I received a message from a newsletter reader:
Hi Dick,
I am a regular reader of your newsletter.
I would like your advice on the best way to scan negatives with good quality results on a budget. I tried my Canon flatbed. It seems to do a good job, but takes a long time to scan at a good resolution. I tried a cheap negative scanner with terrible results. The good negative scanners are very expensive. I am considering places like CVS and online scanning services.
After scanning an old negative of my parents wedding that was about 60 years old and seeing the results, I want to do more negative scanning. I would like to see what you and other readers recommend.
By the way, I really liked your article on the outhouse. I am from Monson, Maine and our outhouse was off the barn, beyond the cow stalls.
Thanks Dick, I really enjoy your newsletter and welcome your great advice on so many topics.
My answer:
As you discovered, normal scanners don't handle negatives very well and many negative scanners work well, but are expensive.
I am reluctant to make recommendations, as I haven't used any of these, but you can find inexpensive units that claim to scan negatives. One that I know of is the iConvert® Instant Slide & Negative Scanner sold for $99 by Brookstone and probably by others as well. You can see it at http://goo.gl/oR1JB
However, you said that you had already tried a cheap scanner with poor results so the iConvert® unit might not be a good choice for you.
If you have a small number of negatives to scan, it will probably be cheaper to take them to a nearby drug store or photo store for scanning.
- Dick Eastman
Can anyone else offer suggestions?
