scanner

cypilk

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i was thinking about getting a scanner.. so i could show some of the pictures i take...

what would u guys suggest would be a good scanner to get... i just saw a magazine..with a scanner and you put negatives in there to scan... are those pretty good quality?..

any suggestions?
 
A dedicated film scanner will give you the best results. It will scan negatives or slides.

There are flat bed scanners that have accessories for scanning slides & negatives. This way you have the ability to scan prints & just about anything else...but the quality will probably not be as high as a dedicated scanner.

As with most things...the more you pay, the better quality you will get. I can't recommend any specific scanners but I hear that Nikon has some really good film scanners and that Epson has some of the best flat beds. Any good brand name should be a good choice though.

Check out some reviews on-line.

http://www.photo.net/digital/scanners/
 
I have the Scanwit 2720s, which is a great machine. I'm going to be putting it up on eBay, unless someone here is interested. It's SCSI, but it has the card for the PC included and Mac's already have SCSI (I think).

All of my older images are scanned with this (as opposed to being taken with the 10D), and I make 12x18 prints from them regularly.

Regardless, I think you will be much happier with a film/slide scanner over a flatbed for this kind of work, no matter what kind you get. Just don't bother with the HP PhotoSmart. It's old, has scratching issues, and doesn't hold up well. (I have a broken one.)
 
does the picture quality come out better through a picture scan..or negative/slide scan?
 
Cyp, negatives and slides should always be better than prints or other reflective media due to the greater available dynamic range...
 
nono.. i mean..when you scan it... not when the photo is printed out and then scanned... or when the negative is developed and printed
 
cypilk said:
nono.. i mean..when you scan it... not when the photo is printed out and then scanned... or when the negative is developed and printed
I don't understand.

You either go

neg -> print -> scanned image

or

neg/slide -> scanned image

Scanning straight from neg/slide is best. You lose a lot of resolution and dynamic range when you make a print first and scan from that.
 
Let me know what you mean, I'll see if I can straighten you out.

Just like a pretzel :)
 

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