Noob Enlarging questions :)

[Mikuda]

Hello again after long brake! :)

Meanwhile, as I was focused on MF photography, I got more determined to start assembling LF stuff.
First (and last until now) thread I started here gave me so HUGE amount of answers on LF
that I simply didn't have to post any more without having equipment in action ;)
I'm after Steve Simmons book and whole Ansel Adams trilogy too.

Now, after long time with MF and darkroom I realised that I have to start LF from a little different aproach.

I mean FIRST I need ENLARGER for 4x5!
I don't want to end up with LF camera and bunch of 4x5 negatives contact-printed, I want to go large!

And, as I noticed on e-bay, decent LF enlarger can be much more expensive than camera itself,
and there is not as much to choose from. That damped my enthusiasm a little.

So here new questions arose:

1. To minimise amount of equipment, can LF Camera lenses be used optionally as enlarging lens? Or maybe it's standard procedure?

2. Similar to above: Can (or could at least) whole LF camera be used as part of enlarger?
(i.e. attached <somehow> below light head and diffuse glass)?

3. I was also thinking about trying to make simple camera and/or enlarger (or: enlarger and/or camera) by myself.
I've done some research on that matter and I think it could be quite an adventure :))
I didn't decide if it will be monorail or folding camera (monorail seems much easier)
but I made quite nice bellows already just for fun - probably easiest part ;)
Today, with laser-cutting services everywhere it should be easy to tailor-cut many parts.
(If my DIY conception will get more real, I'll ask a bit more technical questions, like dimensions of filmholder chamber, minimal internal bellows sizes etc.)

For now that would be all :)
Have fun answering my noob questions now :)

[ic-racer]

In the Midwest USA, because the weight and bulk, the large format enlargers can be obtained sometimes for very little money (or even free).

HOWEVER, I just saw you are in Poland. Now I guess that is not Poland, Ohio (near me), so that could be a problem.

You CAN make an enlarger, but in many parts of the world it is not economically practical to do so. In your case, do some searches here and on APUG and there are some threads of making 8x10 enlargers from cameras. You could scale that down to 4x5.

If you do make an enlarger, one of the most difficult parts will be the light supply. You should be able to get a light head from e-bay for a reasonable price. Shipping of just the light head should be a lot less than the whole enlarger.

[Ari]

Dziendobre,
To try to answer some of your questions:
Enlarging lenses are better for enlarging, and camera lenses better for cameras. If you have nothing else, a camera lens can be used, but enlarging lenses are pretty cheap right now, as is most enlarging equipment.
Homemade is a good way to go if you can align negative, lens and paper stages. You just need a constant light source (and a lens). I've seen where a camera was fixed to a wall and used as an enlarger. The film holder was replaced by a homemade negative glass sandwich. If you made your own bellows, you will be able to make a pretty decent enlarger from odds and ends. You can look at this:
http://photo.net/learn/darkroom/speed-graphic-enlarger

or this page:
http://www.apug.org/forums/forum147/...arger-diy.html


Post some photos when you get something up and running.
Good luck

[Mikuda]

Thank You for input!
Indeed ic-racer, it's not Poland, Ohio
Any LF equipment is extremely hard to find here, and - if so - prices are killing me!
It's cheaper to buy in US and haul to my country than get it from local sellers.
That's why I'm struggling so much.
As I said I'll give a DIY Enlarger a try - If it will go smoothly I'll think about DIY camera.
If not - I'll buy a camera at least. (I was thinking about simpliest Shen-Hao)
What is MOST critical parameter of enlarger light source then? - Power, equal diffuse, light temperature, no-flicker? All of them equally?

Ari, just out of curiosity, if let's say camera lenses can (perchance) be used for enlarger, what is it exactly that makes them better for each purpose?
("Enlarging lenses are better for enlarging, and camera lenses better for cameras")

P.S. It's "Dzień dobry" actually, two separate words

[Bob Salomon]

Ari, just out of curiosity, if let's say camera lenses can (perchance) be used for enlarger, what is it exactly that makes them better for each purpose?
("Enlarging lenses are better for enlarging, and camera lenses better for cameras")

P.S. It's "Dzień dobry" actually, two separate words

Camera lenses are designed to take something large and fit it on a negative, usually at f22 on 4x5. An enlaging lens take something small and makes it large. Usually, with a modern enlarging lens, around f11. In addition an enlarging lens will have an illuminated aperture, a pre-set mecanism on the aperture and disengageable click stops to make user in the darkroom more convenient.

[ic-racer]

Evenness of illumination, and adequate intensity are going to be the biggest things to solve with Large Format enlarger construction.

The lamp intensity needs to really get bright as the format is increased, for example:

35mm enlarger = 25 to 50W
Medium Format enlarger = 80W
4x5 enlarger = 200 to 250W
8x10 enlarger = 1000 to 2000W


But don't get discouraged, you can even use light from a window as a light source!

[BetterSense]

Ansel adams describes how he made a horizontal 8x10 enlarger from a camera, including 2 different light sources, in "the print". You might want to check it out.

[dsphotog]

There was the 4x5 Graph-larger attachment for Crown & Speed graphic cameras.

[Mikuda]

It's hard to get even normal 4x5 enlarger, so I can forget about something like graph-larger attachment ;)
Thanks for noting Ansel Adams, I forget he described his enlarger in "Print".
There's too little information to begin constructing but I found few important tips there.
I can try to make a cold-light head similar to his, but based on array of modern LED bulbs.
Today they can be very strong, they are not heavy, do not generate much heat, do not eat much energy, what You think? It's also interesting idea with bringing outer row of LEDs a bit forward to equalize edge lighting.
Ic-racer, thank you for light intensity comparision.
One more question, if I understood correctly, the same enlarger with the same light source can be used either with diffuser or condenser, depending on what I'll slide into drawer?

[ic-racer]

One more question, if I understood correctly, the same enlarger with the same light source can be used either with diffuser or condenser, depending on what I'll slide into drawer?

For a home-made light source you will be using diffusion. It will be too difficult to get the correct condenser lenses focused to make a good home-made condenser enlarger, unless you can get a set of condensers from a spare-parts enlarger.