New Epson V800, V850 flatbed scanners

[europanorama]

I suspect they'll have the same max 8x10 size transparency adapter but it only comes with a 4x5 holder. Probably the same film area guide as previous scanners will be included.

maybe it s working like the umax 3000 which had highresolution only at the smaller film-window, if i remember right. had also double-lens for that purpose. Someone in a report said its also 8x10 but no holder shown. i suspect its for 8x10 prints. and 4x5 max.

[Peter Lewin]

I know I'm resurrecting an older thread, but having just seen the new scanners at Photo Expro, thought I would simply add what the Epson rep told me.

The biggest change was to the holders. They are significantly thicker (hence more rigid) than the ones we have for our 4990 and 7xx series scanners. They have a sheet of AN glass, and sliders for raising or lowering the holder on the flat plate. When I asked if the new holders could be used on the older scanners, the rep said that at the moment the answer was "no" because of the programming used to recognize the positioning of the holders before the scan begins wouldn't work correctly. He said that Epson might change their driver programs to allow use of the new holders on older scanners at some time in the future. (I confess that I didn't really see why the old scanners shouldn't just work right off with the new holders, I am merely repeating his answer to my question.) Also, the new 4x5 holder takes only one negative, the 35mm holder takes 3 strips rather than 4. I didn't see the 120 holder.

When I asked if there were changes to the scanner itself (other than cosmetic) he said the only change was from fluorescent light to LED, and that the change was made largely because the fluorescent parts were getting harder to obtain, rather than any major quality benefit to LEDs. Again, his comment was that the existing scanners worked well, they didn't want to make large changes and mess anything up.

[lbenac]

When I asked if the new holders could be used on the older scanners, the rep said that at the moment the answer was "no" because of the programming used to recognize the positioning of the holders before the scan begins wouldn't work correctly. He said that Epson might change their driver programs to allow use of the new holders on older scanners at some time in the future.

That reminds me of my Epson R2800 that is programmed to clean all cartridge position when you change one cartridge...
I have a separate ink wastage container so as not to saturate the ink wastage pad and send my printer to early retirement and it feels like more ink goes in the container than on the print.
My only solace in this is that Epson is wasting purposely a third party ink instead of theirs so they will not reap the benefit of their dishonesty.

[Steve8088]

I have been thinking of getting one of these v850 Pros, can anyone comment on the quality of the 6x7(MF), or 4”x5” (negative/positive) scanning results on the ability to produce 24”x 36” fine art prints from the finished scanned file printed from Light room?

[Corran]

You can do anything, but whether or not the results are as good as you want is purely objective.

My friend scanned some 4x5 film shot at f/64 on an Epson V700 and printed it to 50x40. Was it cool? Yes, definitely. Did the resolution/detail hold up in close inspection? Heck no - at even a couple of feet away it was visibly soft. 6x7 MF images blown up to 24x36 (about an 11x enlargement) will definitely be similarly soft. You might get away with the 4x5 enlarged to that size (~8x enlargement) if you have good technique and adjust the film height appropriately.

I've used the V700 a lot, but I don't own one. The V8xx doesn't seem like it's going to change much with regard to optics/resolution.

[vinny]

I have been thinking of getting one of these v850 Pros, can anyone comment on the quality of the 6x7(MF), or 4”x5” (negative/positive) scanning results on the ability to produce 24”x 36” fine art prints from the finished scanned file printed from Light room?

well, since they aren't available yet, I doubt anyone has made scans/seen results in person. Since most everything other than the light source is the same, my guess is the results will be on par with the v700/750 which is okay. If you want the results you've seen printed from drum scans, get drum scans.

[Doug Fisher]

>>They have a sheet of AN glass<<

Actually, it is plastic with an AN surface molded into it.

Doug

[Paul Cunningham]

There are far too many factors to give a definitive answer to this. I would certainly print at this size, but a key factor in any print enlargement is viewing distance. I will say that at the low end of resolution, 185 dpi can hold up at 12x18" and if you have more resolution you will be happier, but more than 360 dpi is probably not needed. My two cents.

I have been thinking of getting one of these v850 Pros, can anyone comment on the quality of the 6x7(MF), or 4”x5” (negative/positive) scanning results on the ability to produce 24”x 36” fine art prints from the finished scanned file printed from Light room?

[richardman]

.. 4”x5” (negative/positive) scanning results on the ability to produce 24”x 36” fine art prints from the finished scanned file printed from Light room?

I have done 24x30" for a client a few days ago from a V700 scanned 4x5. They love it!

I wouldn't print any larger from the V700 though. I think it's at the limit of "high quality".

[StoneNYC]

I have done 24x30" for a client a few days ago from a V700 scanned 4x5. They love it!

I wouldn't print any larger from the V700 though. I think it's at the limit of "high quality".

How big is large? I've printed 11x14s from a 6x7 and 14x17's from a 4x5 scanned with the V750 just the holders no wet scan or anything, and it came out super sharp, no degradation or anything.