Film Scanning - what are you using to scan your 35 negatives... ?

[Tom R]

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On 3/13/2024 at 1:36 PM, Jeremy Bunting said:

The Noritsu LS-600, while expensive ($4k or so in great shape), is incredible, and lightning fast. I scan a roll of 36 at 4000dpi/24bit in roughly 25 minutes, with pretty minimal intervention by me after I double check the cropping for each frame.

I would likely purchase such a scanner, if I knew more about them. Two things: (1) These scanners, if I understand, rely on Twain drivers, meaning that the supporting software only runs on Windows , or is that not the case? and  (2) Do you need Noritsu service the scanner on a schedule?

Edited April 17, 2024 by Tom R
Minor grammatical correction.

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[Jeremy Bunting]

10 minutes ago, Tom R said:

I would likely purchase such a scanner, if I knew more about them. Two things: (1) These scanners, if I understand, rely on Twain drivers, meaning that the supporting software only runs on Windows , or is that not the case? and  (2) Do you need Noritsu service the scanner on a schedule?

Yes, Windows only, and if you'd like to scan at 24bit and scan without any automatic sharpening you'll also need Nortisu's proprietary software, EZ Controller. I purchased a cheap Windows 10 laptop to use with the scanner. Setup is pretty harrowing but there are many online resources to guide you. Now that I know how to use the software, it's a breeze.

I'm not sure Noritsu services these scanners anymore. Some regular maintenance and cleaning is required of the user. There are shops in the NYC area (where I'm locating) that handle more complicated repairs.

[Mr.Prime]

What would be nice, would be a round-robin style test. We take a negative strip from a volunteer and send it around to each person with a scanner. Ask them to scan the strip under certain operating conditions and post the results to this forum. I would be willing to participate if somebody were to organize it. What I'd hope to learn is that my scanner performs close enough to other scanners that I need not suffer from GAS.

[250swb]

4 hours ago, Mr.Prime said:

What would be nice, would be a round-robin style test. We take a negative strip from a volunteer and send it around to each person with a scanner. Ask them to scan the strip under certain operating conditions and post the results to this forum. I would be willing to participate if somebody were to organize it. What I'd hope to learn is that my scanner performs close enough to other scanners that I need not suffer from GAS.

That’s some pretty hardcore testing method to get you an answer. Your scanner, like any similar scanner, will perform as good as its operator knows how, just like the camera will. Film scanning with a dedicated film scanner is a far longer and convoluted learning curve than scanning with a digital camera if you want to get the best out of it. So even if you send a negative around everybody in a group it would rely on making everybody act to a limited range of actions rather than what somebody could get out of the scanner using learned knowledge.

[Mr.Prime]

If other dedicated scanners require a far longer and convoluted learning curve it probably isn't suitable for my level of interest at this time so I'd want to stick with my Plustek and Epson.

What kind of scanner do you use (do you shoot film?) and can you point me to images that you have posted ?

Edited April 17, 2024 by Mr.Prime

[Analog_gamer]

Fujifilm XT-2 (24mp) and a TTArtisans 40mm (60mm) f2.8 lens. Led light board, a monitor support with a “c-clamp to camera mount” is clamped to the table. (Basically the camera is mounted facing downward toward the light board.)

I hold the negatives to the light board with masking (drafting) tape (crude, I know), and shoot RAW, ISO 100, f8 - f11, with cable shutter release.

Upload and edit with Lightroom - Daylight WB, Invert RGB curve, saturation at 0 (or convert to black and white).

Export JPG 100%. 

Edited May 2, 2024 by Analog_gamer

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vor 2 Stunden schrieb Analog_gamer:

saturation at 0 (or convert to black and white).

I found out that separating into colour channels and keeping only one (usually the red one) works quite well and gets rid of some discoloured splotches. That's even more relevant when digitizing ancient prints, though.

[chris7273]

I have experimented a bit with my M11 and I have some questions. 
i use a micro Nikkor 60mm (AF, F mount to M adapter ) with the JJC “Nikon es-2” equivalent, with the integrated led source. I get good results and I am pretty happy. 
question 1 : max resolution or m-DNG (36Mpix) is enough ? I find that there is a subtle nuance with the max resolution but it is maybe overkill ? or is it though better to use the max resolution and degrade if necessary in post treatment ? 
question 2 : hybrid or mechanical shutter ? I never use the electronic shutter because of the lack of sound but here in “lab” mode, maybe there’s an advantage ?

 Thanx


 

Edited May 11, 2024 by chris7273

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vor 19 Minuten schrieb chris7273:

here in “lab” mode, maybe there’s an advantage ?

There's a risk. If the light flickers or pulses the electronic shutter might show stripes on the frame. Use a blank frame and expose to a medium grey value, then you should be able to see if the exposure is even across all of the frame.

[chris7273]

48 minutes ago, pop said:

There's a risk. If the light flickers or pulses the electronic shutter might show stripes on the frame. Use a blank frame and expose to a medium grey value, then you should be able to see if the exposure is even across all of the frame.

Thank you. I have just tested and it seems fine with electronic shutter. Maybe I will continue to use the mechanical shutter as a preventative measure. 

[cobbu2]

Unless I missed it, I thought someone would have beaten me to it by now, but I use a refurbished Pakon F135 tabletop LED minilab scanner that I’ve had for some years now. It scans an entire 36-exposure 35mm roll in about 5 minutes. It provides minimally acceptable output that requires at least some post-processing.

When I got mine in 2015, they were about $300 each for the initial sale of refurbished units and the drivers and software could only be run on Windows XP (I kept an old laptop just for the scanner). Now I believe there’s a software update that enables it to run on Windows 10/11. Any units available for sale now run at least $1500.

Edited May 23, 2024 by cobbu2