Automatic dust removal with the new IR-Autocarrier

The full kit including IR-camera, IR-lens, camera stand and software is now available.

The IR-Ready Autocarrier system features both a visible light source and an infrared light source. Using a specialized camera, it captures two exposures of each film frame: one with visible light and one with infrared light. In the infrared image, the color dyes of the film are invisible, allowing only physical dust and defects to be detected. This data is then processed by the SmartConvert software, which automatically retouches the image. The result is ultra-clean scans - without the need for manual retouching.

To operate correctly, the system requires a full-spectrum modified digital camera. Standard cameras are not suitable, as they completely block infrared (IR) light. We offer a professionally IR-modified Nikon Z7II full-frame camera in the shop:

Lens choice is also critical. Different wavelengths of light are refracted differently within a lens. Standard lenses are typically optimized to provide acceptable sharpness across the visible spectrum, often by aligning two wavelengths (achromatic correction). Higher-end APO (apochromatic) lenses attempt to correct for three wavelengths, improving sharpness and color accuracy in visible light.

However, even APO lenses are designed exclusively for the visible spectrum. In the infrared range, most standard lenses - including APO lenses - exhibit degraded performance and typically require refocusing for the IR channel.

The better a lens performs in the IR spectrum, the smaller the dust particles it can detect.

To overcome this issue, we offer a specially engineered industrial lens that features apochromatic (APO) correction for both the visible and infrared light spectra. This high-end lens is distortion-free and delivers exceptional sharpness across the entire wavelength range. It ensures optimal performance in your IR-scan setup.

Budget lenses:

During lens testing, we found that two budget options - the TTArtisan 100mm f/2.8 Macro 2X and the Laowa 100mm f/2.8 2x Ultra Macro APO - performed surprisingly well in the infrared range compared to other standard lenses. For scanning 135 film, their performance is sufficient to detect and remove most medium-sized dust particles. However, very fine particles may go undetected due to limited sharpness.

For medium format film, we strongly recommend using the high-performance industrial lens. The budget lenses lack the resolving power needed to detect fine dust on larger film formats. Because medium format film has a larger image area, dust particles appear smaller, which places even greater demands on lens sharpness.

Feel free to try using your own lenses! Just keep in mind that we don’t offer support or troubleshooting for setups outside our recommended system.