Betterscanning holder/ANR

gilpen123

Gil
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Sep 8, 2008
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Hi I've been using my V500 for medium format using the included filmholder. I scan 120 mm 6x7 one(1) negative at a time. I ordered the betterscanning film holder and ANR and tried it today but how come one image is split into 2 scan? :bang:
 
Well I found out myself. i didn't use the thumbnail preview, then I use the marquee to get the whole image then preview and scan. So far so good. Point to remember, the dull side of ANR should be facing up.
 
Do you see any advantage to using the ANR BS holder? I recently got one and see zero improvement no matter how I set the height. Maybe my 4870 was tuned pretty well to begin with.

I have only done dry scans with it.
 
I have a v700, and the issues may be different. But it seems the "focus point" of each scanner is also different, some closer to the bottom glass than others. All this matters in getting the sharpest scans. My scanner seems to have sharpest focus when negatives are laid flat on the scanner glass itself (compared to on the holder- with or without ANR), but I get Newton rings. Still trying to work out the best combo !
 
Well I found out myself. i didn't use the thumbnail preview, then I use the marquee to get the whole image then preview and scan. So far so good. Point to remember, the dull side of ANR should be facing up.

If by 'up' you mean facing the negative then yes.
 
Actually I don't see any real advantage as of now. I've tried side by side and the 1st scan with the ANR upside down was terrible where there was too much grain on the scanned image. I reversed the ANR with the bright side touching the negative and the dull side facing the lid. I haven't really finished my testing but I believe as of now the V500 120 film holder seems to be a bit better.
 
Actually I don't see any real advantage as of now. I've tried side by side and the 1st scan with the ANR upside down was terrible where there was too much grain on the scanned image. I reversed the ANR with the bright side touching the negative and the dull side facing the lid. I haven't really finished my testing but I believe as of now the V500 120 film holder seems to be a bit better.

The matte side is the ANR side. The glossy side is just plain glass.
 
Yes that's the ANR now placing the holder is also a key. I'm doing it wrong but the glass insert orientation I believe is right. The holder's top right corner should be at the top right corner of scanner bed as well. My scans are in the office , will post the differences tomorrow.
 
Μαtte side facing the lid, glossy side facing the neg. Important to remember if the film is not flat put the bendy side down ie dont let the film touch the ANR glass.
 
I agree it does not show any difference to my eye as well it's just to flatten the negs but I have not tried adjusting the height yet. Maybe I'll try and see the quarter turns before I can really judge it.
 
You definitely need to calibrate the height of the film holder, otherwise it is holding the film at the same height as the OEM holder so there wouldn't be much difference except for the effect from the film being held more flat (which is important too).

Give the instructional .pdf I sent to you another read to make sure you are doing everything right. As the other poster said, if your scanner is one of the few from the factory that does actually focus right at 1 mm, then calibrating the height may not be necessary but it is pretty rare that a scanner can't benefit from some adjustment.

Doug
 
The biggest advantage is holding the neg flat... that's really all it's supposed to do. The newer adjustable height holders are also a benefit, but like others have said your scanner may already be at the optimal height. I live in a climate that's not always very humid, so my negs all dry with a significant curl... the ANR holders are a GODSEND for this. I put the film in the holder with the bowing side up so that the glass plate can flatten it. I've seen no difference in putting the shiny or matt side of the film up, but the matt side of the the glass plate MUST be the one touching the film.
 
this is slightly unrelated but wondering if people have the same experience. from my limited experience with my v500, i have had better luck getting my slides developed unmounted and scanning them in the negative holder -- rather than scanning mounted slides.
 
Well I found out myself. i didn't use the thumbnail preview, then I use the marquee to get the whole image then preview and scan. So far so good. Point to remember, the dull side of ANR should be facing up.
Usually the ANR glass lies on top of the film with the dull side downwards, toughing the film - the film itself is placed in the holder so that it arches upwards. With really oddly-behaving film I tend to sandwich it between two sheets of ANR glass, dull sides inwards.

Betterscanning has a usage guide here.
 
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this is slightly unrelated but wondering if people have the same experience. from my limited experience with my v500, i have had better luck getting my slides developed unmounted and scanning them in the negative holder -- rather than scanning mounted slides.

Yes... the slide mount changes the height of the negative so you'll usually get a better scan unmounted... unless you either have an adjustable height holder that you calibrate for slides... or your scanner is really out of whack in the first place :)
 
Ok I'll show what happens for every placement later. You guys be the judge. I'll find time to test as MF will be my main camera for now and need to get the best possible result from the V500 if I can get hold of a reasonable priced used 9000ED I'll jump on it.
 
Please make sure to calibrate the height first. Also, you did not have ICE or the descreen filter on, right? What level of sharpening are you using in the scanner software?

Doug
 
Yes Doug I will calibrate it and see what happens I have the original scan using the stock film holder for comparisson. I'll post results hopefully in a day or two.
 
I did the full calibration setup as required and there was no improvement in the sharpness of scans. I have to conclude that my scanner's focusing point was either at the lowest holder height or below that.

The scans are fairly sharp, and usable, but I am only scanning 4x5 with this scanner.
 
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