Nikon Coolscan V vs Minolta Scan Dual II

[bippi]

Hi,

I currently have a Minolta Scan Dual II and I´m using it with pretty good results. I was just wondering what will I gain if I would buy a Nikon Coolscan V, is it just higher DPI or is it also more precise(meaning less post processing work in PS or Apple Aperture.

Shall I just stick with the old trusty Minolta or grab the Nikon one next time I visit NY city?

 

[photophorous]

I've only used my Coolscan V and a Canoscan 8400F, so I can't offer a direct comparison. My experience varies with different films. It is very sharp. That's never a problem. It usually does well with automatic exposure too, unless it's a very contrasty neg/slide, which will end up with blown highlights. I just adjust manually for that. Whether or not the colors come out accurate depends a lot on the film. In general, slides don't scan as saturated as they appear on the light table, and in some cases the colors are off a little. I find Sensia/Astia and Velvia 50 colors to be accurate, but I've had some trouble with Provia and Velvia 100F. I'm no expert at scanning though. Never bothered to calibrate it with target slides and all that. Overall, I'm very happy with it. I figure most of the problems I've had are my own fault. I've made 16x24 prints from Provia that I'm very pleased with.

Paul