Preparing negatives for scanning

[martin_jordan]

<p>I have just purchased an Epson Perfection V700 scanner and I have quite a few (about 50 or so) very old neg's from the 1950's. They have been stored in several houses over the years and have been handled by many. It seems to me that I read somewhere awhile ago that you should clean these neg's with a chemical or something to get them as clean as possible before you attempt to scan. Now maybe I misread this...I don't remember.<br>

My question is:<br>

What is the best way to clean these old neg's from finger prints, dust, etc. before I put them them in the holder to scan? Is there also any special gloves I should be wearing or any other gear needed. Any other tips welcome.<br>

I want to be sure to get this right because these are not replaceable nor are there any copies.<br>

Thanks.</p>

[leicaglow]

<p>Martin, Go to FreestylePhoto.biz and buy some Pec-12. I don't buy into alcohol and butane. I'm an archival nut, and this is the only stuff I use, and I've used it for many decades now. While there, buy a pack of cotton gloves and a good antistatic brush.</p>

[martin_jordan]

<p>Hey Michael, Ok thanks. I went to the site and will order. Let me ask you this...do you spray this pec-12 on say a Pec lint free pad and wipe the neg's, prints etc. or what? How do you apply it?</p>

<p>Also, how and when do you use the brush?</p>

<p>I guess what I am saying is, can you give me a brief overview of your procedures?</p>

[hjoseph7]

<p>Nothing works best like a good old water.</p>

[Ed_Ingold]

<p>I do not recommend using any kind of solvent, much less water. Fingerprints won't show unless they are embossed in the emulsion, and nothing will remove that sort of thing*. Dust is the major problem, especially since Digital ICE cannot be used on a silver negative.</p>

<p>The major impediment to dust removal is static electricity, and brushing can make it worse. Light blowing also creates static, so it takes a strong blast to dislodge dust and lint. An anti-static brush helps somewhat. There are those with a polonium strip (radioactive) which helps dissipate static by alpha radiation. The half-life is very short, so they only work a few years (if at all) from the date of manufacture. I use a brush with embedded carbon microfibers which works as well or better than the Po strips, followed with a light blast of canned air or a filtered (5 micron) airbrush compressor ($50 = 10 cans of "air").</p>

<p>Gloves are essential when handling negatives. I use cotton photofinisher's gloves, purchased from Wolf Camera ($5/3). They seem to be pre-washed and remain relatively lint-free. There are synthetic fiber gloves which have much less lint, but don't last as long. Finally, you can use latex or vinyl gloves, but they make your hands sweat and are uncomfortable.</p>

<p>Good light is essential. A point source, like an halogen desk lamp, works best. You can see dust as small as 20 microns in cross light. A 4000 ppi scanner will resolve dust far too small to see, even in good light, however.</p>

<p>* Wet-mounting for scanning (q.v.) greatly reduces the effect of scratches and would probably make embedded fingerprints invisible. The tools and materials are expensive (and flammable), and it adds 15-30 minutes to the time of each scan.</p>

[bruce_watson1]

<p><em>Nothing works best like a good old water.</em></p>

<p>No, no, no! Do NOT use water to clean film. Water softens and swells the emulsion making it more vulnerable to scratches and makes it sticky -- dust and grundge stuck to a wet emulsion is nearly impossible to remove once that emulsion dries -- even if you wet it again. You don't have to believe me -- it's easy enough to try it and see for yourself.</p>

<p>Water is about the worst thing you could use to clean film. Liquids that contain water (like drug store alcohols) are almost as bad. Use an actual film cleaner. Like Pec-12, Kami, or SDS/Prazio (if you can find it).</p>

 

[bgelfand]

<p>I would be very careful about using "canned air". Most cans of "air" are really a hydrocarbon that vaporize as the pressure is reduced, not air and leave a residue.</p>

<p>I agree with Bruce and Edward, stay away from water.<br>

When I use PEC-12, I spray a little on a PEC pad and gently wipe the negative. The operative word here is "gentlely".</p>

<p> </p>

[tom_halfhill]

<p>I agree with Bruce. Don't try to clean old negatives with water!</p>

<p>A few years ago I tried to straighten a badly curled roll of 35mm film by winding it onto a developing reel, rewashing it, and hanging it to dry with weight. (The developed but uncut negatives had been tightly wound inside a film can for about 50 years.) As the film dried overnight, it re-curled in the OTHER dimension, ending up as a three-foot-long tube. When I soaked the tube in water and gently tried to uncurl it, the emulsion slid off the film base, ruining the entire roll.</p>

<p>When in doubt with any cleaning method, test it on an unwanted negative of the same vintage first. Or scan the dirty negative, then clean it and scan again. That way, you will have at least a dirty scan if something goes wrong.</p>

 

[martin_jordan]

<p>Thanks everyone. This was most helpful.</p>

[jtk]

<p>Cotton gloves and Tiger Cloth. No chems or water. Tiger Cloth won't scratch if you're not too abusive. Google for it.</p>