Dust removing

[begona]

Hy..

I am wondering how you clean dust from your BW scans...I always have lot of minute white dots all over my pics...

I am talking about postprocessing on PC

enlighten me! 😀

 

[taskoni]

Hi.
I would advise you to handle with great care your negatives and then you don't have to remove the spots from your scans or prints, at least I never do.
However, Lightroom has a great spot removal tool, easy to use.

Regards,

Boris

 

[brainwood]

Careful drying of the negs is probably the first step. If you can keep them clean from the start then its just a case of careful handling. I have resorted to a very soft lens brush for stray hairs and fibres. Also a good scanner should have some dust removal software in its utility programme. The minolta 5400 I use has a fairly good SRD dust removal tool and if all else fails theres the clone tool in photoshop set to 10pix dia or so to spot out any remaining spots

Chris

 

[cabbiinc]

If you're getting tons of dots on you b/w negatives then you may look at your developing process. If you have the choice of using developer at full strength for a short amount of time or 1/3rd strength for a longer amount of time I'd try going for a longer amount of time.

 

[charjohncarter]

What I hate is dust on C-41, which I send out. They usually don't replace their final drying filters so the WET emulsion is embedded with dust.

Does anone know a C-41 Lab out west US that works to not get dust?

 

[zauhar]

I use an antistatic brush (B & H photo), followed by canned air.

I have noticed the brush "wears out" after a couple months' use. I have tried cleaning, but does not seem to make a difference. Fresh out of the wrapper, it works wonders. They are only ~ $10, so not a big deal to replace.

On the software side I use the spot healing tool in PS, which works well.

Randy

P.S. Did anyone here invest in the radioactive (polonium) antistatic brush? Are there electrical brushes that work well?

 

[V-12]

As B&W won't work with scanner dust removal software (and it degrades colour images anyway) a good soft brush is the best bet, and then use Lightroom or Photoshop for the final last step. It isn't a problem specific to digital transfer, a print from a wet darkroom could often need some spot removal.

 

[Overkill-F1]

P.S. Did anyone here invest in the radioactive (polonium) antistatic brush? Are there electrical brushes that work well?

I have one of those radioactive brushes and it works really well. I used it everytime I handled negatives to contact print or enlarge. It is in storage along with the rest of my darkroom equipment, I wonder if it is still 'radioactive'?
Are the brushes still available?
...Terry

 

[zauhar]

I have one of those radioactive brushes and it works really well. I used it everytime I handled negatives to contact print or enlarge. It is in storage along with the rest of my darkroom equipment, I wonder if it is still 'radioactive'?
Are the brushes still available?
...Terry

Terry, Adorama has them -

http://www.adorama.com/CPSMB1.html

It is pricey, but if it's truly magic I may ask for one for Xmas. (Surely, there must be some magic left in the world?)

Not only is the brush pricey, so is the polonium refill. According to the specs, the half life of Polonium is such that the radioactivity level drops to 15% of the original after one year.

Randy

 

[Overkill-F1]

Thanks for the link...
That brush is the same one that I have. I guess mine is in need of a refill after being in storage for 22 years. I don't remember it being so expensive back in the good old days!
...Terry

 

[ricnak]

I am only new to scanning film and was horrified when I saw my first scans! I live in a dusty place, the windows are always open and I don't care much for excessive housework to keep the place dust free. I have found that increasing the humdity in the room that you are developing and scanning in works wonders. The dust seems to drop out of the air. I use a Vicks humdifier that i got from the chemist for $35. I turn it on, shut the office door and wait about 30 minutes before playing with negatives and scanning. It makes a huge difference in my situation.

 

[Keith]

I am only new to scanning film and was horrified when I saw my first scans! I live in a dusty place, the windows are always open and I don't care much for excessive housework to keep the place dust free. I have found that increasing the humdity in the room that you are developing and scanning in works wonders. The dust seems to drop out of the air. I use a Vicks humdifier that i got from the chemist for $35. I turn it on, shut the office door and wait about 30 minutes before playing with negatives and scanning. It makes a huge difference in my situation.

That's very true ... I quite often save all my scanning until it rains solidly but that theory isn't working too well in Brisbane at the moment ... as you'd know! 😛

It's as dry as the proverbial dead dingo's you know what! 😀