In my last post I talked about how to prepare Silverfast for negative scanning. Today I aill show you how I mount my medium format film into an Epson V700 film holder. Therefore I have prepared a short video showing how I do the mounting. Let me just tell you real quick why I use the conventional Epson holders and not any kind of third party holders which get good critiques. Well, I have used them, literally every mounting solution availbale for the Epson V-series, and I must say in the end they are not worth the effort. I find the conventional standrad Epson film holder do their job very well. Maybe I am lucky and my scanner is manufactured the way it should be, but I was able to get better sharpness and grain from the Epson holders than from any other holder I was using.
Scanner Cleaning
Before we mounting the film I always clean my scanner. I use glass cloths from Zeiss and a simple microfibre cleaning cloth to get rid of dust and contamination on the scanner glass. If I have not used my scanner for a while I start with a brush to get rid of dust particle before using the cleaning cloths. Anyway, make sure the scanner surface is a s clean as possible and also have a look on the film holder which maybe needs a short treatment as well. It is also advisable to work in an area that is as dust free as possible.
Mounting
Mounting tips:
- have your negatives ready
- use gloves for all negative handling
- use a dust blower to clean the negatives when mounted
- put the holders directly on the scanner after mounting
- For film from the Hasselblad V-System use a scanner mask for best results.
- The Epson V700 holder work best with the emulsion side of the film (dull side) facing upwards.
Excerpt from the Epson V700 manual:
“For 35mm film and Medium Format Film
Slide up to two medium format film images into the film holder with the shiny base side facing down. Your images and any wording on the film should appear backwards on the side that faces up, as shown by the illustration on the film holder. Make sure the entire image frame is positioned in the film holder opening.
Hold the edge of the film gently or use gloves to touch the film; otherwise you may damage the film. Make sure the white stickers on the back of the film holder and the areas around them are not scratched, dusty, or covered in any way. If the areas are obscured, the scanner may have trouble recognizing your film in Full Auto Mode. Do not cover any of the tiny holes in the film holder or the scanner may have trouble recognizing which film holder you are using.”
Hope this very basic tutorials helps to ensure proper film mounting. Feel free to adapt this method to suit your own needs and your personal technique.