Easy slide scanning?

[BobVell]

My parents have just moved to a retirement home and as part of the downsizing, want someway of digitally accessing their slides from the last 60 years or so. They'd like a way to scan in the slides. There's no rush, and part of the scanning process is to both remember the various occasions that were shot and also to have a digital version available. The idea is that they'd do a small batch every so often; they don't want to send them off to be done because part of the purpose is to go through each box together.

Does anyone have a recommendation for a 35mm slide scanner (there are no negatives or prints to scan) that does a reasonable job and is easy to use on a Mac? Ideally, stick the slide in, press a button, and have it enter Photos. The fewer steps, the better. They run into problems scanning documents on their all-in-one printer/scanner (getting the correct scanning set up in software, where to place the document, where it ends up, etc.).

The reviews at places like B&H are all over the place, so it is hard to get an idea of how good or how easy the process is. Quality wise, these are family snapshots for the most part, so snapshot quality is all I'm after, but a decent size image is needed to fill up the screen.

Thanks in advance

 

[Tom_N]

If you have a DSLR or MILC, the easiest way might be to get a slide holder that attaches to the lens. Then you can use the camera, and a light source, to take pictures of the slides.

 

[Gesture]

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/prod..._783064365345_optic_film_8200ise_scanner.html

I looked at this recently and there are also some simple consumer devices you can check on Amazon, but I would be cautious of quality.

https://www.amazon.com/KODAK-SCANZA...slide+scanner&qid=1552506976&s=gateway&sr=8-3

NOTE: this is not a flatbed scanner, there is a 14mp camera built into the device that takes a snapshot of the film, if you are looking for HIGH quality scans please look for a flatbed scanner, this device is designed to quickly scan through old memories with good quality.

 

[lightandaprayer]

Getting even decent quality from old slides requires carefully cleaning them prior to scanning them, configuring the scanning software and then likely doing some post-processing of the resulting image files. Slides that are faded, have color-casts, are scratched or very dirty, etc. are not candidates for a "scan-and-done" process. If the slides are Kodachrome, it's even more onerous to obtain good results. The better film scanners can use software that automates some of it but I wouldn't call it fool-proof by any means.

You don't say how many slides need to be scanned. If you edited the number down to those that are really important and are likely to yield reasonably good results, I would suggest sending them to a lab that specializes in photo scanning. Precious slides that have problems but are worthy of extra effort would benefit from being professionally scanned. The labs offer a range of output quality and the prices I have seen seem reasonable to me when you factor-in the cost of hardware, software and the time and effort required to do the scanning, etc. yourself.

Taking into account your parents' lack of computer skills, I think that trying to scan them at home would wind up being a time-consuming and ultimately frustrating experience. It would be a different situation if they were serious computer-savvy photography hobbyists who want to undertake a potentially challenging project.

 

[Peter in Milton]

I don't think there is any method that qualifies as "easy" for people who have little in the way of equipment or computer skills. (I think I've tried them all.) My suggestion is that they go through the sides together, deciding which ones merit scanning, and then pass them to a competent individual or business, who will return the file on a memory stick.

Doing a few at a time is a good idea, as going forward, they will have an idea of the cost, and the possible organization challenges once the files are on the computer.

 

[whisky]

Hi,

I have a 'Veho' slide scanner and it works very well. I use a Mac.

It is easy to use and I have loaned it to several friends and they have been delighted with the results from old 35mm slides etc.

Look up 'Veho' and see what you want, there are several models and it is reasonably priced if you look around.

It saves all the mucking about.

Best of luck with your archive.

Cheers.

 

[robgendreau]

I agree; scanning can be a frustrating process even for someone with considerable hardware and software skills.

I'd suggest a service. They can do a better job, and typically they'll post results online and you can choose a certain percentage to keep, and not have to pay for the culls.

 

[lightandaprayer]

I agree; scanning can be a frustrating process even for someone with considerable hardware and software skills.

I'd suggest a service. They can do a better job, and typically they'll post results online and you can choose a certain percentage to keep, and not have to pay for the culls.

That's great the you can "edit" online and you don't get charged for the scans you don't want. Can you provide a link to the scanning service(s) that you recommend? This topic seems to come up regularly and I think that some folks would appreciate having links to companies that have done good work for others on the forum. With the clear thread title, this discussion s is likely to turn up when someone does a forum search about scanning slides.

 

[Tom_N]

Here's a PC World article on the subject, It's almost 7 years old, so possibly a bit dated. The service they ranked "Best overall" seems to still be around.

PC World - The best and worst services for digitizing your photos

 

[lightandaprayer]

Here's a PC World article on the subject, It's almost 7 years old, so possibly a bit dated. The service they ranked "Best overall" seems to still be around.

PC World - The best and worst services for digitizing your photos

ScanSafe is still around but the basic cost for a 3000dpi slide scan has gone up from 29 to 35 cents. . . I noticed that it has a 30% off sale thru March 18.

The last time I had images scanned the format was Kodak PhotoCD.

 

[Jason]

I have a yellow Wolverine F2D Super scanner that I picked up used on eBay. I think that model has been discontinued, but there are newer models available on Amazon. It's really easy to use. Stick the slide in the holder, slide the holder into the scanner, press the scan button and a JPG is saved to the SD card. You can then either insert the SD card into the computer or plug the scanner in via USB and it behaves as a card reader. Super simple. It's not the highest quality imaginable, but it's really not bad at all. I use it to quickly scan my 35mm negatives. I can go through a whole roll in less than five minutes. The results are great for snapshots. If I find any amazing or important shots, I re-scan them with my Epson flatbed.

I wouldn't hesitate to hand this scanner over to my 80yo dad to scan his slide collection, and he's pretty tech illiterate.

 

[Ellis Vener]

Use the right tool for the job.

Easy and straightforward to use? Not looking for museum quality scans, just “hey this was our life” quality scans?

The Kodak Scanza. Good (not great) quality, straightforward to use, and pretty fast.

Now when If you were making scans for reproductions in books or large prints iI would absolutely use a better solution but for Making digital photo albums to share with family and friends, the SCANZA is a better solution.

 

[Gesture]

Exactly. Mentioned it in my post. I think the couple will get $159 of enjoyment out ofit.

 

[BobVell]

Thanks for all the comments. There are a couple of useful pointers here which I will follow up.

 

[Jim in Hudson]

I agree; scanning can be a frustrating process even for someone with considerable hardware and software skills.

I'd suggest a service. They can do a better job, and typically they'll post results online and you can choose a certain percentage to keep, and not have to pay for the culls.

Years ago I used ScanCafe and was very pleased. I remember it to be quite affordable, too.