Riding along on the curtails of the highly anticipated D850 was an accessory that was either overlooked by, or perplexed most photographers; a slide duplicator. Back in the heydays of film (as the name suggests) slide duplicators let you make copies of slides or create slides from negatives.
As digital began to eclipse over the analog processes of film, these duplicators were used as an easy effective way to digitize the older gelatin-based frames, The D850 pays homage to Nikon’s rich film history with a built-in ‘Negative Digitizing’ feature, and when paired with the newly introduced ES-2 Film Digitizer.
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Nikon has a habit of taking strides forward while keeping a foot squarely planted in their past rich heritage. The original ES-1 Side Copying adapter is one of few Nikon legacy products that is still available today, however, it is somewhat antiquated being designed around use with the Nikkor 55mm f/2.8 Micro-Nikkor lens.
The ES-2 Film Digitizing Adapter is designed to be paired with a more modern macro lens, such as the AF-S Micro NIKKOR 60mm f/2.8G ED. When this adapter is fitted to the front of the lens it holds the film at the minimum focusing distance of the lens to ensure critical sharpness.
Negative/Positive Scanning: With the optional ES-2 Film Digitizing Adapter and compatible Micro-NIKKOR lens, the camera enables super high-resolution digitizing of 35mm slides or negatives and converts them in-camera to positives.
Film photography has been on the rise as more photographers search for the aesthetic that it offers. The D850’s built-in ‘scanning’ function will convert negatives or positive slides directly into JPGs with the help of either the FH-4 Strip Film Holder or FH-5 Slide Mount Holder. The cost of the ES-2 Film Digitizing Adapter will be $140, or around the same price as ad a dedicated film scanner. As Nikon explains, “This once time-consuming process involving a film scanner can be done much more quickly”.
