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08-23-2021, 06:20 AM   #1
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Scanning Methods ?

My Epson 3170 from way back is on its last legs.

It seems to me that there are now 2 ways to scan, I suppose really digitise, both negatives (mostly discovered 6 x 9cm from long ago) and prints:

A - Buy a new scanner of which the best specified and affordable I can find is the Epson V600 @ around €330, the v850 is obviously better but at least 3 times the price.

B - Use my Pentax (K-70) with a macro lens mounted on my old enlarger column and a light table for negatives and a bit of studio lighting for prints. I have a light table and some studio lighting. I have an 50mm M F4.0 lens.

The question I have is does one have a particular technical advantage over another, ignore the cash saving of the Pentax system.

Kind regards

CD

08-23-2021, 06:34 AM   #2
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I'm no expert but I would go with either option B or the V850, the V600 will take you only so far.
08-23-2021, 06:51 AM   #3
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Depends on your final/future needs/use for the works being copied. Ultimately for your situation I think using your camera would be better in that once you get set up it will likely go faster than using a flatbed and cost less. This will be somewhat dependent on the the flatness of the film and prints and/or your ability get them that way, and the volume being copied.
08-23-2021, 07:08 AM   #4
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A film scanner will have biggest advantages of: 1) automagical color-conversions for negatives; 2) less hassles in set-up of the rig, lighting, focus, & exposure.

Your K-70 will have biggest advantages of: 1) cheaper; 2) probably faster times per negative or print.

08-23-2021, 07:15 AM   #5
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Some scanners have the advantage of automatic dust & scratch removal which can save you tons of time in retouching dust specks and scratches with the camera method. If you use a camera, you get what you see. There can also be advantages offered by scanner software which you would have to implement in a camera "scan" using post-processing. Camera scanning can be faster otherwise since most bed scanners take a "bit" longer to accomplish a scan compared to pushing a shutter button.
08-23-2021, 07:46 AM   #6
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I used to have a v370 but i can't get ot to work anymore because of drivers problems on linux; probably fixable but i didn't have time. So I've been scanning with the k1ii, 100macro and lightpad. If you're used to editing the scans, dslr is probably a little nicer since it's all the same interface you process raw anyway. But it's also more fiddly to setup, just this weekend i asked the lab to scan in addition to developing because they're family snaps and I'm not culling much.

Last edited by aaacb; 08-23-2021 at 08:01 AM.
08-23-2021, 09:41 AM   #7
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Since you have all the elements to "camera scan", do a quick set up and see if the process and results suit you. All it will cost is a bit of time. I have recently experimented with using a camera and macro lens to "scan" transparencies. The result, even with a micro 4/3 camera, are much better and faster than I can get with a Canon 9000F ii. Based on that I am planning to fabricate a more permanent fixture for "camera digitizing".

Best wishes!

08-23-2021, 10:07 AM   #8
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In addition to all the other good advice here, I would suggest you consider what you wish to do with the scans -- print, web display, or archive digitally. If you're looking at making large prints and want the best resolution and tonal range, then the dslr method will give you better output than a flatbed scanner will. I have a Canon 9950F flatbed and it definitely has limits to the enlargement sizes I can get out of medium format negs. OTOH, scanning with my K5ii and 50mm macro lens allows me to break up a 120 neg into sections and stich them together in software (Microsoft ICE) to make a single scan. The sky's the limit as to the resolution you can get with this method, and it can pull more detail out of shadows. However, a single neg takes a bit of work to shoot multiple sections and then stitch. But for a high quality wall display print it's worth it.

If for web display or archiving purposes, a flatbed will probably serve you just as well as a dslr. Comes down to convenience and speed then.
08-23-2021, 10:37 AM   #9
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I copy my negatives with my K-5 II and a 105mm macro lens like described in your option B. The problem I have in recommending it to others is the software side of things; the best solution I've found is Negative Lab Pro plug-in with Lightroom 6. This works well but requires an existing copy of Lightroom 6; Negative Lab works with Lightroom CC but I don't want to move to subscription based software and I don't want to recommend it to others. The creator of Negative Lab has stated he has no interest (last I checked) to port his plug-in to some other platform.

I really like the output I get from the above combination but if I were to do it again today I would probably just buy a good scanner. Should be faster and a bit easier to get very similar output and I don't have to worry about the next time I set up a computer or re-install Windows and not having Lightroom working again.
08-23-2021, 01:55 PM   #10
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I used an Epson V700 (flatbed scanner) to scan negatives that I had (35 mm film). It did really well. I saved the files as TIF files. I used a 35 mm holder that came with the scanner.
08-23-2021, 04:04 PM   #11
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QuoteOriginally posted by pres589 Quote
I copy my negatives with my K-5 II and a 105mm macro lens like described in your option B. The problem I have in recommending it to others is the software side of things; the best solution I've found is Negative Lab Pro plug-in with Lightroom 6. This works well but requires an existing copy of Lightroom 6; Negative Lab works with Lightroom CC but I don't want to move to subscription based software and I don't want to recommend it to others. The creator of Negative Lab has stated he has no interest (last I checked) to port his plug-in to some other platform.
RawTherapee and DarkTable both have negative processing capabilities. Snappiness has done some videos on YouTube about how he uses them along with his K-1 to digitize negatives. That said, having watched a number of videos comparing Negative Lab Pro to those options, NLP is definitely easier to use. I don’t get the aversion to the Adobe Photography plan. $9.99/mo gets you constant updates to fix bugs and add features. BTW, there is no product called Lightroom CC any more. You have Lightroom Classic, which is the ongoing evolution of Lightroom 6, and Lightroom, which is the less featured (No print module? WTF, Adobe?), cloud-based version. Scott Kelby tends to call it Lightroom Cloud, but he recently called it Lightroom for Children, and I think that is an even more accurate name.
08-23-2021, 04:08 PM   #12
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I have summarized my experience in digitizing (meanwhile 25k Slides) in these posts:
35mm negative scanner - PentaxForums.com
Slide and neg scanner.... - PentaxForums.com
Bottom line: If the majority of your material to scan is B&W, there is nothing wrong in chosing the camera method - apart from the dust issue. If you talk about color, go for the Epson V500/V550 line.
08-23-2021, 05:24 PM   #13
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mtkeller, Adobe shows LR Classic as part of the cloud suite now. Not getting further into the weeds on this one as it really isn't inline with the rest of the thread.
08-24-2021, 01:31 AM   #14
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Thank you for all your kind advice, it is swinging me towards the DIY camera method, I shall wander off down to my garden shed and experiment.

Viking 42 struck a memory chord with regard to large prints, back in the early 60's I took a sheet of A1 size dyeline print paper, selotaped it to my bedroom wall and used a Gnome push pull slide projector to project a B & W neg onto it, took a long time but I did get a rather grainy image out of it. Downside - my mother was not pleased with the sellotape damage to the wall paper - you can't think of everything.

CD
08-24-2021, 03:45 AM   #15
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Scanning with a DSLR will get you much sharper results but the colour will be completely wrong due to the orange mask. To correct that you'll need to be proficient in the use of a suitable software program. The one that is dedicated to doing that is Negative Lab Pro which is a Lightroom plug-in and costs around 100 €/$ on top of what Lightroom costs.
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