This is the negative holder for your 5x4s'
- Flatbed scanner
- Dual Lens
- Reflective and transparency scanner
- Anti-newton ring glass
- Not so good for medium format and 35mm
- Uses the Epson propiertry software
How to scan:
- Turn on the scanner, then the computer once the scanner is fully on.
- Next get your negative holder , and place each individual negative in the holder, Open the scanner itself and remove the white plate, so the light can travel through the negative, and put the nodes on the holder into the dips on the scanner, making sure the skiny side of the negatives are up.
- Open the Epson Scanner software and switch it to professional mode.
- Next sleect the correct settings on the software; to scan large format negatives you need choose; Mode: professional mode Document: Film (with film holder) Film Type: B&W Negative Film Image Type: 16-bit Grayscale Resolution: depends on what you are going to use the scans for, if it going to be used for an exhibition print you should use the highest revolution. I decided to go with 600. Digital ICE Technology: this will remove what the scanner thinks is dust, it would be better to do this in photoshop later on.
- Press the preview button and a preview of your scan will come up on the screen, then select around the negative leaving a white border, and making sure you dont cut into your photo. The point of a scan is to create a midpoint for the image so you can edit more easily on photoshop.
- Once your chosen adjustments have been made sleect the scan button and it will fully scan what you have selected.
- Finaly remove the negatives form the holder and put the white plate back in the top of the scanner.
Final Scans:
Imacon Flextight:
- Scanner for Hasselblad
- The optical path is vertical - height of the scanner, creates a straight path. Has no glass
- Negative holders are magnetic and is fed in on a curve
- You cannot scan 10x8
How to scan:
- Firstly turn on the scanner, and then turn on the computer. Make sure you log on once the scanner is switched on.
- Nest load your negative in the holder, you need to collect these from Lawrence. You need to line to negative up into the area of the negative holder, making sure you can see all of the photo. Make sure there is no fingerprints on the negative, and is facing shiny side up.
- Place your negative into the scanner, by placing it between the silver tracks and it will snap into place due to the magnets.
- Next open the Flex colour software which is compatible with the Imacon scanner.
- Then select the correct settings on the software, to scan large format black and white negatives, these are the following settings; Setup: Negative RGB Standard. Frame: 4"x5" (for large format negative). Mode: Greyscale 16 bit. ppi/ resolution: this depends on what scans are being used for, for exhibition prints you should use a high resolution. For mine I chose 600.
- Then press preview, this will allow you look at what the scan will look like.
- Once scanned select the auto correction button which will automatically correct your photograph, you can also edit the levels and curves. One way to acheive mid tones is to use the histogram and the grey pipette to move across your image, it should be reading in the 110s to be a mid grey tone.
- When you are happy press the scan and your negative will be fed up into the scanner. Before this a screen will pop up to where you should save the file.
- Finally shutting everything down you should turn off the scanner and then turn off the computer.
Final Scans:
Drum Scanning (DMAX):
- Used for exhibition prints
- a drum scan will pull out detail, that an enlarger or flat/ imacon scanner wont detect - this mean it can bring out the smallest spec of dirt
- It uses photo multiplier tubes - a minute beam of light is passed through the film that PMT is focused on, it is not bent through lens of mirrors
- The optical path is purer
- Creates superior tonal ranges
- The negatives are mounted in Kami Fluid on the drum - which removes the need for clean off gel and reduces chances of scratches.
- The drum scanner scans at 16 bits per channel
- The drum scanner will make your photos more saturated
Editing for the drum scanner:
- Colour cast removal -
- Go to adjustment layer, and create a threshold adjustment layer. Up the thershold until you can see the blacks in your photo.
- Select the colour sampler tool, and select a point in the threshold layer that is a real black(these are not the ovbious blacks, they are the absence of colour.) The selected point will show the number 1.
- Hide the threshold layer.
- Open a curves layer, and select the black pipett, sample the area over the cross hairs, the curves layer for the black point will change
- Delete the threshold layer and create new Threshold layer and do the same for the white point.
- Then create a curves layer, sample over the cross hairs and set the white point.
- Create a new layer by pressing shit F5 creates the right layer mask.
- Set the layer mode to DIFFERENCE
- Add a threshold mask and put it back to zero for mid point.
- Sample the mid point.
- Hide the threshold and grey layer and create a new curve layer, and sample the midpoint using the pipette.
- Then slightly edit the RGB Channel.
- Flatten and save the file.