digitizing 35mm slides

[Gilk51]

I got in a discussion with Janet the other night about abandoned and little-known airfields (http://www.airfields-freeman.com/). This caused me to drag out some of my collection of 35mm Kodachrome slides with pictures of Pylon Field (http://www.airfields-freeman.com/TX/Airfields_TX_FtWorth_SE.html) in Arlington.

What is the best way to make good-quality digital copies of slides?
Do you need a special scanner or adapter?

I am just worried that the results won't be any good...

Thanks!

[Tracker]

I actually setup a slide projector, dark room and shot pictures of the screen using a tripod. Not the best, but it was good enough for a lo-res slide show for my parents' 50th anniversary.

[sharkey]

Might try Arlington Camera and see what they suggest. A Pro Lab can take care of that for you. I Imagine a good scanner would work.

[bluedogok]

They make special slide scanners, some flatbed scanners have a slide attachment (mine does) but it is nowhere hear the quality of a true slide scanner...but they can be expensive. If you have just a few that you want scanned, most any of the decent camera shops should be able to do it. If you had a bunch of them to do, it would be worth looking at buying a scanner.

TigerDirect - Slide/Film Scanners (http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/category/category_slc.asp?CatId=297)

[igo-wfo]

Chuck,
Ken Rockwell swears by(not at) this place:
http://www.northcoastphoto.com/

Some of the stuff he has shot on film recently comes back in the 30MB range off of their scanners, so the detail is very sharp.
He did a comparison to film that was scanned and the image from a D700 and the scanned image had better resolution than the digital image.

Drawback is that the lab is in Kalifornia.

Here, right from a FAQ on their site:
6) What size at the scans? 35mm is scanned to 5035 x 3339 pixels and is saved to a jpeg file.
When opened in Photoshop the file is rendered at 48 mb.

Scooby!

Dang it, that is for 35mm film, but thier slide options are pretty nice too.

[Gilk51]

Thanks all - I did see a couple of places that advertize slide scanning - I may try Arlington Camera first & see what the cost is & then see about doing the rest of what I have.

[n578md]

Chuck,

I have a Canon 2720U slide scanner that you can have. It has chauffeurs and software for Windows 2000/XP and the scanning tray, USB cable and all that. I'll be at the next meet and greet at Braum's, so if you want it, let me know, I'll load it on my two-wheeled Cessna-152-of-the-road. Here a sample of what it does/can do:

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3245/3001018029_20c4fc055e_b.jpg


That's shot on Fuji RVP50 slide film with my old FM2n.

[aharbi]

Epson makes some decent transparency (positive/negative film) scanners for less than $200. If this is a one time deal, look for a photo store to scan for you. Price is around .50ech. I have been doing this for several months now achieving family pictures from slides, negatives, pictures. From 110, 125, 127, 35mm formats. I can scan them up to being suitable for 11x14" prints. With your skills from the work I've seen you do you would have no problem doing it yourself.

[Gilk51]

I have a Canon 2720U slide scanner that you can have. It has chauffeurs and software for Windows 2000/XP and the scanning tray, USB cable and all that. I'll be at the next meet and greet at Braum's, so if you want it, let me know, I'll load it on my two-wheeled Cessna-152-of-the-road.

That looks like a decent job. How much do you want for it?
I may have to return to Plano this week...

[n578md]

That looks like a decent job. How much do you want for it?
I may have to return to Plano this week...

You can just have it. I don't use it anymore and I hate to see good working equipment go to waste. If you can use it, good, you can have it. Let me know if you are coming to the next Thursday meeting, and I'll bring it then.

[Gilk51]

Let me know if you are coming to the next Thursday meeting, and I'll bring it then.

OK, I'll make sure that I have a bungie or two, and head on over on Thursday night.

Thanks!

[n578md]

See you then!

[trainman]

Chuck, nice collection of pics, these will keep me busy for sometime. Are you sure that's not a bomb the guy in the avatar is carring?

John

[Tracker]

probably know this, but be sure to "lock" the scanner before transporting it.

[Gilk51]

Chuck, nice collection of pics, these will keep me busy for sometime. Are you sure that's not a bomb the guy in the avatar is carring?

It's supposed to be a rocket - it is some old PrintShop clip art named "Rocket Scientist". :-P

probably know this, but be sure to "lock" the scanner before transporting it.

I probably would have forgotten - thanks for the reminder...

[n578md]

It's not the kind of scanner that you lock. It's a strip scanner.

like this:

http://www.usa.canon.com/consumer/controller?act=ModelInfoAct&tabact=SupportDetailTabAct&fcategoryid=235&modelid=8126

[Gilk51]

See you then!

Got it! Thanks again, Marc.

Will be setting it up and trying it out this weekend... :sun:

[TexasShadow]

Let me know how this works out. I have three slides from my ex which I'd like to digitize and eventually print. They are poster-quality photos; I've wanted prints of these for years.

[Texfire]

I don't have slides, but I do have some negatives that I'd like to scan in from my photography class back in college. I've been going back and forth between ponying up for a real film scanner, or sending them off. The problem is while they have some sentimental value for me, they aren't amazing photographs so spending a fortune on them doesn't make sense. I did try scanning them on a flatbed scanner I had, and was underwhelmed by the results.

[djw]

I had a tray done at Walgreens. I was amazed at the low cost and quality.

I wondered at the time whether it was mispriced but it was cheap, but don't recall exactly how much it was.

[Gilk51]

Well, I plan to try the scanner and see how much resolution the results have. I also plan to take a group of test slides and have several places digitize them (Arlington Camera, Walgrens/CVS/Eckerds, maybe a web site). I guess I may have to do a report. :doh:

[Tracker]

:clap: on the report.
:popcorn:

[Skillet]

I had an HP slide/film scanner (PhotoSmart 20) that was specifically designed for slide and negative scanning. Resolution was never a problem. Dust, scratches, color shifts, excessive contrast, etc. were big problems. If you want results that compare with even the most basic digital camera, you need to practice up on your photoshop (or equivalent) and be prepared to spend a lot of time on each scan.

Also, I found the that even the high-end drum scans from the local lab still required a lot of post processing to get them the way I wanted them.

Cheers,

Ben

[Dirtrideroader]

Well, I plan to try the scanner and see how much resolution the results have.

When you are done with yours, I have a shoe box full of slides I took back in the 70's I would like scanned. Should I wait for you to finish yours before I bring them to you?

[Gilk51]

When you are done with yours, I have a shoe box full of slides I took back in the 70's I would like scanned. Should I wait for you to finish yours before I bring them to you?

Yeah, I'll, um, let you know... :trust:



:mrgreen:

[Texas T]

Yeah, I'll, um, let you know... :trust:



:mrgreen: Cool. I'm next in line after Chris. ;-)

[Valker]

Me next, me next. Pick me!!! ;-)

[pacman]

What are slides? :scratch:

:popcorn:

[Valker]

What are slides? :scratch:

:popcorn:
Lubricated "stucks".:rofl:

[Texfire]

Quick answer, a slide is a positive image produced on a transparent base from a film negative for the purpose of projection. Generally shot on film stock intended for that purpose then mounted on a slide frame by the developer during the processing. The original film projectors used a sliding mechanism to remove and replace the picture being displayed. The ones that most people are familiar with from schooling had a rotating carousel that held the "slides".

Slides were preferred by professional photographers before the digital camera revolution. It is highly regarded for it's archival longevity.

[pacman]

:lol2:

I just ribbin' Grandpa Chuck a little. Half my childhood was spent with my eyes glazed over in front of a screen, watching family slideshows. :brainsnap

[Texfire]

Well instead of the big fish, you caught another Wee one, cause I bit hook, line and sinker. :)

[bluedogok]

Nah...ya just have to realize that pacman is a smart.....alec....:mrgreen:

[Texfire]

That may be, but I'm still dazed that I totally missed the sarcasm.

[pacman]

Nah...ya just have to realize that pacman is a smart.....alec....:mrgreen:

That may be, but I'm still dazed that I totally missed the sarcasm.

The greatest part is you went to all that trouble writing me a lengthy and wonderfully educational essay on slides. :lol2: I really do appreciate it. :thumb:

[Squeaky]

In high school I wanted some experience with slides so I bought a roll and ran it through the SLR to create my portfolio to show colleges my artwork. To this day that was the ONLY set of slides I've shot. I don't even know where they are now, but I'd love to find them...

[Tracker]

Hey, TexFire, could you tell me what a stereophonic hi-fi LP is? :lol2:

[Gilk51]

OK, got the scanner connected and operating. Made some test runs at 2720 DPI (dots/pixels per inch) which scanned to 3888x2592. Seems pretty good except for dust specks - even after using the compressed air to attempt to clean them.

All of these are quarter sized for web use - resolution is 972x648.

Also found my old photo log book. This helped pinpoint the dates for this "air show" - August 10, 1975 at Pylon Field in west Arlington. Film was Kodachrome 64, camera was a venerable old Minolta SRT-101, but no indication of the lens used. :shrug:

I think this is a Steerman, slide is dated 7-16-75. This was a different roll and used Kodachrome 25.

http://www.twtex.com/photopost/data/500/medium/steerman_22-10_jul75q.jpg

Just inspecting the slides with the naked eye, the quality seems to be intact after 33 years in closet storage. I'm impressed!

The airshow - spectators from the main open hangar and pavillion:

http://www.twtex.com/photopost/data/500/medium/pylon_field_29-31_aug75q.jpg

A Beech Baron making a pass

http://www.twtex.com/photopost/data/500/medium/landing_30-14_aug75q.jpg

A couple of guys I worked with shared a Cessna 172

http://www.twtex.com/photopost/data/500/medium/cessna172_30-10_aug75q.jpg

Some other planes and the hangar row - there were a lot of trees in the area back then.

http://www.twtex.com/photopost/data/500/medium/planes_30-12_aug75q.jpg

And a look at the flight line. Looking somewhat northwest on property that is now Martin High School in Arlington. The closest road to the north is Mayfield Road.

http://www.twtex.com/photopost/data/500/medium/pylon_field_30-8_aug75q.jpg

This is cool! Thanks again, Marc! :thumb:

I need to see if additional 1977 maps are still available from the city. I got a CD in 1998 of the city and merged the D12 and D13 images to get a composite of the area:

http://www.twtex.com/photopost/data/500/medium/A_D13_D13_1998.JPG

I also got a 1977 blueprint of the D13 map section & really need the D12 (to the north) to get a good idea of the old runway location. Here is cropped piece in (unfortunately) low res of the field - "PYLON" is upside down in the top center and highlighted in yellow. The highlight and the other annotations are mine. I look a photo of it and eyeballed the orthorectification! :roll:

http://www.twtex.com/photopost/data/500/medium/pylon_detail_5825.JPG

Here is a current Google map image of the area:

http://www.twtex.com/photopost/data/500/medium/martin_HS_area.jpg

And with the blueprint sized and overlaid - it's close but not perfect. I may try again if I can get some fresh city imagery...

http://www.twtex.com/photopost/data/500/medium/martin_HS_area_overlaid.jpg

I intend to notify the author of the abandoned/diasappeared airflield site when I get all of this cleaned up and organized. I think I can clarify some of the dates and locate the airfield more in its actual position.

It's all Janet's fault for bringing this up! :doh:

:lol2:

[Texfire]

Hey, TexFire, could you tell me what a stereophonic hi-fi LP is? :lol2:

I'll get right on that for you... :doh:

[aharbi]

To keep the slide clean of dust I clean each slide with PEC-12 Emulsion cleaner, wear lint-free gloves and use PEC-PAD cleaning wipes and brush the slide with a radioactive brush (repels static & dust).

[Janet]

It's all Janet's fault for bringing this up! :doh:



:kiss:

It's fun and interesting though, isn't it?

[Gilk51]

It's fun and interesting though, isn't it?

Yep.

Went running errands today. Left some slides at Arlington Camera to be digitized - it was more that I expected - $3 each. I will be trying some other places when those come back.

I also went downtown and taked to the Maps people - Dave was very helpful. He drug out the mylar film that I had gotten a print from before - 1977 vintage. They don't make blueprints anymore due to the amonia process, so I ended up going home to get the camera and a tripod and set up a "light table" on the plate glass windows! :zen:

He had some 1973 mylar that was lighter, so I ended up taking some images of the D12 and D13 sheets so I could mosaic the two together:

http://www.twtex.com/photopost/data/500/medium/pylon_D12D13_jan1973_5853q.JPG

Dave also showed me an interesting site with archives of aerial photos from different times - http://www.historicaerials.com/

I used their stuff to make an animated GIF showing the Pylon Field area in 1970 (grass field), 1979 (construction), and 2004 (modern Martin HS).

http://www.texasarlingtoncs.us/pics/airplanes/PylonField/historicaerial_1970-79-2004.gif

(I hope the GIF works)

Anyway - more fun. I'm interested in the slide results...

[Tracker]

Cool stuff, Gil. :clap:

[TexasShadow]

Wow!! that's cool!
I wonder if that could be done with sections of the Butterfield Trail...... :trust:

[Gilk51]

Wow!! that's cool!
I wonder if that could be done with sections of the Butterfield Trail...... :trust:

Sure - you just need the aerial photography for the 1880 time period! :-P

:lol2:

[TexasShadow]

Well, I plan to try the scanner and see how much resolution the results have. I also plan to take a group of test slides and have several places digitize them (Arlington Camera, Walgrens/CVS/Eckerds, maybe a web site). I guess I may have to do a report. :doh:So how did this experiment work out? Do they also digitize photos?

I went through 1/4 of my stash of photos (a Rubbermaid tub) this morning, mostly from NY, Europe and Maine. I would like to have a few scanned and digitized. Anyone local do this?

[Gilk51]

So how did this experiment work out? Do they also digitize photos?

Still in progress. I got Arlington Camera to digitize 5 35mm slides - $3 each plus $3 for the CD. Quality is good but cost is too high. I need to finish digitizing with the donated scanner & compare the five slides. I haven't tried anyone else yet. :shrug:

Thanks for the reminder...

[TexasShadow]

I have three slides I want digitized in very high quality to have printed in poster size. They are slides that my ex took that somehow made it into my belongings. I also found an envelope today of other slides from his 2x2 1/4 Hasselblad. They are fantastic. I'd like those digitized, too. I'll have an extra disc burned and send that with the slides back to him.

I have a few old photos I took of the cabin and the woods in Maine I'd like to get scanned and digitized. Thought I would post a few showing the similarities between the grasslands and pine stands in Texas and Maine. Then there's the one with my daughter taking a bath outside in a big kettle......... :mrgreen:
Ah, the good old days.......

[pacman]

Then there's the one with my daughter taking a bath outside in a big kettle......... :mrgreen:

Don't post that one here. We don't want to see it. Nope, Uh uh.









Just email it to me.

[Gilk51]

I have three slides I want digitized in very high quality to have printed in poster size.

Here is a quick comparison of what I have now - I'll get back with more info later today. The image gallery on TWT limits the size (and type) of pics. I'll upload to my server later today so you can compare the full images.

An inflight photo taken in Kodachrome 25 in 1975:

http://www.twtex.com/photopost/data/500/medium/plane22-15_arlcamerah.jpg

That one was digitized by Arlington Camera. The result was a TIF at 1980x1332 (not really very high res). Uploaded at 990x666 (half size)

http://www.twtex.com/photopost/data/500/medium/plane_22-15canon2720q.jpg

That one was digitized by the Canon FS2720 film scanner & the original is 3888x2592. It was uploaded at 972x648.

Elz, I can scan a small number of slides for you if you think the quality will be OK. I still need to try another local processing site and maybe online. I am trying to use the same set of slides so I can compare.

Keep tuned...

[TexasShadow]

Don't post that one here. We don't want to see it. Nope, Uh uh. :rofl: She's only 2 and 1/2 years old.

Elz, I can scan a small number of slides for you if you think the quality will be OK. Four? That would be awesome. Thanks.
I think I will send three of them to a processing company for printing (and frame locally).

[pacman]

:rofl: She's only 2 and 1/2 years old.

:rofl::rofl:

I feel all perverty now. :lol2:

[Texfire]

:rofl::rofl:

I feel all perverty now. :lol2:

Saw that one coming...

[Tracker]

Gil, I think with a touch of Photoshop or paint.net color correction and sharpening, your results would be just as good, if not better than the camera shop. :thumb:

[Texfire]

Here is a quick comparison of what I have now - I'll get back with more info later today. The image gallery on TWT limits the size (and type) of pics. I'll upload to my server later today so you can compare the full images.

An inflight photo taken in Kodachrome 25 in 1975:

http://www.twtex.com/photopost/data/500/medium/plane22-15_arlcamerah.jpg

That one was digitized by Arlington Camera. The result was a TIF at 1980x1332 (not really very high res). Uploaded at 990x666 (half size)

http://www.twtex.com/photopost/data/500/medium/plane_22-15canon2720q.jpg

That one was digitized by the Canon FS2720 film scanner & the original is 3888x2592. It was uploaded at 972x648.

Elz, I can scan a small number of slides for you if you think the quality will be OK. I still need to try another local processing site and maybe online. I am trying to use the same set of slides so I can compare.

Keep tuned...

I'm curious, if you take away the blue cast is the level of detail equivalent?

[Gilk51]

Gil, I think with a touch of Photoshop or paint.net color correction and sharpening, your results would be just as good, if not better than the camera shop. :thumb:

I'm curious, if you take away the blue cast is the level of detail equivalent?

Yeah, I think the color correction can be a post-process. I am also looking to find a "standard" 35mm slide to calibrate the colors and see if it could be taken out in the scanning step.

Anyway, the little scanner looks promising.

:confused: OK - next, it looks like the slide needs a little cleaning. I have heard that you don't want to do anything except blow off the dust. Anbody have any suggestions? I vaguely remember a film cleaning process, especially for movie film...

[cpf3]

I got my "digitizer" at Home Depot for ~$1.65 (+ tax).

http://www.cj-and-m.com/HomePage/Slide2Digital.html

Chuck

[Gilk51]

I got my "digitizer" at Home Depot for ~$1.65 (+ tax).

http://www.cj-and-m.com/HomePage/Slide2Digital.html

Chuck

Now, that looks interesting, too!

I may have to try that.

[pacman]

I got my "digitizer" at Home Depot for ~$1.65 (+ tax).

http://www.cj-and-m.com/HomePage/Slide2Digital.html

Chuck


Very clever. The results look great!

[Gilk51]

Well, I spent part of the afternoon building up a slide holder for my Nikon D70s. But it didn't work out - I don't have a lens with a macro feature and I couldn't get it to focus properly even zoomed in. And then there was the insufficient light. :shrug: Oh well. Maybe I'll try again if I can score a macro lens sometime...

Back to plan A... :roll:

[Janet]

I have several Nikon macro lenses. I am free on wednesday and thursday evenings this week. Just holler and I will bring them over and you can see which one you need for the project.