Coolscan

[JeremyLangford]

I entered the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards of 2009 a few months ago and have recently found out that I won a Silver Medal in the National Competition for my Photography Portfolio. Because I won this and I am a graduating senior, I may get scholarship money for college.

Before I entered this contest, I asked my parents if they would buy me a Nikon scanner if I won some scholarship money and they agreed. I have always wanted a Nikon Coolscan scanner to replace my Epson V500 that I am very unsatisfied with. After learning about the different Coolscan models I have decided that my choice would definitely be a 9000 because I really hope to experiment with 6x6 film eventually and I want to use it all through college.

I was looking at used 9000 models on eBay for a lot cheaper than brand new. Would you consider these safe to buy? There is one auction where the seller has said that they do not have a way to test it to make sure it works but these things don't break easily do they? If I bought a used one that had problems, would there be no way to fix it?

Are there different versions or anything that I need to worry about or is any 9000 going to be the same? Do you have a place that you would recommend me buying from?

Thanks

 

[fbf]

Congratulations !
As long as you buy from trustworthy sellers on ebay, there shouldn't be any problem. Nikon service center still carry the service for the scanners though the service charge is not cheap ($2xx, $4xx, $7xx if I recall correctly).
There should be 3 carriers come with the 9000, the 135 strip, 135 mounted, and 120 strip film carriers. You will also need the power cable and 1394(firewire) cable. They are usually included in the sale but make sure you read the ad carefully. That's pretty much it. If you later feel the need of the glass carrier, you can consider buying the fh-869G or FH869GR . They will get the best out of the 9000ed.
Hope this helps.
good luck and have fun in college.

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

Jeremy,

On Ebay, when someone says "I don't have a way to test it", they really mean "It is a broken piece of sh-t". Don't go there. Get one from someone who say it works and will let you return it if it doesn't. They don't typically go bad, but if it has been in a smoker's house the optics might be fogged up by tar...i've seen a coolscan with that problem, owned by an old man who smoked about 4 packs a day.

If you get a broken one, Nikon can fix it, but expect it to cost a lot of money and take several months. So, you don't want a broken one.

I have an 8000, the predecesor to the 9000, and they're very similar. I will give you this advice on them: The negative carriers they give you are worthless. The 120 one will never hold film flat or give good scans. They sell glass carriers and they're basically REQUIRED for good 120 scans. I use the glass carrier for everything and the scans are magnificent. The 35mm carrier will only give sharp scans if the film is 100% PERFECTLY flat. If it has ANY curl or curvature you MUST flatten it (put the film in a print-file page then under a stack of books for a couple weeks). The poorly designed negative holders are the big weakness of these scanners, and I think it sucks that the glass one isn't included (it costs $300 extra!).

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

Oh I forgot to say congrats on the Scholastic award. I got a regional gold key award from the Scholastic Art Awards when I was a senior in high school 15 yrs ago. I didn't get nominated for a scholarship though...the competition is fierce to even be considered so tell your parents that even if you don't get any money, you've really accomplished something. If I recall, the scholarships were only good at a few schools, none of which I wanted to go to. If it is still like that, and you don't like the places they're for, then it matters even less if you get one. Like I said, getting far enough along to be considered for one is a big achievement. Your parents should get you the scanner anyway. It'll be one of the best equipment investments you'll make. I couldn't live without my Coolscan!

 

[JeremyLangford]

Oh I forgot to say congrats on the Scholastic award. I got a regional gold key award from the Scholastic Art Awards when I was a senior in high school 15 yrs ago. I didn't get nominated for a scholarship though...the competition is fierce to even be considered so tell your parents that even if you don't get any money, you've really accomplished something. If I recall, the scholarships were only good at a few schools, none of which I wanted to go to. If it is still like that, and you don't like the places they're for, then it matters even less if you get one. Like I said, getting far enough along to be considered for one is a big achievement. Your parents should get you the scanner anyway. It'll be one of the best equipment investments you'll make. I couldn't live without my Coolscan!

Thanks, I won with these 8 photos. Some were cross-processed. I still have a lot I need to learn about scanning, photoshop, color, etc.

 

[dfoo]

Very nice... I like them all with the exception of the motel shot. Great colors!

 

[venchka]

I didn't read all the warnings. Be careful! ebay sucks sometimes. Do some more homework. There is a medium format film carrier that is sold as an extra. I think users say this is essential to hold the film flat. They aren't cheap and they are hard to find.

I was right. Chris covered the film holders.

6x6 is nice. 6x7 is nicer. 6x9 is really nice. Bigger is better.

Congrats!

 

[valdas]

Beautiful photos, especially 1/2/3

 

[Wiyum]

Congrats Jeremy. Great looking stuff, most of which doesn't look like I remember Knoxville looking.

You know yet where you're headed next fall?

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

Thanks, I won with these 8 photos. Some were cross-processed. I still have a lot I need to learn about scanning, photoshop, color, etc.

I'm sure you do have a lot to learn, but you're only 17. My work matured a lot artistically and technically during the 5 years I was working on my BFA. Yours will too. I remember when you first joined RFF asking for info on your SRT-101, which wasn't that long ago. These photos are a lot better than the work you showed back then; you're learning fast and getting very good.

 

[JeremyLangford]

I'm sure you do have a lot to learn, but you're only 17. My work matured a lot artistically and technically during the 5 years I was working on my BFA. Yours will too. I remember when you first joined RFF asking for info on your SRT-101, which wasn't that long ago. These photos are a lot better than the work you showed back then; you're learning fast and getting very good.

The first, second, third, and fifth photo were taken with my SRT-101. I love that camera but am actually hoping to get a Minolta XD-11 to replace it soon.

 

[JeremyLangford]

Congrats Jeremy. Great looking stuff, most of which doesn't look like I remember Knoxville looking.

You know yet where you're headed next fall?

I have always wanted to go to the University of Tennessee of Knoxville that I live 10 minutes away from but I wasn't accepted there (I made a 24 on the ACT and had a 3.0 GPA). So now I plan to go to Pellissippi State Technical Community College for a year and then transfer into UT.

I could get some scholarship money to an Art School because of this award but I just don't feel like I'd want to do that.

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

XD-11 is a nice camera. They still go for high prices. I have an SRT-101 and 50mm f1.7 and 85mm f1.7 lenses. I need to get it out and use it, I never do. I mostly use Olympus OM SLRs, out of habit...I started with Olympus when I was a little kid (around 8 or 9). I have trouble focusing the SRT and I use that as my excuse to keep using my OM-4T bodies, which have MUCH brighter focusing screens. Someday I'm going to pick up a newer Minolta body to use that incredible 85mm lens on. I got it for $50 last year and it looks almost new! The local camera store thinks old film cameras and their lenses are worthless, so good deals show up there a lot. I think the lens I got usually goes for over $300 on Ebay!

If you like the SRT, I wouldn't replace it. i'd use it as a second body alongside the newer camera you get. I carry two Olympus OM-4T bodies so I can keep one loaded with Tmax 400 and one loaded with Tmax 3200....my favorite two 35mm films.

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

I have always wanted to go to the University of Tennessee of Knoxville that I live 10 minutes away from but I wasn't accepted there (I made a 24 on the ACT and had a 3.0 GPA). So now I plan to go to Pellissippi State Technical Community College for a year and then transfer into UT.

I could get some scholarship money to an Art School because of this award but I just don't feel like I'd want to do that.

They wouldn't accept you with a 3.0 GPA? Wow. I don't know what your ACT score means...is 24 good or bad? I had a 3.2 GPA in high school and a 1200 on the SAT and got accepted at Indiana University with no problem. Usually state universities are not hard to get into if you have decent grades because state schools were established to educate the state's citizens, not to be elite institutions like Harvard. Getting in is usually easy, though staying in is harder!

I think your plan to go to the state university instead of an art school is a good one. It is almost impossible to get a job with an art degree. I know that when I graduated back in 1999 I spent 6 years after that looking for a job and out of more than 800 applications, I got one interview (ONE!) and was not hired. If you go to UT, you can double major in art and something like business, so you can be employable when you get out of school. Even if you want to be self employed, as most professional photographers are, business classes will GREATLY help you succeed in your own business. I have suffered greatly from my own lack of business knowledge while trying to earn a living as a self-employed photographer.

 

[gdi]

You can avoid the cost of the glass carriers (several hundred dollars) by cutting anti glare glass for the standard 120 holder. It far less convenient. but the results are about the same - you will have to make your own masks, however.

 

[JeremyLangford]

So basically I want a CS 9000 so I'm able to scan all my 35mm negatives/slides I have right now and make a website for them. Then I want to be able to take my camera everywhere and be able to add new photos to my website easily and quickly so I don't get behind anymore. This should really let me start learning a lot from trial and error. Also, I have been wanting to experiment with 6x6 photography with waist level viewing for a long time.

I know all of this can be done with an Epson flatbed at a fraction of the cost but I just feel like I should get the best quality out of my negatives/slides the first time around and then not have to worry about my scans not being good enough ever again. I plan on using this scanner all through college and after college. Will the 9000 ever become out of date or unusable?

Do you think I need a 9000 or I'm just crazy?

 

[dfoo]

There is a big difference in quality between the epson flatbed, and the nikon scanners for 35mm. For medium format I cannot say. I bought a v700 originally since I didn't want to dish the big $$'s and I wanted to do medium format, and 35mm. I later bought a 5000ed for 35mm, and the quality is quite a bit better. However, I wish I'd bought the 9000 in the beginning, because its not much more expensive than the 700 and 5000 ed combined.

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

The 9000 won't get outdated or unusable (unless it breaks after parts are no longer made, but that is a long way off most likely, if it ever breaks at all). No one is developing new film scanners, so the 9000 is the end of the line. If you are going to be a professional artist then you need the best. The quality difference will show in your prints when you exhibit large prints. If your parents will get you the 9000, get it. You won't regret it.

 

[venchka]

Don't buy anything from ebay without a clearly defined return policy.

 

[JeremyLangford]

Is there an upgrade to the stock Nikon film holder for 35mm mounted slides or unmounted strips?