Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2010/04/22
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]On Apr 21, 2010 at 07:38 PM -0500, James Laird wrote: > I don't want to spend thousands on a Nikon >9000 (somebody have an old > one they want to sell cheap? ;). What would >be a good fairly > inexpensive scanner that would do the job. The problems scanning B&W are two-fold. First is dust and scratches. Automatic dust removal features don't work with traditional silver-based B&W, so you have to do it by hand in Photoshop. Hope your negs are clean. The other problem is grain aliasing, which makes grain look bigger than it actually is. Scanning at the highest resolution of your scanner seems to be the 'best' solution in my experience (on a Nikon Coolscan). The Coolscans are the best bet for high quality while not being *too* expensive. Unfortunately, the value model, the V, was discontinued. I think the 5000 is too, and the status of the 9000 is spotty at best; on backorder. Better than those is an Flextight, but those are pricey. If you want a new scanner, an Epson V700/750/600/500 is probably your best bet. They aren't dedicated negative scanners. There's the Plustek negative scanner, but I've heard varying opinions. I think I'd go for the Epson. Used scanners: older Coolscan models (4000 seems to be the best bet - essentially like the V), the Minolta scanners mentioned (5400), and a Canon scanner that I forget the name of. The path of least resistance for scanning old slides, negatives, and prints is probably the V700.