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"Sigma SD1 Merrill not good for scanning negatives/slides"

Started Sep 10, 2018 | Discussions thread
OP DrTebi New Member • Posts: 16
Re: "Sigma SD1 Merrill not good for scanning negatives/slides"

digi2ap wrote:

I think these are very good, detailed and I like the colour in the first one. The main reason I can think of that some would say the SD1M isn't good for scanning slides is ease of operation - focussing and no live view etc.

I think I must have confused everyone with the subject line of this post. If you read the body of my post, you will see that I tend to disagree...

In other words, I think the Sigma SD1 Merrill is ideal for DSLR scanning. At least on a technical level—the Foveon sensor really brings out the best of film.

I too was afraid that focusing and not having live view could be an issue. Now, after a number of test scans (including some stitched ones), I am happy to report that the 70mm Macro lens auto focus is spot on. So if that works... live view is not really needed anymore.

The SD-1 is slow, and It's a bit cumbersome to convert the files with Sigma Photo Pro, switching to another editor for further post processing etc., but in the end I like the results much better than what I got with the Nikon D810 or Pentax K-1, or even my Minolta Dimage Multi Pro film scanner.

Resolution-wise, as I mentioned, it depends on your goals. If every last bit of detail is your goal, then stitching is necessary with the SD-1. The Pentax and Nikon have a little advantage here due to the higher resolution, but these will not give the same clarity as the SD-1 with its Foveon sensor.

Your mileage may vary, but I am quite satisfied with this setup, even if it takes a bit of effort to get great results.

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