[jonhock]

I have a "Kalcor" bellows w/M42 mounts and a "Honeywell Pentax slide copier" that I have linked together with some left-over lamp parts (kitchen ceiling lamp)

The lens I am using is my SMC Takumar 50mm 1:1.4. I have had to make some adjustments to this set-up and I'm getting closer to being able to copy my slides as "same size". Would same-size be referred to as 1:4, 1/4, or 1.4 (there's an awful lot of 1-4s out there)

My main question here is; Is my Tak 50 an optimal lens to use for slide copying with this, or any other bellows/copier setup? If not, what would be the best or most okay lens I could use? I've been looking at f:4 Macro Tak 50s but I'm not sure if I would get too much magnification or if it would just focus better?

Any and All feedback/advice/help/etc. is greatly appreciated!

[jonhock]

Here are a couple photos of my slide copying setup. I have another bellows for close up photography so I can just leave this one together.
I didn't want everybody to think that I had turned my Spotmatic F into a table lamp The tube that the copier is mounted on is the extra part from a ceiling
light. As is the bracket, screw connector and nut. That is my SMC Tak 50mm (1.4) and the Spotmatic on the bellows frame. To me the slides look OK in the view finder, I'm getting the film develped and then will post the results.
Thanks all!

[mysticcowboy]

The photos of the setup are great, though I'm not seeing the advantage of copying slides onto film.

I've had success using the Pentax 100mm macro for slides, though my setup is much simpler than yours. I just mask a slide viewing tray with mat board and cover the slide with another piece of mat.

michael mckee
My Port Townsend – A City in Photographs – 365

[Just1MoreDave]

... My main question here is; Is my Tak 50 an optimal lens to use for slide copying with this, or any other bellows/copier setup? If not, what would be the best or most okay lens I could use? I've been looking at f:4 Macro Tak 50s but I'm not sure if I would get too much magnification or if it would just focus better?

Lenses designed for macro work have a flatter field than general-purpose lenses. Since slides are flat, that would be an advantage. I know the later K-mount 50/1.4 lenses didn't have a flat field, but I don't know if the Takumar design is flat or not.

A macro lens might also give you better sharpness and more control over your magnification range, but I'm not sure how that would work with your setup.

[jonhock]

mysticcowboy;885394]The photos of the setup are great, though I'm not seeing the advantage of copying slides onto film.

The reason for my doing this is that I used to "get into" photography back when film was film and digital was "digi-what?". I had a K1000 then and did quite a bit of studying on the subject.
For quite some time I have just taken "pictures" of everything with a samsung
SL620, but as of late, have gotten "back into" Photography, Pentax photography.
I even went so far as to get a ZX-50! I still have the K1000 plus a Spotmatic F, but I would like to get something like a K2000, but in the meantime I am shooting all of my old slides with film and getting the CD with the developing so that I can make a file on the computer.

[SpecialK]

Would same-size be referred to as 1:4, 1/4, or 1.4 (there's an awful lot of 1-4s out there)

Same size is 1:1. Half size is 1:2, quarter size is 1:4.

Looks like you are asking about the maximum aperture of the lens, which is not related.

[jonhock]

Same size is 1:1. Half size is 1:2, quarter size is 1:4.

Looks like you are asking about the maximum aperture of the lens, which is not related.

Actually, I am asking about the size ratio. Thank you for clearing that up for me!
Mathmatically, I should have figured that out, but I've found that sometimes specifications aren't all that logical. But, when referring to a Pentax related question, I should have known it would follow the logical path.
Thank you, SpecialK.