Epson Perfection V550 Photo Color Scanner

[Dave S.]

I've recently resumed developing my own film (after a 20-25 year hiatus!) and I'm looking for a scanner to scan the resultant negatives. I shoot mostly Kodak Tri-X in 35mm and 120. I'd like to be able to get scans sufficient to print up to 11 x 17. I own Photoshop CS4 and Aperture 3.5.

I've been looking at the Epson Perfection V550 Photo Color Scanner and would appreciate any user comments regarding the pros / cons of this model.

A couple of pros to get things started:

1. Scans 35mm negative and medium format
2. Costs $149.99 + Tax at the moment

Thank you!

 

[xia_ke]

You can get a refurbished V600 direct from Epson right now for $145 with free shipping...

http://www.epson.com/cgi-bin/Store/jsp/Product.do?BV_UseBVCookie=yes&sku=B11B198011-N

 

[Dave S.]

xia_ke: That sounds like a really good deal on a V600. What would be the advantage of the V600 over the V550? My brief research on this matter indicates that the only difference between the V550 and the V600 is that the V600 comes with Adobe Photoshop Elements (both scanners have the same technical specifications). Are there any other differences I'm unaware of?

 

[Dave S.]

I bought the Epson Perfection V600 Photo Scanner - Refurbished directly from Epson as suggested by xia_ke.

$145 + No Tax & Free Shipping (!)

Thanks for the advice!

 

[Noll]

I think you might have trouble getting sharp 11x17 prints from 35mm scanned on the Epson.

This site has a lot of good info:
http://www.filmscanner.info/en/FilmscannerTestberichte.html

According to their review, the V600 is getting "an effective resolution of 1560ppi". I suspect the V550 will not outperform this number. Some people might be able to eke out a little more using this or that technique, but your print quality will be far more scanner-limited than film size/resolution limited, even with Tri-X in 35mm.

Just my personal observations from owning a V500 and also having used micro 4/3 + macro lens to scan film. The latter method was a real eye-opener to what I was missing from the V500.

 

[Dave S.]

Thanks for your input Noll. I will read that review you mentioned.

On a side note: Yesterday, I unexpectedly picked up a FREE Bessler 23c II + dark room accessories (!). After a 20-25 year hiatus I'm going to set up a dark room and do some wet printing. I doubt I'll miss much from my 35mm negatives that way 😀.

-Dave

 

[kknox]

Dave that's a great deal. I need a scanner to do 35 & 120 film, let us know what you think when you scan some film. Then post some results.

 

[Dave S.]

I think you might have trouble getting sharp 11x17 prints from 35mm scanned on the Epson.

This site has a lot of good info:
http://www.filmscanner.info/en/FilmscannerTestberichte.html

According to their review, the V600 is getting "an effective resolution of 1560ppi". I suspect the V550 will not outperform this number. Some people might be able to eke out a little more using this or that technique, but your print quality will be far more scanner-limited than film size/resolution limited, even with Tri-X in 35mm.

Just my personal observations from owning a V500 and also having used micro 4/3 + macro lens to scan film. The latter method was a real eye-opener to what I was missing from the V500.

Now having read the review I am left wondering if the replacement negative / slide trays I've read about would improve upon the weak performance mentioned in the review ("an effective resolution of 1560ppi")???

For example, the replacements offered by betterscanning.com:

120/220 Replacement Tray with anti-Newton Ring glass insert

http://www.betterscanning.com/scanning/vb_mfholder.html

35mm anti-Newton Ring glass insert

http://www.betterscanning.com/scanning/insert35.html

 

[Dave S.]

I received the Epson V600 yesterday. Attached is my first scan of 35mm negative. This is a photo of my dog from 25 years ago (I think it's Tri-X 400). I've included a 100% crop as well. Scanned using Epson Scan. Full size image is 4384 × 2805 (12.3 MP), bit depth = 8, 72dpi.

Given these numbers I could print:

300dpi photograph: 14.6" (37.1cm) x 9.4" (23.7cm)

240dpi photograph: 18.3" (46.4cm) x 11.7" (29.7cm)

At least according to the megapixel calculator found here: http://web.forret.com/tools/megapixel.asp?width=4384&height=2805

 

[Ranchu]

Way too much sharpening set, imo. I set it on 'low', though people differ. Also. setting 16 bit looks much better than 8 even if you save as jpeg. The Epson is not the sharpest scanner, but it does good color and tones…

Here is what I do, a few giant heavy books work for flattening.

http://www.rangefinderforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=94126

 

[Dave S.]

Thanks for the tip Ranchu. I have pretty much no idea what I am doing so I could use all the advice I can get! I'll adjust my settings, rescan, and repost later this evening.

If anyone has suggested settings for scanning B+W negative using the V600 with Epson Scan I would welcome them. I also have photoshop CS4 if that is a preferable way to scan and would welcome CS4 settings suggestions as well.

-Dave

 

[Ranchu]

I use the same settings for B/W but I shut off the ICE because it doesn't work with B/W. I reset the gamma (middle) box to 1.00 in the levels palette, both for color and B/W. I use Epsonscan standalone instead of using it through photoshop with the twain driver. Have fun, people cry and wail scanning is a PIA, but I look forward to it.

🙂

 

[Dave S.]

Here are some revised scans with less sharpening (maybe too little?). I also got rid of the sepia tone and slight vignette effect. Using the same calculator mentioned above results in these suggestions:


240 dpi
17.2" (43.7 cm) x 11.5" (29.1cm)

300 dpi
13.8" (34.9 cm) x 9.2" (23.3cm)

 

[Ranchu]

Looks about right to me for right out of the scanner, you can sharpen further in photoshop if you want. Remember that's a huge blow up.

 

[Dave S.]

Thanks for the feedback Ranchu! Below are my settings. Please let me know if you have any suggestions for doing things differently.

Epson Scan Ver. 5.1

Document Type: Film
Film Type: Positive Film
Image Type: 48-bit Color
Speed Priority Scanning = Unchecked
Resolution: 3200dpi
Document Size and Target Size: 1.37 x 0.88 in. (what was auto filled in by preview)
Scale: 100%
Trimming: Off
Unsharp Mask: Checked / Low
Grain Reduction: Unchecked
Color Restoration: Checked
Backlight Correction: Unchecked
Dust Removal: Unchecked
Digital ICE Technology: Unchecked
Image Format Type: PRINT Image Matching II (TIFF) (*.tif)

Apple Aperture Ver. 3.5.1

Adjust Curves to Invert Negative
Slight Cropping
Auto Exposure
White Balance: Natural Grey

 

[Ranchu]

What I do differently is I scan as a negative and let epsonscan invert it and I don't use Color restoration. It just adjusts the saturation and something something sliders in one of the palettes. I'm mainly trying to get a flat scan. But that's just my process of course, you're off to a good start!

 

[Dave S.]

Thanks for the info Ranchu. I came up with the above settings by combining your suggestions with something I found on flickr. I tried scanning as a negative, but I think the results are better when I scan as a positive film. I'm sure I'll continue testing a tweaking... Thanks again!