Scanners versus copying with Digital Camera

[david_day3]

Hi everyone,

Like many phtographers I have a mass of 35mm slides I would like to digtize.

Could any one tell me the pros and cons in quaity of doing this using

1) A commercial service, but using 35mm scanner not a drum scanner.

2) Me doing it on a 7200DPI Plustek OptikFilm 7300 scanner or similar

3) Using the latest Canon 21MP camera with quality lens, slide copier and

bellows.

Many thanks for any help.

David Day

[john_gleason1]

You can probably get decent results with (3), but it's likely not as simple as you might think. For one thing, getting the lighting just right can be a challenge.

 

For another, the "with quality lens" part may be harder than you think. Many so-called "macro" lenses can focus close enough, but to get a great image of a perfectly flat subject (such as a slide), you need a lens with a very flat field of focus. Many of the consumer grade "macro" lenses are not very good in that respect, so you'll need to choose carefully there.

[roger_smith4]

Skip 2 and consider a Coolscan 5000 or similar instead. You get hardware dust busting, which is worth something and it's quicker than the other routes.

[blumesan]

John is right about option #3. Option #2 is a reasonable choice if you are willing to devote considerable time to making the scans and if you are not planning on making prints larger than 8x10 from the digital files. It is certainly better than any flat bed scanner. It is also less than half the price of the cheapest Nikon Coolscan but the latter does give better quality. Option #1 depends on the price and quality of scans produced by the service. A trial run would be a good idea; then run the numbers.

[Stock-Photos]

Hi Dave,

I can mention a few pros and cons of 1.) a commercial slide scanning service.

 

The pros are, the images will likely be better than using either of the other two methods. You can get the scans in tif format. You'll have the option of digital ice dust and scratch removal. You won't have to spend lots of time doing the work.

 

The cons of a slide scanning service are, you'll have to pay. Prices vary from about 25 cents to almost two dollars. Some scan service providers enhance the scans. Most slide scans will need to be perked up a bit in PS, especially scans from Kodachrome.

 

I offer slide scanning services. In addition to my published prices that include enhancement, I offer 4000 PPI scans to tif format for .99 "without" enhancement.

 

A page of my slide scanning tips is here:

 

http://www.slidescanning123.com/tips/

 

and you might gather some useful info from my slide scanning page here:

 

http://www.saugus.net/Photos/scanning.shtml

 

I recommend choosing a service that does not require full payment before shipping your order back.

 

Be aware, some of the lower priced slide scan service providers send the work out of the country.

[marc_rochkind]

"Be aware, some of the lower priced slide scan service providers send the work out of the country."

 

Meaning what?

 

I assume you mean that there is more risk of loss or damage. Do you have any data to support this assertion?

 

(Domestic services lose things, too.)

 

A very well known new site that sends their work to their staff in India is ScanCafe. I suspect that no one has any idea what their loss rate is vs. the typical domestic service, but my guess is that it is substantially lower, since that would be the chief negative that their business plan would have to overcome.

 

I have two orders in with them, and they give me more status reports ("on its way to the imaging center", etc.) than any other service I have ever dealt with.

[ian_tindale]

I've experimented with my Nikon D50*, Micro-Nikkor 55mm AF, SC-17 flash extension, SB-24 flash firing directly into the arrangement, and film gently taped to a small piece of white acrylic sheet for diffusion. It works, and it showed potential for working well. However, it's very tedious, and not at all fun. Contrast that with the scanner I subsequently bought, which is nice enough to use to become a reasonably addictive activity.

 

* I also was tempted to set up for my Nikon E995, which has a mode specifically to allow this sort of activity, even resulting in proper positive images from colour negs if you tell it that's what you're shooting - but the E995 was being faulty as usual.

[Stock-Photos]

Mr Rochkind,

I made no assertions. You assumed, as you said. You want data from me,to support an assertion I did not make?

I felt the OP should be aware of why there is a such a variation in scan pricing, so he could make an informed decision, if he chooses option 1.

[david_day3]

Everyone,

Many thanks for your answers which give me a very good idea of the differences between the various methods.

David Day