BW: Scan bw from negative vs from paper

[Pedro]

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I was advised to scan my bw pictures from paper instead of from the negative.

 

For reference see this thread: http://www.l-camera-forum.com/leica-forum/nature-wildlife/102445-lisbon-pigeon-m7-75mm-f2.html

 

I think its quite interesting particularly because its counter intuitive - at first thought paper it's a copy. However it's the second time I hear about the advantages of scanning bw from paper.

 

I thought it could be interesting to have a discussion and a poll around this concept.

 

So, what scanner do you use (flat / film dedicated), what do you scan (negative / paper) and have you tried both methods before choosing your approach to digitalize your bw film photos?

 

I use a V700 Epson and was scanning from film but never compared with scanning from print (just started with film).

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[christer]

I guess it depends on what you want to use your scans for.

Different horses for different courses.

[Pedro]

Ok... My main goals with scanning are:

1. Have all my photos, digital & film, managed by Mac's Aperture;

2. Share on-line;

3. Back-up the negative.

 

I already have an Epson V700 scanner.

[tgray]

Well if you are just scanning to share online and stuff, scanning a wet print is a lot easier than scanning a negative, assuming the print is already made. Throw it on the scanner, scan, done. Scanning a print isn't a challenging process for a scanner, so just about any scanner will work. You don't have to worry about dust, you don't have to worry about digging into the shadows, etc. Whatever is on the print will be scanned; set your white and black points and you should be done.

 

Disadvantages to scanning a print are mainly that you won't get anymore detail than what's in the print. The two things that I find are easier to capture in a negative scan compared to a wet print are sharpness and full dynamic range of the negative. With a wet print, you might take a tiny hit on sharpness, and to get every little shadow or highlight, you might have to dodge and burn a lot. Which is obviously a lot easier on a negative scan --- hit it up with curves, do a couple layers for dodges/burns, and your done.

 

So, assuming you are making 8x10 prints, your print scans should be plenty enough to post on flickr or here or wherever, They'd probably be fine for making 4x6 or 5x7 prints - 8x10s might look noticeably degraded, but maybe not. Making a good enlargement is probably out of the question, since you'd probably be better off returning to the original negative and scan that (or wet print a larger print).

 

So, to make a long story short, you could easily accomplish #2, #1 partially insomuch that you have A copy in of the picture in Aperture, and #3 partially. It'd be a backup, but a lower quality copy. The print would be a third backup though...

[christer]

Ok... My main goals with scanning are:

1. Have all my photos, digital & film, managed by Mac's Aperture;

2. Share on-line;

3. Back-up the negative.

 

I already have an Epson V700 scanner.

 

It will be difficult to accomplish all three with one machine.

 

I use a CanonScan 8800F to scan my b+w negatives. The advantage is that it scans 12 negatives at a time and during the ten minutes it takes to do it, I can do other things. The scan quality is excellent, and to see any pixels one would need a screen much larger than my MacBook Pro has. Your points #1 and 2 are thus covered.

 

With regard to back-up of negatives: I have 50 years of negatives in binders and I can find any negative in next to no time. The have moved with me through many countries but they are still in top shape. Film is the ultimate storage medium. There is no comparison with floppy disks, hard disks, CDs, magnetic tape and whatever Silicone Valley may think of next.

 

Store your negatives reasonably well and there is no need for point #3.

 

Besgt regards,

Chris

[Pedro]

Thanks tgray and Chris for your suggestions.

 

Being new to film - my passion about photography started with digital - I am having trouble arranging the right workflow.

 

When you have your film developed in a lab (i.e. not by you) do you ask them to make:

0. Nothing i.e. you just want the negatives;

1. A contact sheet;

2. Prints of all photos in small format e.g. 10 X 15 cm;

3. Scan of all photos;

4. A combination of the above.

 

Thanks.

[dpattinson]

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I usually get mine developed and scanned.

The scans done at the time of development are usually very clean and plenty good enough for proofing and flickr posting. I vastly prefer them to 'digital contact sheets' or small prints which are respectively too low res for proofing and irritating to store.

If I want to scan an individual neg for higher resolution output - I can do that myself or get it done later at a lab.

[tgray]

I develop all my own B&W. So I typically only scan the keepers and make prints in the darkroom of the ones I like.

 

For color, I send it off and get scans done (suitable for 4x6s), no prints. If there are pics I like, I can send of those very files to whoever and get decent 4x6s made. Better images get scanned at home by me at full resolution and I can print out larger pritns that way.