Epson V750 BW Film Scan Quality (Bad?)

[RedSun]

This is the first time I use V750 to scan 6x7 BW film. I'm not impressed by the quality. The 6x7 film is superior to the 35mm film I used before. But the digital images do not reflect that.

For the V750 film scan, I used 2400 and 3200 dpi resolution. Not much difference. The skin tone is really bad, not smooth. I do not know if I did not scan correctly. I used the stock film carrier and used the top lens for negative.

I have Minolta Elite 5400 to scan my 35mm film. The quality is much better.

Not sure if there is anything else I can do.

[jbenedict]

A good scanner like the v750 is not plug and play. Look for some tutorials online to help your quality. Here's one of them:

http://www.imagingtips.com/othertips/epson750scanner/0100scan.shtml

There are more if you look.

[Andrew O'Neill]

My V750 was plug and play. I get excellent 8x10 film scans, dry or wet mounting. Even scanning with the holders is excellent. Have you scanned negatives directly on the bed? Have you tried scanning prints?

[Light Guru]

My V750 was plug and play.

All epson scanners are NOT plug and play they require drivers and software to be installed to use them.



For the V750 film scan, I used 2400 and 3200 dpi resolution. Not much difference. The skin tone is really bad, not smooth.

The dpi you scan at has absolutely nothing to do with how skin tones are going to look, that has to do with the other image settings.
https://files.support.epson.com/htmldocs/pr449p/pr449pug/scan1_5.htm#S-00700-00500-00800

[RedSun]

I'm using the negative holder with the top scan lens. I've used it to scan color prints, never any problem. But this is the first time I scan 120 film.... The scan should be straight forward, not much settings to choose. I just use the Epson Scan, no processing.

[Andrew O'Neill]

All epson scanners are NOT plug and play they require drivers and software to be installed to use them.

Yes, I installed the driver that came with the CD. What other software is required?

[djdister]

This is the first time I use V750 to scan 6x7 BW film. I'm not impressed by the quality. The 6x7 film is superior to the 35mm film I used before. But the digital images do not reflect that.

For the V750 film scan, I used 2400 and 3200 dpi resolution. Not much difference. The skin tone is really bad, not smooth. I do not know if I did not scan correctly. I used the stock film carrier and used the top lens for negative.

I have Minolta Elite 5400 to scan my 35mm film. The quality is much better.

Not sure if there is anything else I can do.

Posting some examples of your bad scans usually helps guide thoughtful and helpful responses.

[jbenedict]

I'm using the negative holder with the top scan lens. I've used it to scan color prints, never any problem. But this is the first time I scan 120 film.... The scan should be straight forward, not much settings to choose. I just use the Epson Scan, no processing.

There are lots of settings that can be twiddled with to improve your scans. I mentioned an online tutorial for your scanner and that would be a good place to start. Once you learn a little more about scanning and operating the scanner, you will be able to ask better questions here which I'm sure someone can answer for you. Finding a book or guide for reference might be a good thing also. Perhaps someone here can make some suggestions.

[Ken Lee]

This is the first time I use V750 to scan 6x7 BW film. I'm not impressed by the quality. The 6x7 film is superior to the 35mm film I used before. But the digital images do not reflect that.

For the V750 film scan, I used 2400 and 3200 dpi resolution. Not much difference. The skin tone is really bad, not smooth. I do not know if I did not scan correctly. I used the stock film carrier and used the top lens for negative.

I have Minolta Elite 5400 to scan my 35mm film. The quality is much better.

Not sure if there is anything else I can do.

It's not really a surprise that the Epson flatbed scanner delivers less resolution than a dedicated film scanner. Tonality is another matter.

You might find this article helpful: Scanning Tips (with EPSON and VueScan Software) (http://www.kenleegallery.com/html/tech/scanning.php)

[Brian C. Miller]

For the V750 film scan, I used 2400 and 3200 dpi resolution. Not much difference. The skin tone is really bad, not smooth. I do not know if I did not scan correctly. I used the stock film carrier and used the top lens for negative.

From what you have described in your post, you are having a problem with tonal rendition, and you are using negative film. Have you tried profiling your scanner? I use Profile Prism (http://www.ddisoftware.com/prism/), and there are other products, too.

For resolution, the film holders may not be in the scanning plane. The Epson stock holders have three positions, so trying the other positions may increase your resolution. Another problem would be manufacturing tolerances. Some scanners are cherries, some are more like rhubarb. Ctien wrote of his experiences with Epson printers, and I'm sure that the scanners fall into a bell curve of quality as well.

[Light Guru]

My V750 was plug and play.



Yes, I installed the driver that came with the CD. What other software is required?

Having to install software to use a device is exactly what makes it NOT plug in play. Plug and play devices don't require anything to be installed in order to use them.

The drivers and software from are the big thing, but many people prefer to use 3rd party scanning software and calibration software.

[brucep]

From what you have described in your post, you are having a problem with tonal rendition, and you are using negative film. Have you tried profiling your scanner? I use Profile Prism (http://www.ddisoftware.com/prism/), and there are other products, too.

Can you give a bit more info on how you use profile prism to profile an Epson v700/750 please?

[Andrew O'Neill]

I guess I should have said, "plug, install, and play" then.

[Brian C. Miller]

Can you give a bit more info on how you use profile prism to profile an Epson v700/750 please?

Profile Prism works by scanning a reference target, and then creating a profile based on the actual colors produced by the scanner. Then another target is printed, and that is scanned in and analyzed to profile your printer/ink/paper combo. The package contains the software and a reference target.

[Noah B]

the 750 is a great scanner, with no scanned image to look at or a list of your settings nobody can help you

[mdarnton]

. . . with no scanned image to look at or a list of your settings nobody can help you

Not only is this true but I wonder if with samples everyone would be saying the same thing, one group saying "See--it's fine!", the other saying "See, it's junk! I never assume that everyone's quality standards are the same, but I'm pretty sure everyone thinks their own are impeccable.

(I have no other iron in this fire than that I'm thinking about getting a big Epson scanner but am still confused as to the quality I could expect.......do you suppose Epson's own consistency might be an issue here, too?)

[Andrew O'Neill]

That's a good question mdarnton. I'm hearing all these stories of people having scanning issues, including sharpness (rectified by slightly elevating the negative). I've never had an issue at all and my scans are quite sharp. A friend of mine had the v750 with no issues either.... until a part broke and he had to get another one.
Personally, I hate scanning. It's time consuming but I need to do it if I want to work with a digital negative.

[Lenny Eiger]

There are a lot of people here who like the consumer flatbed scanners, like the 750. I sincerely and genuinely have no desire to insult any of them. That said, there are better scanners, both dedicated film scanners such as Nikon and Imacon, and plenty of drum scanners. They are less and less expensive these days and one can achieve excellent results.

It is very possible you may want more out of that scanner than it is capable of.

If I were you I would find a scanner operator and send them an image as a comparison. Then you will see what you can get at the high end and you can judge for yourself whether or not you want to go that route. I had one client who did this and I had to tell him that no scanner would do more than what he had, as his images weren't sharp to begin with. He needed a better tripod... I am not suggesting that your situation is similar at all, I'm just saying you never know what you will learn until you check it out...

Lenny

[Noah B]

Too bad a hasselblad x1 is only 13k

[Lenny Eiger]

Too bad a hasselblad x1 is only 13k

A Howtek 4500 is about $1500 these days.

Lenny

[Regular Rod]

This is the first time I use V750 to scan 6x7 BW film. I'm not impressed by the quality. The 6x7 film is superior to the 35mm film I used before. But the digital images do not reflect that.

For the V750 film scan, I used 2400 and 3200 dpi resolution. Not much difference. The skin tone is really bad, not smooth. I do not know if I did not scan correctly. I used the stock film carrier and used the top lens for negative.

I have Minolta Elite 5400 to scan my 35mm film. The quality is much better.

Not sure if there is anything else I can do.

Try these measures from an earlier thread: http://www.largeformatphotography.info/forum/showthread.php?111931-Epson-V750-a-lot-of-problems&p=1120176&viewfull=1#post1120176

You have a good scanner there and you can get the results you need by stopping the scanner from doing ANYTHING automatically. Deal with dust and other stuff in your editing software such as PS...

RR

[coisasdavida]

A couple years ago I was given a Screen Cezanne scanner. The guy that gave me that was the original owner, I asked him what he was using after he put the Cezanne in storage. He said it was an Epson 750. I was shocked at first. But he explained it to me. In his claims the average person today has never seen a scan from a Cezanne or from a Minolta 5400, for example, so they wouldn't know better. He also claims that the 750 delivers an image with a structure similar to digital camera files people are used to. And finally he says the 750 image structure is handled fine by Epson printers. I asked what was beyond that and he stated it was simply too much trouble for his business.

So my guess is that Lenny nailed it when he said "It is very possible you may want more out of that scanner than it is capable of." Ignorance is bliss.

If like me you have seen drum scans or even Coolscan scans, the images in this http://www.imagingtips.com/othertips/epson750scanner/0100scan.shtml are really poor quality. With those older scanners you could see the grain and with the 750 it would be a complicated sharpening path to acomplish the same.

But for the skin tone problem, assuming you got Silverfast when you bought the 750, you could probably try that and apply different film types to your scan and see if it improves the color right out of the scanner. If that doesn't do it, there is also a way to get linear gamma positive image of your negative with Silverfast and then invert and correct in PS afterwards. Maybe there is a way to get linear gamma positive out of Epson Scan as well, but I wouldn't know.

[Tom Monego]

I find my Epson 700 does much better with 4x5 and 35mm than 2 1/4, have tried all the settings, seems 2 1/4 film sags a little bit in the holder. A couple of basics:
Not use the Auto settings, results are awful. I use the Epson software, the hobbled version of Silverfast sold with the 700 was not worth it.
Film should be in the holder, emulsion side up, not like in an enlarger.
Hope this helps.

Tom

[alexn]

I dont use a V700/750, however I have had much better results when I scan B/W Negs if I scan them in colour positive mode, then import that file into PS, Invert, and use only the green channel (giving a B/W positive final image) I find the results are sharper, smoother and have better tonality than if I set the scanner to B/W Neg mode.

[ross]

Try Ken Lee's link above. It sure helped me simplify my Epson V750 scanning method. It's pretty straightforward and I'm happy with my scans. Thanks Ken.