35mm to 120 Converters

Dan Fromm · Nov 5, 2017

AgX said:
By employing such adapter on a plain MF camera one can yield much higher aspect ratio than with a plain 35mm camera.

Cropping roll film has the same effect and doesn't sacrifice opportunities for crops other than straight down the middle.

paul ron · Nov 5, 2017

But then you dont get those cool sprockets top n bottom.

Plus... 35mm is cheaper and you also get to clean out all that expired stuff in the freezer. People are almost giving away 35mm film these days in the classifieds.

Im also sure the image on that 35mm film strip will be much sharper than shooting it in a 35mm camera.

people just like to have fun.

AgX · Nov 5, 2017

Dan Fromm said:
Cropping roll film has the same effect and doesn't sacrifice opportunities for crops other than straight down the middle.

But such is more expensive.

AgX · Nov 5, 2017

paul ron said:
Im also sure the image on that 35mm film strip will be much sharper than shooting it in a 35mm camera.

I doubt that optics-wise and due to the focus issue I hinted at above.

Sirius Glass · Nov 5, 2017

Dan Fromm said:
Cropping roll film has the same effect and doesn't sacrifice opportunities for crops other than straight down the middle.

That plus a long vertical format was probably the reason the that Hasselblad back is so rare.

wiltw · Nov 5, 2017

These folks who want to shoot 135 film in a medium format camera should remember that

1. the Angle of View for the FL in medium format is not any different than the same FL on 135 body
2. the medium format camera, if you are shooting with a body without interchangeable lenses, will be about 75mm, so you are effectively shooting a 'panorama' with a 75mm lens (short tele in 135!)
3. even for a interchangeable lens medium format camera, the widest lens is likely to only be perhaps 40mm or so, meaning you are shooting on 135 panorama with a 'wide normal' AOV
4. the typical medium format lens does not equal the 135 format lens for line-pairs/millimeter at the film plane because they have to cover a larger area in the medium format body

AgX · Nov 5, 2017

Yes, we must differ between "high aspect ratio" and "panaroma".

(Strange enough it were camera manufacturers who in times of APS used them deliberately wrongly...)

But nonetheless a high aspect ratio can be interesting even if the angle of view is relative small.

k.hendrik · Nov 5, 2017

Dead Link Removed

bsdunek · Nov 5, 2017

Of course, it's not quite the same thing, but, I load 35mm film onto 120 paper backing for use in my Mamiya Super 23. If I use a 50mm lens and a 6X9 back, I get quite a panorama effect. Of course, I also get the 'sprocket rocket' effect. With the Mamiya, verticals and horizontals are easy. Of course, I only get 8 exposures/roll, but that's usually OK. There might be a problem if you wanted to do color and send it to a lab. They probably wouldn't want to deal with those short pieces of film. I only do B&W, so, no problem.

Montaggio · Nov 5, 2017

I was just thinking it might be fun ... Isn't that what it's all about?

k.hendrik · Nov 5, 2017

Montaggio said:
I was just thinking it might be fun ... Isn't that what it's all about?

thanks; just fun intended

AgX · Nov 5, 2017

bsdunek said:
There might be a problem if you wanted to do color and send it to a lab. They probably wouldn't want to deal with those short pieces of film.

The shortest film I know of was an Agfacolor from the 90s as 135-10 .

Richard Man · Nov 5, 2017

I have a Hassy 203FE and a SWC/M and the XPan II with all the lens. One thing I have always found out is to test the SWC/M vs. the XPan II 45 and 30mm lens. Heck, even the 50/2.8FE and the 80 FE vs. the XPan II 45mm/90mm...

Hmmm... may be I will get that spool for $10-$20 to play with...

Prof_Pixel · Nov 5, 2017

Yashica made a dual format TLR; I had one about 1959 and it worked pretty well. http://www.kyphoto.com/classics/yashica635.html

Sirius Glass · Nov 5, 2017

Richard Man said:
I have a Hassy 203FE and a SWC/M and the XPan II with all the lens. One thing I have always found out is to test the SWC/M vs. the XPan II 45 and 30mm lens. Heck, even the 50/2.8FE and the 80 FE vs. the XPan II 45mm/90mm...

Hmmm... may be I will get that spool for $10-$20 to play with...

Do you mean this one?

paul ron said:
i got it working now... go try again?

https://www.amazon.com/Kodak-camera-adapters-Canon-Nikon/dp/B071CJH46S

amazon has it for $13

If so, what do you use as the take up spool to keep the film aligned properly?

Richard Man · Nov 5, 2017

Sirius Glass said:
Do you mean this one?

If so, what do you use as the take up spool to keep the film aligned properly?

Well, I haven't bought any yet but I guess I need one that comes as a set...

c41 · Nov 6, 2017

Could you just put something (card?) in the film gate cut to taste? Bit easier and you’d get expected focal length. Could be more creative than the ‘same old’ sprocket thing?

AgX · Nov 6, 2017

That masking of the film gate is what at many "panoramic" compacts was applied. But such only makes sense if having the prints made at a lab. Otherwise just cropping at the darkroom would be sufficient.

However, cropping means wasting of film format if you have the chance to expose the film strip fully (in this case up to 24mm height).

Arbitrarium · Nov 6, 2017

I got some of the 3D printed ones being sold on Ebay. Tried them in a Voigtlander Perkeo, worked great. I just cellotape the leader to the take up spool. Some unexplained light leaks here and there but no problem with film flatness or anything. Rewound in a changing bag.

Gerald C Koch · Nov 6, 2017

Besides the Rolleis TLR several other cameras are equpped to use 35mm film. For example the Yashica 635 TLR. The Yashica conversion kits include new film guides/masks so that the film does not have to span a greater distance. As a plus, at least for me, the sprockets holes are masked and won't be seen. To get correct film spacing cameras using mechanical film advance must be so equipped for things to work correctly. There is a switch that changes the spacing. One must remember to change it when changing formats.

c41 · Nov 7, 2017

AgX said:
...However, cropping means wasting of film format if you have the chance to expose the film strip fully (in this case up to 24mm height)..

Is a very good point, wasted film is wasted film.

The exposure to the edge of the film doesn't do it for me, it'd be more interesting to me to make some giant pinhole camera to expose the whole roll of 35mm in one go, lots of separate exposures of the same scene all next to each other perhaps?

But sorry that is OT of 35mm to 120 adapters. I haven't used one, the pros don't outweigh the cons enough for me and 120 film is cheap enough. I'm all for a bit of fun though and Arbitrarium's shots above look good.

Arbitrarium · Nov 7, 2017

Yeah, there's no practical use for it really, it's no more economical than using 120 film and cropping it, it's just something daft to try.

Oh and on frame spacing, I did a test first with a scrap film and measured how far to wind on so the frames are evenly spaced. For the Perkeo it ended up being exactly one and a half turns of the advance knob.

Sirius Glass · Nov 7, 2017

Arbitrarium said:
Yeah, there's no practical use for it really, it's no more economical than using 120 film and cropping it, it's just something daft to try.

Oh and on frame spacing, I did a test first with a scrap film and measured how far to wind on so the frames are evenly spaced. For the Perkeo it ended up being exactly one and a half turns of the advance knob.

Not very often, but sometimes I can get into being daft.

xya · Nov 8, 2017

maybe the easiest way would be to hack a 35mm back from a Diana F+ roll film camera. you have everything you need: it attaches to a 120 film wind, it has a rewind and it stops the wind automatically. you have a choice of 4 formats, 2 of them including the sprockets. have a look at my website http://www.plastikcam.com/diana_accessories.htm to see how it looks like.

I have a Welta Reflekta 6x6 from the late 60s which has such a device, but it's complicated to handle and has no rewind, the wind is pure estimation and it's vertical. so it's pretty useless except the fun of a challenge...

Mainecoonmaniac · Nov 8, 2017

k.hendrik said:
easy peasy Home made & suitable for every 120 spool and all camera's.

Great images! The sprocket holes add an interesting element.

35mm to 120 Converters

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