Why buy a film scanner"

[JWW]

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I've been using a Nikon Coolscan V since it came out. The typical CDs with developing are not good enough for large prints. With the scanner I can use Photoshop to set up and crop the picture to my liking and use my epson printer to print up to 13x19 in prints at home. Many times especially with C41 B&W, I'll just pay to get the negatives and then scan at home. The Coolscan is great since it has ICE which automatically removes dust.

 

Jan

[earleygallery]

Andy

 

I'm not disagreeing with you but you could produce a lot a good pictures from a D-LUX 3 which is less than the cost of a Coolscan, especially shooting in RAW and it would and benefit from a less complicated workflow.

 

I did try film, I'm glad I did because there would always have been a question mark in my mind and now I'm grateful to be back in an all digital workflow.

 

Mind you, different strokes for different folks.

 

Louis

 

Louis - I'm struggling to follow your logic. You're saying that a D Lux 3 is a better answer than any film/camera/lens combo and scanning? Why would anyone bother with an M8 then?

 

Scanning isn't such a problem, and a good quality scanner is relatively inexpensive. Like others here I have a CD produced which I use as a contact sheet or for proofs and then re scan any images I want to print.

 

Of course I also have the option of making 'real' prints from the original negatives.

 

At the end of the day film and digital are different mediums, and its a matter of personal preference which you use. Some artists still use oils and brushes, even though they could use any number of computer graphics programs instead!

[MPerson]

It is worth checking out what processors are in your area. For my C41 film I toured around 'Snappy Snaps' et al asking for what I wanted. I ended up with two shops who would process and scan to my requirements. Usually 300dpi and TIFF format but one will do up to 4,0000 dpi and they don't charge me more for doing it.

 

For my own developing I use a Coolscan V Ed and Nikon's software.

 

Depends on how much work you want to do yourself.

[stunsworth]

Thanks Guys. It looks like I am now in the market for a scanner and a post processing program for my computer. Any suggestions?

 

Nikon Coolscan V, Photoshop CS3 or Elements. Also try the trial of Vuescan for the actual scanning process.

[northpole]

If you are likely to take many colour slides and are seriously considering a dedicated scanner, please note that the Nikon 5000ED scanner might be a better starting point - it allows you the opportunity to purchase Nikon's dedicated slide feeder which automatically feeds through and scans up to 50 mounted slides without you needing to stand over it.

 

Well worth it in my opinion, but the two are considerably more money than the excellent V model.

 

Peter

[biglouis]

Louis - I'm struggling to follow your logic. You're saying that a D Lux 3 is a better answer than any film/camera/lens combo and scanning? Why would anyone bother with an M8 then?

 

James

 

Nothing is better than an M8 :-)

 

I did not explain myself well. If I understood the original question, the poster was asking about whether or not to invest in a scanner. All things being equal, I was arguing that if the decision to invest had not yet been made, you might want to consider investing in digital instead. Given that the M8 is so expensive, you could dip your toe into the Leica digital waters with a D-LUX 3 which is capable of very good results when shooting in RAW. And I hope that there is no contention in the argument that digital workflow is easier than film-to-digital workflow.

 

LouisB

[earleygallery]

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Thanks Louis,

 

I see your point now, although I don't necessarily agree with it

 

But it's a valid point depending what equipment the OP already owns, and of course what they wish to do with the images.