scanning 35mm slides

F

floridafan

Active member
hi
  does anyone on here scan their 35mm slides into their pc ?...........I have been trying some recently........ however the results have been very disappointing ....anyone got any good tips/advice please ?
 
oh dear.........................more expense dolbyman  :'(...I thought my hp 3310 would have done a reasonable job  :o

ach well .....such is life
 
I have scanned hundreds of slides into my PC on various scanners as I took nothing but slides for 30 years before digital cameras came in  (you need one with a built in back light of course otherwise they don't scan. The light has to shine in from the lid and through the slide otherwise you get a black blob).
I'd agree with Dolbyman.  If you have a number of slides, you can get a scanner made for scanning them. Plenty on Amazon.
With a general scanner with built in provision for slides (and negatives of course), I find mine come out rather darker than they should. I feel that's because the light from the scanner is no match for the QH bulb in the projector.
What problems are you having?
The HP 3310 should do a good job (it's expensive enough). Does that have a lid light or does it just use technology to use the flatbed?
Slides do fade with time and pictures made from slides don't have the same luminosity as when projected or viewed with a viewer - expect muddy colours that have to be worked on in a photo studio though as the slides are expected to be projected onto a white screen which brings out the colours etc.
I always found that getting pictures from slides in a dedicated store gave similar results.
You may get the same results from a dedicated scanner though if it's the slides that have dulled over time.
Tell me what your problems are with them - I've probably been there and may be able to help a little :P
 
eyore.................it does have a proper lidlight ,however I am getting a bit of Moiré patterning , a lot of noise , not very sharp, colours are poor and they are pretty dull/flat , yet the slides look great
 
Dull colours/dark are pretty usual when scanning slides unfortunately and need to be touched up with software. Remember that slide film is usually around 50ASA and that's slow. I have had a few that are pretty well a lost cause (dull day in the evening etc) - my main camera was fully manual so you had to use a meter of take a good guess (no prizes which one I used).  ::)
Moire patterns and noise shouldn't be there.
A couple of stupid questions.
You have the slides the right way around for the scanner? (shiny side/dull side) - I'm sure you have but needs to be asked.
Next, are they glass covered slides or just the film in a plastic mount (glass can create moire patterns).
I doubt descreening would help with slides.
I've not come across this in any I have done so that's a bit of a puzzle (it's usually newspaper  photos that have this problem as the pixels don't match the dots in the picture).
What resolutions have you tried?
If the pictures are not sharp (presuming they are in focus etc) that sounds more like a problem with the seating (ie the scanner is out of focus). I've had that when things were not seated properly.
Do a few tests on a slide that's top quality and bright with good colours - taken on a sunny day etc.
Try changing the resolution of the scanner and, if you can, take the slide out of the mount. It may be the scanner is expecting unmounted film which could account for the problem with sharpness and possibly the other problems as well.
Do bear in mind that, with dedicated scanners, you will get what you pay for so expect the cheaper ones to need more work.
Could you post a scan on you-know-where so I could see the problem?
I could seek it out  ;)
 
resolution I started at 2400 but file was huge lol, so I tried 1200
, what would you suggest ?......................I deleted all the images as I was so disappointed with them but iI'll try again if you want to suggest a resolution please  :-\
 
I'd try multiple scans of the same slide from lowest to highest setting so you can run a comparison.
It's boring work but should give you a good idea of the capabilities (yes, the files will be huge for some).
I'd also try at least a couple without the mount (treat as a single bit of positive 35mm negative - well you know what I mean)  :D
Also try scanning with the slide turned 90 degrees in case here is something conflicting with the scanner.
Anything over 300 will give reasonable results for viewing on a PC screen but the bigger the better, of course (you may want to do some wallpapering in the spare room) - lol. I have a 5 feet by 4  multiple sheet  set for the Hotel Santa Fe I framed and hung on the wall but that was from a 7x5 photo.
If you go through the suggestions, it should show up where the problem lies or at least start pointing in the right direction. I always place a heavy book on the scanner lid as well to prevent any light getting in (as the slide carrier is  bigger than a sheet of paper). A little light seepage can cause havoc with slides and negatives. This may just be the problem (if in doubt, throw a dark cloth over the entire scanner - I've had to do that on occasions)
let us know how you get on.
 
on closer inspection the Moiré type patterning is more like horizontal lines covering the entire slide , I actually wish it was a Moiré  pattern as I have an excellent plugin for removing Moiré  patterns  completely , doesnt work on horizontal lines though  :'(
 
can you post a pic somewhere?
May be easier to diagnose the problem if we actually see it.
Does it happen on all the scans of the slides or just on some?
Also, does it show up still if you burn it to a disc or print it out?
I have many slides that have odd patterns on them when viewed on the PC but are fine viewed from disc. I put that down to my monitor as the actual files are fine.
 
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