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Thread: Scanner choice...what are my options ?

  1. #1
    Les
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    Scanner choice...what are my options ?

    Do I wait for the new Plustek or plunge into V750 ? I noticed that many on this forum have some sort of Epson derivative in their posession.

    I have several options, but none of them seem ideal. From all the reading that I've done the 700/750 models pull enough info to satisfy basic needs, but for clean/critical work one still has to employ the drum scan. Considering that I'd like to scan many thousands
    (20-40K ?) of 35mm slides + future 4x5 work....is there a superb scanner at $800-1200 price range to accomplish this....or should I just accept reality and deal with 700/750 and do the best with that....and do the top-dog photos on the drum scanner ? I'd entertain any helpful thoughts. Thanks.

    Les

  2. #2
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    Re: Scanner choice...what are my options ?

    Quote Originally Posted by Leszek Vogt View Post
    Do I wait for the new Plustek or plunge into V750 ? I noticed that many on this forum have some sort of Epson derivative in their posession.

    I have several options, but none of them seem ideal. From all the reading that I've done the 700/750 models pull enough info to satisfy basic needs, but for clean/critical work one still has to employ the drum scan. Considering that I'd like to scan many thousands
    (20-40K ?) of 35mm slides + future 4x5 work....is there a superb scanner at $800-1200 price range to accomplish this....or should I just accept reality and deal with 700/750 and do the best with that....and do the top-dog photos on the drum scanner ? I'd entertain any helpful thoughts. Thanks.

    Les
    The Epson does pretty well for what it is and what it costs. But it is a consumer flatbed. It's good enough for 4x5 unless you make really big prints or you are super picky. It's not really that great for medium-format film compared to a film scanner. Used medium-format film scanners can be had in the 1000-1500 range and you can use VueScan to operate them. The Nikon 8000 was the sleeper deal when the 9000 was available new, but now that Nikon has ceased production both are rather overpriced. But there is the Microtek Artixscan 120 (aka Polaroid Sprintscan 120) and the Minolta Multi Pro which can be found used if you keep an eye out. These are better than the Epson, and good enough for most purposes for medium and small-format roll film.

    For production scanning of 35mm slides by the thousands, I'd be tempted to get a 35mm dedicated scanner that comes with a stack loader. Nikon made some nice ones. If you can live without the stack loader, you can get really nice 35mm film scanners for a few hundred.

    But I think you are overestimating what you will do. I think many of us had the idea that we would scan all our color slides from the past, but it's a monstrous job. Those stack loaders for scanners will do maybe 50 at a time, but each one will take several minutes at least and maybe longer, so running through that stack will take some hours. And any little issue with anything stops the process, so you have to check in once in a while if you are going to keep productive.

    I've decided my Kodachromes are safe in their storage--as safe as the digital files would be with a lot less management effort on my part--so I'm leaving it to when I have the motivation for a special project to go through them and put together something specific. I may never get to it, but you never know. Hopefully, my 8000 will still be working when that happens.

    Rick "waiting for more details on the new Plustek before jumping to conclusions about it" Denney

  3. #3

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    Re: Scanner choice...what are my options ?

    scanning 40,000 slides with a consumer flatbed? ....that's just crazy!!!
    Working forty hours per week and assuming that you could scan one slide per minute on average, it would take a little over four months.

  4. #4
    retrogrouchy
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    Re: Scanner choice...what are my options ?

    35mm slides on a flatbed are not going to be good at all, and in the quantities you speak of, you'll be doing it until you die. I suggest you look into a scanning service like http://www.scancafe.com/. While I've never used them (I don't have 40k slides!), they come fairly well-recommended on PN and they're a hell of a lot cheaper than doing it yourself if you consider your time worth anything more than zero.

    If you want to do small quantities of 135 and 120 at home, I recommend a real film scanner instead of a flatbed. I got a Nikon 8000 for $1000 (they're typically more now) and that does a decent job; if you don't have any medium format film then you can save a little more a get a dedicated 35mm scanner.

    As far as LF scanners go, I have a Polaroid SS45U (paid $400) which is meant to be better (for real resolution and dynamic range achieved) than a V750 but mine has a bad film holder and bad CCFL so I'm pretty unhappy with it right now. Much quicker than doing drum scans though.

  5. #5

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    Re: Scanner choice...what are my options ?

    Quote Originally Posted by BradS View Post
    scanning 40,000 slides with a consumer flatbed? ....that's just crazy!!!
    Working forty hours per week and assuming that you could scan one slide per minute on average, it would take a little over four months.
    I have to agree about the sanity issue.

    I have no idea how many slides I have to scan, most are Kodachrome. But 800 took me over a month with an HP Scanjet G4050. 4800 dpi (max optical resolution), single pass, no IR dust removal. I scanned a row at a time and seperated in post. Loading and unloading the flatbed takes a deal of time. Constantly cleaning the glass takes a deal of time. Move the dust from one area of the flatbed just puts it in another area.

    I've since bought a Nikon scanner. Not quite as fast as scanning 4 at a time but I have to do very little if anything at all in post. Well worth the time. And the 2700 dpi of the Nikon resolves more than the 4800 dpi of the HP. Flatbeds are after all designed more for scanning paper products.

    If I had 40,000 35mm slides I'd consider a sizable investment.

  6. #6
    Jim Jones's Avatar
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    Re: Scanner choice...what are my options ?

    I only have about 20,000 35mm Kodachromes. If I was going to scan a reasonable fraction of them, I'd rig a slide copy outfit with a DSLR. From those scans, perhaps a few could be selected and sent out for a proper scan.

  7. #7
    Bill Koechling's Avatar
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    Re: Scanner choice...what are my options ?

    I realize that this is an old thread and you may have already made your decision but I would not rule out the V750. With some skill, patience and good software this scanner can do a very good job. You've already noted that a drum scanner would be necessary for critical work. Take a look at what Brian Lanker has to say about the V750.

    While I'm waiting to get more information on the new Plustek 120 scanner I'm scanning away with my V750. Brian may have talked me into trying the wet mounting apparatus. (It comes with the V750.)

  8. #8

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    Re: Scanner choice...what are my options ?

    I consider that great photographers take about 20-120 images in their lifetime that make the grade (their grade). I could be wrong by a factor of 5. I'll accept that, this is a philosophical issue, nothing that could be based on facts. Given this, why would anyone want to scan all 20K slides? At that rate, you'd have to pay more in hard drives than the scanner...

    I suppose if you are doing this as a service to a museum, for example, who has a whole collection of work vs one photographer's, then that's different. Then you'd be charging and it would be appropriate to use a professional device, based on the specs that are required.

    I have been shooting for 50 years, and I don't have 20K negs I would go back and scan... Going forward, I might want to have a great scanner. Drum scanners can often be had for $1500. That's only a little more than the $800-$1200 the OP suggested he had. The word "superb" was used and that is often not the same as "consumer-level". However, if you want superb, one should toss out the concept of "speed". One can't do their best work and do it fast. It;'s one or the other...

    Lenny
    EigerStudios
    Museum Quality Drum Scanning and Printing

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    Re: Scanner choice...what are my options ?

    I think Lenny hit this subject dead-on-straight and his reasoning is precisely why I won't be buying a pricey drum scanner and high-grade wide format printer. In my remaining years I'll be lucky to have a handful of images worthy of ultra-high quality scanning and fine-grade large-size printing so the investment makes no sense for me. Also, since technology changes so rapidly rendering expensive equipment outdated in months or a couple of years, this is doubly silly..... for ME.

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