Summary
Good Stuff
The Basics
aka: Scan-back -is the digital equivalent of a film holder; it's not a camera. It is inserted into the back of a view-camera and a tri-linear sensor moves across the image-plane, capturing one row of pixels at a time. It records all three colors (R,G,B) for each pixel's location, and can produce files with extraordinary resolution and color accuracy. The scan-back is connected -via a controller- to a computer, and operated by software.
The BetterLight Super 6K-HS scan-back (right) and the Kodak Tri-linear sensor (below).
Able to capture clean, high-resolution images, the scan-back allows imaging options far beyond that of DSLRs; however, this comes at a price. It requires knowledge of large-format photography and digital-capture principles. Set-up is complicated as a tripod and computer are necessary for each shot. Each capture requires good planning, careful focusing, and a decent amount of time. In some cases, long scan-times can make it impractical for use with moving subjects. Still, while the use of a scan-back really doesn't make large-format photography easier, it does make it a lot better.