My article   Zen and the Art of Camera Scanning or The Brief History of Vlads Test Target  is now live on 35mmc.com

Here is more details on new Type 120 Positive Test Target PO69. This is exact reversal of the Negative Test Target NG69.   The note from Vlad:  The reasons why I started offering the Positive Test Targets are as follows. Everyone who used negative targets while viewing images in the digital camera have encountered the strong hallo around target's bars and stars. That's because camera sensor averages the brightness of the scene and sets certain exposure values. Given that most of the image is almost black (in case of negative) the camera brings brightness up until black areas look gray. That means that transparent areas with bars and numbers are getting overexposed (they basically end up being in Zone 0) . That forces operator to manually step down camera to avoid those overexposures .  Still the halos remain the issue and interfere with the focusing. With positive targets the i ssue will go away - the sensor reads mostly transparent areas, the averaging will lead to...

I have a customer who is going to use @VladsTestTarget to calibrate the height of  Epson V850 flatbed scanner's film holders.  Hope that will be helpful to other folks too. Here is the question and below is my answer.   Q. "I am ordering this target to calibrate the height of my Epson V850 flatbed scanner film holders. Currently I am not satisfied with my film holder height adjustment attempts. I seems to unable to reach the peak of sharpness. My type 120 slides are all tack sharp on the light table with 6x loupe, but not so in the scanned output. Once I load test target in my scanner, I will evaluate a series of scans at different settings with my naked eye on my computer screen. One thing I am afraid of now is that I may not notice differences among 10~20(?) scans. I can narrow down the short list, but I am afraid I can hardly pinpoint which one or two scans are the absolute best in terms of sharpness. How can test targets help?" A.  Dear fellow digitizer! Please r...

When scanning film with a digital camera there are only two absolute musts in regards of captured image: it  should be uniformly sharp and focused from the edge to the edge.  Those two qualities can only be achieved when:  the film holder is absolutely parallel to the camera's sensor plane (and keeps film absolutely flat) and you need a lens which is capable of faithfully reproducing your image at 1:1   scale ( or around that value depending on the camera sensor size and film format)    The first requirements can be achieved by carefully positioning and fine-tuning the camera so that when the image to be captured is in focus, it neatly fills the camera frame, and the center and all the corners are equally sharp. The "Vlads Test Target" (Google it!)   has been designed specifically to allow visual control and the best alignment detection. The Vlads Test Target film strips are so sharp that even the slightest loss of focus causes image edges in the...

In this innovative offering, the ten USAF 1951 test patterns are strategically placed throughout the 24x36mm film frame - one in the center, and the others scattered across sides and corners. This unique arrangement facilitates a comprehensive evaluation of the sharpness and focus across an entire negative or transparency/slide in one shot.  P hotographers can now accurately evaluate the performance of their lenses and camera systems across the whole frame. This is particularly advantageous for detecting any discrepancies or weaknesses in image quality, which might typically go unnoticed with conventional  single-pattern USAF 1951 target needing to be moved in camera field of view. 24x36 mm target on 35 mm Adox CMS Pro film Clean, nice, sharp corners make or break the great scanned image    Welcome to www.film4ever.digital - the home of  USAF 1951 Resolution Chart on real 35 mm and 120 film aka Vlads Test Target ! New 35 mm targets with extra Siemens stars (202...

The countdown to New Year’s has started, and speaking of countdowns… there’s only one easy way to cook... mm to scan all your film before you pop your champagne open! Here is the recipe and some pictures. INGREDIENTS 1 DSLR camera (can be be substituted with mirrorless) 1 Macro Lens - Sigma 70 mm Art DG is recommended 1 Benro Geared Head 1 Lens coral 1 "Pixl-latr film holder" 1 6x6 cm glass mirror 1 Flashlight with an extension cable 1 tripod with geared central column 1 remote control or tethering cable 1 (optioanal) camera battery powered from USB source 10 SD cards 3 frames "Vlads Test Target" 0.5 yard of masking tape 1 bottle of Champagne Madame Clicquot - can be substituted with 2L bottle of Coke or Pepsi Preparation time: 15 minutes Scanning time: from 12 am Jan 1 till no film to digitize left. INSTRUCTIONS For the holder: Assemble Pixl-latr film holder as shown, install legs and diffuser. Affix Pixl-latr film holder with the masking tape to the large piece of...

So here is my scan rig tuning workflow if anyone cares: Aligning camera and film holder with the  Vlads test target as generator of the test image. The picture is to grab you attention. I used to see it often on my TV when I was 7 years old and was waiting to watch my favorite animated movies which would open the broadcast at 4 o'clock Moscow time . Prepare your scanning rig - whether it's a copy stand or camera bellows with vintage film holder from Nikon, Canon, Minolta, etc. I will assume that camera and lens are able to slide forth and back in relation to a film holder. Ideally you should use micro-focusing rail. Having Arca-swiss clamp sliding on the rail is possible but you will discover that when you start tightening the clamp once focus is achieved, the image will jump by 1-2 mm - pretty significant and irritating shift given overall frame size.    Keep the film gate empty. Adjust lights, mask out stray light, optionally tether your camera to the computer and conne...

Here is another   DR;TL.  (from my post on FB ) I am thinking about publishing the series of posts describing minute technical details about how "Vlads test target" was and is actually produced. The project took roughly eight months and between hundred and two hundred hours of labor. The result adorns FB "Digitizing film with a digital camera" group title page.   Now I want to share some technical details as they might be just handy to anyone who still shoots film. I want to thank all members  of the group as they gave me the inspiration and tons of technical advice and know-how. On the   other side I am thinking about publishing these notes on some photo-website - so the audience will not be limited to this private group but whatever I learned will be available to anyone who can google. I have not contacted any particular web site yet and is actually open to suggestions which one has a wider reach. Certainly the other goal is to advertise the availability ...