copying slides

I have a lot of slides that I would like to digitise and would like to ask you all which method under £100 do you suggest?

On option is to but a standalone scanner, but from the reviews I have read there is nothing that gets my interest, as they are not very good.

Another option is to get a copier ( see attached link )that attaches to the front of a lens, the Tamron 17-50 would the one I would be using.

https://www.srb-photographic.co.uk/srb-dslr-slide-copier-13322-p.asp

Thanks


Edited by sploosher - 08 March 2021 at 12:42

There are people here who use a slide copiers, made by Kaiser or Nikon. You'll need to use a macro lens to do that, so, your 17-50 most likely will be unable to focus on the film plane. Also, you'll need even light that is bright enough.

I use my Canon 9000f for all my film needs, with 35mm it is acceptable, but not outstanding. I expect the Epson V600 to be comparable. Peters V700 will be better.
The Plustek 8100 or 8200 scanners are slow but better.
None of these are within your price range.

this thread might be useful

Thanks for the replies guys.

The advert for the copier says it copier uses a 10x Close Up Lens to achieve the correct amount of magnification needed to photograph the slides. then you just zoom and focus with your own camera lens to achieve your desired shot.

I had a set of bellows many years ago that I used for copying slides, The two standalone ones I have looked at, have different faults,

This one tends to produce squares in the middle of the image when copying slide, but when used for negatives it is fine , https://www.wexphotovideo.com/kenro-film-scanner-knsc201-1634265/

Along with this one https://www.wexphotovideo.com/veho-smartfix-14-megapixel-negative-film-slide-scanner-1750984/ they wont take the thickness of GePe glass mounted slide.

I have a few hundred in total to do, but cant justify buying a new flatbed scanner costing hundreds of pounds, as i already have one that suits my needs, and it would be surplus to requirements

I decide to take the plunge and buy the lens mounted copier, should be here in the next couple of days, will post some results for your opinions.





Edited by sploosher - 19 March 2021 at 23:26

I found a Veho Smartfix scanner in a charity shop last year, £5. It appears to be a current model (VFS-014-SF) on sale now at £200 less a few pence, and it works really well. 14MP.

It has a several different sliding frames to accommodate different slide sizes and cut film, etc. I use the one that takes three 35mm slides. It is very easy to use- I just load the slides, position them and press the button to scan, then when I've finished I leave the SD card in the machine and connect it to the USB port on my PC and Playmemories imports them all.

I was initially doubtful whether the scan would cope with the huge dynamic range on slides, but it does this very well, and spot-checking the tone curve generally shows the full white and black edges inside the borders, but it has the facility to adjust the EV when you scan. I think it has an automatic adjustment for light too. Anyway, I can definitely recommend it, though I probably wouldn't spend £200 on one...

At the moment I'm just scanning through the slides my father and I took in Italy 40 years ago, but I've also scanned the Bristol-Bournemouth classic car run of 1989 which doesn't take place anymore. I'll post a few from this set.

Edited by Miranda F - 26 November 2022 at 10:16

addy landzaat wrote: I doubt you get 14mp of resolution out of a scanner like this. But if it has the IQ you're happy with: great buy! (just noticed the specs do not mention the Dmax number...)

Well, the jpegs are 2944 x 4416 which I make to be 13Mp so you're right!
And the actual size of the jpegs (2-3 Mb) suggests they don't have the best ultimate resolution. But that's okay. I want to display them to the family on our basic HDTV which is about 2Mp, and I don't have nay higher resolution monitors. There's plenty of room to crop where needed.

But, duh, if I wanted the full display resolut5ion and images large enough to warrant it (four-five feet across) I'd show the slides ...

But it does raise the old question again - how many Mp do you need for the display method you're using? Bear in mind this is holiday pictures, not professional artwork.

What do you mean by Dmax number?

Not quite correct Addy.

Dmax is an abbreviation for the maximum density where detail can still be distinguished from pure black by a scanner (or densitometer). And Dmin for minimum density from pure white (lowest values not hidden by noise); and they are measured on a logarithmic scale.
With that the resulting dynamic range of a scanner can be calculated:

DR = Dmax - Dmin

Some valuable info can be found here: https://www.scantips.com/basics14.html