Slide mounting for projection

I'm starting to mount some 6x6 slides and I'd appreciate some tips on how to

do it, and what gadgets may make the process easier.

 

I've bought some Gepe anti-newton mounts. I see that Gepe manufacture both

single-sided anti-newton and double-sided anti-newton mounts. When should you

use one type over the other?

 

Also, I presume a film cutter and mounting press will simplify things - any

recommendations about what to go for?

 

Also, I'd appreciate some tips on cleaning glass and film surfaces during the

mounting process. I have an anti-static brush and a pair of those white

cotton gloves, but will I need some glass cleaner / air blower etc?

 

Thanks

 

David

Hello David.

 

This weekend, I mounted 80 6x6 and 4.5x6 transparencies using the Gepe glass mounts. The procedure is fresh in my mind. It's only necessary that one of the glass mounts has the anti-newton ring coating. Gepe article numbers are: 6x6 2601, and 4.5x6 2501. The anti-newton ring coated surface goes against the shiny base side of the film. The shiny base side is the side where you correctly read the film type and brand name (the letters and numbers are not reversed). With the Gepe slide mounts, the white half contains the coated glass surface.

 

No special mounting tools are required. I use a hand blower, in addition to the anti-static brush and cotton gloves. I also use a light table, loupe, and a sharp pair of scissors. Once you do a few and establish a routine, it goes pretty quickly.

 

This weekend, in spite of being meticulous about cleaning dust from the film and glass surfaces, I still had a few slides that I have to clean again; the dust appeared when I projected them. One other point; when loading the mounted slides, the white side of the mount faces the projection lamp.

 

This may sound like a lot of work (it is), but the reward of projecting medium format transparencies makes the work seem like a distant memory. The editing is more difficult than the slide mounting. I've been projecting medium format now for about five years. I still consider it a real treat. This weekend I projected images from a recent trip to Acadia and Nova Scotia. It was better than the trip itself.

 

Hope this helps. Have fun with your slides. Jerry.

I am glad to read/hear this news. I have promised my photo club to take up a slide group evening with my (and hopefully some others') MF transparancies. Problem is: I have been shooting for ages, but never mounted one. I have the slides, the Gepe mounting machine and the anti-static tools...now I just have to get my fingers alinged. Thanks for the thougths!

 

Ray Hull

Thanks very much for your detailed reply, Jerry. I attempted to mount a couple of slides last year when I bought a pack of Gepe mounts, but found that it was tricky to accurately cut the transparencies if there are dark areas to the edge of the images.I just wondered if a cutter would simplify this task?

 

You've got me excited about seeing some of the slides projected. I haven't bought a projector yet, but have more or less decided on one of the Rollei Dual 66 P ones. What do you have, and what size screen do you have to make the end result better than real life!?

Six years ago I bought a Hasselblad 501cm and a Kinderemann projector - and have mounted hundreds of transparencies in 6x6 Gepe anti-newton mounts. It is a VERY laborious process to get it right - that is to get the glass surfaces fully cleaned and free of specks. In addition, to make matters more difficult, I found that the glass surfaces could develop a kind of cloudy film (a subject covered in some detail in years past in this forum.) In fact, I had to go back and re-do a number of slides. The only clue I have is from a car I still own. The brochure on it noted how the windshield could develop a cloudy film from the plastic dashboard. Do the plastic slide mounts do the same thing? Anyway, I take great precautions. 1) I blow off the glass. 2) brush it. 3) Use a new soft paper towel daubed in eye glass cleaner and apply. 4) re-brush all edges and corners and then check with a magnifying glass. Laborious yes but great images clear without distracting stuff on the glass.

Hello David.

 

I use a Hasselblad projector with a 150mm lens. At home I project onto a 5 foot square screen; that's large enough for home use. I once made a presentation at a botanical garden of flower macros I shot there over one season. Using my projector, the 6x6 images were projected onto a 12 foot square screen. The square format is perfect for flower photography. That was fun viewing.

 

There is another benefit from projecting and it's analogous to the learning process that occurs in the darkroom when printing. When composing the image in the waist level finder, I envision how the final image will look projected onto the large screen. Because I can't crop unless I use a 4.5 x 6 mount on the 6 x 6 slide, I take time to ensure that what's in my finder is what I want to see on the screen. If it isn't, I either make adjustments, or walk away; usually the latter. Jerry.

Gerald, hoiw do you open the type 2501 slide mounts. I have just bought some and can't tell how to open them without damage. What's the trick.

Thanks.

Bob C.

I've used both Gepe and Wess-mounts. I prefer the Wess-mounts as they are less fiddly than Gepe. You can still get most any Wess mount from B&H. Some are in-stock, some are special order. Wess sold the mount manufacturing to another company. B&H knows where to get them from. I have even ordered mounts by the part numbers in my old Wess catalog, and B&H got them on special order.

Hello Bob.

 

I haven't received any new mounts with the the two halves sealed. However, I've reopened many to reclean. I use a very small screwdriver with a thin tip; total length is only about 2 inches. After working the tip between into the side of the mount, it's a matter of gently rotating the tip and prying open the mount. You have to do this all around the mount. I also use the same screwdriver to hold open the second film clip when mounting the slide. I install the factory edge of the film against the clips rather than my scissor-cut edge to more easily align the slide against the mount clips. Works well. Jerry.

Gerald and Bob - I too have had to open clamped together Gepe mounts (to re-clean or re-use with a different transparency). I also have a small screwdriver with a thin edge. Sometimes the mounts are too tight tother for the screwdriver - and I have resorted to a sharp edged Exacto knife to gently pry the mounts at one corner. The screw driver technique is used from there. I am referring to the 2 1/4 by 2 1/4 mounts (2601).