Features
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Copy stand for digital camera scanning 35mm, 120, and 4x5 film
23in maximum camera height
11.25 x 11.25in black powder coated, solid steel baseboard for added rigidity over previous generation aluminum baseboards
Scans 35mm or 120 film with nearly any macro lens and 4x5 film with up to ~70mm full frame equivalent macro lenses
Anodized metal central column and hybrid carbon fiber composite and aluminum head design
Nylon and carbon fiber reinforced head design for smooth camera rise and fall
Bolt on rubber feet for better grip and dampening
Supports nearly any ungripped mirrorless or DSLR camera and mirrorless medium format systems
Product Details
The Negative Supply Basic Riser MK3 is the direct replacement for the Basic Riser MK2, offering added height, rigidity, and a more solid steel baseboard to provide a more stable, rigid scanning workflow. The head is similar to the one found on the Pro Riser MK3 with a secure mounting system that uses a t-handle to snug the camera down. A window on the side of the head gives easy access to the 1/4-20 mounting point and a locking screw on the back of the head to keep it at the set height. The silver anodized column quickly attaches to the black powder coated, solid steel base with stainless steel hardware.
Designed to support nearly all popular camera and macro lens combinations, from compact mirrorless cameras all the way to most digital medium format cameras, the Basic Riser MK3 is a supremely capable copy stand. With a maximum riser height of 23in, it s capable of scanning 4x5 with up to ~70mm full frame equivalent focal lengths, 120 film with over 100mm full frame equivalent focal lengths and 35mm film with nearly any macro lens.
Camera Scanning Considerations:
Camera Body
Just about any semi-modern, interchangeable-lens digital camera will work great for camera scanning. There are many mirrorless or DSLR options to choose from with large lens catalogs, tethered capture capability, and excellent image quality. Some high end cameras can even use pixel stitching to deliver extremely high levels of resolution.
Macro Lens
For camera scanning, the one real requirement is that your lens focuses close enough to capture the entire frame. For full frame cameras and capturing 35mm film, the term “1:1” designates a lens that will reproduce the 35mm frame exactly onto the full frame digital sensor. With crop-sensor bodies, 1:1 lenses focus even closer. Outside of reproduction factor (1:1), also look out for lenses that are sharp, have good color reproduction, limit internal reflections (modern coatings), and have very little vignetting. Finally, it’s generally best to use your macro lens stopped down 2-3 stops from wide open, as this gives a good combination of depth of field and sharpness.
Software for Negative Conversion
There are several plugins and standalone programs for converting digitally captured negatives into positive images. Most of the options presented here allow you to download a demo version to try before you buy and determine which one best suits your workflow.
