BEOON the Leitz Copy Stand

[Ricoh]

Has always been the case for me that the BEOON won't lower enough. I have tried combinations of the supplied tubes, and add on 3rd party tubes of varying length; tried the Nokkor 50 f2.8 and the Componon S 50mm, also f2.8 I believe, none work, always a compromise, apart from the 50mm 'taking' lens off the camera.

Wintoid, I would be interested in hearing if you manage to engineer a holder to sit on top of the base, one where you set up alignment once, then forget.

I came to realise that the BEOON can be a black hole for cash, if you allow it. I still have all the bits, but it's sitting on my desk in the study all forlorn and unloved.

 

[Godfrey]

I'm pretty convinced at this point that the BEOON and the Summicron-M 50mm are about the best combination for capture with my M-P 240 (no longer owned), M-D 262, and CL bodies. All the magnification markings on the tubes and column align properly with actual results with the lens at the infinity setting, the focusing mount of the lens adds a small finesse to getting the focus exactly right, and the performance is excellent at f/5.6 to f/11 with no evidence of diffraction that I can see.

The BEOON focusing magnifier works well for the M-D, but in general I find that the CL with its TTL viewing works better for FF 35mm film capture at the 2:1 setting. I can set it up once, tape the BEOON/lightbox/etc together so it doesn't move at all, and 'scan' an entire roll of negs this way in just a few minutes time, using the Leica FOTOS app as a remote trigger. If the negs are close to average in their densities, I can just leave the camera on autoexposure and get amazingly good results.

For medium format (6x6, 6x9, 6x7), I can do the same with the M-D; otherwise, with the CL, I switch to a Novoflex copy stand and the Macro-Elmarit-R 60mm now which has much more range and flexibility. For my Minox and other submini formats, the Leica Focusing Bellows R fitted with the Summicron-R 50mm on the Novoflex copy stand nets the right combination with the CL body.

G

 

[Ricoh]

Thanks for updating Godfrey, having read I'm now of the opinion to ditch the enlarger lens option and revert to the Summilux 50 f/1.4 asph.
So with the taking lens in situ on the BEOON, do I focus using live view (I don't have the BEOON Loope unfortunately) wide open at 1.4, then stop down to f11 and what metering mode would I best choose, I was thinking aperture priority. (I have the correct cable release for the M240).
Thanks, Steve

 

[wintoid]

Believe it or not, Godfrey, I'd never tried that. I've just tried with my rigid Summicron 50 and my Nokton 50 both at f8, and the Summicron works better than the Nokton. The enlarger lens is still better, but there's not much in it.

I might opt for convenience!

 

[wintoid]

At one point I ordered an APO Rodagon-N 50mm. When it arrived, it was not as described, and was a regular APO Rodagon. I tested it on the BEOON, and it was able to focus with C+D to get full frame. However, the lens performance was rubbish compared with the EL-Nikkor, and anyway it was not the lens I ordered, so I sent it back.

The APO Rodagon-N seems to be really expensive, and there are no Focotar-2 lenses around, so I'm taking a punt on a Minolta CE 50mm f2.8, to see if that's any better.

 

[wintoid]

Just in case it's of use to anyone else, the Minolta CE 50mm f2.8 is an excellent lens, the best enlarger lens I've used on the BEOON, slightly better than the EL-Nikkor. Unfortunately, it has the same focus/framing problems as the EL-Nikkor, at least on my BEOON.

 

[Ricoh]

I stopped having tried two enlarger lenses, the El-Nikkor 50 f/2.8 and the Componon S f/2.8, in that order. To me any further experimentation with enlarger lenses seemed a further waste of money. The BEOON would probably work with either lens if the column height was reduced by about half an inch. Less drastic measures: possibly try an enlarger lens of 55 or 60mm f/l, or somehow mount a negative carrier on top of the base (but crucially it would need proper engineering to stop the carrier moving as the negative strip is advanced).

 

[Emile de Leon]

Just find a Focotar..works well w/BEOON..

For larger negs..I use a Leitz Valoy w/copystand attachment..5x7 neg nere..

 

[wintoid]

Emile, have you experienced the problem with non-Focotar lenses? If not, it's possible your BEOON doesn't exhibit this issue.

 

[Emile de Leon]

As long as you have the spacers correct..you should be able to use 50mm & 60mm lenses..
Don't know if the Nikkor and Rodenstock have different nodal points though..maybe that casts a fly in the ointment..
I have not tried any other enlarging lenses on the BEOON other than the Focotars...which are really nice because they are meant to be used wide open or 1/2 stop down and remain sharp in the corners..

 

[wintoid]

Thanks Emile. Unfortunately, as Steve discovered, logic doesn't help us much here. I agree that 50mm lenses should work. It's clear that in my case the EL-Nikkor and Minolta 50mm lenses do not work. Therefore, I'm hoping we will find someone who can tell us anecdotally that they had problems with a Nikkor/Minolta/something else, but that it was fine with a Focotar 2.

Otherwise, it might be the BEOON itself that is different, and perhaps your particular BEOON would be fine with a Nikkor or Minolta.

 

[Ricoh]

Wintoid, via the LUF I compared the critical measurements of my BEOON with another member on the forum (actually someone else joined the conversation so there were three of us in total) and the measurements were exactly the same, allowing for experimental error in terms of fractions of a mm. In other words (as expected) BEOONs are repeatable.

On the same forum 'Pop' (he's an administrator there), who seems to know his lens equations fairly well, devised an experiment to determine the nodal point of a complex lens such as an enlarger. Maybe worth reading up on that.

Due to the nature of enlargers, I conclude the nodal point of enlarger lenses is not a critical dimension and manufacturers know this.

Also, the BEOON was designed to be used with a 50mm 'taking' lens focused at infinity, set at f11, for 1:1 reproduction. It's reasonable to conclude that the Leitz design team did not consider enlarger lenses to be part of the design brief.

 

[Ricoh]

Plenty of enlarger lenses to try out, depending how deep your pockets...

https://www.secondhanddarkroom.co.uk/index.php/s-h_enl-lenses/show_all/0/0/?k=:4:14707::0

I do not in anyway have connection with the above company, and do not receive any commission of any sort. Thought I'd mention that in case anyone thought otherwise.

 

[Emile de Leon]

I did try the BEOON with the 60mm R Macro lens..it worked!
But..the 60mm R just cant compete with the Focotar in the corners..no matter how much it was stopped down..
I also tried the 100mm Focotar-2...but it didn't work...

 

[Ricoh]

The trouble with enlarger lens applied to the 'simple lens equation' is that you have no idea where the nodal point is without experiment. You could say the same about the 50mm 'taking' lens, but Leitz worked it out that focused at infinity an exact 1:1 will be presented onto the film or digital sensor. I also think 'taking' lenses are more repeatable, they have to be.

 

[Emile de Leon]

Problem with taking lenses is..they are crap in the corners on a flat plane..and if you stop them down..diffraction..losers both ways..

 

[Ricoh]

Yes, that's the conundrum. But finding a Focotar-2 for reasonable money and then finding out the BEOON column bottoms before critical focus is achieved, even though 10 other people have had success, that's another issue. The thing is, there's no guarantee that every copy of the same enlarger lens will work the same

 

[Emile de Leon]

But finding a Focotar-2 for reasonable money

That's a fun trick isn't it!

there's no guarantee that every copy of the same enlarger lens will work the same

Nope..but I think most/all Focotar 2's will work fine..as they are the same formula..
I own 2 of them..and they are the same..all made for the Leitz 1c enlarger..for auto focus..

 

[Peter Jennings]

Is full frame really necessary? I understand wanting to get the most out of your camera’s sensor, but ask yourself if you really need that much resolution. When using the BEOON and EL-Nikkor 50/2.8 in my setup, the negative image takes up about ⅔ of the sensor space. This is plenty of resolution for my needs, and sharpness fall-off at corners is never an issue. I’m always using the sweet spot of the lens.

 

[Ricoh]

That's a fun trick isn't it!

Nope..but I think most/all Focotar 2's will work fine..as they are the same formula..
I own 2 of them..and they are the same..all made for the Leitz 1c enlarger..for auto focus..

That's greedy 🙂