Good scanners for scanning negatives and slides

[Scott Eaton]

If you want the optimum quality from 35mm scan you really have to have a true, 4000dpi scanner, and that's not the Epson units. They are great for MF, and OK for pedestrian scanning of small format, but just not the best for 24mm x 36mm frames.

It's like being in a conventional darkroom and trying to make a tack sharp 8x10 with a bad lens.

 

[AOKH]

If you want the optimum quality from 35mm scan you really have to have a true, 4000dpi scanner, and that's not the Epson units. They are great for MF, and OK for pedestrian scanning of small format, but just not the best for 24mm x 36mm frames.

It's like being in a conventional darkroom and trying to make a tack sharp 8x10 with a bad lens.

I have had the Microtek ScanMaker i900 for ten years (http://www.imaging-resource.com/SCAN/MI9/MI9.HTM), and while it makes good print scans, I find the 35mm film scans not that great (6400x3200dpi 48bit max). I assume the Epson v700 or 800 would be in the same neighborhood quality/feature wise? Would the Plustek OpticFilm 8200i Ai recommended elsewhere on this thread (http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2457877,00.asp) be the best choice for better IQ (as per your post above) - without breaking the bank?

 

[Papi61]

Nikon 9000ED is the best short of drum scanning.

If finding one were the ONLY problem... The drivers are incompatible with anything more recent than XP. And you can forget about using it with a modern OSX incarnation.

Actually, even other Nikon Coolscan ED models are pretty great (I used to have the 5000.) Unfortunately, all plagued by the same lack of modern drivers. But then again, you could assemble a low-end PC ($300 or so) and put XP on, or use an old XP machine you already have, just to acquire images with that scanner. I believe the minimum requirements are very modest by today's standards.

 

[bronxbombers4]

Nikon 9000ED is the best short of drum scanning.

If finding one were the ONLY problem... The drivers are incompatible with anything more recent than XP. And you can forget about using it with a modern OSX incarnation.

No, you can get it to run on modern stuff. I'm running my 9000 on Windows 7 64bit with no problem. You just need to download one 64bit driver file pack and change a couple of lines of text in one file and it's good to go. There have been some posts here on the detailed instructions on exactly what to do.

 

[Chris]

Nikon 9000ED is the best short of drum scanning.

If finding one were the ONLY problem... The drivers are incompatible with anything more recent than XP. And you can forget about using it with a modern OSX incarnation.

Actually, even other Nikon Coolscan ED models are pretty great (I used to have the 5000.) Unfortunately, all plagued by the same lack of modern drivers. But then again, you could assemble a low-end PC ($300 or so) and put XP on, or use an old XP machine you already have, just to acquire images with that scanner. I believe the minimum requirements are very modest by today's standards.

The 9000ED is supported natively by Vuescan. So you don't need drivers other than Vuescan. And Vuescan does Mac OSX, Linux and Windows.

Loading…

www.hamrick.com

 

[bronxbombers4]

Nikon 9000ED is the best short of drum scanning.

If finding one were the ONLY problem... The drivers are incompatible with anything more recent than XP. And you can forget about using it with a modern OSX incarnation.

No, you can get it to run on modern stuff. I'm running my 9000 on Windows 7 64bit with no problem. You just need to download one 64bit driver file pack and change a couple of lines of text in one file and it's good to go. There have been some posts here on the detailed instructions on exactly what to do.

I use it with Silverast software, expensive but far better than the Nikon scanner software. I don't like that Silverfast no longer pays for ICE though so I stopped upgrading since the last ICE version.

Vuescan has apparently been coming along, not sure the current stats on it. It used to be worse than Silverfast.

 

[plantdoc]

I knew that the Epson v700 wouldn't match a higher end 35mm scanner, which is a scarce item these days, but with some 12,000 slides to shift through and scan, a scan one at a time wasn't practical. The very high dpi is somewhat misleading and the included silverfast software doesn't improve the details but offers more adjustments. However, scans look quite good on a 55inch HD tv. I don't think I would suggest that flatbed will obtain the maximum quality from 35mm. For that I would explore a dedicated film scanner.

Greg

 

[jrkliny]

I used an Epson V600 to scan about 1000 slides. I have also started to scan a huge collection of old 4x6 and 5x7 snapshots. In addition to being the only inexpensive scanner that is suitable, it worked really well. In fact the maximum resolution is way more than what you need. The software includes color correction, scratch/dust removal, etc. The only difficult is the amount of time needed. It took me several evenings to scan the 1000 slides. I doubt it will make much difference if the scanner handles more slides in a batch. You are going to need to change out slides every few minutes. Plan on doing something else while it processes. I had mine near the TV so I could easily keep the scanner fed.

 

[Papi61]

The actual scanning isn't the most time-consuming task. That would be cleaning up the file. Sure, software can help remove some of the offenders, but you will still have to manually intervene in every shot. Unless, of course, you're content with the results of the automatic cleaning. Personally, I don't know anyone who is.

 

[jrkliny]

The actual scanning isn't the most time-consuming task. That would be cleaning up the file. Sure, software can help remove some of the offenders, but you will still have to manually intervene in every shot. Unless, of course, you're content with the results of the automatic cleaning. Personally, I don't know anyone who is.

Perhaps the problem is the way your slides were stored. I used a blast of canned air on both sides of each slide and virtually everyone gave me a clean scan.

 

[b2martin_a]

I also have my Nikon 9000 running on a Windows 7 64 bit computer using the Nikon scan software and it works great. I need to start scanning again since I have not completed all my negatives and slides.

 

[DaveOl]

I think the V 700 series and up have a higher DR? than the V 600 scanner. I think that it is 3.5 vs 4.0.

I've been using my Epson V 600 for about a year and am perfectly happy with it. It has digital ICE for scratches and dust, but I never use it as supposedly it makes the scan much much slower. It runs a little less than 1 minute per negative for scanning. Also the V 600 series supposedly is much less susceptible to focus problems vs the V 700.

 

[Vernon D Rainwater]

I think the V 700 series and up have a higher DR? than the V 600 scanner. I think that it is 3.5 vs 4.0.

I've been using my Epson V 600 for about a year and am perfectly happy with it. It has digital ICE for scratches and dust, but I never use it as supposedly it makes the scan much much slower. It runs a little less than 1 minute per negative for scanning. Also the V 600 series supposedly is much less susceptible to focus problems vs the V 700.

I have the V700 and have no experience using the V600.

Does the V600 have an "Automatic Focus" feature. The V700 has provisions for adjusting for proper focus (height) that should be set properly and tested using media with very small details before actually using the scanner for productive scanning. This is a "one time" adjustment that seems to not have proper details in the user manual.

I have scanned thousands of various type and size Negatives plus both B/W and Color 35 mm Slides and have NOT had focus problems.

Most scanned images (using any of 3 Flatbed Scanners I have used in the past) do need the proper (USM) Un-sharp Mask sharpening that applies contrast and sharpening for best results. I prefer to NOT apply sharpening as a part of the scanning function and use Photoshop for any needed USM as discussed. Most of my scanned images accept USM settings in the range of 20-20-0 to 40-30-0 with most being around 30-20-0. Should the USM appear to force the Highlights near or to 255, I then select Highlights, invert to select shadows, then apply USM only to the Shadow areas.

--
Vernon...

 

[DaveOl]

I don't know if the V 600 has auto focus or not, but some of my 35mm negatives have a curl in them in the short direction so that they bow up in the middle of the strip and it doesn't seem to affect the focus. I think the V 600 has a smaller aperture in the lens and therefore has a greater DOF. Someone else on here may know if that is correct or not.

 

[trut_maluglist]

In what ways is the V700 better than the less expensive models such as the V550? If the extras are limited to the ability to scan 4x5, then it does me no good, as all I've got are 35mm slides and negatives.

 

[DaveOl]

If you don't have anything other than 35mm slides or negatives, you might be better off quality wise with one of the Plustek scanners or by just using a macro lens with your digital camera and a small LED light table. You just need a way to convert an orange negative into a color image.

 

[trut_maluglist]

Much thanks to all for your feedback. There are a lot of good tips in here.

Further questions:

1) Someone mentioned focus of the negatives. Does the V700 series have a better focusing tool than the V500 & V600 series?

2) Other than number of images which can be scanned at once and the fact that the V700 will accommodate a 4x5 negative, what is the advantage of a V700 over a V600 or V500?

3) Do these scanners come with multiple trays so one can load a second tray while scanning the first?

4) I'm completely ignorant when it comes to using Photoshop for touchup. I've tried using some online tutorials with a recent version of Photoshop I borrowed from a friend. But I was unsuccessful in fixing scratches/spots. Other than hiring a Photoshop expert to show me how to do these things, what ways would one recommend to help one become proficient with just one or two features of Photoshop (IOW, taking an entire class on Photoshop wouldn't be an efficient use of my time if I'm only going to need a couple of features).

Observations:

1) One should use a dust blower rather than rely on the scanners dust removal tool to clean the negatives/slides.

 

[AOKH]

Much thanks to all for your feedback. There are a lot of good tips in here.

Further questions:

1) Someone mentioned focus of the negatives. Does the V700 series have a better focusing tool than the V500 & V600 series?

2) Other than number of images which can be scanned at once and the fact that the V700 will accommodate a 4x5 negative, what is the advantage of a V700 over a V600 or V500?

3) Do these scanners come with multiple trays so one can load a second tray while scanning the first?

4) I'm completely ignorant when it comes to using Photoshop for touchup. I've tried using some online tutorials with a recent version of Photoshop I borrowed from a friend. But I was unsuccessful in fixing scratches/spots. Other than hiring a Photoshop expert to show me how to do these things, what ways would one recommend to help one become proficient with just one or two features of Photoshop (IOW, taking an entire class on Photoshop wouldn't be an efficient use of my time if I'm only going to need a couple of features).

Observations:

1) One should use a dust blower rather than rely on the scanners dust removal tool to clean the negatives/slides.

As regards Photoshop, removing scratches, blemishes and other unwanted stuff, just use the Clone Stamp Tool. It is easy to use, although it may take some practice to remove scratches in areas where there are a lot of details (best to zoom in and do a little at a time in those cases).

 

[AOKH]

If you don't have anything other than 35mm slides or negatives, you might be better off quality wise with one of the Plustek scanners or by just using a macro lens with your digital camera and a small LED light table. You just need a way to convert an orange negative into a color image.

Sorry for going a little "off course" here, but if someone with experience with any of the Epson or Plustek scanner could let me know if they are getting more details our of their 35mm negatives than the ones I get from my Microtek i900 (64 bit 3200dpi resolution, approx. 4500x3000), I would appreciate hearing from you? I seem to recall having seen someone mention that more then 3200dpi for most 35mm negatives don't make much difference, but I have no idea if that is true. see following sample. Thanks.









--
Regards. Anders

 

[trut_maluglist]

I just spoke w/Epson. They said the V600 will be sufficient for my needs. The rep said they use a technology called "Digital Ice", which detects scratches and only affects that area. So why would others be saying it softens the entire image?