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Thread: High end scanner options - What's out there?

  1. #1

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    High end scanner options - What's out there?

    Hello, everyone. This is my first time posting to the forums but I've been a long time lurker and have gained lots of excellent information here over the years.

    Here's my sitch: After 17+ years of faithful service, my company wants to put our Scitex EverSmart scanner to pasture. She's still kicking (barely) and it's only a matter of time until she's belly up. So naturally, we wanted to start looking into potential replacements, and I thought that with time and technology advances there would probably be some interesting options out there to consider. Someone please correct me if I'm wrong - but I have yet to find anyone currently manufacturing and updating a scanner comparable to this Scitex?

    Let's just say for now there is no budget limitation.

    Here's a wish list:
    - Something new
    - warranty
    - tech support
    - flat bed (min 11x17)
    - reflective and trans
    - wet mounting capabilities
    - Operates on current MAC OS
    - USB connect
    - quality that compares to Scitex ( MUST be high end quality)

    Now I know that's a hefty wishlist, but it's where I need to start. I full well know getting all of them is not reality. We've considered purchasing a drum scanner in the past but feel the flatbed just gives us more versatility. We do quite a bit of work for museums and gallerys, so scanning large format negatives/prints for wall mural output is not uncommon.

    In closing, If anyone has any input on what's out there, what may be coming out soon, or if I'm just in a dreamland on what I'm looking for - please give me your thoughts. And if such a beast doesn't exist, maybe my best option is to have this Scitex refurbished? Is that even an option? I wouldn't even know who services them anymore.

    Thanks much for any input ~
    -Cee

  2. #2

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    Re: High end scanner options - What's out there?

    Just a thought... You may get more information if you post this on dpug.org

    Good luck!

  3. #3

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    Re: High end scanner options - What's out there?

    Thanks- I will!

  4. #4

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    Re: High end scanner options - What's out there?

    The only currently made option is a medformat DSLR on copy stand. Not quite a scanner, but depending on what you are scanning could be a replacement.
    Digital transitions market one.

  5. #5
    Unwitting Thread Killer Ari's Avatar
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    Re: High end scanner options - What's out there?

    Contact Genesis, they'll be able to help you: http://www.genesis-equipment.com/pro...canners_6.aspx

  6. #6

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    Re: High end scanner options - What's out there?

    Basically I don't think there is such a thing as a modern scanner like the Eversmart - maybe best to just get another one. The world has gone to digital acquisition! The Digicam on a sophisticated copy stand is about as modern as it gets.

    You can check the Scan Hi End forum on Yahoo as well. Genesis refurbs Eversmarts and IQSmarts etc. Drop Michael Streeter a line at yak@genesis-equipment.com and see what they might have available. He's knowledgeable about this stuff. Not sure if they'd refurb your unit for you but it wouldn't hurt to ask.

  7. #7

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    Re: High end scanner options - What's out there?

    Quote Originally Posted by SevArt74 View Post
    Thanks- I will!
    It is the best scanning method too (by far)... Provided that the MFDB used is of the multishot 16x "true color" kind... I use my Sinarback 54H MFDB in 16x multishot true color mode and the Zeiss APO 120mm f4 lens of the Contax 645 at f11 and use a Kaiser lightbox to lay film on. If one scans film of 6x8 size shot on a Fuji GX-680 and then digitize it by stitching four 16x multishot shots, the result exceeds anything I've ever seen out of a scanner despite the film image area used... It is so good, that using larger film area is absolutely useless... The output is only a bit more than 200MP, but the (complete) absence of artifacts and the (unbelievable) DR, is by far beyond what a scanner can achieve.... Prints of bilboard size at 72ppi are absolutely stunning for detail to the extend that one can have a close look at them and play "the inspector with the magnifying glass"...

    It saves a lot of money too as one can spend the 2-2.5K required for the back (in the S/H market) but then sell whatever scanner he uses and save a lot more out of the cheaper film and the developing of it (9 shots of 6x8 out of a roll of 120 film), yet improving on the flexibility, the associated equipment, the expenses, the manouverability, the time efficiency, the control over the process and the (unbelievable) image quality. Let alone that he then has an excellent MFDB as to use alongside his film work...

    One may ask... "won't I improve further if I use 4x5 sheet film and digitize it by shooting eight 16x multishot captures"? The answer is ...no! ...things aren't proportional as it looks if one uses a scanner... Simply because one has to use a less resolving lens to capture the larger image area and then, the method extracts ALL the resolution that the smaller circle lens (used for the 6x8 image area) is capable off... The added softness (of the lens) on the 4x5 image area (and then on even larger image areas in proportion) is also exposed by the method, thus cancelling out the benefits of the image area size.

  8. #8

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    Re: High end scanner options - What's out there?

    Digital cameras have such high resolution these days that using one on a copy stand gives you both a camera and a copying machine. check out phase one and hasselblad digital backs.
    Otherwise I think its drum scanning unless you're prepared to buy used flatbed.

    http://www.icg.ltd.uk/

    there will be other brands I think.

  9. #9

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    Re: High end scanner options - What's out there?

    Quote Originally Posted by Argentum View Post
    Digital cameras have such high resolution these days that using one on a copy stand gives you both a camera and a copying machine. check out phase one and hasselblad digital backs.
    Otherwise I think its drum scanning unless you're prepared to buy used flatbed.

    http://www.icg.ltd.uk/

    there will be other brands I think.
    The use of a multishot MFDB for the job, makes a "night to day" difference for this particular job... No Phase-One or other single shot MFDB can even come close to a multishot MFDB for copy work. There's complete abscence of artefacts, no color intrepolation, no Bayer Pattern errors and significantly more color depth and DR with a multishot back.. (Visible) Resolution is a world apart also... This is because the Niquist frequency is quadrabled, but also because the human eye/brain understands as resolution the difference in colour between pixels. The single shot backs use software to create color and this leads in common color used especially within neighbouring pixels... Multishot backs have color depth of 48bit (3x16) and they capture "what they see" for color without any interpolation method used. There is no way you can beat the resolution of an 88mp Sinarback 54H (or imacon 528c) no matter if one uses a ...400mp single shot back (or other device that uses interpolation as to create color). The difference applies for B&W captures too (there you can see that the single shot image is full of (hidden) artefacts - just like scanners are).

  10. #10
    Peter De Smidt's Avatar
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    Re: High end scanner options - What's out there?

    You don't need MF backs to do this, which isn't to say that there wouldn't be benefits (and costs) to going this way.

    The big advantage of a scanner is that it's setup and ready to use. Unless you can dedicated a camera body and lens to leave setup, alignment and achieving the best focus is non-trivial. This is speaking from practical experience. I have both a semi-automated DSLR scanner optimized for 1x magnification captures at f/4 (Apo Rodagon D 75mm), as well as a Screen Cezanne.
    “You often feel tired, not because you've done too much, but because you've done too little of what sparks a light in you.”
    ― Alexander Den Heijer, Nothing You Don't Already Know

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