APO Corrected 1.35x Scanner Lens For $20 PrimeFilm 3650u

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RobertOToole
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APO Corrected 1.35x Scanner Lens For $20 PrimeFilm 3650u

Post by RobertOToole »

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After seeing the price of the Minolta Elite 5400 lens go up and the supply dry out I started looking at other lenses. The PrimeFilm scanner caught my eye on Filmscanners.info. There are lots on Ebay. For $20 I took a chance.

This is the 3560u lens next to a Canon MP-E.


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How small is this lens, it's smaller than a gummi-bear!

Is the lens any good? Yes, not Minolta 5400 sharp but its sharp enough and its APO corrected! Click on the image for a 1500 pixel version.

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Click on the image for a 2500 pixel version.

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Click on the image for a 2500 pixel version.

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So how does it compare to the Canon MP-E 65 at 1.35x?

Test target.

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Test Setup
Camera: Sony ?6300, model # ILCE-6300, also known as: A6300
Sensor size: APS-C. 23.5 × 15.6 mm. 28.21 mm diagonal. 3.92 micron sensor pitch
Flash: Godox TT350s wireless flash x 2 with one Godox X1s 2.4G wireless flash transmitter
Vertical stand: Nikon MM-11 with a Nikon focus block

A series of images was made with each lens in 30 micron steps. The sharpest frame was then chosen using Photoshop at 100% actual pixel view. Separate images were selected for center, edge, and corner if needed. Each image was processed in PS CC with identical settings with all noise reduction and lens correction turned off, all settings were zeroed out (true zero) and the same settings were used for all of the images. All of the images shown here are single files. None of the images are stacked. Since only one sample of each lens was used in this test it should give you a good idea of how a lens can perform but it doesn't mean that your own lens will perform at the same level.

Scanner lens 100% crops at 1.35x Mag. The lens is not going to break any resolution records due to the smallish aperture but it is possible to read all the micro-lettering and numbers. Click on the image for a 1500 pixel version.

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MP-E 65 lens 100% crops at 1.35x Mag. and f/4.5. The MP-E is sharper than the scanner lens but thats not a big surprise. Click on the image for a 1500 pixel version.

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PrimeFilm image un-cropped. Downsized to 1500 pixels but lenses are sharp corner to corner without any CAs.
This image had to be saved at quality 5 in PS to be able to upload the image so be sure to click on it for the 1500px version.

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Canon MP-E 65 image. Its interesting to see the different color responses of the lenses processed with identical settings in PS CC.
This image had to be saved at quality 5 in PS to be able to upload the image so be sure to click on it for the 1500px version.

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Lens on the Sony A6300. The tiny size even with adapters makes it very easy to use and balances perfectly on a mirrorless body.

The lens slipped into into the male side bore of a RAF 26mm > RMS adapter.

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The Bottom line. It's not as sharp as a Minolta 5400 or Scanner Nikkor ED lenses. It's not as good as the Canon MP-E. But it is sharp enough, APO corrected and cost me only $20.

BTW, I have seen these on Ebay for $10 + shipping.

For the full story, more info, and how to remove the lens, see my site: https://www.closeuphotography.com/prime ... anner-lens

Questions and comments welcome.

Robert

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