[@jessesenko]

Ideas first always! You've shot more film than me this year! I've got a new camera i need to replace the seals on and hope to shoot a bunch over the holidays.

[@kraftaculousgreekgodofcraf1113]

I had three enlargers sitting in my garage, but I downsized it to only two. And now I can still have one and also make a digitizer! Thank you for this video.

[@Nino4240]

one of the best videos i have ever seen on youtube, wow!!!!

[@DanM_Photography]

I already have a working set up, but watched your whole impressive presentation anyway. Amazing production quality! I love digitizing my negatives and slides, usually using electronic flash as my light source.

[@AntiAntiAntiFa]

I never did any darkroom work outside of middle school Camera Club, but I did have a good-sized microfiche reader for a while, bought very cheap, shortly before digitizing and scanning took over. I never did anything with it, unfortunately, and probably donated it to a thrift store years later. More cool might have been an opaque projector.

[@AlexOnStreets]

Damn you're good at this.

[@hansc8433]

I’m so happy to be old enough to have spent hundreds of hours in a small closet with my dad’s old Durst M600 enlarger to develop my own photos (taken with an old Kodak Retina 1b). Later I also used the stand to take (film) photos of small paintings and drawings. I’m not sure when I got rid of the enlarger. But this inspired me to hunt one down again and use my trusty old Kodak which has been sitting in a dark box at the bottom of a closet for too long to shoot some film and reintroduce myself to the forgotten art of developing film. I did buy a fancy device to scan my negatives, and it does a decent job. Thanks for the burst of nostalgia!

[@jessesenko]

Reading your comment, I can smell the chemicals! I'm starting with my scanning setup but also renovating a space in my basement for creative projects so maybe another little darkroom will happen! Thanks for sharing, Hans.

[@johannesleyman2628]

Cool! I have that same enlarger and used it for repro work back in the days (with a Nikkormat at the time). Didn't think of using my Durst this way when I some years ago began digitizing film and glass plates, so I bought a dedicated repro stand (including daylight temp lighting) plus an A4 size light table. Don't regret that though, but it is interesting to see your inventive and cost effecitve take: Using what you already have. Nice work! Greetings from Sweden!

[@jessesenko]

Thanks for watching!

[@chrisbrodroy1183]

The content is great but man, i really get your sense of humor. Subscribed for that alone. Photography content is a bonus!!

[@johnnycondor]

Thank you, Jesse, for all the cool tips on setting up a basic rig to turn my negatives into digital files. ☺🙏

[@ats1995]

I did something a bit similar a few years ago, and used a cable release so that I didn't have to touch the camera. I eventually made it into a foot pedal, that helped with the workflow. Mind you, this was scanning I think over 1k (or was it 3k?) photos this way.

[@roverdad]

Ah hahaha. The whole confusing two parts of my past bit was hilarious. Not going to shoot film again anytime soon but have rolls and rolls of 120 negatives and 35mm slides that probably should be digitized before I get too much older. Thanks for the laughs and the video. Subscribed.

[@keithwiebe1787]

I've been doing that for the last month or so. Many great memories. I use my R8 Canon with EF50 macro lens and cheap kodak light box with some old Epson scanner film holders which work great. Do everything from 110 to 35mm to 120 and 4x5.

[@angelgrace1175]

Finally delving into the world of film and came across your channel! I appreciate your humor and knowledge, instant sub! I was ROLLING when you pulled out the crop and red light!🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@jessesenko]

lol. Thanks for watching!

[@caryconover]

The DSLR scanning method is fantastic. My setup is not too different from yours (also use an enlarger) but the results blow away the scans from my previous Nikon scanner

[@jessesenko]

Yup, I'm just getting this setup going, but the scans are so much better than anything i've tried since i paid a bunch of money to scan some film on an Imacon back in the early 2000s.

[@dchall8]

This is a great video and reminder of something I was going to do when I retired (3 years ago). I used to work at the library and still volunteer there, but I didn't know they had a 3-d printer. This is revolutionary. I also have a film camera collection starting in 1969 along with some digital Barbie cameras my girls had. I guess I need a decent digital camera with a macro lens. My dad shot slides back in the 50s as did I in the 70s. I transitioned to prints in the 80s, so I have a metric ton of stuff to scan.

[@jessesenko]

Cool, thanks for sharing! You'll have to ask and see if your local branch has a 3d printer, but the library my son works at does here in Canada. This sort of setup is great for scanning all kinds of things, including prints or documents. I have a feeling i'll go through all of my parents' old slides soon.

[@Christotheb]

The single best change I made to my copy stand + DSLR scanning setup was shooting tethered in lightroom. Being able to nail macro focus using my monitor instead of my camera's live display was a huge revelation and helped massively with setup. I also use an enlarging lens and switching from extension tubes to a macro rail was another huge help.

[@jessesenko]

Tethering is great. I have a bunch of slides to do so will probably tether for that.

[@DeepTanksStudio]

I use flash to light from below. Shot Thu a small bank..allows me to adjust the light out put and no movement blur

[@pcaridad]

On 2020, during pandemic, I got a drill stand borrowed from my brother. With few modifications it makes a great support.

[@csilt]

You had me smiling several times during this video. Good stuff! 😁

[@walterpierluissi1379]

👍👍👍👍👍 Good Info Jesse.... I do have a Nikon FG from 1982 full operational and I am scanning all my B&W negatives into digital using my Nikon D750 full frame, and what a JOY!!!! Now I need to start developing my negatives on my own.... And I also have my dad's Old Yashica TLR all manual 6x6 medium format that I am planning to use too... So, Love your video and the way you developed to scan the negatives... In my case I bought the Nikon ES-2 digitizer.... I HAVE BBEN NIKON since the late 70's....

[@jessesenko]

Thanks, Walter! I love my yashica tlr

[@SnowyOwlPrepper]

There must be a reason my library card reappears and this video was in my feed just days apart. It must be because the love of art is contagious.

[@jessesenko]

100%!

[@SalettaRocks]

I have the same durst enlarger with color head ...very nice enlarger. Never much liked glass negative carrier because they caused Newton's rings. You can use the enlarger lighthouse to backlight and hold your film and set it on the base. With a dichroic head you can color balance the light too.

[@dangreenberg8983]

This was fantastic! I have an old enlarger sitting around that would be perfect for this. Thank you so much for posting this and the inspiration to get it done.

[@jessesenko]

Awesome! Thanks! Some good suggestions in other comments too if you do it!

[@ChrisDN]

The string/nut idea isn't silly, it's basically just a plumb bob.

[@juliafalchetta3259]

I have been having trouble scanning like this I have the setup but raising the negative is a good idea maybe that will help me with the colors and use my negative carrier to hold them when scanning thanks for the great video!

[@jessesenko]

Thanks for watching, Julia! Diffusion and distance are super helpful to get good, even scans

[@farcushenderson]

Man, good stuff. My gut reaction is to continue being lazy and just buying stuff so I don’t have to be resourceful and crafty like you. lol. Also, could watch you all day. Really entertaining.

[@MezeiEugen]

Now we know why Nikon stopped producing scanners. They were afraid your perfect scanner will bankrupt them.

[@jessesenko]

100%... lol

[@carstendietrich702]

I converted an old slide projector into a slide scanner, removed the condenser and replaced it with 3-4 mm opaque acrylic glass. I used a daylight LED panel in place of the halogen lamp, which is getting far too hot. All together fixed on a plate in front of the projector without a lens, the camera is mounted on a small scissor lift table with a macro rail. I found a small relay in the projector with a free contact that triggers the Canon camera via the remote control cable. When the projector is set to automatic, the setup shoots through magazines with 36 or 50 slides very quickly. For me, the setup was worthwhile because I used a lot of Kodachrome and Ektachrome film for years, back in the days of analog photography. The digital copies are excellent, which is why I framed one negative film to scan black and white. The result is also great, but it cuts my negatives into pieces and takes far too long. That's why I searched and came across your video. I think I will do it in a similar way to you. Unfortunately, I sold my Durst M601, for which I even had a repro arm, years ago. I think I will convert my drill stand. And finally, a tip for you: a mirror helps to align the optical axis at 90 degrees to the plate. Thank you and have a nice time.

[@jessesenko]

Thank you Carsten! It seems you’re pretty handy in the workshop. I’ve seen setups similar to yours but instead to scan super8mm film frame by frame to get high res scans. They even hacked the trigger like you! I had a lot of people comment about the mirror trick… I had no idea. I have my grandma’s visor mirror from her old Renault within arms-reach of my setup now. One design I’ve been thinking of is mounting a 3/4” black pipe flange on the underside of my worktop and drilling a hole so I can thread in a 36” piece of pipe from the top (flange underneath keeps the worktop clearer) and then just use a mafer/super clamp with a ball head for scanning. And your macro rail to get fancy. Although, reference markings on the pipe once things are dialled in would help. Just an idea of a simpler way to do it without a copy stand. Although a bench top drill press is a great idea. Good luck with the build!

[@whoathor]

50k views? Dang dude. Killing it. Think you hit the vlog jackpot! Seriously though. Great work.

[@jessesenko]

Thanks Man! Thinking of doing a George Costanza and going out on a high! "I'M OUT!"

[@dieterblaz]

forget the 3d printed holder - I used my old negative carrier from my enlarger, made a mask which covered most of the light panel, and just dropped that carrier onto the surface.

[@jessesenko]

Nice! Yeah, you can tell i haven't printed in a while and totally missed that connection, lol

[@maze400]

haha-loved it! I still have my Super chromemga C760. I miss the days of 100' of Tri-x or TMax for $20-$30.00 though. Also, my developer of choice can no longer be found. Agfa Diafine and Acufine.

[@EnisMemic]

For the past few months, I've been using my Durst 606's copy stand to attach my digital camera with an antique canon FD macro lens to it, the Durst's negative carrier to hold the film and my dad's iPad as a light source and this video just inspired me to build a proper scanning setup to keep my enlarger in action even when I'm not printing. Thanks !

[@jessesenko]

iPad is a great option! It’s how I did my first scans! You can tell I haven’t printed in a bunch of years so didn’t even think of using the enlarger’s holder. Thanks for sharing!

[@EnisMemic]

@@jessesenko reeaaaally impressed by the holders you made tho, a lot less fiddly than using the enlarger's carrier. Darkroom printing is really cool as well, a whole other way of consuming your art. I started with some cheap 5x7 Foma paper and the same chemistry I used for film development, you should definitely start again !

[@jessesenko]

@@EnisMemic on the list! It’s a very long list tho!

[@josephtayloruk]

I stopped using film as frankly I just can't afford it. But I still hold it dear to my heart. Your video and ingenuity is fantastic, plus you have my kind of humour. So....that's me subscribing to your channel Jesse. Now to check your older videos. :)

[@thesilverdarkroom]

Excellent. Just found your channel, so I’m a little late to this comment thread. Your Durst enlarger was made to convert to a copy stand, but not all enlargers will do this easily. I own a copy stand and intend to do what you’re doing with that. Also, a good light source, negative carriers, and multiple macro lenses, so I’m all set. Just two days ago, I had a conversation with a guy who owns a local photo lab (yes, they still exist) and he was telling me that I could not do this successfully. I figured he was partially full of it and just wanting me to pay him to scan my negatives. I have thousands! (Been doing this since the 1960s). Cheers! 😃

[@jessesenko]

I had a camera store guy try to talk me out of a camera I was looking for and told me what was “better” Just picked what I was looking for up :)

[@realityboost4405]

🤣 "I make myself cry…I inspire myself so much sometimes…" 🤣 …You're a comedy genius, as well as a photographic one!…Fantastic video.

[@IanBrown-sx8zu]

A much easier way to copy either film or digital without all the extra bits and pieces is to use the enlarger head reversed on the baseboard as the light box, I have a Durst copy arm that fits to the enlarger column which takes a camera body and keeps the camera parallel to the baseboard. The negative carrier holds the film flat. Been copying this way since the swinging sixties

[@jessesenko]

I was trying to reinvent the wheel over here! I’ve been told this by a few folks but don’t mind this setup for all kinds of scanning. I am however jealous of your experience with this machine! I’m planning a craft room as a part of a basement reno that’s lightproof as well to try printing again.

[@coffeepyros]

KZbin recommended this video to me. I thought it would be another monotone technical tutorials - well I was wrong. Red lights - subscribed. I scan 35mm/120 with an Epson V550 flatbed scanner for daily snaps (scans 12 images in a batch process at the same time -> saves time). If I need a bit more quality from a 35mm frame I have additionally a Plustek OpticFilm 8100. But you need to feed it single images, so it's a pain for a whole roll. Tried camera scanning for a bit, but the setup takes ages, never get everything balanced, dust dust dust, also I don't have a macro lens - and if you have to buy a macro lens you can buy a dedicated film scanner for the same money and have less headaches.

[@jessesenko]

Thanks! Yes my setup’s affordability hinges on access to a macro. And I’m a bit jealous of being able to make a “contact print” with the flatbed. I’ll try doing a whole page of negs on my big light box and see if I can get anything meaningful from it. Thanks!

[@coreySLC]

I had absolutely had no interest in this topic when my feed landed on this video. By the end of it I was racking my brain trying to remember where I might have some negatives I could use and how to build your gizmo. Well done!

[@tim_butcher]

Brilliant and hilarious! Loving yer work, Jesse. I’ve been using a V600 flatbed and never liked it. I do have a spare enlarger and will give this a go. But first I’m getting a library card.

[@jessesenko]

lol. Library card shaming seems to be working :) I borrowed a V600 for a bit and felt it was pretty soft. This method is so much sharper if you have a macro lens. Also lots of comments about using the neg carrier from the enlarger instead of 3D printing one. Good luck and thanks for watching!

[@JanneRanta]

Easier way of making sure your camera is level with the film plane is to use a mirror. Just place a mirror on the plane and then aim at the center of the reflection. That takes into account any deviation of the plane too so its not reliant just on gravity.

[@jessesenko]

A few people have said that and today is that day i picked up a completely fundamental thing that i've never heard of. A good day! Thanks for sharing.

[@Renzsu]

Oh man, that enlarger made my dive into my local marketplace website and there's a couple of them for sale for next to nothing. Going to pick one up soon!

[@macadoodle100]

Loved the trip down memory lane.

[@PoeticAsh]

Hey...I think you might have my enlarger? I'd really like that back. Loved this ...youre awesome!

[@jessesenko]

Thanks!

[@robertfallows1054]

After I watched your video I realized I have a lot of the equipment you described and I have tried this belore and the results were ok, but the fact of being able to 3d print a negative holder is a game changer... I have some color photos of my wedding back in1983 that are looking (are) faded. I did scan them but never really was happy with the look I'm going to try and find those negatives and use your method to get them back into their original look.

[@jessesenko]

I found that the lens is the important part of the chain. If you don’t have a good macro, the scans will be soft.

[@robertfallows1054]

@@jessesenko I do have a canon macro so hopefully that will work. Gotta find the negatives first 😀😀

[@kapurar]

Great video! Glad I discovered your channel - something different in photography . Thank you! 🇨🇦

[@jessesenko]

Glad you’re here!

[@Nitidus]

Thank you for showing that you DO NOT NEED $900 to scan film with a digital camera. Even everything considered - R&D, manufacturing, administration and distribution, material cost, etc. - I personally still think that those heavily advertised scanning stands by certain brands are _grossly_ overpriced.

[@IndianKD]

Perfect sense of humour. Be happy! ))) I was enjoyed looking this video ))) and yes, I am inspired now )))

[@wavemaker54]

Subscribed just because of the red light anecdote. Actually for the scanning ideas. Thanks.

[@Bjordgoltor]

Made the same thing 2 years ago and then proceed to slowly upgrade the kit. I love fine tuning every bit of it !

[@jessesenko]

Oh very cool. I've done lots of janky temporary setups, but excited to keep this one ready-to-go. I gotta buy this lens now though 😬

[@megalofauna]

Came for the project overview, subscribed for the color commentary.

[@lesliesmith5266]

You could also have used the enlarger head as a light source and the film carrier by turning it upside down and using it as your objective on the base under your camera rig. In fact the earlier dursts had a reversable condenser set that you could copy with but using the lamphousing and the condensers will give you an evenly distributed light source which if you like you could add further diffusion to if you like. I have an opemus enlarger which I am desperately waiting to be shipped from my previous address to create a similar scan system to yours and it has two foam boxes that can provide illumination for both 35 and 120 and relative film carriers. It was originally for colour. Great video, thank you.

[@jessesenko]

Thanks Leslie! I've heard other comments about this method. I got into photography right at the tail end of the film era, so didn't learn the ins-and-outs of these machines, so really great to learn. I wonder if the head would overheat the film with the light at the bottom, or was it designed this way?

[@lesliesmith5266]

@@jessesenko Good point Jesse, it would only be workable with reflex enlargers like the one you took the mounting stand from or similar heads that lamp is at the back of. Older enlargers had the bulb above the film and would be too cumbersome to turn upside down and may as you say create a heat problem. Putting a space between the upside down head and the worktop would provide room for the bulb to vent. As an afterthought you would have to also have to remove the lens holder and bellows to enable access to your scan area. Or just use the enlargers film carriers over your own lightsource if you want to stay more compact.

[@NorbiWhitney]

Really enjoyable watch and cool final setup!

[@esotericist]

Gott my mamiya c3 + 105mm lens last week. fomapan film arrives tomorrow. picked up an minty (35mm) enlarger + bottles, masking frame, red light etc. for.... £20 - vertical clamp grip for attaching my D5200 arrives tomorrow (£5.60) - all i need is the LED white light bits and some rodinal/fixer.

[@jessesenko]

Oh amazing, very fun. Bon voyage!

[@ronwise3069]

You randomly popped up in my feed today. Instant sub! Thank you for your videos; I can't wait to see more.

[@jessesenko]

Thank you!

[@greganderson1681]

Yep, I must’ve sold you my Beseler 23c-II back in the ‘90s. Cuz I don’t have it any more.

[@frasermay7825]

I made a film holder from bits of 2mm black plastic card which works OK. Getting hold of a trashed enlarger would be brilliant.

[@javiervidaurre6325]

I hear you loud and clear!

[@anishamm685]

Believe it or NOT, I have already bought 8 different types of old enlargers (35mm and 120) from Marketplace. But I've been moving for the past 5 years, therefore I haven't had the time , yet, to check which Enlarger structure is best for this "scanning table". Now, I moved to a new house, and soon I'll be doing my scanning stand, and I'll keep you posted. Thanks for this lovely video

[@jessesenko]

Making me feel better about having two! :) good luck with the conversion!

[@ChasWG]

Amazing! Loved so much in this and made me laugh out loud! the Red Light District references and then the riding crop! LMAO! Now I need to go get my enlarger out of storage and see if it will work. I've been tempted to salvage the lens from it and adapt it to be used as a camera lens, some of those lenses are actually really good and make crazy images. Use it all with no waste!

[@jessesenko]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@PhilipRanson-d5t]

Beautiful work, I really appreciate the inspiration you posses,thank you.

[@jessesenko]

Thanks for watching, Philip!

[@GrantSR]

OK... I need to know what clear finish you used on the wood. I love that it didn't change the natural color of the wood at all. I see that it is Behr brand. But which of their many finishes is it? Thanks.

[@jessesenko]

Hey Grant! I used regular water-based urethane. Doesn’t darken the wood. Probably satin finish. I’ve got a can of Behr these days but prob just because it was the cheapest!

[@deccawatt5741]

I use an enlarger like you do but for the light source I use a box with a speedlight and some difusion, the advantage is that by using your flash on TTL you get auto exposure, which is good when you have frames with variying density. The right exposure is hard to judge on a negative... Other advantage is that it removes any risk of bluriness from vibrations or small movemnts in the system.

[@jessesenko]

Oh cool! this is a great option. I imagine it could be set up as a book light to get reflected light through the diffusion so it's perfectly soft. For exposure, I end up just using the histogram, but i've only really scanned a couple rolls this year. I use the 2 sec timer to help with the shake so i can get the exposure. This video is doing better than usual, so really amazing to see all the ideas and processes people are sharing.

[@MrFreakwent]

It's easy to get a good histogram with a constant light.

[@deccawatt5741]

exactly what I do @@jessesenko . the lightbox is something like a shoebox with the speedlight entering on one side and hitting a 45 degree white carboard at the other end. light get reflected up through some difusion and a glass plate.

[@Steff_kjns]

Lovely video, laughed out loud and learned a lot. Subbed!

[@analog_cafe]

Jesse, this is fantastic. Here's to more film in 2024!

[@jessesenko]

Agree! An admirable resolution!

[@judyr.9357]

Wow, so great, thanks for sharing. You're so talented.

[@mapgeek6]

My personal tip, having made my own 120 film "scanner": use a real macro lens. I used to use a Canon 50mm f/1.8 lens with extension tubes. Then, I got a Tamron 90mm macro lens. The sharpness difference was staggering! I thought the 50 with extension tubes was fine, but it was not even close to the results I get from the Tamron. Also, that light you used is the one I got for my medium format scanner - the light isn't even enough across the entire panel. Even with multiple layers of diffusion, it's just not up to the task.

[@jessesenko]

Yes. Agree on all points. The 100 mm canon macro was such a vast improvement over anything with tubes, and yes I don’t love that led’s diffusion as is. Last time I scanned 120 I had to use a full size panel led to get an even spread (my jenga setup in the vid). I’ll keep exploring!

[@keithwiebe1787]

I tried the EF50 1.8 at first too and with extension tubes. Was very sharp in center but corners were soft with medium format. Got the EF50 F2.5 macro and it's sharp across corners. Only use extension tube when doing 35mm. For medium format no extension tubes.

[@abelpf1]

My new favorite channel

[@josephawatson]

well that's where my enlarger went to you're totally off the hook of being a hoarder :P loved the humor and the scans looked great.

[@jessesenko]

Phew! Thanks Joseph!

[@JackieOdonnel]

Is anyone gonna talk about the fact that he has a riding crop? No. Okay. I guess it's just me. My boyfriend made something VERY similar but to capture slides. Made his own 3D parts to hold the slides in place, and to photograph both the slide frames (where people write shit on it--the date/year, the location, the name of the person), then only capture the actual image.

[@jessesenko]

Word is, he likes to keep people awkwardly guessing! I love the idea of capturing the whole slide. Requires two lights I guess. Second one to light the slide mount. A friend is working on a doc and asked to borrow this for slides. So will 3D print a holder for that soon!

[@JackieOdonnel]

@@jessesenko Cool! Would love to see it when you're done. And yes, my b/f has two lights, uses his Canon, and has a fast-loading sliide carousel. I showed him your video and he's like "See! I'm not the only geek with classic film enlargers laying around!"

[@curtisvanwye2524]

It seems you arrived at the same solution that I did. I had a Durst M605 enlarger back in the 70s before I upgraded to an Omega 4x5 enlarger, and remembered using it as a copy stand. I found a little 35 mm version on eBay for less than $50, bought an Essential film holder system and made a little box out of 1/2 Gator foam to hold my video light and holder. (Sure beat using my old color head upside down and Omega D series neg carriers) I tether my Nikon D5500 APS-C camera with a 30mm macro to Lightroom on my iMac now and couldn’t be more pleased. I have been using this for a few years now to digitize my 40+ plus year library as well as my father’s and grandfather’s film. I need to sell my film scanners because I don’t think I will ever use them again. Except maybe for 4x5, but I recently tried shooting sections of a transparency and stitching them together and had pretty good luck.

[@jessesenko]

Thanks for sharing, Curtis. So were you using the head upside-down and shooting into it to scan? Just checked out the essential film holder and it looks like a really great and affordable option. Also stitching your 4x5 seems like a good option and gives you a ton of detail, which is the whole spirit of 4x5. That’s a project I want to do down the road… build my own. Biggest format I’ve shot is just a borrowed 6x7 medium format. Do you find you get “lensing” with your 30mm or do you just flatten it in Lightroom? This 100mm is probably going to be my next lens purchase.

[@DRguitarboy94]

I just managed to shot one roll of film with my grandmother old Yashica 127 . I am not going to pay 22 euros to get the film scanned with the sprockets. Thank you for the inspiration and the guidelines! Amazing and entertaining content!

[@jessesenko]

Awesome! I have an old Yashica TLR as well and I love it.

[@Alecostaa__]

Have you had any prior experience scanning 35mm film with sprockets and edges? @@jessesenko

[@garyzackowitz675]

Great idea- but I will just use the negative carrier from the enlarger to hold the neg flat over a small light box

[@jessesenko]

Thanks. Yes good idea. You can tell I haven’t printed in a while!

[@radry100]

You forgot the most important thing: How to focus properly on a negative??

[@jessesenko]

I usually use the zoom focus assist thing but for this test, autofocus + 2 sec timer worked best!

[@tibo-bt1ig]

Excellent !!! great video. Great tips. Loads of humour.

[@DazsdWTP]

i like that the nut hanging from a screw is just a hommade plumbob

[@jessesenko]

I like that it lands flat! Even if I don’t need it anymore. Comments gave me a better way

[@NoraFulcanelli]

Oh yeah, thanks for reminding me. Can I get my film enlarger back? Thanks.

[@deldridg]

I shoot MF and LF and have hired a Flextight X5 in the past. For $60/hr I could scan something like 12 LF at 4000 lpi and end up with enormous files which were satisfyingly large, but of limited practical value beyond meeting my purist orientations. I have an old V700 but will start experimenting with shooting my negs directly. Maybe they'll be good enough for my purposes, if not falling a little short of my (silly) desires to go max res! Cheers and thanks from Sydney - Dave

[@jessesenko]

I used to do scans on the same thing in Toronto around 15 years ago. Rented an imacon workstation at Toronto Image Works. I have to do some more testing, but this setup (mainly due to the lens’s sharpness) is the closest to those imacon scans at home. And I’d love to learn how to operate a large format cam!

[@alanbrunettin5584]

OMG…I had that Durst! Warmed my heart to see it again. Weird to hear you describe the pos/neg process. I’m like who doesn’t know all this? Then I realize how old I am. :(

[@jessesenko]

lol. Yes. A good chance anyone under 35 never touched film!

[@terryh7634]

Hilarious presentation Jesse! Turned out great!

[@jessesenko]

Thanks for the loaner lens, Terry!

[@wernerswannet]

Was there, done that, .. I love the irony though. Nice music also ...

[@lohikarhu734]

you could have mounted the enlarger 'sideways' so that it's 'projection' is parallel to a table, - used its own film carriers, and - substituted a "daylight" led bulb for the original incandescent lamp, - set up the camera and macro lens pointing "into" the enlarger - or, even better, use a good quality enlarger lens, mounted in an adapter to your camera body (e.g. an extension tube, with an adapter "ring" epoxied to it... i suggest this because the enlarger lens is "flat field", although an excellent macro lens might be better at 1:1, {the enlarger lens optimized for 1:10 ratio, more likely (like 8x10 or 11x14, from 35 mm film} Anyway, the enlarger already has a film carrier setup for 35 mm & 220 (your Durst), and a light source optimized for even lighting, and you only need to make a mount for the camera, which would be fixed in one of two places, for 35 mm and 120, just thr focusing distance from film plane. ok, "it's just a thought"

[@jessesenko]

Lol. this is great and i never considered that at all. Where were you a week ago?? Trying to figure this stuff out in a vacuum over here. Film carrier was sitting there all along. I wonder if removing the lens and just inverting my current setup would have been a good option too... essentially a free lightbox with an LED upgraded backlight. If i'm following, you're suggesting to build an adapter set to essentially mount my camera to the lens and focus directly on the sensor?

[@JustMe-bp6im]

I was wondering why you were not using the standard film carrier too! I have several carriers up to 4X5 and turning the enlarger on it's side like mentioned above, then removing the lens mount board should to the same thing. Depending on the enlarger a diffusion piece might be needed but should be easy to do. If "scanning" B&W negs, the type of bulb should not matter much, with color negs it would. Using the same process and a daylight bulb you should also be able to "scan" slides then reverse it in you photo processing software.

[@jessesenko]

100% seeing that now. Maybe i'm just stubborn, but i feel like i'll end up using this for recording top-down video and scanning random business docs too with my arca swiss iphone mount. @@JustMe-bp6im

[@FlorianAzar]

great filmmaking. Your Videos look amazing. Great Work!

[@jessesenko]

Thanks!

[@andrefelixstudio2833]

Great information nicely done and super entertaining!