Re: Franka Beam Splitter

[tomwhite@xxxxxxx]

>
>Your pros and cons are all true.  I am a little disappointed about the cheap 
>plastic construction of the unit...especially the plastic mounting ring 
>(along with the 49, 52 and 55 stepup up rings they throw in). 

I noticed this and that's why I leave mine "permanently" attached to a lens.
I very carefully screwed it down as far as I could good and square and left
it there.

>Back to the Franka...you're right about the distortion, especially around 
>the perimeter of the frame.   For some reason the distortion is more 
>prevalent in the left image...I haven't examined it real closely yet but 
>I'll go back and make sure the frame is parallel to the camera body and of 
>course the cheap plastic mount.

I haven't noticed any distortion around the perimeter of the frame. Do you
have yours screwed down as close as posible?  No filters in the way.


It takes a bit to get used to framing your shots. You must train your self
to look only at etiher the left or the right image. And then study a bit how
they come together in the center. A roll or two of experimenting will fix that.


>I like it so far...I wouldn't mind finding a better built unit with better 
>mirrors and perhaps constructed out of aluminum or brass (if such exists). 
> 
There is a model called the SKF-1 manufactured in the Ukraine and sold by
others on this list. It is extremly well made, much like you describe above.
Unfortunatly, its mirrors are not nearly as large as the Franka and that
results in a good deal of darkening around the edges and in the center. I
think it might work better on a bit longer focal length lens. Say 60-70 mm.
I'm keeping my open for one. It is very well made.

Good luck. Let us know how the second roll comes out.

Tom White
Driftwood, Texas


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