If this is not the right forum for this post, I apologize...My first post.

I got my first digital camera about 6 years ago and have not shot any film since. I have been through several upgrades, including a Nikon D70 dslr for a short period..I ended up giving it to my daughter to use in some college art classes she is taking.

I am getting pretty good results with my digital cameras, but am not enjoying using them. With each upgrade, I have gained some features and lost some. I sorely miss my film SLR equipment, and have been considering going back to film. I am 60 years old and have been an avid photographer since I was about 16. I worked as a camera repairman for a number of years, and shot professional sports for several years, part time. Film cameras is where all of my experience is.

Having said all of that, I thoroughly enjoy working with digital files, and don't want to give that up.

Do most of you guys scan your own negatives, or have them done when the negatives are processed? Some of the labs in my area offer scanning and writing to a CD fairly reasonably. Is the quality of this good enough, or do you need a drum scan to get good results?

I am mostly concerned about this because I don't think that I can justify(mostly to my wife.... I think we are all pretty much married to the same woman) much of an outlay for an expensive scanner.

Any opinions on this would be appreciated.

Wendell
Woodstock, GA

Should really be in the "Gray Area" forum Wendell. Perhaps a passing Moderator could move this to the Gray Area if Wendell cannot do it himself?

Sorry, can't help with the actual question as the only scanning I do is of prints or occasional LF negs on a flatbed.

Have fun, Bob.

I have been scanning my negs and pics for several years. I can't even remember what my first photo scanner was. My next one was an Epson 2400 which I liked a lot and did great scans with it's built in 35mm scanner. The one I use now, and am not thoroughly happy with, is an HP 4890. I've never used a drum scanner but have compared my scans with an out-sourced cd. Both of my last 2 scanners put out an equivalent or better scan.
I also like the option of being able to control my own resolution.

You, being a pro, may have a keener eye than I but IMHO there are some very reasonable 35mm flatbed scanners available that do a good job. My Epson 2400 was only around a $100 a couple of years ago and it did a fine job reflective scanning a 4X5 negative as well.

I've just about got my darkroom finished now and looking forward to cooling down the scanner and working with the enlarger again, but I do understand that scanning does provide a source for the enjoyment of photographing with film when one is unable to access a darkroom.

Another consideration is that at home film developing can be done virtually anywhere with a very minor expense, especially b&w, and a personal scanner is very useful. I have often taken the pic, developed the film and scanned it into a file in less than 45 minutes. That can't be done out-sourcing.
Anyway, good luck and welcome.

Just thought I'd throw this in real quick. Here's a 30 minute pic to scan negative. Notice it's of my wife showing off her hobby! Two days later she bought me a new scanner :)
http://www.apug.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=10584&cat=500&ppuser=7384

Most places that offer scans on CD only deliver fairly low resolutions -- something on the order of 1000x1500, IIRC. This is good enough for 4x6-inch prints, but I wouldn't go much higher than that. Most places don't even offer higher resolutions than this, but some do.

Something like the 2400 dpi scanners mentioned by others will produce a 2268x3402 scan, by contrast, which is better for larger prints. OTOH, the consumer-grade scanners might fall down in some other areas, such as ability to cope with very dense negatives. Whether such a scanner produces "good results" is a subjective matter. If you want to buy such a scanner, you might try asking people here or on other forums who have whatever model(s) you're considering for some sample scans. That might help you evaluate the scanner's quality. FWIW, I slapped together a Web page (http://www.rodsbooks.com/scanners/) comparing a few scanners a while back. This isn't a rigorous comparison, though, just a page meant to illustrate differences in sharpness of scans from three film scanners and two flatbeds (scanning prints).

A ~2400 dpi scanner can probably be had new for about $200. (That's a guess; I haven't checked prices lately.) Of course, prices and features vary a lot, so you'll need to do some research before buying, if you decide to go this route.

Moved by a "passing moderator", who only scans LF (rarely) and prints (occasionally).