Converting Film --> Digital image

[Scheelings]

Hey guys, I've recently acquired a beautiful M3 and I've gone through my first 3 rolls of film (in my life).

Its quite addictive and since I've got it, the M8 has been sitting on the shelf!

However, once I have my photos I'm wanting to share them - that means converting them to digital images.

On the first 2 rolls i was stupid enough to to cut the film up and give Kodak the images i wanted - so then I find out the machine doesn't take them....

Is there a company / international or otherwise who I can send film to and they'll convert it to digital and email me the photos for a reasonable price?

 

[Pikapig]

Hey guys, I've recently acquired a beautiful M3 and I've gone through my first 3 rolls of film (in my life).

Its quite addictive and since I've got it, the M8 has been sitting on the shelf!

However, once I have my photos I'm wanting to share them - that means converting them to digital images.

On the first 2 rolls i was stupid enough to to cut the film up and give Kodak the images i wanted - so then I find out the machine doesn't take them....

Is there a company / international or otherwise who I can send film to and they'll convert it to digital and email me the photos for a reasonable price?

U can try looking for people with scanner in your country to do a scanning for u. Where are u located?🙂

 

[konicaman]

In the long run it will be cheaper to get your own scanner. Combined film/flatbed scanner can be bought used for very little money - and you can always upgrade to a more expensive dedicated film scanner later, should the need arise.

 

[EthanFrank]

If, by any chance you're in the Toronto area, you're welcome to use my scanner.

 

[Scheelings]

In the long run it will be cheaper to get your own scanner. Combined film/flatbed scanner can be bought used for very little money - and you can always upgrade to a more expensive dedicated film scanner later, should the need arise.

I never really thought about that. How good are these scanners in capturing all the level of detail contained within such a compact film?

What is generally considered the best scanner for such a purpose?

How much is a dedicated film scanner?

 

[CrisR]

I'm another on the side of getting a negative scanner - i spent £180 on a Plustek 7400 and scan all the images i want to keep/use/share/print at around 26 Megapixels quite easily.

From those, i can share them online by uploading a lower resolution version, but i also have a print-resolution file for the future, should i wish to get anything enlarged.

 

[Scheelings]

I'm another on the side of getting a negative scanner - i spent £180 on a Plustek 7400 and scan all the images i want to keep/use/share/print at around 26 Megapixels quite easily.

From those, i can share them online by uploading a lower resolution version, but i also have a print-resolution file for the future, should i wish to get anything enlarged.

That is pretty cheap - and at 26 Megapixels - thats ALOT of detail! What advantage does a dedicated film negative scanner hold over the plustek - and also - how do u create a normal photo from the negative? Is that a photoshop requirement or is it something that lightroom could manage?

 

[randomm]

Plustek is a dedicated film scanner...

 

[randomm]

For plustek quality go to my flickr. Most photos in the last 6 months scanned with the 7500i model.

 

[sahe69]

What is generally considered the best scanner for such a purpose?

How much is a dedicated film scanner?

Nikon LS-5000 or V ED is probably best dedicated 35 mm scanner, but unfortunately discontinued, so the prices of used ones have crept up. From eBay you can see the price level for past auctions, to get an idea.

That is pretty cheap - and at 26 Megapixels - thats ALOT of detail!

Well, megapixels of scans and megapixels of digital images do not really compare 1:1. But with a good film scanner you are able to achieve very good digital images, however the film grain will be accentuated especially on B/W films.

 

[Roger Hicks]

A figure widely accepted among film manufacturers -- don't ask me how they got there -- is that a perfectly exposed, sharp 35mm transparency on fine-grain film equates roughly to 18-22 megapixels.

Cheers,

R.

 

[CrisR]

That is pretty cheap - and at 26 Megapixels - thats ALOT of detail! What advantage does a dedicated film negative scanner hold over the plustek - and also - how do u create a normal photo from the negative? Is that a photoshop requirement or is it something that lightroom could manage?

The Plustek range of negative scanners comes with Mac and PC software that handles the conversion of Negatives on a film-by-film basis, as you scan it.

That is, you choose the brand and type of film you are scanning from a drop-down, and it automatically compensates for that film's unique colour cast, scanning it as a positive image, ready for adjustments or printing as-is.

The software also allows you to adjust the image directly, without need for Photoshop or lightroom, you can tweak the curves, colours, saturation and contrast based on a quick preview scan (about 5 seconds scan) before scanning the image at up to 78 Megapixels if you need to (7200dpi). I scan at around 4500dpi as 25 Megapixels is about the detail limit of a 35mm negative.

A full scan takes about 90 seconds.

I spent the best part of 6 months investigating all options, in the end i went for a Plustek Negative Scanner, as while there are better scanners, the increase in price did not reflect the increase in performance, and i'm not using this professionally.

Plus, the whole setup is cheaper than an M9 lol

 

[rogerzilla]

The Reflecta 7200 (German brand) is excellent value.

Here's the full image on Reala 100:

and here's a 100% sample with NO sharpening. The film grain is the limiting factor, not the scanner. The effective resultion has been independently tested at about 3200dpi; this 3600dpi scan gives about a 17MP image.

Note that many scanners claim up to 9600dpi, but they actually achieve only 2000dpi or less in actual resolution.

 

[PrecisionCamera]

My company is a forum sponsor, and Development/Scanning is one of the discounted services we provide to RFF members. You can check out our services and RFF member reviews on this thread:

Scanning Special!

We even have a Used Nikon V-ED Scanner for sale right now. PM me if you have any additional questions.

 

[divewizard]

I send all my film to Precision Camera and Video or North Coast Photographic Services to be processed and scanned. Both do an outstanding job.
Look at my gallery here or on flickr. Or some recent posts here, here, here, here, or here.

I tend to send my C-41 & E-6 to PCV and black & white to NCPS, but both do a great job on both.

I have a scanner, but scanning myself very time consuming. I would rather be out taking pictures in the limited free time I have.