Neil Cotty reported that, with his Nikon LS4000 scanner, the SA-21 Strip Film
Feeder does a better job of holding the film flat than the FH-3 Strip Film
Holder. His results (listed from worst to best) were
> Std. Mounted Slides
> FH-3 Strip Film Holder in Slide Carrier
> SA-21 Strip Film Feeder
> Glass Slide Mounts
I suspect different specimens of Nikon scanners, and their film holding gadgets,
vary in their accuracy. Getting the film flat and parallel with the plane of
focus is critical in Nikon scanners because of the shallow depth of field. If
you are lucky, some of the misalignments in the different components will cancel
out.
For someone used to the solidity and accuracy of a Leitz enlarger, its a wonder
these bits of Nikon plastic work as well as they do...
With my LS-30, I found the Holder held the film flat enough for a grain-sharp
scan of the whole frame, while the Feeder did not. I used the test method
developed by Julian Robinson (
) which I commend to
anyone with a Nikon film scanner.
An hour of testing was enough to show me what works well (and what doesn't) with
my scanner.
Peter Marquis-Kyle
