Scanning 11x14 BW Negatives

[Tin Can]

Just before SHITF I was about to get access to one at the big Jr College 3 miles away

been so long I forgot

I will check and report to myself....

Regarding the big Epsons, check your local libraries or universities. I know my old university had a 10000XL in their library that anyone could use (hardly anyone touched it).

[cuypers1807]

I scan mine on a V700 in four scans and then merge in PS.

[Sal Santamaura]

A downside to my Epson V850 (as well as, I suspect, its sibling and their predecessors) is an apparently complete lack of attention to dissipating static electricity. The plastic case builds and retains a charge that is then transferred to its glass surfaces as well as negatives/transparencies being scanned. I intend to open it up and tape some cut up pieces of anti-static bags onto the interior surfaces to mitigate this issue, but haven't gotten around to doing that yet. I'm anxious to avoid extensive work on image files cleaning up dust.

Does anyone here own a 12000XL? If so, did Epson design anything into it to control static? Thanks in advance for whatever feedback you can share.

[Roger Beck]

Epson 12000XL is perfect for that.

[Oren Grad]

Epson 12000XL is perfect for that.

...except that the version with transparency unit now costs $4400. The Epson website very occasionally offers refurbished units at a substantial discount, but still well over $2000 when equipped with the transparency unit.

[Peter De Smidt]

I like Bryan's advice. Check for a local university (or maybe even a public library) that might let you use a scanner. Otherwise, if you have a good digital camera, then making a scanner isn't that hard. Once setup, scanning that way would be much faster than a traditional scanner.

[Tin Can]

Never had your problem 10 years V700 mostly left 'on'

No internal dust, never cleaned

Location perhaps

A downside to my Epson V850 (as well as, I suspect, its sibling and their predecessors) is an apparently complete lack of attention to dissipating static electricity. The plastic case builds and retains a charge that is then transferred to its glass surfaces as well as negatives/transparencies being scanned. I intend to open it up and tape some cut up pieces of anti-static bags onto the interior surfaces to mitigate this issue, but haven't gotten around to doing that yet. I'm anxious to avoid extensive work on image files cleaning up dust.

Does anyone here own a 12000XL? If so, did Epson design anything into it to control static? Thanks in advance for whatever feedback you can share.

[Joseph Kashi]

The Epson 12000XL has gotten crazy-expensive, alas; if you get really lucky it might be possible to find a used 10000XL or 11000XL for a price within reason. Microtek at one point had some transparency scanners that could accommodate at least the 11-inch dimension, allowing for stitching of only two exposures, though I think they've more or less withdrawn from the US market and used ones will probably have iffy reliability.

Thanks, Oren, for your suggestion.

I bought a used but clean Epson 10000XL scanner with the A3 transparency unit for an affordable price. That seemed like the cleanest solution for my anticipated circumstances.

Thank you, everyone, for the many helpful suggestions.

[Joseph Kashi]

I like Bryan's advice. Check for a local university (or maybe even a public library) that might let you use a scanner. Otherwise, if you have a good digital camera, then making a scanner isn't that hard. Once setup, scanning that way would be much faster than a traditional scanner.

Thank you all for this very practical idea - this would be a very workable approach except that I set up the local college's digital photo gear and know that the 11x17 Microtek scanner that I donated to them does not have a transparency unit, alas! <GG>

[Joseph Kashi]

Regarding the big Epsons, check your local libraries or universities. I know my old university had a 10000XL in their library that anyone could use (hardly anyone touched it).

I live in a small Alaska town 150 mountain highway miles from Anchorage. No one has a transparency scanner that big within driving distance - it's the sort of thing that I had to forego when I moved from Washington DC to the Kenai Peninsula. That and spending much of my weekend dealing with TMS - Too Much Snow. Buying a used 10000XL was the only ultimately practical approach.

Although I am contact printing the 11x14, I do have a large Epson 7590 printer at my office and the ability to make big digital prints if and when needed. No sense wasting any of that big negative.