Color negative viewers

[michael_fox]

I'm considering a Videoptics viewer (www.videoptics.com) to allow me

to more easily view color negatives. Of course, I can view

composition and sharpness with a loupe. But it's difficult enough

for me to "see" the image past all the yellow mask and darn near

impossible for a non-photographer. Setting up the scanner to scan a

bunch of negs just for someone to say "I want that one" takes too

much time.

 

Does anyone have experience with the Videoptics viewers? If so,

which one and what do you think? Are there any better (and cheaper)

alternatives?

[ralph_barker]

Shoot chromes instead? (tee hee)

[brian_c._miller]

E-6 or contact sheets.

 

I presume that you want to sit down with a customer, and with negatives at hand, have them make a choice about what they want printed.

 

I think that the "Video Loupe" model would pay for itself very quickly, if you are currently paying someone to do your color work.

 

The downside to this is most folks want to see several at a time. Two contact sheets would show them 8 images, while with this system you would be switching back and forth between the negatives.

[michael_fox]

Ralph, Yup! Whenever I can! But sometimes need the difference in contrast, saturation and exposure lattitude. Trying to match the simplicity of throwing it on the light table is another matter.

 

Brian, Yes, I do have the development done at a lab and I think you're right about it paying for itself in a reasonable timeframe. The cost of contact sheets is reasonable for 35mm with many images per page, and not tooooo bad for 6x6. But now that I'm moving into 4x5, it quickly gets rather pricey.

[ralph_barker]

Just joking about shooting trannies instead.

 

Depending on what film-storage system you use, Michael, here's a thought for you. The scanner I use for 4x5 film (and prints) currently is a clunky old Epson Expression 800 Pro - scans film up to 8x10 at a reasonable resolution for 4x5. Where it comes in really handy, though, is with "contact sheets". I use PrintFile sheets for all my negs and trannies, and scanning a PrintFile sheet (of whatever-sized film) is a convenient way of producing working contact sheets. A procedure along those lines with a more up-to-date scnner might be a reasonable solution, assuming you could find a film profile for it to get rid of the orange mask of your color negs. While you might not want to acutally print them (due to color matching issues in the print), it would give you a reasonable screen image for review purposes.

[j.w.]

Michael;

 

A cheaper alternative is if you already own a Sony 8mm, Hi8 or mini-DV camcorder, with the "reverse video" special effects mode. Some other brands of video camcorders have this feature, too. Set your negative on a light table, with the camera on a tripod, looking down on the light table in a "rostrum" position. Once you have zoom and focus adjusted so the image is nicely framed, set the camcorder to the reverse video mode, then use the manual exposure mode to adjust exposure to your liking. You can also use this procedure to create "slide shows" on video. If you're using mini-DV, these can then be imported to PC easily.

[michael_fox]

Thanks for the suggestions, one and all.

 

I think I'll go with a reasonably priced flatbed scanner that will do 8x10 so I can throw a PrintFile page on there. Doesn't have to be a great scan - just fairly representative of the colors and tonalities.

 

The scanner will be cheaper than the viewer and I can use it for other purposes.

 

Thanks again to all.