I’m currently using the Lomography Digitaliza holder which isn’t terrible by any means, but I just recently developed some Fuji film for the first time (first color development ever) and they are super curly. This was causing a lot of issues trying to keep the film flat in the Digitaliza. I even sat a case of canned drinks on top of the negatives for two days and they’re still fairly curly. Film will sometimes be curled, I get that. So rather than go into some methods of flattening out film each time, I’d rather just get a film carrier that’s going to do a solid job at it for me.
I’m wondering if anyone has used the Skier and/or Negative Supply MK1 and can give me any information on how flat they hold the film. As I understand, the Negative Supply MK1 holds the film very flat as it’s being cranked through. But if the Skier does a comparable job at holding the film flat I’d probably go that route due to the lower price. They both look like quality pieces.
Also, would the Skier hold the film flat even without the copy box part? I already have a great light that I enjoy using.
TL;DR: Does the Skier Copy Box hold film flat comparable to the Negative Supply holder?
When I look at the negative supply holder theoretically, I think that it can not flatten a curly negative because the film needs to move freely and therefore can curl, not like when it’s rolled up in a can, but like grooves in a worn road. My medium format film does it. It behaves like a metal tape measure, snapping into form when it is unrolled.
Some of the tension of the film can be relieved when you roll it the other way and keep it like that for a few days.
I am using the negative supply mk1. It seems to hold the film flat and is meant to rolled film. Mine are very old negative that have been cut into strips, but it still does work. Keep in mind that it takes up to 2 months to get delivery from negative supply.
Thanks! I figured it probably holds it more flat than the skier as it’s pulling it through with the wheels/crank. Thanks for the heads up on the length of time it takes. The Digitaliza will hold me over for a little while.
I’ve got the negative supply MK1 - should have gotten in on the Kickstarter but instead am kicking myself for waiting longer and paying more.
It keeps the film very flat. The way it achieves this flatness is by making the film travel through a gentle S curve on its way to the scanning area. In other words, the film entry plane is lower than the scanning plane; having to travel through that S curve within the precise groove the That film is confined to, flattens it right out. You can check this by taking a strip of film and making it circular, as it bends the curl is removed.
This thing is expensive but totally eliminates friction in scanning film. Friction defined as ‘I don’t really feel like doing this’ or ‘this is painfully slow’.
I also ordered the platform (can remember what they call it) with adjustable legs and it is awesome. Using the Parallel tool from Versalab I can perfectly align the film and camera sensor in moments. (The parallel tool is primarily used to align an enlarger and easel)
It really shines when you can scan an entire roll prior to being cut and sleeved. I’m working my way through a massive backlog of cut film from the days when friction would slow me down. Even so I’m getting a 7 strip roll of cut film done in about 20 minutes.
I have the skier and it holds the film flattish, flatter than the lomography holders, but not sure about the other holder. I’d say Skier is about as flat as a typical enlarger holder - it is probably modelled on one. It’s great for 35mm but the 125 holder just doesn’t work as film is real hard to get in. The big benefit of the skier is the backlight which is bright and colour corrected. For example at F9 I had a camera shutter speed of around 1/5 second using a light table and lomography holders but with the skier it’s circa 1/250 so no more fear of camera shake having an effect.
It’s one issue is heat generated by the skier light, you need to turn it off for a few minutes after about 20 mins of use to cool down - don’t get me wrong it’s not untouchable or burning but it has potential to curl film. As I tend to scan a roll and then convert in NLP, turning it off between scans means the heat is never an issue, but if I scanned say 4 rolls one after the other, it would be.
I considered one of the dearer scanners - are they worth it and what sort of light source do people use?
Thank you very much for the detailed response, I really appreciate it! Also thanks for the info on the Versalab Parallel tool. Do you happen to know the dimensions? It isn’t on their site and I need to see if just the negative carrier will fit on my light.
Quick question if you don’t mind, what length lens do you use? I’m currently using an old 55mm Nikkor lens with a Fuji X-Pro 1 and I can’t get even get close to the entire frame. I don’t expect to fill it perfectly but I’d like to get closer. Do you think something like an 80mm or 100mm macro would work better? I’m usually scanning at f8 or f11 and it’s pretty sharp but I’d like to get closer.
I use a 100mm Macro lens that goes to 1:1 natively.
If your lens/camera combination does not get the desired magnification, you’d want to add an extension ring. If your lens is a micro Nikkor, it can deliver 1:2 natively (on full frame) and should be able to deliver decent results with an extension ring. Check Nikon’s lens manual in order to see what you can get depending on the length of extension.
If you look at lens specifications, you should be able to find what the lens can do. Some micro/macro lenses can go to 1:2, some can go to 1:1 or beyond.
Thanks for the info! I just did a little research on my Nikkor Micro and there’s a specific tube made for it. Just snagged one off eBay. Now I should be able to get 1:1 or very close. Thanks!
The Film Carrier MK1 is approximately 185mm long, 60mm wide and 56mm tall.
Wile you didn’t ask, here’s some extra: The Pro Mount MK2 is approximately 255mm long, 200mm wide and 28mm tall - the adjustable ‘leg’ spacing fits the Kaiser Slimlite Plano I have exactly outside of the lighting area. That cannot be an accident! Since then, Negative Supply has made their own light sources that fit exactly within the mount. My Kaiser is going to have to die before I replace it though.
My camera setup is a Canon 6D and the 180mm macro. I’ve got a crappy copy stand - around $200 doesn’t seem to get you much in that department. Negative Supply has a custom made stand, but I’m not sure it would get high enough for 120 with my setup - at that focal length, with the height that the film carrier + mount sit off the surface, I might be at the height limit. As a backup I have the 100mm macro which would keep the camera a lot lower.
I bet a 100mm macro would get you where you want to be!
Awesome, thank you! It’ll fit on top of the light I have pretty well, so that’s good to know. The studio LED I use produces great light output but the bottom isn’t flat so I set it on a roll of packing tape (it’s pretty flat, I’ve checked with a level but could be better.) My guess is I could tape the Negative Supply carrier to the light to minimize movement.
I’m currently using the Peak Design tripod inverted and that’s working really well but I just ordered that extension tube so hopefully I don’t have to adjust the tripod any higher.
Thinking about switching to scanning with Canon or Nikon. With Fuji I have to run Enhance Detail on every file to get rid of the weird squiggly texture Fuji RAW’s render in Lightroom.
(it’s pretty flat, I’ve checked with a level but could be better.) My guess is I could tape the Negative Supply carrier to the light to minimize movement.