Forgot Password
Pentax Camera Forums Home
 

Reply
Show Printable Version Search this Thread
10-01-2018, 06:55 PM   #1
Senior Member




Join Date: May 2017
Posts: 209
Converting slides to digital using K-1

This is new territory for me, but I want to digitize my slides and see that there are a few ways to do that using my K-1. There are Asahi Pentax Bellows II's and the auto bellows available on ebay and other places including here, but not sure how to go about this. It appears that I would need an adapter to use the Bellows II and not sure if the auto version is worth it. I have both the screw and the k-mount 50mm lens that should work. Not interested in scanners, sending them out, etc. My guess is that this might require some precision in adjusting focus, lighting and probably knowing the best settings, but I have not done before and would appreciate any thoughts on the matter.

Thanks.

10-01-2018, 10:39 PM   #2
Loyal Site Supporter
Loyal Site Supporter
david94903's Avatar

Join Date: Nov 2010
Location: San Rafael, CA
Photos: Gallery | Albums
Posts: 806
Follow this link. You'll learn more about bellows than you even thought possible

https://www.pentaxforums.com/content/uploads/files/1/p1884/The_Pentax_Bellows.pdf Big thank you to Murry O'Neill for assembling all this great information into one place.
10-02-2018, 02:21 AM   #3
Pentaxian
Fogel70's Avatar

Join Date: Sep 2009
Location: Stockholm, Sweden
Photos: Albums
Posts: 3,062
Pentax released a film duplicator a few years ago. It's probably a bit overkill and too expensive, but I think it is cool.
At least it can give you some inspiration for building your own kit like it.

Pentax Film Duplicator Overview - CP+ 2014 | PentaxForums.com
10-02-2018, 02:51 AM   #4
Site Supporter
Site Supporter
EssJayEff's Avatar

Join Date: Jul 2011
Location: near Saxapahaw, NC
Photos: Gallery | Albums
Posts: 956
Peter Krogh’s book, Digitizing Your Photos with Your Camera and Lightroom, covers transparencies.

Scanning your photos with your digital camera and Lightroom

10-02-2018, 11:41 AM   #5
Senior Member




Join Date: May 2017
Posts: 209
Original Poster
Very infomative and a big help

QuoteOriginally posted by david94903 Quote
Follow this link. You'll learn more about bellows than you even thought possible

https://www.pentaxforums.com/content/uploads/files/1/p1884/The_Pentax_Bellows.pdf Big thank you to Murry O'Neill for assembling all this great information into one place.
You were right. This is very well done and organized and great help. Impressive and thorough.

---------- Post added 10-02-18 at 02:44 PM ----------

QuoteOriginally posted by Fogel70 Quote
Pentax released a film duplicator a few years ago. It's probably a bit overkill and too expensive, but I think it is cool.
At least it can give you some inspiration for building your own kit like it.

Pentax Film Duplicator Overview - CP+ 2014 | PentaxForums.com
I looked at it as far as the price, $1250 and decided that it was too expensive to be practical for me.

Thanks.
10-02-2018, 01:43 PM   #6
Senior Member
runswithsizzers's Avatar

Join Date: Jun 2011
Location: USA
Posts: 186
I have often considered doing something similar with my K-3, but the one question I have not answered is this: Are normal lenses (such as your 'screw and the k-mount 50mm' lenses) "good enough" - or does the process of photographing slides require a lens designed for macro work?

The first possible issue is field curvature. Is it possible to have both the corners and center of a slide in focus at reasonable apertures using a normal 50mm? Macro lenses are advertised as having a flatter field, so it seems like they would better for flat copy work; but maybe the normal lens is good enough?

The second issue is sharpness. Again, I assume the macro lenses are optimised for sharper images at closer focusing distances, but maybe a normal lens is sharp enough?

I don't own a macro lens, so for me I would hope to get satisfactory results using my M-mount 50mm f1.7 lens on my K-3 (I also have some DA lenses, but none of those have aperture rings, so my options for any kind of extension tubes/bellows are limited). Building a slide duplicating setup would require an investment in time and materials. So far, I have been hesitant start the project without knowing beforehand if I am likely to be happy with the results.

The project also requires some planning to get the right magnification at the right focusing distance. And some precision when building it. I believe there will only be a couple of millimeters depth of field, so whatever holds the slide will need to be parallel to your sensor with tight tolerances. Setting the camera up on a copy stand or tripod is going to require a lot of tedious adjustments each time you set it up. The final requirement for me will be quick and easy placement of the slide. I don't want to spend a lot of time moving the slide around to get it centered, or refocusing before every shot.

Here are a couple of threads you may find helpful:

Macro Lens for Slide Digitization Project - PentaxForums.com

how to - auto bellows slide copier K & dSLR - PentaxForums.com

---------- Post added 10-02-18 at 03:53 PM ----------

QuoteOriginally posted by EssJayEff Quote
Peter Krogh’s book, Digitizing Your Photos with Your Camera and Lightroom, covers transparencies.

Scanning your photos with your digital camera and Lightroom
The book looks good. I'd like to have it. But judging by the illustrations on the website, I'm guessing it's aimed at people with large budgets who can afford to buy off-the-shelf hardware, as opposed to someone who wants to diy to keep the process more affordable. (Sadly, I am definitely in that second category.)
10-03-2018, 11:57 AM - 1 Like   #7
Forum Member




Join Date: Dec 2016
Posts: 76
I did this 2-3years ago with my K5IIs. (Sorry K1 not available at this time)

I used a DA35mm macro and printed an adapter for slides with my 3D-printer. On the camera I use the 360FGZ
and took the pictures in front of a white paper with PTTL.

Olaf

Attached Images
View Picture EXIF
PENTAX K-1  Photo 
10-03-2018, 12:24 PM - 1 Like   #8
Site Supporter
Site Supporter
bkpix's Avatar

Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: Creswell, Oregon
Photos: Albums
Posts: 568
Depends on how many slides you're talking about. I've converted plenty of film negatives using a Canon 6D and 100mm macro lens, with the camera on a tripod and the negative (in an old enlarger negative holder) supported by a tilted light box. Works very well.

For your purposes I'd consider buying an old manual 100mm f/4 macro lens ($72 at KEH) and set up a light box (or jury-rig a pane of glass with a sheet of thin white paper and a flash behind it) and fire away, perhaps using a tape/cardboard stop to hold the slides in the same place. Minimal investment, and you could do quite a number of slides at a time without much effort once you get the procedure dialed in.
10-03-2018, 01:27 PM   #9
Site Supporter
Site Supporter
pres589's Avatar

Join Date: Jan 2014
Location: Wichita, KS
Photos: Albums
Posts: 4,506
I bought a simple, small LED light box for something like $35 USD recently to provide good light for copying negatives with my digital camera. Maybe I could stand to use something brighter but this works pretty well for me. To improve on this I would probably try to find a non-functioning light box and mount a couple off flashes in it to provide even more light. I use a Kino/Vivitar/Ricoh/etc 105mm f2.8 macro lens stopped down to f5.6, ISO 100, 1/25th or 1/30th of a second exposure on my K-5II. I like that I can run the lens stopped down a fair amount to capture images with the ISO set to 100.
10-03-2018, 04:28 PM   #10
Senior Member




Join Date: May 2017
Posts: 209
Original Poster
Deciding what method to use for digitizing slides

There are a number of ways to do this and here is the way that I see it.

I do not want to spend a lot of money for basically a one time project.


Pentax bellows system

The availability of the Pentax bellows and slide adapters is limited, no longer manufactured.

They usually want a premium price for it, especially the later versions such as the auto, K and M models.


It could require some additional adapters etc in order to maximize the use of the K-1. Figuring these kinds of things is fun for me, but that usually takes a lot of time.


This method is one slide at a time,which I really don't mind, but that would make the time to complete this project quite long.


The above link is a jewel for knowledge about the equipment and it is well written. This helped me the most to know what would be required to use each model.

Send the slides out

Just too expensive and not really interested in doing it that way

Buy special equipment to convert slides

Too expensive, about $3K, and limited for that purpose and also not really interested in that either.

Rent special equipment

From the same company above you could rent the equipment for $425. Still too expensive for a one time project.

Buy a photo scanner

There are several of these out there and some are just okay and others are better. I decided to get this one after reading the review on it from a very experienced photographer, Michael Logusz,which was well done and fair. I will still be able to use it for other media if I needed to. It is about the same or a little more of an investment than the Pentax bellows system, and is much faster while still allowing some adjustments prior to creating the file.

So for me anyway that will be the method that I will use.

Thanks for the replies, very helpful.
10-03-2018, 04:45 PM   #11
Moderator
Not a Number's Avatar

Join Date: Mar 2012
Location: Venice, CA
Posts: 10,510
There's always dedicated duplicators like the Spiratone Vario-Dupliscope. You can get them for $30 USD or less on eBay. Various other brand names on them or similar items. Pentax even made their own version but it is kind of rare so you'd pay premium money.

Spiratone Vario-Dupliscope
10-03-2018, 05:45 PM   #12
Site Supporter
Site Supporter
arnold's Avatar

Join Date: Aug 2012
Location: Queensland
Photos: Gallery | Albums
Posts: 4,292
QuoteOriginally posted by Darkover Quote
I did this 2-3years ago with my K5IIs. (Sorry K1 not available at this time)

I used a DA35mm macro and printed an adapter for slides with my 3D-printer. On the camera I use the 360FGZ
and took the pictures in front of a white paper with PTTL.

Olaf
This is also how I do it. The whole thing clips onto my 35mm LTD macro. I then walk outside and point the camera at a blue sky. Speed is not an issue since the slide is attached to the camera. I have also done a flash setup, but unless you are doing a great quantity, it is not a fast way to go.
PS. The K5 filled the frame better than my K1 did with this lens.
10-04-2018, 06:51 AM   #13
Forum Member




Join Date: Dec 2016
Posts: 76
> I then walk outside and point the camera at a blue sky.

Will this not destroy the color of the slides?

Olaf
10-04-2018, 07:32 PM   #14
Senior Member




Join Date: May 2017
Posts: 209
Original Poster
Dedicated duplicators

QuoteOriginally posted by Not a Number Quote
There's always dedicated duplicators like the Spiratone Vario-Dupliscope. You can get them for $30 USD or less on eBay. Various other brand names on them or similar items. Pentax even made their own version but it is kind of rare so you'd pay premium money.

Spiratone Vario-Dupliscope
Thanks for that suggestion. I decided to give this a try after finding one on ebay for a fair price, worth a try.

---------- Post added 10-04-18 at 10:39 PM ----------

QuoteOriginally posted by Darkover Quote
I did this 2-3years ago with my K5IIs. (Sorry K1 not available at this time)

I used a DA35mm macro and printed an adapter for slides with my 3D-printer. On the camera I use the 360FGZ
and took the pictures in front of a white paper with PTTL.

Olaf
That sounds like a great way to this, but figuring in a 3D printer and learning how to create the file for it makes it quite a task. Still it would be one slide at a time as you said. How about creating a turret or wheel like adapter say for six slides at a time for your 3D printer?

Thanks for the suggestion though.
10-04-2018, 08:36 PM   #15
Pentaxian
disconnekt's Avatar

Join Date: Oct 2011
Location: SoCal/I.E.
Photos: Albums
Posts: 1,698
The semi-cheapest/easiest route I would do is to use a light table & a dedicated 1:1 macro lens like the Vivitar 55mm 1:1 macro, or if you're willing to buy new there's the Laowa 60mm 2:1 Macro lens (albiet ~$400 usd new). You can use the 50mm lens & just add extension tubes if thats a cheaper/easier route for you
Reply

Bookmarks
  • Submit Thread to Facebook Facebook
  • Submit Thread to Twitter Twitter
  • Submit Thread to Digg Digg
Tags - Make this thread easier to find by adding keywords to it!
adapter, auto, bellows, camera, convert, digital, dslr, duplicator, film, full frame, full-frame, help, k-1, k1, lens, lenses, macro, pentax, pentax k-1, project, slide, slides, suggestion, time
Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search


Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
K-1 for converting slides ? madbrain Pentax K-1 & K-1 II 65 03-22-2017 02:30 PM
Finally converting from film to digital! FoxbatK Pentax DSLR Discussion 14 05-25-2016 08:44 PM
Converting slides to digital fstop18 Digital Processing, Software, and Printing 9 12-15-2015 06:40 PM
Converting 35mm slides to digital format Pat_H Digital Processing, Software, and Printing 11 11-27-2011 09:17 AM
Batch converting camera dng to acr dng using acr Maynerd Digital Processing, Software, and Printing 6 01-17-2009 02:22 PM



All times are GMT -7. The time now is 06:09 PM. | See also: NikonForums.com, CanonForums.com part of our network of photo forums!
  • Red (Default)
  • Green
  • Gray
  • Dark
  • Dark Yellow
  • Dark Blue
  • Old Red
  • Old Green
  • Old Gray
  • Dial-Up Style
Hello! It's great to see you back on the forum! Have you considered joining the community?
register
Creating a FREE ACCOUNT takes under a minute, removes ads, and lets you post! [Dismiss]
Top