Camera Scanning Black-and-White Negatives

Posted by Glenn Scott Egli on 29th May 2025

I recently submitted three photographs to an art show, Created Noble – Worthy by Design, at Green Acre, A Bahá’í Center of Learning in Eliot, Maine. All of the images were shot on Tri-X Pan back in the 1980s, my favorite film for documentary work at the time (and still). I had scans of the negatives that were made some time ago, but they were only suitable for web presentation, and I didn’t readily have access to prints of the photos.

In the “old days” I would frequently shoot negatives on KODAK PROFESSIONAL Technical Pan Film using a Besseler Slide Copier when I needed slides for a presentation or critique. There is no shortage of info on the web about camera scanning negatives, so I made my first attempt at copying the negatives with my Fujifilm GFX 50r with a Pentax-A 645 120mm f/4 Macro Lens, Kipon P645-GFX lens adapter, Omega D2 645 negative carrier, Kaiser Slimlite Plano 5000K Lightbox, and vintage Polaroid MP-4 Copy Stand. I bracketed my exposure between f/11 and f/16 at both 1 and ½ second.

For this first try I simply inverted the files in Photoshop®, desaturated, and adjusted the levels. The results were promising enough for me to get prints made for the exhibit. In the future I will try using programs like FilmLab or Negative Lab Pro to see if I can refine the process and dive deeper into my archive of analog work.

The above setup was put together with equipment I already owned, but, if I start doing more volume, I may consider Negative Supply’s products to speed up the process, particularly with roll film.

Arab Gentleman on Me’ir Rutberg St., Haifa, Israel, circa 1985 - ©️ Glenn Scott Egli, All rights reserved Copy setup with Fujifilm GFX 50r, Pentax 645 120mm f/4 Macro Lens, Kipon Pentax to GFX lens adapter, Omega D2 645 negative carrier, Kaiser SlimLite Plano, and vintage Polaroid MP-4 Copy Stand

Arab Gentleman on Me’ir Rutberg St., Haifa, Israel, circa 1985 (left) ©️ Glenn Scott Egli, All rights reserved Copy setup with Fujifilm GFX 50r, Pentax 645 120mm f/4 Macro Lens, Kipon Pentax to GFX lens adapter, Omega D2 645 negative carrier, Kaiser SlimLite Plano, and vintage Polaroid MP-4 Copy Stand (right).