ed_dods

Phil,

 

Here is an excellent article by Bob Atkins, on Dynamic Range A/D Converters.

 

http://www.photo.net/learn/drange/

 

It's a little nitty/gritty, but the context of the whole thing is summarized in the last 3 paragraphs.

 

I'm actually trying to choose between the V & the 5000ED. So like yourself, i know the feeling of trying to spend, but not overspend for quality.

 

I mostly understand all the hardware/software differences, but just haven't been able to figure out if there is a true "image scan quality" difference yet.

Or, if you're serious about trying to shave cost, why not look at the Coolscan V? It's almost half the price of the 5000. Sure it's slower, with 14bit A/D, but if i'm not mistaken it would be able to produce slides to the same quality as the 5000, just not maybe as fast.

 

I'm of the school, that needing 16 bits versus 14 is really not necessary, unless you've got a true Dmax higher then 3.6.

 

In laymans' terms, the A/D converter would be the "pipe". The Dmax (Max. Density Range) would be the "oil".

 

Correct me if i'm wrong......ed

Thanks Edward,

 

1. Where do you reccomend that i purchase targets from? Wolf Faust?

 

Thanks......ed

Hi,

 

SYSTEM:

DELL DIMENSION 9150 W/ DELL 2007FP 20.1" LCD

nVIDIA GEFORCE 7300 TURBO 256mB video card

NIKON COOLSCAN 5000ED

 

NOTE: No printer. Printing is not an issue with the question at hand. I

won't need to worry about the printing process, until much later down the road.

 

GOAL: To be able to scan and produce high quality large file sizes primarily

from mounted slides (velvia/provia). By large, i mean large enough to retain

as much detail/data as possible, but not overkill. I'm looking to scan them

to CD/DVD for both distribution/sales and personal archiving.

 

QUESTIONS:

 

1. Should i upgrade my video card?

2. Do i need to purchase software/hardware calibrator?

3. Should i get a better monitor?

4. Do i need to get what's called targets, or color profiles?

5. What brand/type of CD/DVD is recommend for storage?

 

Your input would be appreciate.

 

Thanks......ed

I've done my reseach and am finally ready to spend $$ for a

non-drum quality scanner. Problem is i still am unable to sort

through all the marketing hype & differences of opinion.

 

I've read the threads on Photo.net, Bobatkins.com, Luminous

Landscape, and others.

 

I tend to agree with what Bob Atkins has written on this site on the

relationship between D-Max(Density Range)/8-16 Bits/A-D

conversion/SNR with respect to film scanners.

 

Basically i'm not into marketing hype, and don't put much stock into

claimed Density Ranges of well over 4.0 in a non-drum scanner. I'm

looking for the highest TRUE D-max available, combined with other

important factors.

 

QUESTION #1: BASED ON THIS KNOWLEDGE, WHICH SCANNER SHOULD I

LOOK TO GET BASED ON THE FOLLOWING CRITERIA ONLY???

 

A) $2000 MAX

B) HIGH D-MAX & CAPABLE OF HANDLING OR TAKING ADVANTAGE

OF VELVIA/PROVIA

C) BEST OVERALL COMBINATION OF D-MAX/A-D CONVERSION/# BITS/SNR

D) HIGH BUILD QUALITY & RELIABILITY & GOOD ELECTRONICS

E) CAPABLE OF PRODUCING UP TO 50MB FILE SIZES @ HIGH RESOLUTION

F) MINIMUM SCAN RESOLUTION OF 3500-4000PPI

G) 35MM COLOR FILM & TRANSPARENCIES (STRIPS & MOUNTED)

H) AUTOFOCUS

 

QUESTION #2: THESE ARE THE SCANNERS THAT I?M CONSIDERING.

WHICH 1 OR 2 ARE MOST CAPABLE, OR SHOULD I LOOK @ SPENDING BIG $$ FOR

THE IMACON??

 

A) CANON CANOSCAN FS4000 US

B) NIKON LS-50 (V) COOLSCAN ED

C) NIKON LS-4000 SUPER COOLSCAN ED

D) NIKON LS-5000 SUPER COOLSCAN ED

E) MINOLTA DIMAGE SCAN ELITE 5400

 

Any and all helpfull input would be much appreciated & I look forward

to hearing from those experienced with using any of these scanners.

 

Thanks.....ed

I'm looking at purchasing a wide angle EOS lense in the 20-35mm range. I'm only interested in the 20mm 2.8, 20-35mm 2.8L (used), or the 20-35mm 3.5-4.5. Could someone inform me of their experience with these lenses? I'd like to know especially about the Optical Quality of the glass (resolving power, distortion, natural color tones, and sharpness). On Optical quality alone, which one of these should i be aiming to purchase? Thanks.