Hello everyone, I would like to ask you if you have an explanation for what happens to me when I scan these old 35mm negatives, they are from 1970 but kept in perfect condition, I scan them using an HP Scanjet G4050, with Vuescan set as per the guide there is on the NPL site, at 1200 Dpi, DNGRaw format, and developed with NLP latest version, as you can see from the attached image there is a background dithering that I can’t understand why it is formed, it doesn’t always happen, only sometimes, Can anyone help me find out why? Thank you
Does anyone have any ideas on this??? Is it possible that it just happened to me?
Thanks
I suspect that very few on here have experience of that particular flatbed scanner, I certainly don’t. I presume that you are referring to the pattern of vertical lines apparent on your scan and I wonder if it is a problem with the scanner itself, assuming that they are not present on the negative which seems unlikely. Do they appear on all scans that you do?
According to a Scanscience review that scanner can only capture a very low density range and they couldn’t recommend it for scanning 35mm slides & negatives so it may just be at the limits of its capabilities. Results would be improved if you masked out the sprocket holes but I suspect that the lines will still be there. A very modest camera scanning setup would give far better results, especially if you already have a suitable digital camera.
Looks like it might be light from sprockets hole.
Check the film alignment.
No it’s not about disturbance light coming from the indentation, it’s just a scan issue, I’m thinking of changing scanners at this point, what do you recommend without spending too much money? Thank you
Sprocket holes within the scanning frame should come out sharply delineated, so this is a clear indication of a poor scan; could be caused by wrong placement of the film or limitations of the scanner itself. If you are looking to replace this scanner with a flatbed that does a far better job with film, I would recommend an Epson V800 or V850. You may also wish to consider buying a dedicated film scanner if your only scanning need is for film.
Hi, I wonder if the 1200dpi is not simply too much for such a scanner. Like @Harry , I do not know about this scanner. I would suggest you either purchase the Epson 850 or the Valoi system, much better than a flatbed if you scan film.
The V850 is really out of budget for me … I would like something cheaper , do you think the V600 is not suitable ?
I knew the V700, not the V600 and I would say it was okay but flatbed scanners aren’t the best solution. Of course it depends what your images are destined to: Professional or not?
Bear in mind also that Epson make fairly wild claims about the optical resolution of their ‘V’ series flatbed scanners. I’ve never owned one but everything I’ve read suggests that around 2,800 ppi is about as much as you can realistically expect to get. That would approximate to the results from a 12MP camera (with a good macro lens) but I appreciate that embarking on camera scanning from scratch is quite an undertaking, and not particularly cheap once you’ve assembled all the required elements. The ‘V’ series scanners were a development of the Epson Perfection 4990 so you could possibly also look out for one of those secondhand locally, make sure you get all the holders though.
Thank you for the answer, unfortunately Epson 4990 can’t be found anymore …, yes I have to solve the alignment problem with the Dsrl Scan, I use a sony A7RII with micro nikkor 55 Ais f2.8 , but I can’t reach the excellent sharpness because I probably don’t have the film planes perfectly parallel to the camera plane, here the pixels would be there …
They are not intended for professional use, I would like to have some good scans for cataloging or for publication on the web
The easiest way to do this (for 35mm only) would be the Nikon ES-2 accessory. The ES-2 has a holder to accommodate both strips of negatives and mounted slides. The ES-1 can only handle mounted slides. You’d need a light source of course, you can use flash or the new Cinestill CS-Lite would work well.
I use a light plate for negatives with a 5000°K fluorescent lamp as a light source, so it could be fine …
Sounds like it could be fine, I have the CS-Lite and it is very bright which is handy, it also has a tripod screw so you can use a table top tripod to hold it in the right position which would be good with the ES-1/2. The really good things about the design of the Nikon ES-1/2 is that alignment is taken care, camera shake is much less of a problem since the slide/negative is mounted on the lens and obviously no ambient light or reflections can get in between the film and the lens.
For the web you don’t need a very high res so I guess the Epson V600 - if it’s still available- should be fine.