Which Slide Scanner?

[mikey_c]

I know this type of question has already been asked, but I couldn't find one

that matched my exact scenario... I am planning on scanning in family 35mm

slides from the 50's/60's/70's (like many others here), but was wondering which

scanner to use (common question)? I don't plan on making many printouts from

the scans, more for video production, meaning I only have to have large sizes

for pictures that will be zoomed on. 2700 dpi should be plenty for me to

manipulate the pics in Photoshop for later video work.

 

I am probably talking apples and oranges but please help this newbie... I can

find the Minolta Dimage IV and the Nikon LS-2000 on Ebay (with patience) for

around $250. However it appears that I can find the Dimage IV on websites like

dbuys.com "new" for under $250, while the Nikon LS-2000 shows for $1400 on

Amazon. I was wondering why the large difference in price - I admit that I

don't understand all the specs but figure if I can get a $1,400 unit for $200

that's better than getting a $250 unit for $200 - as long as it serves the

purpose.

 

Knowing that I will be using the stills for video work, am running Windows XP -

which seems like the better option? I am not familiar with installing SCSI

cards and wonder how much trouble that would be as well since it looks like the

Minolta is the only one that directly plugs in with a USB cable... something

else to consider.

 

Any suggestions on the better buy for me taking into account installing the

SCSI card and running Windows XP? BTW I tried a flatbed and didn't like the

outcome so I wanted to try a dedicated scanner.

I searched the forums and found tons of help but just not the one that would

specifically help me. Thanks in advance!

[andy_szeto]

Hi Mikey, I am not familiar with the Minolta product (but heard it is pretty good) but the Nikon LS-2000 would be an overkill for your application, I think. I am using the older Nikon CoolScan IV, which scans at 2700dpi and uses USB connection. The newer version, Nikon CoolScan V, scans up to 4000dpi, also uses USB connection which cost about $550 new. I would avoid that $200 LS-2000 deal. Just doesn't sound rignt. Hope this helps.

[doug_nelson3]

I am very pleasantly surprised at the quality of slide scans I am getting from the Epson V700. It runs on USB-2 or Firewire. I am scanning 12 slides at a time. I have used the Nikon LS-2000, and had to dump mine because the cost of repairing my own neglect at letting mold and mildew grow in it was prohibitive. Don't buy a used one. I use my Canon FS-4000 for situations in which I need top quality and reaching far into shadow areas, and use VueScan on multiple passes. Its slow and tedious work, while, for your purposes, the V700 would be a breeze. Should you consider the Epson, however, consider reading up on using Unsharp Mask in Photoshop or Elements.

[robert lee]

"I don't plan on making many printouts from the scans, more for video production ... 2700 dpi should be plenty for me to manipulate the pics in Photoshop for later video work."

 

If video is all you need, then any sub $100 flatbed with a film adapter will do. A 600dpi scan of 35mm film will give you roughly 850x566 pixels. Good enough for standard TV resolutions. Scan at 1200dpi if you want to crop or support HD.

 

Now, if you want quality prints from the scans as well, get a dedicated scanner like the Nikon Coolscan V or 5000. Don't bother with a used LS2000. A new V is $500 and is much better.

 

Consumer level flatbeds, regardless of price and regardless of marketing specs, just aren't that great for 35mm film: resulting 4x6 prints will be excellent, and 8x10's will be mediocre.

[carbon_dragon]

I have the Minolta Scan Dual IV and while it's not a bad scanner, it scans at a lower resolution than the Nikons and with Minolta out of the photo biz, getting driver updates is just about impossible. I'd avoid.

[lonoveracker]

Mickey,

 

I've gone thru your exact scenario - taking family slides from the 50

s thru the 70's and putting them on DVD, complete with music, chapters, etc. I then sent them to my parents and siblings. It was a great hit and even more importantly a great way to preserve the family history - many of the slides my Dad took while in the service in the 50's were badly deteriorated.

 

Anyway, to your question. Here is an option that hasn't been mentioned yet. First of all, I have the Minolta/Konica Diimage Scan Elite 5400 II that I like very much. But the thought of scanning 1500 slides was daunting and not practical. What I ended up doing was projecting the slides on a screen (white wall, board, whatever) and then capturing them with my 5MP digital camera.

 

I spent time in PS fixing the bad ones and then created actions to streamline the ones that didn't need repair. Then on to a video editing program to create the "movie" on DVD.

 

Now I can hear many barfing and laughing.... but remember what Mickey's stated criteria is: " I don't plan on making many printouts from the scans, more for video production" If a slide show for a video production at monitor resolution is all you need, then the route I described will be much more convenient and save you a lot of time. Sure, you'll have PS work for color corrections, etc.... but we're not trying to make a 16x20" print either.

 

Just an idea Mike. Been there done that... and I had a lot of fun going thru the old slides. In fact I'm doing it again for my son: the first 18 years...

 

Good luck,

Lon

[j_sevigny]

You might look around for a Canon FS4000US scanner. It's a few years old but mine does a great job paired up with Hamrick's Vuescan. Not a plug as I've never met the man but Vuescane is something you should definitely consider as most of the software that comes packaged with scanners sucks you-know-what.

[les]

Ditto the above. If you do not have SCSI card - it costs just a couple of bucks and greatly increases the speed (USB is not very fast on this scanner, but at least there is SCSI option).

[Stock-Photos]

"Hey Mikey...he likes it!" (old cereal commercial)

 

The scope of your project should have an impact on your scanner choice/budget.

 

If you've got thousands of slides and you DON'T have TONS of free time, buy the Nikon 5000 AND the SF210 auto-feeder. Sell them when you're done. They hold their value well.

[jonathan_walker]

Is SCSI faster than USB 2.0?

[robert_k1]

I second Robert Lee's comments. For your purposes, you may want to look into scanning services like Kodak PhotoCD (assuming they are still around). Very reasonable cost and perfectly fine for web/video or even 8x10 prints.

 

The cost of scanning your own is not limited to the cost of a scanner. For *good* scans, there is a learning curve to use the scanner *well* followed by PS corrections.

[robert lee]

"Is SCSI faster than USB 2.0?"

 

Practically, no; not in the context using it with a scanner like the LS2000.

 

The SCSI interface as a long history. The version then current with the scanner will probably do about 20MB/sec. This is much faster than the alternative PC interfaces of the time, e.g., the parallel port, but about equivalent to USB2 today.

[les]

Well, all I can say is that with SCSI card the speed of scanning is more than 2x the speed with USB (although,honestly, I can't remember whether my Canon FS4000US has USB 2.0).

[kelly_flanigan1]

Here my Canon FSW4000US has usb 1.1

[les]

Yes, so has mine. That's why I bought SCSI card - and all is well with the world. When scanning latge number of images, makes a huge difference.