subject: The Benefits of a Film Scanner to a Flatbed Scanner [print this page] The Benefits of a Film Scanner to a Flatbed Scanner
If you are an avid photographer, a hobbyist, or even just a person who not only wants to maintain very easily accessible copies of slides and negatives, but also have the power to quickly fix and improve them, having a film scanner could be to your benefit. With the advent of the digital darkroom, photographers who work with film can now take benefit of the exact same tools that have turn out to be typical among digital photographers. Film scanners permit photographers to transfer film to digital media, where said files might be edited and enhanced with corrective software.
Film scanners come in a selection of forms specialized for particular types of film, such as the prevalent 35mm format film. Whilst some flatbed scanners do have attachments for scanning film and slides, the fundamental architecture of these scanners can't offer the exact same top quality that a dedicated film scanner can.
The 1st benefit that a film scanner has over its flatbed counterpart is obvious upon 1st glance - its size. Most of these scanners are just a fraction of the size of flatbed scanners, making them less difficult to deal with and less difficult to store. This may be a huge support if your workspace is continuously crowded - you will not need to worry about discovering a spot to place a comparatively bulky flatbed scanner. They also somewhat portable, meaning that you may have 1 with you if you're on the move for extended periods of time.
Film scanners have an additional benefit over their flatbed counterparts. The fundamental operation of a flatbed scanner is akin to a copy machine, with the transmissive light source covering the whole glass bed area. Although you will discover negative and slide holders equipped with an extra light source to focus extra transmissive light directly on the film, most flatbed scanners still lack the extra features that may produce the most effective high quality film scans.
With this kind of scanner, not only do you might have much more choices for ensuring the top quality of the scan, but you also have the capacity to scan individual frames at numerous resolutions, so that you can create the most effective high quality digital copy achievable. They not only supply higher resolutions, but also supply a wider dynamic range, permitting them to pick up true whites and deep blacks. Additionally, they may also deal with the concern of color balance simpler than flatbed scanners, plus they come equipped with their own built-in software that may be utilized to balance and right these scans.
Whilst film scanners provide the most effective in top quality and control, you can find a couple of tradeoffs. The very first 1 is speed. Most might be slow and are typically not suited to handling multiple negatives and slides. Most commercial photographers truly prefer drum scanners, because of the truth that drum scanners can deal with a higher number of negatives, although offering an even higher quantity of top quality. Nonetheless, drum scanners may be prohibitively pricey, with brand-new examples priced at $12,000 or far more.
The second tradeoff is price. Flatbed scanners, whilst normally of lesser high quality, are cheaper than film scanners. The average price for a film scanner can range from $120 for the cheapest model to upwards of $1200 for an advanced model.
