Best New Scanners Available?

[neil poulsen]

What are the best scanners for film that are available new?

I'm thinking that the Epson Perfection V850 would be included in this categories. Are there others?

[bob carnie]

What are the best scanners for film that are available new?

I'm thinking that the Epson Perfection V850 would be included in this categories. Are there others?

I just bought this scanner and its great for a lot of my applications, but for larger scale images I use my eversmart or Imocan. I am researching a large sensor back connected to a process lens and backlight system that many here are working with .

[Alan9940]

How much do you want to spend? A Fuji GFX100S mounted on a sturdy copy stand will easily blow away anything any Epson can provide.

[Oren Grad]

If you want to purchase new and are looking for a flatbed that can conveniently handle sheet film with decent quality, the choice is Epson V850 or 12000XL. If you want more than that, the alternative now is a copy setup built around a high-MP digital camera. These are more of a hassle to set up and optimize, but if you can afford to play at the high end (A7RIV, GFX 100S) these are remarkably powerful tools even in single-shot mode. And if you're willing to fuss with multi-shot/stitching/stacking, and you have a workstation that can handle the resulting enormous files without choking, the image fidelity that can be achieved is astonishing.

If money is truly no object there's the Hasselblad H6D-400C 100MP multishot system or the 150MP Phase One back, but assuming an optimized setup and careful technique I'm not sure that these do any better than a GFX 100S in multishot mode.

[bob carnie]

If you want to purchase new and are looking for a flatbed that can conveniently handle sheet film with decent quality, the choice is Epson V850 or 12000XL. If you want more than that, the alternative now is a copy setup built around a high-MP digital camera. These are more of a hassle to set up and optimize, but if you can afford to play at the high end (A7RIV, GFX 100S) these are remarkably powerful tools even in single-shot mode. And if you're willing to fuss with multi-shot/stitching/stacking, and you have a workstation that can handle the resulting enormous files without choking, the image fidelity that can be achieved is astonishing.

I think this is going to be the way we digitize moving forward , I have no doubt about it. The most incredible aspect of this approach is you can capture instantaneously rather than wait for 10 min for the scan to complete, its a game changer for people working with large volume of images.

[Oren Grad]

I think this is going to be the way we digitize moving forward , I have no doubt about it. The most incredible aspect of this approach is you can capture instantaneously rather than wait for 10 min for the scan to complete, its a game changer for people working with large volume of images.

I'm sure you figured this out long ago, but for those who haven't used copy-stand setups: beyond finding a lens optimized for the desired reproduction ratio, the key for high-quality, high-volume production work is dedicating a camera body to it and investing in a robust copy-stand-plus-illuminator-plus-negative-holder setup that can be precisely aligned and then locked rigidly in place so that it doesn't need to be realigned with every capture.

[bob carnie]

I'm sure you figured this out long ago, but for those who haven't used copy-stand setups: beyond finding a lens optimized for the desired reproduction ratio, the key for high-quality, high-volume production work is dedicating a camera body to it and investing in a robust copy-stand-plus-illuminator-plus-negative-holder setup that can be precisely aligned and then locked rigidly in place so that it doesn't need to be realigned with every capture.

You are so right, I have a friend of mine who is pretty good at gathering gear working on the base , neg plane, proper lens and what kind of sensor would be appropriate, in a perfect works I think a 150mb back is what I would be looking for.
getting the right workflow is where its at.
I still use three scanners for different purposes but now am seeing a huge resurgence in film repro and need to up my game.

[Alan9940]

I'm sure you figured this out long ago, but for those who haven't used copy-stand setups: beyond finding a lens optimized for the desired reproduction ratio, the key for high-quality, high-volume production work is dedicating a camera body to it and investing in a robust copy-stand-plus-illuminator-plus-negative-holder setup that can be precisely aligned and then locked rigidly in place so that it doesn't need to be realigned with every capture.

And an electronic remote release. Also, if you're planning on scanning color film the light source should have a high CRI rating--99 is good.

[neil poulsen]

Thank you for all the responses, they're very helpful.

I'm thinking of medium format and 35mm film scanning, and I have a P45+. Can stitching even be considered as an option with digital film scanning? Or lacking a multi-shot system, is single-shot the only viable option? I might enlarge MF to 13x19, or possibly to 16x20? Would a 39MP file be sufficient for decent results?

I think that, in pursuing this film scanning possibility, I'm more interested in cutting down on flare in the shadows that can result from flatbed scanning, versus resolution. Is that reasonable?

I have an MP4 copy camera, onto which I can mount my camera with the digital back attached. What would be good light sources that could work with an MP4? For a lens, I have a Rodenstock 75mm repro lens optimized for 1:1 that was designed for making inter-negatives. I'm thinking that, as a lens, that would be a good start?

What might I be missing?

[willwilson]

Stitching works for me. I don't scan a lot but have done well with a 5dsR and a 100mm Macro. I do 9 shots and stitch in PTgui for 4x5. Focus and alignment are important, but we are photogs we are good at that stuff. I bet your setup would do fine for 35mm. You will probably want to upgrade if you do much scanning though. I know I would want more mp, so I could stitch less, if my volume was higher.

This method blows away normal flatbeds.