I'm honestly not sure if this is the right part of the forum for this question, but here goes. I have a friend shooting 4x5 negatives, both B&W and color. He definitely prefers wet process prints, but is concerned about having some sort of backup/archive for his work. He has a few hundred or so negatives that he'd like to scan, but would rather not have a shop do the work. He'd like to do it himself. He's not concerned about top-flight quality, as he doesn't foresee much digital printing at this point. He just needs quality backup.

So, what scanner would you recommend for less than $400? Either a dedicated negative scanner or a standard flatbed with a negative holder and backlight would do, so long as the capture is of decent quality.

Any ideas?

>>So, what scanner would you recommend for less than $400? <<

You don't have many choices in the price range. I think the best value out there is a refurbished 4990 directly from Epson's online store. Lately, it is been priced at just under $300 including shipping. You might be able to find a Canon 9950F in that price range but the Canoscan software is a major downer in my opinion. Nice hardware though...

Doug

Thanks, Doug. I've heard these two recommended before. I sent my friend to the Epson store, and he likely will buy that scanner.

Although it may not be powerful enough. Epson just announced the V500 LED scanner. Sounds interesting.

Epson V500

More Info At Photography Blog

I'm not very savy when it comes to scanners.