Epson V500 and mounted slides

[nathanp]

I've just got my first Kodachrome roll back and started scanning, but something doesn't seem right with the way the slides sit in the mount.

I don't know if the mounts are smaller than normal but rather than sitting in the mount the slides just drop through and sit flat on the scanner glass. All the mount seems to do is hold them in position.

Has anyone else scanned mounted slides with the V500 (or another V-series with similar holder) and found the same? Or should the slides somehow fit in the holder so that they are suspended above the glass?

Also - If anyone has any advice for Epson Scan and Kodachrome it would be most welcome. So far I've had the best results by turning off colour & backlight correction and manually removing the magenta cast in Lightroom (tint around -10 to -15 and colour temp to taste). Results aren't too bad, everything looks a bit dark but that could be underexposure due to contrasty/harsh lighting conditions.

And I don't like the cardboard mounts, some slides had its of fluff/dust from the cut edge of the cardboard.

 

[nathanp]

Hmm, since posting I found a post on photo.net that mentions the same issue - on the V500 the slide holder just acts as a guide to position the slides and they sit on the glass. I don't think the V500 has the same secondary lens setup as the V700.
I've only made a few quick scans and I'm not too sure how sharp I should expect them to be.

 

[maclaine]

I grappled with this problem for years, and finally gave up on mounted slides. When I send out my K64, I request that they don't cut or mount it, and I'll put in a sleeve like I do with my B&W or C-41 negs. If I want to see the slides projected, I'd rather just buy a slide mounting kit and do it myself. When I scan, I'm a nut about getting the full frame, and I hate that the slide mount cuts off the edges, sometimes ruining the composition. I also hate the fuzzy edges of the paper mounts, because sometimes that means you have to crop the image even further just to get rid of them.

I have the V500, and when I scan, I just place the negative directly on the glass and put a small piece of glass on top of it to keep it flat. It works out great, keeps the film as flat as it can get, and allows me to get the full frame. Sometimes I get Newton's Rings on the image, and when that happens, I have my own little holder that I made out of two pieces of thicker cardstock taped together with a space cut out for the whole frame and a little more. Again, I sandwich this between the scanner glass and my own little piece of glass to keep it flat, and I don't get any rings. Works like a charm.

As far as scanning Kodachrome, there's no scanning software I've found that really nails it. Silverfast has a Kodachrome setting that get's you started, but I haven't found a way to avoid just opening it in Photoshop and doing it myself.

 

[kully]

I've used the V500 and V700 - the V500 holder just keeps them positioned. The V700 holder, you clip the slides in to and it has spacers allowing you to set the height to one of three settings.

 

[chris00nj]

I thought the mounting itself provides the correct elevation off the glass. I've had reasonable results with it.

 

[nathanp]

All the issues mentioned fit my experiences which is good as it means I'm not doing anything too stupid 🙂 Thanks for the responses.

I'm not sure if I can choose unmounted slides. I use a prepaid envelope that just has space for addresses. I did read that there's a dotted line on a corner that can be clipped to signify that you want them unmounted. I'll have to see if that's on the envelope I have.

 

[maclaine]

How much are the prepaid mailers? I just print out the Dwayne's order form and send it off with the rolls in a padded envelope. I usually send more than one at a time to save on shipping costs, and sometimes throw in other E-6 rolls. There's a box on the form for notes, which is where I write that I don't want the film cut or mounted.

http://www.dwaynesphoto.com/common/newforms/Slide_Film_Processing.pdf

All the issues mentioned fit my experiences which is good as it means I'm not doing anything too stupid 🙂 Thanks for the responses.

I'm not sure if I can choose unmounted slides. I use a prepaid envelope that just has space for addresses. I did read that there's a dotted line on a corner that can be clipped to signify that you want them unmounted. I'll have to see if that's on the envelope I have.

 

[nathanp]

How much are the prepaid mailers? I just print out the Dwayne's order form and send it off with the rolls in a padded envelope. I usually send more than one at a time to save on shipping costs, and sometimes throw in other E-6 rolls. There's a box on the form for notes, which is where I write that I don't want the film cut or mounted.

http://www.dwaynesphoto.com/common/newforms/Slide_Film_Processing.pdf

I think it's a bit different in the UK. I paid about £10 per roll which includes the mailer. The mailer is a really small envelope (just big enough for a film) with spaces for return address and the address to send to.


Here's a few of my first attempts..