Hi
I don't shoot film anymore however I have a lot of 35 & MF B&W negs & a few color trannies. I want to buy one but it seems that there is only Nikon & Imacon left. Any comments.
Denis

Hey Denis-

I have an Imacon PIII that I still use all the time. Love it, but dust is a problem. I don't use any dust removal software because I don't like what it does to the entire image.

Have fun!

Until a few months ago I was still using a Coolscan 9000 for 35 mm and MF, and my Imacon III for 4x5.

I have just sold the Nikon. the Imacon is significantly sharper, does have more DR and no Newton ring problems, but dust can indeed be a real pain.

Carefully cleaning the slides before scanning can reduce greatly the time wasted in cloning. I will never be zero though. It is important also to scan in an environment that is as dust free as possible. A room with a carpet is no go IMHO.

Regards,
Bernard

Epson V-700 or V-750 Pro scanners have film adapters from 35mm to 8x10. With built in digital ice technology and dual lens high pass optics, they can scan at 6400 dpi (optical).

These flatbeds are good choices if you just want to make some nice prints or whatever, but for reproduction quality scans I would not recommend them.

I'd be very careful about the dpi claims made by Epson. Per my experience a 2000 dpi Imacon scan has a lot more details than a 6400 Epson scan...

Cheers,
Bernard

I'm sure the Imacon produces excellent scans but $12,000. is a lot of money for casual use.
For just $700. the Epson V750 produces great results. The included wet mount tray virtually eliminates the dust/scratch problems.

Here are a couple of product reviews:


http://www.imaging-resource.com/SCAN/V700/V700.HTM

http://www.photo-i.co.uk/Reviews/interacti...V750/page_1.htm

There is no denying that the Epson provides great value, it really depends on what you want to do with the scans/prints.

Regards,
Bernard

Aztek Premier for the best results possible, especially from chromes.

Aztek Plateau if you want one of the best flatbed CCD scanners available.

Aztek Premier is an expensive scanner that a service bureau would purchase. The price-tag is steep and a serious professional must consider the learning curve and requisite training associated with such a machine. The machine requires constant maintenance in order to work properly.

I know a famous NYC photographer who owned the Aztek Premier. He continues to shoot film and use drum scans for post production digital. His income justified the investment but he was no happy scanner. His machine, and its replacements, caused many nightmares and Aztek was not the easiest company to deal with when its equipment didn't work as promised.

Although end-of-lifed, you might consider Microtek's Artixscan 120tf which was around $1700 US when I purchased mine - I recently saw some refurbished units at Calumet. It comes with both 35mm and 120 calibration targets plus Silverfast.

It's noisy, kludgey and the included Silverfast software has probably the *worst* user interface I've ever seen. That said - it creates gorgeous quality scans

Additionally, Microtek has committed to Vista support