Illumination Kaiser enlarger

ChristianMuc · 2010-12-29T21:59:49+00:00

Hallo, ich bin der neue im Forum. Obwohl ich auf die 40 zugehe, in den letzten Jahren nur noch digital photographiert habe und davor immer entwickeln ließ,...

ChristianMuc

Hello, I’m new to the forum. Although I’m approaching 40, have only taken digital photos in recent years and used to always have my film developed, I’ve now decided to start developing my own film. B) Two rolls of film have been exposed, and a parcel from the forum host will be collected by the post office tomorrow, so I’m ready to get started. Now to my question: I’d like to start my first attempts at enlarging with a Kaiser VP6002, which I bought at a bargain price. I wanted to get it up and running and have adjusted the (opal) lamp according to the instructions, “so that the maximum brightness is in the centre of the illuminated area” (with no lens fitted). There are two degrees of freedom here: you can move the lamp, which directly shifts the bright spot, and rotate it, which tends to distort the shape of the bright spot between a point and a line. What puzzles me now is that even with the lens focused on the image stage (there was no negative in place, but you can tell whether the edges of the mask have sufficient sharpness), the illumination still looks like this: bright in the centre, significantly darker towards the edges. I would actually have expected a completely evenly illuminated area. Am I expecting the wrong thing here, did I do something wrong when setting it up, or is there actually something wrong with the enlarger? Christian

cfb_de

Have I done something wrong, or is there perhaps something wrong with the enlarger itself?

Is a condenser fitted? In other words, a lens between the light source and the film surface? If so, is it the right one? If you have an enlarger lens with a focal length of 75 or 80mm, then you need a condenser that illuminates 6x6 (for the technical purists: one that matches the focal length of the V-lens). Otherwise, try a 50mm enlarger lens and insert any existing 35mm negative. That should actually work with a 6x6 condenser as well. Best regards, Franz

ChristianMuc

Is a condenser fitted?

Hello Franz, The 6x6 cm condenser is fitted – the one that originally came with the 6002. I had already noticed the uneven illumination you described when using the KB mask and the 50 mm lens. I’ve got New Year’s Eve preparations to sort out today, but I’ll attach a photo of the illumination in the new year. Best regards, Christian And a Happy New Year to all forum readers! :D

ChristianMuc

I’ll post a photo of the lighting setup in the new year.

Right, it took a few days. In the meantime, I’ve successfully developed my films. :) The attached picture shows the best possible lighting I can manage, and there’s the 35mm mask under the 6x6 condenser. That means the result is likely to be even worse with the 6x6 mask. I’ve actually come up with an idea myself in the meantime. The bulb didn’t look particularly matt to me. Unfortunately, I don’t have a comparison sample to hand. What distinguishing features can I use to tell a normal matt incandescent bulb apart from an opal bulb? Could a standard incandescent bulb produce this sort of lighting? Best regards, Christian

Urnes

Hello, The opal lamps aren’t frosted but snow-white; the bulb’s model number is on the side, not on top. For the Kaiser, you’ll need a 75-watt bulb. Check again to see if the mask strips above the negative stage have been pushed all the way back. Regards, Sven.

ChristianMuc

The opal bulbs aren’t frosted but snow-white; the model number is on the side, not on top.

So that’s one problem identified. Before trying anything else, I’ll get hold of a proper bulb first. That means I won’t be able to use it this weekend, unless someone can help me find a supplier in Munich. Best regards, Christian

cfb_de

Why not ask at Foto Dinkel? Best regards, Franz

MirkoBoeddecker

And don’t forget to stop down the aperture! At full aperture (f/2.8), an older macro lens can often exhibit a drop in brightness of up to one stop towards the edges. This disappears from f/5.6 onwards. You can also see this when you stop down the aperture: the centre loses brightness at a faster rate than the edges. Good luck! Mirko

ChristianMuc

Hello,

Have a go at Foto Dinkel.

Unfortunately, they’re closed on Saturdays. So I won’t get my first prints until next week.

And don’t forget to stop down!

I’ve attached another image with the aperture stopped down. The light spot has increased sharpness, but it’s not really any better. The lens is a Componon-S 2.8/50. I’m just hoping now that a proper opal lamp is the solution to the problem and I’ll definitely keep you updated. Best regards, Christian

MirkoBoeddecker

I’ve had a look at the photos. It’s not down to the lens. Something’s not quite right. Even the Opal bulb doesn’t sort it out. - Are you sure you’ve adjusted the condenser and the bulb correctly, and that you have a complete condenser? - Is it a single or a double condenser? - If it’s a single condenser, does the flat side face downwards and the curved side upwards? - Have you really moved the bulbs all the way up and all the way down and tried every possible position? Mirko

ChristianMuc

I’ve now fitted an opal lamp into the enlarger and it looks good. :) As I want to take my time with my first enlargements, it’ll be a few more days; unfortunately, I won’t get round to it today. @Mirko: Although I did remove and refit the condenser whilst changing the lamp, I didn’t notice anything out of the ordinary, so I don’t think that had any effect. Incidentally, the Kaiser VP has a double condenser housed in a plastic frame that simply slots in and is secured; nothing can really go wrong there. The unit doesn’t have any up/down adjustment for the lamp either, only forwards/backwards, i.e. parallel to the condenser. Christian