Professional Slide Scanning - My Take

I am writing this post specifically in response to a comment I received from a reader of my blog. I won't mention his name, and I welcome him to offer any feedback or comments here.

This is his original comment:

"Hi,

I tried to scan my slides with the Nikon CoolScan but getting rid of the dust specks was very difficult. Nikon's automatic dust and scratch removal software did not work for my Ektachrome or BW slides. With my other slides I got very blurry images since their dust removal software intrapolates the pixels around the dust and scratches. I also tried several scan services but was not happy about their quality ( think most use the same Nikon scanner I used). I read about a company called TrueScan.us [url]http://truescan.us[/url] that offers slide scanning services. They use a new technology that scans only the actual slide surface but not the dust on top or the scratches in the slides. Apparently, they use the same scan approach for negatives. What do you think about them?"

First of all, you are correct that a lot of "professional" slide scanning services do use the Nikon Coolscan, and you having one of your own tells me right away that you take your photography very seriously and I love it! ;-) Just had to say that right from the start!

Not sure which Coolscan model you own, and I really don't think that matters as far as your question goes. Whether Nikon, Epson, Kodak or whatever scanner you are using, I am sure you know that the best software is even more important. And, mastering the software even moreso! I personally think there is a real art to photo editing, and everyday I am learning new tricks and tweaks!

Okay, I just got off the phone with a friend who has far more experience with slide scanning and editing than I do. I was told that the software that comes with the Coolscan is not the best that you can get. He recommended Silverfast specifically. ALSO, the model makes a big difference, depending on what you have. I am sure you know all this but just wanted to cover all bases.


This is a great link concerning slide scanning:

http://www.flatbed-scanner-review.org/scanner_to_printer_largeformat/scanner_to_printer.html


And this - specifically DIGITAL ICE:

http://www.andromeda.com/people/ddyer/photo/slide-transfer.html


As far as a professional scanning service, I highly recommend:

http://www.thecolorgroup.com/drum-scanning-seattle.htm


I do not have any experience with Truescan so the only thing I can say is the service looks okay. As I stated earlier, you can have the biggest most expensive monster professional scanner on the market, but it all comes down to PROFESSIONAL editing! Therein lies the real art!!! I recommend The Color Group because you can call them and talk to a "real person"!

Okay, I have to run! I will post more later!

Give The Color Group a call!

Thank you so much for your input and you are always welcome to share here!!

Danny