# enlargers a question



## Tballphoto (Mar 11, 2021)

Saw on emulsive website an article by a man who built his own enlarger system. The only thing that wasnt built into it was a spot for a grain focuser or filter set. 

He used a regular camera lens to do it.  That makes me ask a simple question. 

What genuinely would be hindrances in making basic prints of bw negatives if i simply took an ugly functional 20$ 35mm camera off of fleabuy and tossed it on a tripod, flipped it to point down, popped the back open, and threw my scanners film holder on it with a light source in a box on top?

Versus spending 400$ plus shipping on a beselar cadet II and trying to modify a lens board to use a longer lens when i want to try 120 film in it?


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## Ysarex (Mar 11, 2021)

Tballphoto said:


> Saw on emulsive website an article by a man who built his own enlarger system. The only thing that wasnt built into it was a spot for a grain focuser or filter set.
> 
> He used a regular camera lens to do it.  That makes me ask a simple question.
> 
> ...



Back in the good old days cameras often served double duty as enlargers. Think about old bellows style cameras. When I was a starving artist I built my first view camera from old enlarger parts. When my finances allowed me to move on I gave the "joedorf" to a friend who turned it into an enlarger.


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## Rickbb (Mar 11, 2021)

Worst kept secret in photography is that an enlarger is just a camera with the light projected in reverse.


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## Tballphoto (Mar 11, 2021)

Rickbb said:


> Worst kept secret in photography is that an enlarger is just a camera with the light projected in reverse.


worst kept secret in photography is actually that being in focus matters


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## dxqcanada (Mar 12, 2021)

Enlarger lenses are designed for flat field focus.
Many macro lenses are also optically designed this way.


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