Advice on getting a good Scanner for Large format

[Kaden Kratzer]

I have a Nikon Super Cool Scan 9000 ED for 35mm/120/and panorama.

I have been using an Epson V7000 for large format images and frankly
I am fed up with this piece of crap. Please give me some advice as I
am itching to replace it.

Thanks in advance.

[Greg Lockrey]

For under $3k I like my Epson 10,000xl. It has the ability to focus on the work.

[Joanna Carter]

I have been using an Epson V7000 for large format images and frankly I am fed up with this piece of crap. Please give me some advice as I
am itching to replace it.

I have been using an Epson V700 for large format images and frankly I am astounded at the quality of scans that I get for the price I paid. Having also bought a Better Scanning film holder, I have been able to get superb, sharp scans that will print up to 40" x 50", sometimes bigger.

Unless there is something seriously wrong with your scanner, I would be inclined to suspect operator error

[domaz]

I agree try using Vuescan with it, throw the built-in software away and try again.

[PenGun]

My V700 works well too. You need to learn how to operate them and finding best focus requires some time and effort. The Betterscan holders allow adjustment easily but you can get focus with the supplied holders.

I like Vuescan a lot. I'll buy the pro upgrade soon.

[Bruce M. Herman]

I purchased a used Eversmart Supreme and am relatively pleased with it. They are available for under $10k if you look around. I know of one person who purchased one from a bankrupt photo lab for $1000. Some have been available for sale on Yahoo's large format scanner web site (http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/ScanHi-End), although there is one there now for $15k. These are big and require some special care, but do not require oil based mounts, which is one reason that I bought what I did. There is also great support on the Yahoo site. If you're a business, Kodak will provide support, too, for both the scanner and the software.

There is a world of difference between professional scanner results and the those achieved with consumer grade scanners. I can see it in prints 16x20 and larger. If you're not printing at this scale, or if you don't have a need for digital archives of your film, this may not be the right choice for you.

Best wishes in reaching your decision!

[Ken Lee]

You don't mention what you mean by Large Format: 4x5 is at the bottom end of the category. You also don't mention how large you intend to print.

If you shoot larger film, you can use a correspondingly poorer scanner, or make correspondingly larger images - and save money too, if that matters.

For the cost of a high-end scanner, one can get purchase quite a lot of Large Format equipment. Many cameras allow you to shoot a variety of formats, so you don't need to purchase multiple cameras if you don't want to.

[Joanna Carter]

I agree try using Vuescan with it, throw the built-in software away and try again.

Interestingly enough, I use, exclusively, the Epson software and get great results. I tried both Silverfast and Vuescan and found them both to be quite a complicated user interface compared to the simplicity but effectiveness of the Epson. Not saying that the Epson software is perfect; far from it but, to my mind, it is the simplest to use and can give good results.

[Lenny Eiger]

I have a Nikon Super Cool Scan 9000 ED for 35mm/120/and panorama.

I have been using an Epson V7000 for large format images and frankly
I am fed up with this piece of crap. Please give me some advice as I
am itching to replace it.

Thanks in advance.

Get a Howtek 4500. Its a drum scanner, not some facsimile thereof. Images will be sharp, you'll get every bit of quality you've been looking for... They're very inexpensive these days. I like the Digital PhotoLab software, there are others.... It's quite a far cry fro what you are used to...

Lenny

[Bruce Watson]

I have been using an Epson V7000 for large format images and frankly I am fed up with this piece of crap. Please give me some advice as I am itching to replace it.

Sadly, the new scanner market has large gaps in it. There's little between the consumer flatbed you are fed up with and the professional flatbeds which cost an order of magnitude more money. (I include the Hasselblad / Imacon scanners with the professional flatbeds. Marketeering aside, they are CCD scanners scanning a line-at-a-time just like flatbeds.)

Your best bet perhaps is a used drum scanner. Doesn't have to be a Howtek (sorry Lenny). Anything that's working has the capability to just squash the Epson in scan quality. Degree of squash depends on level of enlargement of course. In terms of bang-for-your-buck, a used drum scanner can't be beat.

For more money you can buy a used professional flatbed, which I think will give you less scanning bang-for-your-buck than a used drum scanner, but which may be worth considering depending on your needs.