Software combination for newcomer to film scanning

[lrochfort]

Hello,

I've just bought a scanner to scan my 35mm and medium format film for the first time.

I shoot a combination of colour and b/w, but in the spirit of diving in head first shall possibly shoot more b/w in future as I'm going to start developing at home.

I'm a little bewildered by the software options available. I'm principally running Mac OS X, and understand there is Lightroom and Aperture for processing and management, with Silver Efex specifically for b/w processing.

I also have Windows and Linux boxes however, so if there's other software for those systems them please shout.

I'm not one for massive manipulation of my images, I certainly won't be spending hours on each image creating a derived piece of art.

Any advice on people's preferred software and workflow would be very much appreciated.

Cheers,
Laurence.

 

[thegman]

Vuescan will work on Linux, Windows and Mac OS X. I don't do much processing any all either, so generally I just use Preview or Paint.NET on Mac/Windows respectively to adjust contrast etc. and that's it. For more advanced manipulation I like Lightroom, but I rarely use it, except for the fact that it is *far* faster at handling large images than Preview or Paint.NET. As you know, 6400dpi scans of medium format are huge, and Lightroom or Photoshop I find handle those large images intelligently.

 

[Dwig]

...I've just bought a scanner to scan my 35mm and medium format film for the first time. ...

Which scanner did you get?

If you purchased an Epson scanner then I would highly recommend that you begin with the included EsponScan software, which works well on both Mac and Windows.

Any possible advantage to other software, other than compatibility with Linux, would be completely lost on a beginner. EsponScan works very well and can deliver excellent scans.

 

[haempe]

+1 on Dwig's advice

I scan with Epson scanner software without any "improvements" and do the needed in LR or PS.

 

[lrochfort]

Thanks all for the comments.

I'm using a 3170 while I decide if scanning is something I want to devote time and money to. it works fine on Windows 7, but doesn't have the negative scanning options on Mountain Lion.

That niggle aside, could people comment on Aperture vs Lightroom and how Silver Efex fits into the picture?

Once I've settled on software I'll upgrade to a V500 and then decide if I think VueScan is also needed.

 

[mfogiel]

I think the best scanner software out there is Vuescan - the advantage is that once you buy it, you also get all the future upgrades for free. Anyway, scanning B&W is not rocket science, you just have to make sure you are avoiding clipping, and that you manage to fill your histogram between the black and white points. All adjustments shouls be done in PS or LR later. For colour, there are some more tricks, especially with negative film, but you will not get accurate colour on a cheap flatbed anyway.

 

[Dwig]

...
That niggle aside, could people comment on Aperture vs Lightroom and how Silver Efex fits into the picture? ...

They have nothing to do, directly at least, with scanning. They are the "frame" to the "picture" and not part of the "picture".

Basic workflow:

1. Scan - make adjustments in the scanning software to best capture the information in the film. Don't try to adjust further than this; don't try to make "final" adjustments.
2. Open the output of the scanning software in an image editor (Photoshop, iPhoto, ...) or image adjuster (Aperture, Lightroom, ...) and make your final adjustments.

On my personal system I launch Photoshop first and use its Import menu option to launch EpsonScan. This way the scan it loaded directly into PS without me having to create a disk file. I make my major adjustments in PS and save from there.

At work I use FlexiColor to run our Imacon scanner. There the work flow is to launch FlexiColor (the scanning software) to scan and save a TIFF. I then open the TIFF in PS for adjustments.

 

[venchka]

My digital darkroom consists of the following:
Epson Expression 1680 Professional scanner, circa 2000-2001.
Epson Scan software.
Lightroom 3.6.
LR/Enfuse a $10 donationware plugin for exposure & focus stacking.
Image Composite Editor. Free Windows panorama stitching software.

Results here: My Gallery

ps: To the OP, The Epson V500 will only scan (2) 6x6 negatives at a time. Or one 6x7, 6s9 or 6x12.

Wayne