Century CU Diopter Test with 35mm slide

[Multi-Media]

I needed a close up adapter and was doing a little pre-purchase research and the concurrence was that the Century Achromatic DIOPTERs were the best way to go.

Someone had reported that they had to combine BOTH the 2.0 and the 3.5 diopters together to fill the frame with a 35mm slide.

I couldn't afford to get both so my reasoning was the same with getting a Wide Angle Adapter... get the one that makes the most difference (as the camera has a pretty good range of focal length to start with)... so I got the 3.5 achromatic.

It arrived earlier today and I tried some tests on various objects... It really looks great as far as racking the focus to and fro on an object with a really narrow DOF. *I then tried a simple off the boards slide transfer... and... to my surprise... I was able to more than fill the frame with a slide. *It goes full top to bottom so I could even do a slight pan within the slide frame. (You will notice that the full frame newspaper and grid slides are wider than what shows in the viewfinder.)

I have a Marron Carrol optical 35mm camera with a backlit color head base and motorized copy stand post.. so I will eventually try a more professional transfer rig. *But for now any backlit diffused source will do... The distance used was 8 1/2" (eight and a half inches) from the slide to the very front of the diopter.

Attached are some images from the test.

*http://www.zoomforce.com/dvxuser/photos/images//118224703.jpg
http://www.zoomforce.com/dvxuser/photos/images//118224632.jpg

http://www.zoomforce.com/dvxuser/photos/images//118224456.jpg

They are uploaded to the frame grab site, but I need help with linking the images to this posting.
Sorry about overloading... got it down to three now...
Jarred thanks in advance *

[Barry_Green]

Do you have a 100 or a 100A? The closer close-focus distance of the 100A would make it easier to fill the frame with less diopter power...

[Multi-Media]

I have the "old" 100... The reason I went with the 3.5 wasn't particularly to do slide transfers... for that I have been projecting onto a screen or rear screen material so I could do moves within the frame there is also a 10X "slide transfer" adapter on EBAY (http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=29964&item=3811783 922&tc=photo) for around $70, but it is really limiting to full frame and no moves. *I do a lot of museum work with historical artifacts and photos, so I needed a tool that really got macro. *The existing lens can get pretty tight but you have to get back and zoom in. *This tends to compress things. *If I was going to pop for an extra lens (the 2.0 and the 3.5 are exactly the same price at B&H)... I wanted the one that made a real difference. *The 3.5 allows you to get in real close (or not so close) to create a depth and space with the object. *I really like the look of a crisp area defined by soft areas around it (extremen shallow DOF that everyone craves from the 35 look). *This little item along with the Century .6 WA really rounds out the capability of the camera for me. *I suppose the next thing would be a tele extender.... maybe down the line.

[MtSurf]

I have a silly question. Is there a reason you do not scan the slides and do the motion in a NLE. Sony's vegas has a very nice pan crop tool that allows perfect moves on stills. You can also add a blur to give it some DOF. Scanning will allow you to bring it in at 300-1200 dpi or what ever dpi your scanner can handle and this allows for a ton of control of the image. Just a thought.

[Stas_Tagios]

Multi,

I planning on buying one (or perhaps both) of the Century diopters, but I'm trying to find out what the MOD (minimum object distant) is on both lenses.

How close to the lens can you focus using the +3.5?

Thanks for any info!

I should add that I have the original DVX-100, not the A.


Stas

[Multi-Media]

The Min Distance I focused at was 8 1/2" from the front of the diopter to the slide. I have the standard 100.
Not a silly question about scanning. I have the Nikon scanner and BLADE does "pan and scan" moves on oversized graphics.
I was just responding to an earlier test done by someone who said that you had to use BOTH diopters at once to fill the frame with a 35. For some complex moves... it is easier to project and shoot... for "expediency" it's faster to shoot the slide. (My old coolscan is ssllloooowwww). But you're right, the CLEANEST way to go is to scan and bring onto the timeline. This was mainly a test of the range of the 3.5 Century.