Minox photography for absolute beginners

tjwspm · Sep 18, 2024

Sergey Ko said:
Great job!
The only item -I think the best Minox for the beginners is Minox-C.
Correct about digitising with camera, not scanner. Or you need some top Nikon/Minolta scanner.
I used Sony A900 full frame 24Mpx with special macro lens with bellows.
I shoot a lot with my Minox AIII, Minox B & BL, Minox C & CLX. The model I have not are AX & Riga
Enjoy my Minox Album on Fickr:

Minox 8x11

The photos by my lovely Minox C & Minox IIIS cameras

www.flickr.com

The Minox C is certainly also an option for beginners. However, I cannot judge this because it is the only Minox model that I do not own.

Thank you for sharing your photos with us. They show what quality is possible with 8x11 and motivate to give it a try.

Donald Qualls · Sep 18, 2024

tjwspm said:
Interesting! Can you give us the link to the video?

I tried checking my history, but about halfway down the first page it starts throwing in stuff I didn't watch, so no, not quickly. Searching "minox microscope" didn't do the job, either (one or the other of those words probably wasn't in the video title). When I'm at home I'll try to remember to dig through my subscribed channels.

xkaes · Sep 18, 2024

tjwspm said:
By the way, am I right in thinking that the light value for the Sunny 16 rule is LV 15?

That's correct. If you have a meter that reports LV or EV.

xkaes · Sep 18, 2024

tjwspm said:
So simple! With your permission, I will integrate it into my description.

And modify it as you see fit.

xkaes · Sep 18, 2024

tjwspm said:
I have several Minox B, where the needle of the light meter still deflects. I would like to test their light meters, but how?

It's easy to test any light meter. If it's incident, point it at the sun and it should match the f-16 SUNNY setting 1/ISO
If it's reflectance, point it at a clear blue sky, or a gray card in the sun, or put a white styrofoam coffee cup over it and point it at the sun -- same result.
Many selenium meter respond to light, but are not accurate. If it's CLOSE to accurate, you can simply adjust the ISO.

Donald Qualls · Sep 18, 2024

xkaes said:
If it's incident, point it at the sun and it should match the f-16 SUNNY setting 1/ISO

The problem with this is that atmospheric attenuation can cost more than a stop when it looks sunny out. A haze that won't even turn the sky white, combined with not being full summer and/or before 10 AM or after 2 PM (standard time, an hour later if you're on Daylight Slaving) will each cost a stop. Smoke from distant wildfires, or nearer controlled fires, or dust from strong winds in an area with exposed soil, is at least as much light loss as that haze.

This is why many use Sunny f/11 instead of Sunny f/16. Therefore I wouldn't worry about a meter that reads f/11 when it looks sunny, or even one that 1/3 or 2/3 stop closer to f/8. Nor would I worry (if you happen to be between the 40th parallels and in a dry location), if the meter winds up reading close to f/22 at 1/ISO.

tjwspm · Sep 18, 2024

Donald Qualls said:
The problem with this is that atmospheric attenuation can cost more than a stop when it looks sunny out. A haze that won't even turn the sky white, combined with not being full summer and/or before 10 AM or after 2 PM (standard time, an hour later if you're on Daylight Slaving) will each cost a stop. Smoke from distant wildfires, or nearer controlled fires, or dust from strong winds in an area with exposed soil, is at least as much light loss as that haze.

This is why many use Sunny f/11 instead of Sunny f/16. Therefore I wouldn't worry about a meter that reads f/11 when it looks sunny, or even one that 1/3 or 2/3 stop closer to f/8. Nor would I worry (if you happen to be between the 40th parallels and in a dry location), if the meter winds up reading close to f/22 at 1/ISO.

Yes, I think so too. The eye can adjust well to the lighting conditions without us noticing.
On the other hand, the films have a lot of exposure latitude, so it's sufficiently accurate.

I could at least compare my light meters with each other. Then I could take a rechargeable LED lamp and point all the light meters (indirectly) at it. Then I would already know the deviations between them. I wouldn't need to know the light value at all.

tjwspm · Sep 19, 2024

I have revised my article once again and added two new chapters in particular.

How to make your own Minox film:

Make your own Minox film

Have fun creating your own Minox films. Some things may seem difficult at first glance, and they are! But otherwise it would be boring.

moments-of-now.com

and how do I store my negatives:

Storing Minox negatives

There are reasons to keep your Minox 8x11 negatives. Find here a DIY method to make perfectly fitting sleeves.

moments-of-now.com

I would be interested in your opinions and tips.

Sergey Ko · Sep 19, 2024

I can add Spur 50 film, suitable up to 100 with original developer from Fotoimpex
Exmple:

xkaes · Sep 19, 2024

tjwspm said:
I would be interested in your opinions and tips.

You'll find some tips on submini film holders here:

http://www.subclub.org/creative/neghold.htm

and lot more submini tips in the CREATIVE CORNER in the SUBCLUB.

perkeleellinen · Sep 20, 2024

tjwspm said:
I would be interested in your opinions and tips.

The bit about slitting the film and then hanging it off a door frame to gauge 580 mm, seems to me frought with danger. I wonder if it could be possible to slit half a roll of film in your slitter and then cut it out. Could it work by counting the cranks?

Also, and others can confirm, I think the cassette take up spools differ in size so a 15 exp cassette has a larger spool than a 50 exp cassette. The risk is trying to fit 36 exposures onto a 15 exp spool which can lead to jamming. It wolud be good if others could confirm / refute this.

tjwspm · Sep 20, 2024

perkeleellinen said:
Also, and others can confirm, I think the cassette take up spools differ in size so a 15 exp cassette has a larger spool than a 50 exp cassette. The risk is trying to fit 36 exposures onto a 15 exp spool which can lead to jamming. It wolud be good if others could confirm / refute this.

Thanks for the tip. I actually forgot to mention that and will make up for it.
Done: https://moments-of-now.com/make-your-own-minox-film/#Preparations

Yes, you're right. You have to be careful to use the right spool, otherwise it won't work! All the other parts of the cartridge are the same for 15 and 36 exp cartridges.

Fortunately, it's easy to tell them apart: the 36 spool has a diameter of 10 mm, the 15 spool has 11 mm.

I once wrote an article on this topic, you can find it here:

Incorrect film feeding

It happens that the Minox film feeding works incorrectly, resulting in the negatives overlapping on the film. Learn here how to fix it.

moments-of-now.com

I have no experience with 50 exp cartridges, but I think they are so rare, expensive and, as far as I know, made of metal that a beginner is unlikely to want to work with them. I have also heard from several sources that the camera has been damaged.

xkaes · Sep 20, 2024

Not only do you have to deal with different cassettes, but the thickness of the film makes a difference. You can put a lot of microfilm in any cassette, but high ISO film is MUCH thicker.

Donald Qualls · Sep 20, 2024

tjwspm said:
it's easy to tell them apart: the 36 spool has a diameter of 10 mm, the 15 spool has 11 mm.

Best measure before you turn out the lights, then -- there is no way I could tell those apart in the dark...

tjwspm · Sep 20, 2024

Donald Qualls said:
Best measure before you turn out the lights, then -- there is no way I could tell those apart in the dark...

tjwspm · Sep 20, 2024

perkeleellinen said:
The bit about slitting the film and then hanging it off a door frame to gauge 580 mm, seems to me frought with danger. I wonder if it could be possible to slit half a roll of film in your slitter and then cut it out. Could it work by counting the cranks?

That's a good idea!

I tried it out straight away. I need exactly 14.5 turns with the crank in the slitter to pull 600 mm of Kodak Ektar 100 into the empty cartridge. But because the first 45 mm are exposed to light when inserted into the slitter, I have to add another 1.5 turns. So 16 turns in total.

When you then open the slitter, you cut off the slit film just before the take-up cartridge. Then remove the take-up cartridge. This is all done in the light.

The procedure should then be as follows:

In the dark, all you have to do is pull out the film completely and cut off 45 mm (two fingers wide?) in front of the cartridge. Then you have two Minox films of approx. 600 mm and the two perforated edge strips in your hand.

I'll give it a try and report back.

This actually seems to me to be much easier than my previous method, because you cut the film to length in the light. In addition, you still have half an unslit KB film in the original cartridge, with which you can do other things.

You can also determine the number of revolutions yourself without the slitter, because the number of revolutions only depends on the spool diameter of the cartridge and the film thickness. I have measured a diameter of 10.8 mm. I hope that all KB cartridges have this spool diameter. Perhaps someone could confirm this?

I measured a thickness of 0.16 mm for the Kodak Ektar 100. The Kodak Portra 400, the Kodak Gold 200 and the CineSill 50d have the same thickness. The ADOX CMS 20 is thinner at 0.11 mm. I therefore needed 15 + 1.5 turns with it for 600 mm. These are the films I have on hand. Since most of the films I use (except the ADOX) have the same thickness, the revolutions are the same. And even with this thin film, it only makes half a turn.

Donald Qualls · Sep 20, 2024

This post should be printed and sold (with appropriate credit, of course) with every unit of your slitter. This is far simpler than trying to cut a five foot strip of film just over a third of an inch wide to length in the dark...

And this makes the last difference for me. Slitting for the Minox is no harder than slitting for my Minolta/Kiev 16 mm cameras (though I usually use film that's already 16 mm wide for those, either single perf cine or microfilm).

tjwspm · Sep 20, 2024

I have often read on the net that it is difficult to slit Minox films yourself. I have also seen many models, which you have to operate in the dark. So I would like to share my experiences on how to make it easier.

But as I said, my post is still pure theory, which I have yet to try out.

I am glad that there is the opportunity to discuss the topic in this forum and find better solutions.

Patrick Robert James · Sep 20, 2024

I slit film by pulling it through an anchored slitter off a bulk roll. I attach a string the correct length to the slitter so all I have to do is hold the string and pull the film. when the string is taught I cut the film. Easy peasy. I obviously do it in the dark. I then put the cut film in a bulk tin for storage. I cut many rolls at a time. It is very efficient.

tjwspm · Sep 21, 2024

I tried out the idea of counting the revolutions of the crank on the slitter today. It works. This makes working in the dark much easier and you don't need to build a ruler with clamps.
As a result, I have revised my instructions again and added new pictures.

Thanks to @perkeleellinen !

Here the new instructions:

Make your own Minox film

Here you will find detailed instructions on how to make your own Minox films from any 35mm film. Each step is explained in detail.

moments-of-now.com

I would be grateful for further comments or additions.

Does anyone know of another Minox slitter that works in daylight? I looked online but couldn't find anything.

tjwspm · Sep 22, 2024

Sergey Ko said:
I shoot a lot with my Minox AIII, Minox B & BL, Minox C & CLX. The model I have not are AX & Riga
Enjoy my Minox Album on Fickr:

Minox 8x11

The photos by my lovely Minox C & Minox IIIS cameras

www.flickr.com

Sergey,
great photos! I've taken the liberty of linking your album on my website:

Minox photos - Moments of Now photos

Minox photos I have taken with 8x11 mm cameras. In addition, a gallery on the theme of All We Have Is Now.

moments-of-now.com

xkaes · Sep 22, 2024

tjwspm said:
Does anyone know of another Minox slitter that works in daylight? I looked online but couldn't find anything.

You don't really need a darkroom to use a slitter. A closet, or lots of rooms at night (with the lights off, of course) will suffice -- such as a bathroom or basement. Just give your eyes several minutes to adjust to the darkness. If you don't see any light, you're OK.

perkeleellinen · Sep 23, 2024

tjwspm said:
I tried out the idea of counting the revolutions of the crank on the slitter today. It works. This makes working in the dark much easier and you don't need to build a ruler with clamps.
As a result, I have revised my instructions again and added new pictures.

Thanks to @perkeleellinen !

Excellent!

Donald Qualls · Sep 24, 2024

I've recut 120 film to 828 or 127+16mm in daylight. For Minox, you'd want to wrap the roll in tape so the strips don't unwind, mark the strip widths carefully, and roll the film roll on a smooth table under a long bladed utility knife (snap blade works if not too many ends have been snapped off). Once cut, go into the dark and unroll/reroll as needed. For Minox you'd want to have a way to cut each strip in half to make 36 exposures.

There will be a very thin fogged edge at each cut, but I believe it's narrow enough not to get into image area on a Minox strip.

tjwspm · Sep 27, 2024

Donald Qualls said:
I've recut 120 film to 828 or 127+16mm in daylight. For Minox, you'd want to wrap the roll in tape so the strips don't unwind, mark the strip widths carefully, and roll the film roll on a smooth table under a long bladed utility knife (snap blade works if not too many ends have been snapped off). Once cut, go into the dark and unroll/reroll as needed. For Minox you'd want to have a way to cut each strip in half to make 36 exposures.

There will be a very thin fogged edge at each cut, but I believe it's narrow enough not to get into image area on a Minox strip.

A surprising idea that I've never heard of before!

I still can't imagine exactly how it works. Doesn't the roll have a plastic core? Do you stop cutting when you reach it?
Can you cut precisely enough with a knife? Is the width then even enough to transport the film through the cartridge and the camera? What experience have you had with this?

Minox photography for absolute beginners

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