Film Scanner Set for 120

Film:

• All 120 roll-film negatives (color and black and white)
• Film strips and individual frames

Light sources (universally compatible):

• CineStill CS-LITE / CS-LITE+ (SpectraColor), the CS-LITE is included from the “With light source” variant onward, Direct Fit
• Negative Supply Light Source (Basic/MK1/Pro)
• Kaiser Slimlite Plano
• Raleno LED panel (e.g. PLV-S116)
• Jack Scanlight
• Any illuminated area ≥ 95 × 150mm (= footprint of the 120 Base Plate)

Accessories (Ausgeknipst ecosystem):

• Copy Stand, included in the “With Copy Stand” variant and above
• Expandable with: 6×4.5 Top, 6×7 Top, 6×9 Top
• 120 Lens Hood, included starting with the “With light source” variant

All variants include the 120 film holder: Base Plate and magnetic 6×6 Top Plate. “Film holder, all 4 formats” adds the Top Plates for 6×4.5, 6×7, and 6×9. “With light source” adds the CineStill CS-LITE light source and the 120 lens hood. “With Copy Stand” also includes the Copy Stand for a complete scanning station. “Everything except camera and lens” additionally includes the leveling base, which replaces the tripod head.

Variant "Film holder (6×6)":

“Film holder, all 4 formats” variant:

Variant "With light source (6×6)":

Variant "With Copy Stand (6×6)":

Variant "Everything except camera and lens (6×6)":

This applies to the “With Copy Stand” variant. “Everything except camera and lens” includes the leveling base instead of the head; the other variants do not include a Copy Stand. The Copy Stand has a 3/8" screw on top. A tripod head is not included in any set. The setup is: Copy Stand, tripod head on top, and camera on top of that. You use the joint to align the camera exactly parallel to the negative, which is why the profile does not have a fixed camera mount.

Practically any ball or geared head will fit, since 3/8" is the standard on the underside of the head. If you have a tripod, simply unscrew the head and use it here. If you do not have your own head, our leveling base fits directly onto the 3/8" screw. If you choose "Everything except camera and lens (6×6)" above, it comes right in the package.

• Material: Engineering plastic, matte black, non-reflective
• Film channel: 61.6mm wide (120 roll film)
• Exposure window: 56 × 56mm (6×6 Top Plate), variable depending on the Top Plate (56×42mm 6×4.5, 56×70mm 6×7, 56×84mm 6×9)
• Overall dimensions (Base + Top): 150 × 95 × 32mm (L × W × H): footprint = exact illuminated area of the CineStill CS-LITE
• Film plane above the illuminated area: 17mm (Direct Fit, without an adapter plate)
• Rubber feet: 2mm high, Shore 70A, non-slip, scratch-resistant
• Fastening: 4× neodymium magnets (Top Plate held magnetically in place)
• Weight, Base + Top: approx. 120g
• Film holders: made in Würzburg
• SKU: 1654

With the film scanner for 120 roll film, you can digitize your medium-format negatives flat and without glass. The modular five-layer system keeps your negatives flat across their full width for scanning with a DSLR or mirrorless camera.

In normal operation, you feed the strip into the holder from the side: the guide takes it in, you advance it frame by frame, and pull it out again on the other side. The magnetic Top Plate stays in place. You only need to lift it in two cases: for short snippets, such as those returned by the lab at the end of a roll (one or two frames cannot be fed through and are inserted from above), and when changing formats, because the Top Plate is the mask: you can swap to 6×4.5, 6×7, or 6×9 in one simple step. Rubber feet (2mm, Shore 70A) provide a non-slip base on any light source.

The 120 Base Plate measures 95×150mm and exactly matches the illuminated area of the CineStill CS-LITE. It sits directly on it in Direct Fit, without an additional adapter. Additional Top Plates for 6×4.5, 6×7, and 6×9 are available separately, so the system grows with you, whatever other medium formats you add later. We make the film holders ourselves in Würzburg.

Not sure which set you need? The Film Scanner Finder recommends one with three questions.

The product range overview shows the complete layer structure with direct shop links.

Find guides and technical background on film scanning in the blog overview.

Do I need the CineStill CS-LITE, or is my existing light panel sufficient?

The “Film holder” variant does not include a light source; starting with “With light source”, the CS-LITE is included. An existing light panel will work as long as its illuminated area measures at least 95 × 150 mm. That is the footprint of the 120 Base Plate. If your illuminated area is larger, the uncovered edge next to the holder shines into the lens from the side and robs the scan of contrast. Suitable options include the Negative Supply Light Source, Kaiser Slimlite Plano, Raleno LED panel, and Jack Scanlight. Color rendition matters more than the brand: below a CRI of 95, your colors will shift, and correcting that in post-production is difficult. That is why the CS-LITE is included in our set: the Base Plate exactly matches its illuminated area. It sits directly on it without an adapter, and no edge is left uncovered.

The two film holder variants do not include a light hood. If you are not scanning in a darkened room, the Hood Module L keeps ambient light from above off the negative. It is already included starting with the “With light source” variant.

Do I need to buy a complete set if I later want another format or the lens hood?

No. The Base Plate is the foundation; everything else attaches magnetically and is available separately: the Top Plates for 6×4.5, 6×7, and 6×9 and the Hood L lens hood. You can therefore start with just the film holder and upgrade later without buying anything twice.

Can I scan the film edges with the edge markings included?

No, and the mask cannot be adjusted for this either. 120 film is 61.5 mm wide, while the exposure window of the 6×6 Top Plate measures 56 mm. The nearly 2.8 mm on each side is not wasted space; it is the only area where the holder can grip the strip: it guides the film and stretches it flat over the Dual-S curve. A wider window would remove precisely this guidance. The film would sag, and the resulting softness would affect the center of the image, not the edge. We measured the size of the effect: without the cover plate, the same strip deviates from the plane 2.3 times more, at 381 µm RMS, than when guided at 163 µm (Film Flatness Test).

Those who want to digitize medium format right to the edge should place the negative between two glass plates with an anti-Newton coating. This keeps it flat and exposes the edge, but takes considerably more time: you insert each image individually and have to keep four glass surfaces free of dust. This holder is designed for the opposite: feeding entire rolls through quickly. With 35mm, on the other hand, the full film width is supported: for that, there is the Film Scanner Set for 35mm Sprocket with its own Base and Top Plate.

Which camera and lens do I need?

Any DSLR or mirrorless camera with an interchangeable lens. The lens is what matters: a macro lens with 1:1 reproduction, such as a Nikkor 60 mm Micro or a Canon 100 mm Macro. With a 120 negative, you need less magnification than with 35mm because the image is larger.

Is 24 megapixels enough?

For reviewing, archiving and wall prints up to just over 40 cm, yes. But you won't quite capture the finest details of a fine-grained negative, because on 6×6 to 6×9 only 71 pixels fall on each millimetre of film, while on 35mm it's 167. What a high-resolution mode or stitched shots can add, we work out in our guide to megapixels for film scanning.

What good is a flat negative if the camera is not exactly parallel?

Not much, which is why alignment is part of it. If the sensor is at an angle to the film, one side of the image goes soft, no matter how flat the negative lies. You can check this with the alignment mirror: place it where the film would normally lie and adjust the tripod head until the reflection of the lens sits exactly in the center of the frame. Then the camera and film are parallel. The leveling base is ideal for making adjustments: on its hemisphere, you tilt the camera by up to 15° in any direction and lock it as soon as the reflection is centered. It is also available together with the alignment mirror.