[xplus93]

I want to know two things. First, whats the best film scanner I could get for personal use. I'm really lazy and i would like something i could just feed a roll of uncut film through, or if i have to just in sections. Also, what is the best film scanner, period. Just plainly top of the line. (Within budget of small business) I might convince my boss to start a film scanning service to digitize peoples photos. We already do computer sales and repair, so, why not. I've been looking at some of the nikon models for myself because they look nice and professional. (Usually i wont allow that brand anywhere near my house. bunch of snobby nikon users.....Oh well).

[stevebrot]

A few short bullet points:

• Nikon no longer makes film scanners, though some are available for sale as new-old-stock (NOS)
• Best is hard to define. High end reprographic shops use both drum and flat bed scanners for commercial work. Both are large enough to fill your kitchen. The current general benchmark for quality at a high price is the Hasselblad Flextight X5.
• Best value for personal use depends on your needs. Consumer flatbed scanners max out at about ~2400 dpi real-world resolution. This is true regardless of manufacturers claim. This is adequate for 35mm at moderate enlargements and quite good for medium and large format negatives for all but the largest prints. Dedicated negative scanners are a better option for 35mm, though none of the currently-available product matches what was formerly offered by Nikon, Minolta, and others before they all left the scanner business.

My advice would be to do your research. Here is a good place to start:

Detailed test reports and experience reports about film scanners slide scanners: market overview, application in practice


Steve

[lithos]

Those Hasselblads start at about the price of a small car...apparently my uni owns one, of course, but guess what they use it for? Scanning images for a billboard.

[PeterAM]

Scanning is an art unto itself and requires a lot of time, effort and knowledge to get good results. Your comment about being really lazy, isn't the best match for scanning film. I have a 35mm Nikon scanner and a Canon flatbed that I got for scanning MF film. I've discovered that scanning doesn't really interest me and takes far too much time and effort. I use the scanners mostly to evaluate film and produce small prints/contact sheets; if I have something that I want to hang, I'll have someone drum scan it.