EN - Modern Analog Photography: Digitizing Negatives

Method comparison: scan vs. photo

For this reason, Hermann Groeneveld, who digitizes his negatives by scanning, and I, who prefer photographing, decided to compare the two methods using a negative.

On the left you see the 24x36mm 35mm negative that was used for the comparison.

Below you can see the direct comparison of the results of both methods.

Elements of the used repro-set

01 Nikon D810

03 Tokina Macro lens

05 Kaiser repro tripod

08 Transmitted light unit (still without mask)

10 Negative holder 24x36mm

12 Windows computer with monitor

13 ControlMyNikon v5.6 control software

14 Tethering cable for D810

Details see material list at the end of the article.

Mask for the transmitted light unit 01

To suppress the penetration of stray light into the lens, a mask for the transmitted light unit was made from a plastic plate (09).

A suitable exposure window was cut into the cover for selective illumination of a negative.

A guide rail was also cut to allow the negative holder (10) to be easily moved along a stop.

Mask for transmitted light unit 02

On the left you will find a scaled sketch of the mask including the stop for the negative holder.

The transparency unit only has to be positioned correctly once before the start of the exposure session.

After that, the negative holder can be loaded with new negative strips again and again and simply pushed along the stop.

Mask for the transmitted light unit 03

On the left you can see the completed mask for the transmitted light unit including stop and negative holder.

The mask was attached to the transmitted light unit with Gaffer Tape and can thus be easily exchanged for the mask for 6x6cm negatives.

Note: Unlike most other fabric tapes, Gaffer Tape (19) can be easily removed again with almost no residue.

Negative holder 01

The negative holder used here for 24x36mm 35mm film (10) is used to clamp a negative strip as flat as possible.

A high flatness enables a sharp image of the negative right into the corners.

Components of the DigitaLIZA negative holder:

• magnetic snap frame
• metallic base plate
• magnetic stamp, positionable

Negative holder 02

First, lay down the base plate and position the unfolded holding frame on it.

The 6 lateral positioning strips must engage in the recesses of the folding frame.

The business cards shown here only serve to compensate the height so that the hinged frame does not tilt.

Negative holder 03

The next step is to place the negative strip in the snap frame.

The lettering on the negatives should be legible and oriented upward.

It is important to place the strip as centrally as possible.

Negative holder 04

Now take the magnetic stamp and place it on the lower half of the hinged frame so that the 4 pins of the frame engage through the openings of the stamp.

Here, the stamp is quite strongly attracted to the bottom plate by the magnetic forces.

The negative strip is pressed flat by the pressure and fixed in the folding frame.

Negative holder 05

Now the upper half of the folding frame can be swiveled down, with the two halves pressed firmly together by magnetic forces.

This ensures that the negative strip is securely clamped at the outermost edge.

Negative holder 06

Finally, the magnetic stamp is pulled off upwards, releasing the base plate.

The negative holder is now ready for the exposures and can be placed on the mask of the transmitted light unit.

Tip: It is worth using a Rocket blower (20) and/or a fine brush to remove the last dust particles from the negative strip. It is best to use glacé gloves (21) to avoid fingerprints.

The camera settings

A Nikon D810 with a Tokina 100mm lens (03) was used to take the 1:1 format images.

The camera was connected to the computer via the USB port using a tethering cable (14):

• White Balance: 5260°K (daylight).
• Shooting Mode: Manual
• All other parameters were set in the ControlMyNikon software

The shot 01

For the macro shots in the format 1:1 the Nikon D810 was controlled with the software ControlMyNikon v5.6:

• Exposure time: 1/2.5 (= 0.4 seconds)
• Aperture: f11
• ISO: 64
• Format: JPG Fine and RAW (*.NEF)
• Resolution: 7360 x 4912 pixels

The shot 02

The camera was focused in the live view mode of the software by double-clicking on a relatively high-contrast area of the image.

To check this, the live image was then zoomed in (see arrow). As soon as the film grain was sharply reproduced here, the camera was triggered by mouse click and the image was saved as JPG and NEF in the computer and on the camera's memory card.

The shot 03

The free FastStone ImageViewer software was used to analyze the results:

• EXIF data

The shot 04

The free FastStone ImageViewer software was used to analyze the results:

• Histogram

Image processing 01

After importing the RAW files into Lightroom Classic, the negatives were converted into positives using the "Negative Lab Pro" plugin (18).

For this purpose, an image was selected and then the plugin was called for the conversion.

Tip: if all images are selected at the same time and the "AutoSync" mode is set, all images of a set can be converted to positives in parallel.

Detailed Negative Pro User Guide

Image processing 02

In the next step, the correct parameters for the conversion (here the default settings) were set and the images were analyzed by the plugin by clicking on [Convert Negatives] and then converted to positives.

Image editing 03

By changing the settings in the [Edit] menu, the later appearance of the recordings can be adapted to personal taste. 

The best settings for a film type can be saved as a preset for further conversions.

Tip: Feel free to experiment with the settings until you achieve the optimal results and then save them as a preset.

Image processing 04

After the conversion was completed, the images were cropped in 3:2 format using the Lightroom Crop tool.

Image processing 05

Afterwards the image was processed as usual in the Lightroom Develop Module (color temperature, brightness, contrast, sharpness, etc.).

Attention: The sliders behave unfamiliar!

Tip: Save optimized settings as a preset. This allows you to edit all images identically with just one click for consistently good results on your next film.

Image processing 06

After the image processing was completed, the finished images were stored on the hard disk in an orderly fashion.

Image processing 07

Here you can see an exemplary result achieved with this workflow.

The image shows the author's Yamaha 500 SR from 1985. The negative was stored for 37 years without any additional preservation procedures.

Currently, analog photography is experiencing a new upswing.

So if you still own an old analog camera, why not put some film in it again?

Re-experience the contemplative slowness of analog photography and the exciting moment when the developed film finally arrives at your home?

How you can then digitize your NEW negatives, you now know...