suggestions for digitizing old slides

[amazona]

I have a great many slides from the 1980s -- had to use slides because I paid for the hobby by selling photographs to magazines from time to time. Then I got burned out in the 90s and took almost no photos. But I still have a great many old slides I would like to digitize and put on CD. Any suggestions for the best slide scanner for doing this? A friend recommended Olympus (around $400) but I saw devices that were much cheaper on EBay. I wondered why the difference in price.

[idiosyncratic]

1. I bought an HP PhotoSmart scanner for about $180.00 on eBay

It worked great, for a couple of years, for more than 100 slides. However, after I installed Windows 2000 on this computer, it no longer worked.

Not sure why that happened. I think it was just a coincidence.

HP wants $120.00 to replace it. :cry:

There are some on eBay now, such as this one.

[auburngrad82]

2. Look for updated drivers on HP's website

Usually when something stops working after you upgrade it's because of an outdated driver. Search HP's website for drivers for the scanner and after you update the drivers it should work. No guarantee but a strong possibility that the driver is the problem.

[amazona]

3. thanks guys but...

...I was hoping to do way more than 100 slides.

Is scanning/digitizing slides more trouble than it is worth? Is it possible I would buy the scanner, then get frustrated with how long it takes to digitize each slide?

Lotta questions here, I know. But thanks for any insight.

[auburngrad82]

4. I have an HP flatbed scanner that has a slide insert.

It's relatively easy to use and probably takes about a minute per slide. The other option is to take them to a photo lab and ask them to transfer them to disk. I don't know what it would cost but depending on the amount of slides it might be cheaper and easier than buying a scanner and transfering them yourself.

[Florida_Geek]

5. I am going to buy

Konica Minolta DiMAGE Scan Dual IV, 3200dpi, 35mm, Film Scanner $264



But I have both slides and negatives I want to get into digital format.

[FloridaPat]

6. I have the Nikon Coolscan 4000. I got it cheap on Ebay - $600.

It does a great job on slides. It has special software that makes them better than when they were shot. It also has a add on piece of equipment that you can do 50 slides at one time. If you're looking for extremely high quality, this one is fantastic.

[Deja Q]

7. A dedicated film scanner will give you MUCH BETTER results than a flatbed:

The Nikon Coolscan V scanner, ~$500, will do 35mm and slides and it'll look AS GOOD AS DIGITAL.

Today's top of the line flatbed scanners (e.g. Epson 4190) can only match the dedicated film scanner quality of 5 years ago. And the quality is horrid, grainy, and lacks detail. It's like DVD vs VHS.

(The next higher up model, the Coolscan 5000, is more than twice as much and whose ONLY difference is the D-max value (4.8 instead of 4.2.) Dmax is (simply speaking) the amount of shadow detail you'd get. And the TOTL Epson 4190 has a Dmax of 3.8. No way.

[amazona]

8. thanks I am probably going w/ dedicated film/slide scanner

I was given $450 as a Christmas gift and told to buy "something you normally would not buy." I won't object to putting in another $50-150 to get quality.

[amazona]

9. followup -- the Coolscan seems to be out of stock

I'm only a little bitter. :-(

[FloridaPat]

10. Coolscan 4000 - they are selling rebuilts at most places. If you

have patience, you can get one on Ebay from Cameta Camera for around $600. That's what I did. Took about 7 autctions to get that price. You get a year warranty on it and can buy a 5 year warantee for about $100. Nikon also sells then from $699, but only a couple of months warantee. There are places selling them for $1200 - $1400 brand new.

[Schema Thing]

12. yes, but that d-max value is everything

especially on some old kodachrome image that has wonderful detail in the deep shadows.

[Schema Thing]

11. I'd go for the dedicated unit, like a coolscan or better, and...

... perhaps buy it, use it for a month, get everything scanned, and then sell it on ebay.

Kinda like renting the scanner for a month. I've thought of doing that myself. Or, hey, maybe find someone like me, split the cost, both use the scanner, and then sell it, cutting your cost of use in half. Or, find three people who need to scan their old slides. ....

[amazona]

13. no way I'll get everything scanned in a month

Transaction costs are so high on eBay now that I no longer sell there anyway.

When I sold cameras, I noticed that I always got more on Amazon than on eBay, so maybe I'll go that route in the great if and when that I want to resell the scanner.

But before I can sell, I've got to be able to buy!

Getting a little frustrated here!