[Oliver Ritter-Wolff Silver Member Posts: 198]

Medium Format

on: December 25, 2020 at 8:28 am

Hello,

I recently sold my Nikon Coolscan ED 9000. A very good mid-format scanner. Used, the devices are very sought after, since Nikon unfortunately no longer produces this.

Due to the fact that Apple no longer supports the Firewire interface on the Mac Mini, I have the ED9000 for a long time on an older Windows XP machine further operated with an older Silverfast version, but since the support was also here increasingly problematic and the ED9000 now still achieved a good price, he came away.

Alternatively, the Braun FS-120 is now taken into focus, which does not quite reach the performance of the Nikon scanner but is the closest, if you compare the devices on the market.

The scandig website has been doing very good tests on scanners for years, which I can also confirm from practical experience since 2005:

https://www.filmscanner.info/en/BraunFS120.html

Oliver

https://www.riwodot.de

https://vero.co/riwodot

https://www.instagram.com/riwodot/

[Mark D Segal Silver Member Posts: 951]

Re: MF Scanner Braun FS-120

Reply #1 on: January 1, 2021 at 5:47 pm

Oliver, what software are you using for driving the Braun scanner? In what ways does it under-perform the Nikon 9000?

[Oliver Ritter-Wolff Silver Member Posts: 198]

Re: MF Scanner Braun FS-120

Reply #2 on: January 1, 2021 at 7:01 pm

Mark D Segal wrote:

Oliver, what software are you using for driving the Braun scanner? In what ways does it under-perform the Nikon 9000?

Hello Marc,

I have not yet purchased the Braun FS-120 (or the identical Reflecta MF5000). According to what Scandig (filmscanner.info) writes, and I think they have very serious scanner reviews for years, the FS-120 doesn’t come close to my old (and sold) Nikon Coolscan 9000 ED in either effective resolution or density.

Unfortunately I couldn’t get the 9000ED to work on my Mac Mini since there was no FireWire interface anymore. Attempts to get it working again with an adapter via Thunderbold failed. After that I used the 9000ED for about one year on an old Windows XP PC. But all this seemed to me like an unsupported and discontinued model on different levels without a big future.

Silverfast has recommended me the days also again about the Plustek OpticFilm 120 to think. But also the device has in regard to Scandig some disadvantages that do not convince me 100% so that I have evaluated the entire situation again and currently first check another alternative.

Here, in addition to my Panasonic Lumix S1R with the Sigma 105mm Macro the following accessories are used:

From the company Kaiser Fototechnik the following is thus used:
– Kaiser Repro Stand RS 2 XA 5411
– Kaiser FilmCopy Vario Kit 2458
– FilmCopy dia MF
– Anti-Newton glass/mask 4434

Further the following accessories are used:
– Helioplan blue filter KB15 62mm for orange conversion of color negative films

I am currently testing the process and the software for this and will write a field report afterwards. Maybe this is also of interest for one or the other? I will compare the result with my medium format scans of the Nikon Coolscan 9000 ED (which I sold) and my Epson V750 Pro (which I still have) and want to see if this process is a valid alternative for me.

So, to come back to your initial question, I don’t use any software for the FS-120 yet ;).

However, the last Silverfast Studio AI version I used was v6.5.

Oliver

https://www.riwodot.de

https://vero.co/riwodot

https://www.instagram.com/riwodot/

[Mark D Segal Silver Member Posts: 951]

Re: MF Scanner Braun FS-120

Reply #3 on: January 1, 2021 at 7:40 pm

Hi Oliver, yes I know about Scandig. His reviews are technically respectable. For SilverFast, I don’t think there is a cheap upgrade from version 6 any longer but perhaps check their website if it’s of any interest. But I think your approach to try the camera route makes sense; I too am experimenting with a fairly elaborate camera-based set-up to replace the use of scanners. There are really no truly high quality specialized film scanners left on the market apart from the few second-hand giants of yesteryear one finds, often over-priced, from time to time. That said, the Epson V750 or its newer V85o does a decent job with medium format negatives. I did a major review of scanners in 2015 over at Luminous-Landscape. It’s an 89-page article you can download here: https://luminous-landscape.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/The-New-Epson-V850-Pro-Scanner-Final.pdf.

 

[Oliver Ritter-Wolff Silver Member Posts: 198]

Re: MF Scanner Braun FS-120

Reply #4 on: January 2, 2021 at 8:10 am

Hello Marc,

Thanks for your 2015 LuLa article on the Epson V850 Pro, which as far as I know hardly not differs from my V750 Pro in terms of the results Scandig determined here at the time.

In addition, I see that you’ve currently in the topic of film digitization similar thoughts.

Certainly the Epson scanners are among the best flatbed scanners for this purpose on the market. But it is as you say, the best devices disappear slowly from the market or there is no more support.

For the V750 Pro, I purchased a different stage (is this the word in englisch?) with AN glass in the USA, which improved the flatness of the film material. The original stages from Epson were very rough, especially if you knew the solid stages from Nikon ;).

At the first skim of your very extensive report I have already seen that the content goes far beyond the V850 Pro and here also on the Plustek 120, as well as printscans, and so on. I will read the report with great interest.

As I said, I will then also report on my experiences with the Lumix S1R and the Kaiser equipment regarding the digitization of film material. I’m sure that by sharing my findings and the experience of others, I’ll be able to find further approaches to optimization.

After the first experiences of these days, I am still thinking about building a light protection screen around the Kaiser repro stand with black profex plates.

Many greetings
Oliver

https://www.riwodot.de

https://vero.co/riwodot

https://www.instagram.com/riwodot/

[Mark D Segal Silver Member Posts: 951]

Re: MF Scanner Braun FS-120

Reply #5 on: January 2, 2021 at 10:14 am

Hi Oliver – I think you mean what in English we call “frames” (not stages). One of the big improvements of Epson V850 over the V750 is the frames, but as you already have better frames you should be fine with that. You can also use Epson’s glass mounting platform and hold the film flat with a piece of thin Museum glass over the film. Provided you put the Museum glass on the film with its coated surface on the film there are no rings.

Please do share with us the results of your experiments with the camera. I’m particularly interested in your approach of using a Blue filter to neutralize the orange mask in colour negatives. It will of course not produce an accurate result because the hue of the mask differs with every brand of film and you won’t get an exact complementary colour match, but it could take you close enough to minimize massive corrections in post-capture processing. You may also be interested in trying a trial of Negative Lab Pro 2. It’s good software.

[Oliver Ritter-Wolff]

Re: MF Scanner Braun FS-120

Reply #6 on: January 2, 2021 at 1:40 pm

Hello Marc,

I almost thought that the German word “Buehne” is wrong here 1:1 in English :). “Stage” sounded in the context in English already funny.

I also knew the trick with the museum glass and used anti-reflective glass from picture frames in 20x30cm and clear glass (also 20x30cm from picture frames) on the other side during my first attempts from the “normal” tripod, analogous to the Gepe slide frames. In my field report (which I have already started) I have already included this, because it works very well. Also a good alternative for films beyond medium format.

The blue conversion filters for orange elimination on color negative film are not so easy to get here in Germany anymore. I have now found a dealer in Germany where I ordered two KB15 from Helioplan and a dealer in the Netherlands where I could get a KB12 from B&W (Schneider Kreuznach).

My consideration was also to mitigate the significant corrections in post processing. This costs another two stops, but should not be no problem from the repro stand. I don’t think it will give a perfect result, because the negatives are all too different as you said, but it should get you closer to the goal.

I’ll take a look at Negative Lab Pro 2.

I saw that Capture One also has some adjustments for slides and film negatives (color and BW) and I’ll take a closer look at that too ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fhNe6f3bQFA ). I also want to experiment a bit with Adobe Camera RAW in the first step after shooting.

I’m curious how the results will be in comparison and what then is the best possible software mix.

Oliver

https://www.riwodot.de

https://vero.co/riwodot

https://www.instagram.com/riwodot/

• This reply was modified 3 years, 6 months ago by Oliver Ritter-Wolff.
• This reply was modified 3 years, 6 months ago by Oliver Ritter-Wolff.

[Oliver Ritter-Wolff]

Re: MF Scanner Braun FS-120

Reply #7 on: January 2, 2021 at 2:58 pm

Hello Marc,

I just looked up Negative Lab Pro but I guess it’s only available as an LR plugin?
On the Internet I have found the following product, which I did not know until now:

Home

Do you know this by chance? But as I just read it is only a PS script. Helps me therefore also not further, since my LR/PS subscription runs only until March and I did not actually want to extend it.

Oliver

https://www.riwodot.de

https://vero.co/riwodot

https://www.instagram.com/riwodot/

• This reply was modified 3 years, 6 months ago by Oliver Ritter-Wolff.

[Mark D Segal Silver Member Posts: 951]

Re: MF Scanner Braun FS-120

Reply #8 on: January 2, 2021 at 3:43 pm

Hi Oliver,

Never heard of that app. Terrible website, terrible presentations, lack of transparency as to who owns it and where they operate from. The machinations needed to make it work on MacOS are obtusely described, no written documentation one can download and refer to. Life’s too short – there are other options.

Just out of curiosity, if you will not be renewing your LR/PS subscription, what image editing/processing software will you be relying on?

[Oliver Ritter-Wolff Silver Member Posts: 198]

Re: MF Scanner Braun FS-120

Reply #9 on: January 2, 2021 at 3:58 pm

Hello Marc,

I will try to implement the whole thing in the Capture One context, but whether that will work so easily, I don’t know yet. I am collecting information on this right now:

https://support.captureone.com/hc/en-us/articles/360002651377-Inverting-negative-or-positive-film-in-Capture-One-CH
https://support.captureone.com/hc/en-us/articles/360002665438-Applying-Film-Scanning-Styles-in-Capture-One-CH

Oliver

https://www.riwodot.de

https://vero.co/riwodot

https://www.instagram.com/riwodot/

[Mark D Segal Silver Member Posts: 951]

Re: MF Scanner Braun FS-120

Reply #10 on: January 2, 2021 at 4:20 pm

That’s Capture One Cultural Heritage – have you inquired yet about the cost of that application? The last time I did I needed to be taken off the ceiling. 🙂

[Oliver Ritter-Wolff Silver Member Posts: 198]

Re: MF Scanner Braun FS-120

Reply #11 on: January 2, 2021 at 4:24 pm

… but unfortunately some very interesting functions are currently only available in the CH version of C1:

https://support.captureone.com/hc/en-us/community/posts/360013333717-Negative-scanning-in-Capture-One-20

Oliver

https://www.riwodot.de

https://vero.co/riwodot

https://www.instagram.com/riwodot/

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