Scanning Issues with Examples

[JustinB]

Hey guys, just got some of my first film back. I have some real problems with the scan, I know i need a cleaner workspace and whatnot, but this is not about that.

Tech Stuff:
Ilford Delta 100 (6cmx7cm)
Epson v750 Pro Scanner
Silverfast Ai software (tried vuescan as well)
Betterscanning.com Scanning Platform with ANR glass

So I have scanned one or two polaroids up till now, but I have not scanned a single negative/positive until now.

Per the instructions here: http://www.betterscanning.com/scanning/msdry.html I taped my film to the ANR glass (dull side of the negative to the more diffuse side of the ANR glass).

I stuck the thing in my betterscanning holder and fired away on my scanner.

Scanner Settings:
Scan Mode: Normal
Original: Reflective (should this be transparency?)
Pos/Neg: Positive (someone told me to handle this in photoshop instead of the scanner software)

I got this really weird luminance issue:



Now, I am looking at the negative and then looking at that scan and wondering to myself what the heck I did to mess this up so badly. Well, I google around looking for answers and don't find any, but I know I never had this luminance issue on my positives so I take the film off the glass, put it directly in the scanner and fire away.

I get this:



Definitely not as sharp, but also no luminance banding.

Can anyone help me understand what I am doing wrong. The only thing I am not doing right now that I could (should?) is that I have not cut a mask for the film out of the black plasticy stuff you get with the betterscanning setup. Also, cogently, I know it is not my taping technique because I laid the ANR glass atop the film directly on the scanner glass as a test, same luminance banding.

Please help guys, I know you all know way more than I probably ever will about scanning.

[mrkauffman]

first of all, you should have it set to transparency, film is transparent, not reflective. reflective mode is for papers, printed photographs, etc. Also, it looks as if your first scan is sharper than your second one. try putting the film emulsion side down instead of up like it seems that ur doing...or so it seems.

[JustinB]

Mr. Kauffman,
In this case I want to resolve the huge amount of fogging and the weird band on the left side of the image, then ill worry about suspending my film at the right height.
Thanks for the advice about reflective v transparent, I will check and see how that affects scanning.

Justin

[photobymike]

I have an Epson v750 as well. I really think this scanner is the best i have ever used. I have had a nikon 8000, Minolta Konica multi scan.. ect..ect.. I can really tell the difference from my Epson compared to my old scanners. I think it is really better, and easier to use. Epson probably is not the best scanner made but, i could not afford anything better.

My suggestion: Start with the software that Epson provides for scanning> For me it is more graphical and really easy to use. Next run as a stand alone application, do not run with photoshop or a twain mode. That will get you started and maybe later after you get some fundamentals you can try the goodies that were included with your scanner. I still have not an understanding of vuescan myself.

Another suggestion: I really had problems running this scanner on a PC, (Sony i5 6 gig) it always seemed like i never had enough memory, and it was so slowwww.... I have a friend who showed me his Apple Mac that was made in 2004, with 8 gigs of ram. We tried my Epson v750 scanner on his MAC. WOW WOW what difference in speed and I also can scan at very high resolutions without any problems what so ever. I bought a G5 Quad MAC that was made in 2005 for 500 dollars, the scanner cost more. It is sooooo much faster than my 2000 dollar Sony PC....I also tried it on my sons Apple Mini MAC .... works great

[sully75]

yep. start with epson scan. transparency, I usually do black and white although some people will suggest using color (as the setting). you need to drag the sliders around to get the look you want. Bring your results into photoshop, if you blew out highlights or shadows, go back to epson scan and redo it.

It's not a perfect program, by a long shot, but I didn't have much luck with the alternatives. Others have though.

[amac212]

Hmmm... interesting. I can only offer a bit of commiseration. I've never known what that vertical prismatic band was (that I see along the left hand side of your image).

I use a V700, mostly with the Epson negative holders and this weird band has happened to me on the rare occasion. I scan with Silverfast Archive Studio and never use PShop to invert.

I am wondering if it has anything to do with the nature of the flatbed scanner itself - - much like the other pesky Epson scanner banding issue: the ghosted vertical bands that can land on the sides or even in the middle of the image. It turns out that those are the result of scanning a negative where the clear film edge is directly adjacent to an area of an image area that is dense (such as a bright sky). (see thread about that here: http://photo.net/digital-darkroom-forum/00PWGu

Are you getting this with every neg/pos you scan or just this particular one, or??

[memorris]

I tried the Epson scanning software and found it to consistently produce poor scans. I see many on this site that use it but I will not use it again, Silverfast is simple to use and produces consistently superior results. It has features that will improve your scans that the Epson software does not have.

Scan it as a transparency as suggested above and set it to negative. Silverfast does a good job of handling the reversal and applies appropriate curves for the film you are using. You can then make other adjustments in Photoshop as needed but scanning a negative as a positive only makes more work on the computer.

[JustinB]

Thanks a ton guys, the problem was definitely scanning in reflective mode. Once I switched to transparency I got MUCH improved contrast and detail. Now I just need to find the sharpest height for the scan and I will be good to go.

Thanks again!

[rdenney]

Hmmm... interesting. I can only offer a bit of commiseration. I've never known what that vertical prismatic band was (that I see along the left hand side of your image).

My bet is that it is a reflection off of something inside the scanner. In reflective mode, the glass used in the Betterscanning holder might be causing or contributing to that reflection. The light is coming from below in reflective mode, after all. In transparency mode, the light will come down from the top and such reflections will be minimized or eliminated.

Rick "who has never seen this effect on his 750" Denney

[sully75]

There's someone online who will tell you to scan your negatives as positive transparencies, and then inverting them in photoshop. I tried this, at length, and it was a total waste for me. Just saying.

Epson scan is really frustrating, but when you figure it out, it works.

Proof is in the pudding:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/paulmce...th/5062693366/

everything there was done with Epson scan, better-scanning holder and a $100 ebay 4870. Not perfect and frustrating but honestly it's faults in my photography/developing that bother me. The scanning is what it is. I would love to have something better but it's pretty much adequate.