CannoScan 9900F... Preview Scan vs Final Scan

hello everyone...

i'm at about the end of my rope here, but before i pack up this scanner and exchanged it for an Epson 4870, i thought i'd ask a question on this forum.

i'm using a new CannoScan 9900F and find that while the preview scan looks great, once the final scan opens in photoshop, the image looks very different. it appears almost as if the scan was done through slightly hazy glass. the colors look faded, contrast weak. black and white negs scan beautifully, but my color transparancies look off. the best way i can describe it is like you are peering through hazy glass.

is there something i'm missing here? the $150 microtek scanner the CannonScan is replacing did not have this problem... the preview scans in the scanner software and the final scans in photoshop were spot on.

is there something simple i'm missing... a profile maybe? i've read elswhere that color managment with these units was a problem. any suggestions before i pack this thing up and exchange it for the 4870?

thanks,
scott

Scott,

Can you post a screen capture of the levels histogram from PS? It might help us help you.

I have an older canon, and it has auto-levels and contrast features. If you were ajusting things while scanning b&w, make sure to go back and 'reset all' defaults.

Also, I found that some software doesnt do well with certain formats. Set the scanner at 600 DPI 8bits per channel and try it.

I think Ed Hamrick has just added support for it to Vuescan.

Vuescan has it's own pecularitites and a buit of a learnign curve, but I think you can still try a trial version - it usually gives you many more options than the standard software

If you just purchased it, send it back. Its replacement is being released now and Epson is due for a new scanner too. I have had three Epsons and but my new Canon 9950f produces the best scans -by far- out of the box. The Epsons take more work to get good scans. So perhaps Canon has made software improvements with the new model.

If my 9950f was shipped early by mistake, they're building inventory and should release the machine soon.

The new version of Vuescan does not work so far on my 9950f. I've told Hamrick this news and I'm confident he will get it to work (if the problem is not my particular system).

Don

is that version 8.1.5 you are using Don?

It could it be a profile issue? What are you doing as far as color management?

As Don said, though if you can send it back do so. The 9950 looks much better compared to the 9900 scans I saw a while ago.

is that version 8.1.5 you are using Don?

yes

thanks for all the suggestions fellas. sorry for taking so long getting back to the post, but i've been really busy the last several days.

graeme -
i don't really know how i could do that. if it means anything, adjusting the levels in photoshop seems to get the image closer... the left arrow and center arrow need to slide to the right. after splaying with the usm, channel mixer, brightness/contrast, and saturation settings, i can get the image better. i don't think this much work should be required!

darinwc-
i have it set to calibrate with each scan. i haven't really touched any of the settings in the scanner software, as the preview scans look great without adjustment. once they open in photoshop, i get images that don't look so great. since i can't gauge how my changes are going to translate in photoshop, i simply use it to make any adjustments. i seems to be getting the same results no matter what resolution i scan at. sigh.

larry-
i do all my digital work in photoshop. i've been using it for years and am pretty good with it. i can get the scans to look nice in photoshop, but that's after spending some time working with them. if there's a better way, i'd like to explore it. i don't have any special profiles... that might be what i need to do to get the scans in photoshop to more closely match the preview scans in the cannon software. i think i'd rather simply wait on the 9950f and start with that unit.

don-
that's precisely what i'm going to do. monday morning, the scanner is getting packed up and it's going back. if i have to wait a little bit for the 9950 to hit the shelves here in dallas, that'll be fine.

thanks again everyone.
scott

Scott, I'm pretty sure I saw a Canon 9950f at Competitive Camera on Irving Blvd day before yesterday. Their number is 214 744-5511.