jackm1943 Loc: Omaha, Nebraska

Photo taken on TMax 100 film with Rolleiflex 2.8 Planar camera.

Abandoned RR Bridge

photophile Loc: Lakewood, Ohio, USA

Nice capture of the bridge and reflections.

jackm1943 Loc: Omaha, Nebraska

Thanks.

Ched49 Loc: Pittsburgh, Pa.

I heard about the Rolleiflex camera, isn't that an old German camera?

jackm1943 Loc: Omaha, Nebraska

Yes. It's a twin lens medium format (6cm square) camera made in Germany. Mine is a model E3 made in the early '60s with a Ziess 2.8 Planar lens, still a great lens by today's standards. They were very popular in the day as journalism and general purpose cameras. I don't print any more but I do develop the film, scan it, and use PhotoShop and NIK software for PP.

Ched49 Loc: Pittsburgh, Pa.

A friend of mine sent me some rare photo's from a "LIFE" photographer taken in Berlin, Germany between 1939-1940 with a Rolleiflex camera. I couldn't believe the sharpness and color of the photo's. I'm going to post them here as soon as I figure out how to do it.

briace Loc: liverpool uk

:thumbup: :thumbup:

ianhargraves1066 Loc: NEW SMYRNA BEACH, Florida

I owned several Rollies including a Tele Rollie which was a superb portrait camera and the standard camera was a wedding photographers work horse. You can make 30x40 prints , no grain, no loss of sharpness on Ilford FP4 film or Adox if you can get it.

Fabulous shot and brilliant scanning, may I ask what scanner as I am going back to using a Mamiyaflex C33 and need to scan the negs as well as print them.

Thanks

Ian

jackm1943 Loc: Omaha, Nebraska

Thanks for the comments. Nothing fancy re the scanner, just an old Epson 2450 with VueScan software, BUT I am wet scanning the negatives rather than using the standard film holders that came with the scanner. Wet scanning turns out to be much easier than anticipated and the results are noticeably better than dry scanning.

In addition to the Rollei, I have a fairly complete C330 outfit with all the lenses except for the 65mm. Includes a porroprism, macro finder, paramender, trigger handle with flash bracket, etc etc. I'm not sure whether to keep it or not. With the 80mm lens and paramender it makes a great macro camera. I'll probably keep it just for that, maybe sell off some of the lenses such as the 55, 180 and 250.

rebride

Most Excellent.
Tell me about this wet scanning, please.

geauxronnie Loc: Louisiana

:thumbup: :thumbup: :thumbup: :thumbup:

jackm1943 Loc: Omaha, Nebraska

Wet scanning is a method whereby the negative is coated on both sides by a fluid with a refractive index similar to film base which allows light to pass thru with minimal diffraction which would degrade the image. It is similar to using oil in high power microscopy (oil immersion) if you are familiar with that.

On an older scanner such as the 2450, focus is not so critical so the process can be done directly on the platen glass which is 1-2 mm lower than the factory supplied film holders. A small volume of Kami fluid (from Aztek) is laid down on the platen, then the film is carefully laid down on the fluid in a manner to eliminate air bubbles. More Kami fluid is laid down on the negative then a piece of clear Mylar (also from Aztek) is laid down over the negative, again in a manner to eliminate air bubbles. I like to carefully rub over the Mylar with a clean cotton cloth to squeeze out excess Kami fluid and to further ensure no air bubbles are trapped in the negative area. Then, scan as normal. The scans will be more contrasty and have fewer artifacts compared to dry scans. Also, there will be no Newton rings present.

I prefer VueScan software because (1) it works well with older hardware and (2) the output is sort of a RAW file that can be saved at various exposure levels and used in HDR software.

Check www.aztek.com but you don't need more than the Kami fluid and Mylar.

SoHillGuy Loc: Washington

This has been an interesting post. Nice B&W photo, and explanation of your scanning process. Do your have to clean the scanner between scans, and what do you do your final clean up with. How do you clean the negative? It does sound a little messy, and time consuming.

Years ago I shot medium format using a Hasselblad 1000F. When 120 film hit $6.00 a roll locally, I decided to sell, and go digital.

jackm1943 Loc: Omaha, Nebraska

I use a glass cleaner between scans, just a quick squirt and wipe on the platen. The Kami fluid evaporates almost immediately after the Mylar is removed and the film is lifted from the glass. Literally dry within a minute or so, and does no harm to the negative. I do wipe off the Mylar and film gently with an old cotton T shirt before and after the scan, mostly to remove dust. Once you've done a few scans, it becomes nearly as fast as using the holders.

Amazing stuff. I think it contains naptha and n-Hexane among other chemicals, but does not contain Xylene. It is not thick or oily, the viscosity is more like water.

kjfishman Loc: Fulton MO

Great capture! Truly ideal for B/W. I used to buy 35mm T-Max in bulk and process and print at home. Great film.