Scanning Technique

[Dwayneb9584]

Hey everyone,

So I just bought a Plustek 7600i SE and did some test scans in the Silver Fast Program but I sort of don't know what's the best way to go about using for web and even prints. So I was wondering for anyone who uses this program what setting do you use or techniques and or short cuts to get you images the way you like them.

 

[venchka]

No short cuts. Practice. A lot. After a few zillion scans the lightbulb goes on. Then it gets slightly easier and the output improves. With a LOT of practice you can produce files that require very little touch up work in an editing program. Good luck.

 

[ColSebastianMoran]

Dwayneb, my initial scans were frustrating. Just hold the thought that excellent scans will eventually appear. Keep working till you find them.

If in doubt and things are heading south, reset everything to defaults and start again. I found it easy to mess things up in initial explorations.

What's an excellent scan? For me, a 12x18" print from 35mm.

 

[GSNfan]

In my experience the longer it takes to scan the better results. with my cheap canon flatbed scanner negative color film setting takes the longest to scan. So i scan negative film - greyscale 16bit - 3200 dpi. I'm happy with that. Scanning as positive film makes the b&w scans look like digital b&w. thats why a lot of people prefer to scan their b&w negative as positive film... As far as color is concerned, i have never scanned any color film so I cannot help you there.

 

[ferider]

Split the scanning process in two: (1) scan getting maximum information, i.e. tif output, 16bit per color, etc. (2) do all the post-processing, i.e. leveling, color, etc., in PS.

Roland.

 

[venchka]

Split the scanning process in two: (1) scan getting maximum information, i.e. tif output, 16bit per color, etc. (2) do all the post-processing, i.e. leveling, color, etc., in PS.

Roland.

Or Adobe Photoshop Lightroom. 😉
Spend your savings on film. 😎

 

[domagojs]

i'm also new at scanning, so i share your pain 🙂

i find vuescan to produce better results in the end, while silverfast is quicker to get a reasonable scan.

when i do use silverfast, setting the film and setting "auto sharpen more" option really helps. i haven't tried it yet, but setting the blac and white points manually and adjusting levels manually should further improve the results. that way, you would be left with removing dust and tweaking contrast in some pp program and that would be it.

hth

 

[p.giannakis]

It took me weeks of tries to get a scan i really like. I am using an epson perfection 1650 scanner which is not the best option to scan with. What i usually do is scan in Silverfast, setting the film base as black (click on the white-grey-black button and then between two frames), 16 bit b&w and scan it. I open the image in photoshop and i use the "Convert to b&w pro 3" plug in to set up the contrast. A bit unsharp mask and that's all.

A couple of examples:

 

[lewis44]

Here is a link to a real good read about scanning film.

http://forum.getdpi.com/forum/showthread.php?t=22358

It's Pretty much on the money and gives you a good understanding of the process

 

[LKeithR]

As you can see from all the responses, there is no "right" or "perfect" way to scan your images. You have to practice and experiment till you come up with a workflow that works for you.

I have a V750, use Silverfast and have ho experience with Vuescan although I expect there's very little overall difference between them. More important, I think, is becoming really familiar with whatever software you choose. I can actually get pretty darn good results with the proprietary Epson software so I'm not sure how much of a difference the software makes.

This may be because, like ferider, I scan only for maximum information, making no corrections whatsoever with the scanner software. I shoot a lot of digital so I'm used to post-processing my images and it just makes more sense to take a (scanned) RAW file and PP it. To save time and hard drive space I generally pre-scan a whole roll of film at 300 dpi (very fast) to create a digital "contact sheet" for archival purposes. This allows me to evaluate all the shots and I can go back and do a hi-res scan of any of the "keepers" at a later date.

Unless I'm planning to print very large I generally find little difference between a 2400 dpi vs. 3200 dpi scan--although I often scan at 3200. The manufacturers of all the scanners make it difficult to determine the maximum "actual"--as opposed to "advertised"--resolution of their machines and it makes no sense to me to scan at resolution higher than the actual max. resolution as all the scanner is doing is interpolating data. If this is going to happen I would prefer to do it post where I have more control and better tools available.

And one last thing; make lots of notes! There is nothing more frustrating than spending a lot of time getting a "perfect" (I know, I shouldn't use that word) setup and then not being able to replicate it. Good luck and show us some of your work...

 

[venchka]

Ken Lee helped me more than anything.

http://www.kenleegallery.com/html/tech/scanning.html

http://www.kenleegallery.com/html/tech/scanningGreen.html

And clean negatives and a clean scanner.

Typically, if my negatives are good, and I sure hope they are, I can do post in Lightroom with my patented Wayne's Magic Mojo Preset:
Black: +5
Brightness: +20
Contrast: +20
Clarity: +30, sometimes backed off to +15
Sharpening: Lightroom landscape preset
Occasionally: Exposure either + or - 0.5 and Medium or Strong contrast preset. Depending on the scene and my mood and the position of the moon and Mars.
Crop to taste. If I screwed up and can't use the full frame, I like 5x7 a lot.
Spot as needed. Usually not very much is needed.
Done.
Good luck!

 

[Dwayneb9584]

Thanks a lot for all the help everyone, LKeithR and everyone else were very informative. Right now, I'm scanning a 16bit Grayscale, and 72dpi for my monthly blog post. I plan to make prints for some of the work I have and will use a high DPI rate. If not 7200 around 3200dpi. GSNfan, I tried scanning as a positive and it made my negative look like an xray scan. So I just use negative and set the film to my Ilford HP5 plus 400 speed. I've been scanning all last night and will post some results as soon as I get a chance to.

 

[ZeissFan]

With VueScan, you can fiddle with the settings for days and days until you're ready to pull out a pistol and shoot yourself.

I think the Epson Scan software is quite good. Gives you a very good file.

The one feature that I like about VueScan was the ability to scan a file in multiple passes, which cuts down on digital noise.

 

[venchka]

One of the raging internet debats is just how many optical DPIs do you get from a consumer flatbed scanner. Estimates vary from 1600 to 2400. Maximum. With the most votes going towards the 1600 figure. YMMV.

 

[venchka]

...The one feature that I like about VueScan was the ability to scan a file in multiple passes, which cuts down on digital noise.

Please explain digital noise. Am I getting it and just don't know it? What should I look for? Currently using an Epson 1680 & EpsonScan software at 1600 to 2400 DPI.

 

[AusDLK]

I've piped in on scanning software before but here goes again.

Vuescan is ridiculous. As in ridiculously hard to use. So many options, so little guidance as to what settings are "best". Unless you are a PhD or have unlimited time to make X number of test scans sometimes with little to no obvious differences, avoid it.

Silverfast also has usability issues. It does not conform to generally accepted user-interface GUI "best practices" and is not at all intuitive. I still cannot understand why they haven't redesigned the vertical buttons on the left of the scan window so they are larger and you can tell if a setting is on or off without squinting or taking a guess.

But still, it's a far cry easier to use the Vuescan.

While I have begun a conversion to use Silverfast (because of its multi-exposure feature), I still think that the OEM scan software from Epson, Nikon, and Minolta (I've used all three extensively) are BY far the easiest of all to use and produce results that 95% of us will be happy with. I have not ever used Canon scanners so I cannot comment on that OEM software.

So, if you are a novice scanner, save your money, buy more film, and skip both Vuescan and Silverfast.

 

[JPSuisse]

Be patient you will succeed!

Be patient you will succeed!

There are so many darn ways to scan! It's highly experiential, and the experience will lead you to it.

You might want to avoid scanning Kodachrome as a first pick... 🙂 It's a real difficult one.

I scan with a Nikon film scanner with a roll scanner. I can literally set it up now and let it scan while I wash dishes. This was painful to learn but it works well now.

Also, I use VueScan, have slide film uncut in plastic wrap from the developer and actually make RAW scans and finish in Lightroom. For BW, I simply clean the bathroom before developing and then do the same thing.

Best of luck, you will succeed!

JP

PS - Unlike ausDLK above. I have only used manufacturers scanning software a little because I have scanners from multiple manufacturers and only want 1 (ONE) piece of software!

 

[venchka]

Kodachrome isn't hard.

 

[venchka]

I tried the "scan B&W in 48 bit color and keep the green channel" last night on a single 6x7 negative. One negative doesn't prove anything. But. The image had a much nicer, much crisper look to it. It isn't anything that I could see at 100% on the monitor. The full image filling my monitor looked better than the same negative scanned previously in 16 bit greyscale.
It is a pain. The scan takes longer & the file is huge. I'm sure I could write an action for Photoshop to automate the 2 steps. I think this procedure is best used for "special" negatives that you wish to print.
Stand by for further testing.

Ken Lee: Green Channel

 

[Dwayneb9584]

That Ken Lee green channel tutorial looks pretty successful.