When does 35mm become Medium Format?

ic-racer · Nov 19, 2008

razzledog said:
I recently finished a 'pet project' and built a cute 35mm panorama camera that shoots two full frames with a 40mm lens. This little camera has a wider view than I first thought it would and as it uses a medium format lens, does it qualify as an MF camera? Frame size is 24x72, wider than an X Pan.

Fantastic, I love seeing projects like this.

For nomenclature I would follow the this line of thinking:

1) The Minolta 16QT is a QUARTER FRAME camera (image size roughly 1/4th that of standard 35mm frame
2) Olympus PenF is a HALF FRAME frame camera
3) I would call yours a DOUBLE FRAME camera

AutumnJazz · Nov 19, 2008

razzledog said:
I bought the Meopta film holder for $25....I bought the lens some time back for $80....the finder cost me $20 and the shutter, materials and outside expenses add up to no more than fifty bucks. I spent a couple of days in the machine shop screwing it all together

If you were to make these...I would surely get one for Chrismuka!

NormanV · Nov 19, 2008

Hi Razzledog, yes depth of field is greater with short focal length lenses but the depth of focus (lens to film) is much more critical. Using a 15mm lens the difference between infinity focus and 1metre is a fraction of a millimetre. Norman

bnstein · Nov 19, 2008

razzledog said:
Probably a little more than fiddling......after manufacturing cameras in Australia for nigh on ten years, I guess I'd have to own up to doing this kinda stuff before....

No intention to downgrade the significant expertise behind this.....I have been eyeing and thinking about your constructions with lust, but scant funds. Very interesting to know a 40mm PE will cover 72mm and screw into a copal: will store away in memory banks (dont ask me for what though)

Frank Szabo · Nov 19, 2008

Dammit Razzledog - now you've got me designing in my head. You've ruined my sleep for the next week. I might actually build something. My wife will be furious!! You see, I've got another 2D in the garage ...

BTW, that's a really cool idea you had and the workmanship appears to be excellent. Keep it up.

Karl K · Nov 19, 2008

Dearest Razzledog: At long last you have completed the project which I assigned to you many years ago. Thank you so much for designing the Obsession Camera to my exact order! I can't recall how much I left you as a deposit, but just ship the camera to me with the invoice and I'll forward my check. Now, kindly get to work on the stereo version, just as we had discussed. Keep be informed of your progress.

dynachrome · Nov 19, 2008

There have been many panoramic conversions of LF view cameras. The trick is getting a wide enough lens to make it worthwhile. The best I can do is 24X54mm with the 35W back for my Bronica ETR and ETRS cameras. My widest lens I have for these cameras is also just 50mm. Eventually I will get a 40 either for the ETR series cameras or for the SQ series cameras I have. As far as I know there was no 35mm back made for the GS-1. If one could be made you might be able to get a 24X66mm image area. With the 50/4.5you could still get nice panoramic shots. I might ask Ken Ruth if he could rig something up like the Rolleikin. For now I have plenty of 120 and 220 film so I can always crop the excess area. Earlier this year I was in Newport, RI and the hotel we stayed at had a huge print which was about two feet high and very long. It was taken with an X-Pan on Velvia and looked surprisingly good.

Sirius Glass · Nov 20, 2008

The original question was: When does 35mm become Medium Format?

The answer is it never does, however a MF lens can be used to make killer panarama photographs on 35mm film.

Steve

razzledog · Nov 20, 2008

Karl K said:
Dearest Razzledog: At long last you have completed the project which I assigned to you many years ago. Thank you so much for designing the Obsession Camera to my exact order! I can't recall how much I left you as a deposit, but just ship the camera to me with the invoice and I'll forward my check. Now, kindly get to work on the stereo version, just as we had discussed. Keep be informed of your progress.

Karl, I have spent all afternoon looking for some record of your deposit but I could not find it anywhere :confused: Would like me to send you the camera anyway?

razzledog · Nov 20, 2008

dynachrome said:
Earlier this year I was in Newport, RI and the hotel we stayed at had a huge print which was about two feet high and very long. It was taken with an X-Pan on Velvia and looked surprisingly good.

My very next test film through the camera will be exactly that, a nice fresh roll of Velvia...now just wish I had a better scanner...any suggestions?

Ross Chambers · Nov 20, 2008

Dear Mr. Razzledog,

You are interfering with God's natural order! May the wrath of Kennett be upon you!

regards - Ross

Antje · Nov 20, 2008

razzledog said:
My very next test film through the camera will be exactly that, a nice fresh roll of Velvia...now just wish I had a better scanner...any suggestions?

I love my Epson 4990, it'll scan basically any format up to 8x10 I think. That's anything from my Horizon to my 4x5 Crown Graphic. Vuescan is a must with this scanner, I believe, the Epson software doesn't do it justice. The V700 and V750 are said to be very good, too.

Antje

benjiboy · Nov 20, 2008

razzledog said:
My very next test film through the camera will be exactly that, a nice fresh roll of Velvia...now just wish I had a better scanner...any suggestions?

I'm sure with your mechanical skills and talent you can make one.

lomomagix · Nov 21, 2008

dynachrome said:
As far as I know there was no 35mm back made for the GS-1.

There were two 35mm backs for the GS-1, dynachrome. One was the 135-N (24x36) and the yummy 135-SW (24x69).

Michael Finder · Nov 21, 2008

35 mm became medium format after upgrading from 110 film .

dynachrome · Nov 22, 2008

Now I will have to search for the 35mm backs for my GS-1s. For now I only have 100/3.5 lenses for them. If I can find the W back I will want a 50/4.5.

Robert Budding · Nov 22, 2008

Looks very cool. But I can always shoot 24x65 if I buy a 35mm adapter for my Mamiya 7.

wiltw · Nov 22, 2008

Think this way...'35mm' happens to be sprocketed film that happens to have a frame which is 24mm x 36mm. 120 Roll film is non-sprocketed film about 60mm wide, which happens to have a frame size larger than 24mm x 36mm and this fits the 'medium format'.

lomomagix · Nov 22, 2008

dynachrome said:
Now I will have to search for the 35mm backs for my GS-1s. For now I only have 100/3.5 lenses for them. If I can find the W back I will want a 50/4.5.

And you will perhaps have to look for the corresponding focusing screen that shows the framing lines of the 35mm backs as well (expenses just don't end huh).

(I've never actually seen it mentioned in any GS-1 brochure or manual that such a screen exists, unlike the ETR-series and SQ-series Bronicas where they specifically mention focusing screens that correspond to their respective 35mm backs, but logic tells me that there ought to be one)

Frank Szabo · Nov 23, 2008

Antje said:
I love my Epson 4990, it'll scan basically any format up to 8x10 I think. That's anything from my Horizon to my 4x5 Crown Graphic. Vuescan is a must with this scanner, I believe, the Epson software doesn't do it justice. The V700 and V750 are said to be very good, too.

Antje

I've got one also - I'll scan anything opaque or transparent up to 8X10 in and up to 6000 dpi (tried that once and ran out of memory - 4 gig ram).

AutumnJazz · Nov 23, 2008

But how much resolution does it actually have? Many scanners list insanely high ppi/dpi that is achieved through interpolation. All that leads to are larger files, and a potential decrease in quality.

Antje · Nov 24, 2008

AutumnJazz said:
But how much resolution does it actually have? Many scanners list insanely high ppi/dpi that is achieved through interpolation. All that leads to are larger files, and a potential decrease in quality.

I usually scan at 2400, which gives me 300 GB of data for a 6x12 slide. Then I resize them to about 6000x2800 pixels, which takes care of some noise and increases apparent detail. Looks very very good then, right up there with my BenQ Scanwit for 35mm, just faaaaaar larger. That's good enough for stock photo agencies then and for big prints for my walls, and that's good enough for me.

This thread will probably get us banned...

Antje

Bobby Ironsights · Nov 24, 2008

No, it's pano. You can get pano in medium format too, but even using the sprocket holes, it's still 35mm.

razzledog · Dec 4, 2008

35mm twoframe Obsession.

It may only be 35mm, but it sure packs a medium format punch..there's a couple more examples here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/razzledog/

Can't wait for better Melbourne weather

I tricked up the old Arcus with a software upgrade to Fotolook 3.6, although it still tends to mess around. At least the images appear a little sharper, but it scans everything as a transparency..simply refuses to scan monochrome, what a beastly apparatus.

Rolleijoe · Dec 8, 2008

The film size used, determines the category. 120/220/620 =MF. 135 still =135.

When does 35mm become Medium Format?

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