Film flatness isue? Elan 7e

SeanEsopenko · Jul 21, 2011

link to image (1.2mb 2700 dpi scan of 35mm film)

It was shot at about F8 so the depth of field should be large enough to cover both the circled regions.

I notice the same issues when enlarging colour negatives in the darkroom, too. I know it's not film flatness in the enlarger because I get the same results at even F22. And if I tell the scanner to focus on the unsharp region it doesn't improve it.

It's a Zeiss 35mm T* Distagon 2.0 ZE and I get corner to corner, near pixel perfect sharpness on my Canon 5D. I'm starting to think it's a serious film flatness issue in my Elan 7e. I'm about to give up on 35mm but it's a shame because the lense is a dream and I have a colour darkroom/workflow now, too. Is there a better made body than this that should help with these flatness issues? Or should I just save the money and not bother with 135 roll film?

j-dogg · Jul 21, 2011

Never thought I'd see pixel peeping on a 35mm scan.

How do your prints look? I have the 7e and this isn't a problem for me.

dnjl · Jul 21, 2011

I honestly don't see much, if any, difference. Like most 35mm SLRs, the 7e has a solid film pressure plate which keeps the film flat. You can't even mess up with film loading as the camera does that for you. I wouldn't worry about it.

Len Middleton · Jul 21, 2011

SeanEsopenko said:
I notice the same issues when enlarging colour negatives in the darkroom, too. I know it's not film flatness in the enlarger because I get the same results at even F22. And if I tell the scanner to focus on the unsharp region it doesn't improve it.

Sean,

When you enlarge, do you use a glass or glassless negative carrier? It does make a difference.

Have you tried the lens on another comparable film camera body to see if it related to the camera body you are using. As noted above, I would expect that the film flatness issue was resolved some time ago in the design and manufacture of 35mm cameras.

Good luck,

Len

Christopher Colley · Jul 21, 2011

save the money and dont bother with 135 roll film.....

domaz · Jul 21, 2011

Hmm what kind of scanner are you using? Are you sure it's holding the film flat? There seems to be a "line" of sharpness between the left and right side of your image. A lens wouldn't make a "line" of sharpness and blurriness it would be circular. A scanner on the other hand would make a line boundary.

Thomas Bertilsson · Jul 21, 2011

I would also be inclined to think that perhaps the scanner was at fault here. The pressure plate inside your camera should hold the film flat, but often times neg carriers for scanners do not. The only one that I know of that does a perfect job is the magnetic holder for the Imacon Flextight.

Make a print in your darkroom using a glass negative carrier, and compare it to the neg scan. That would tell you for sure where the problem lies (assuming your enlarger is properly aligned).

- Thomas

Diapositivo · Jul 21, 2011

I just noticed some very evident chromatic aberration on the garage door which should not be present at that small enlargement. That might mean there is something wrong with the scanner or the scanning technique. I can't believe any lens can have that level of CA. How CA relates to lack of sharpness I don't know, but it might be that a problem (such as bad planarity) shows as lack of sharpness and as CA, and by solving one, one solves the other. Maybe the film was placed on the flatbed on the wrong side? Maybe some non-noticeable dirtiness? Maybe the scanner has an alignment, calibration procedure which must run from time to time?

Just some thoughts...

PS On seeing the scan again, and seeing that it is scanned at 2700 ppi, not that small an enlargement the CA seems a bit more forgiveable, but nonetheless it is quite apparent.

Thomas Bertilsson · Jul 21, 2011

May I also suggest running a roll of E6 slide film through your camera, and then examine the resulting film with a high powered loupe? That would tell you whether you have a problem with the camera or not.

tomalophicon · Jul 21, 2011

What an ugly car...

F/1.4 · Jul 21, 2011

I think it's the scanner because see how the grain also goes away where it's blurry?

F/1.4 · Jul 21, 2011

Reason I say this is because the same thing happened to me when I was scanning a roll of 120 on a Nikon. Sometimes if your film has been stored rolled up, it will curl. I think the camera is fine, the lens probably isn't decentered or anything like that, it's probably just the holder for the film scanner, or the film just needs to be straightened out a little.

Film flatness isue? Elan 7e

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