converting to digital photos

[bretjosephs]

I want to convert my non digtal pictures into digital format.
I am under the impression that if I scan the negatvies, I would have better results than scanning the pictures. Can you please give me some advice?

Also, is there a place that does this?

Thanks.

[evilenglishman]

most companies that offer digital prints etc will scan your negs/slides, but its usually quite costly.

If its only 1 or 2 photos then its no big deal but if you are talking about quite a lot, You could buy a scanner that will do this and save yourself a lot of cash.

Look for a slide scanner and not a flat bed scanner - you will get better results from it.

[pradeep1]

Or consider just photographing your slides with a good digital camera. You can find a "T-mount" slide duplicating machine at B&H. Use that.

[maderito]

If your future is in digital photography but you want to scan old negatives and/or slides, consider a flatbed scanner that also handles film -

e.g. the Epson Epson Perfection 3170 Photo - 3200x6400 dpi Flatbed Scanner (http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=productlist&A=details&Q=&sku=293561&is=REG)

If you are going to scan film on a regular basis, you might do better with a dedicated film scanner -

e.g. Nikon Coolscan 4000 dpi 35mm, Film Scanner (http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=productlist&A=details&Q=&sku=310476&is=REG)

I have an older version of the Epson and it served me very well as I made the transition from film to digital.

[Jesper]

Yes, if you scan the negatives, you'll get better quality than when you scan the prints.

The prints are already a copy of the negative. If you make a copy-of-a-copy-of-a-copy-of-..., each time the quality deteriorates (that only applies to non-digital things, by the way). So it's best to start with the original. Also, a print doesn't contain the same dynamic range as a negative, so there is more information in the darkest and lightest area of a negative that you don't have on a print.

You can buy a film scanner yourself - I have a Minolta Scan Dual III, which is very popular and not really expensive, but now there is a new version, the Minolta Scan Dual IV.

But watch out, scanning a lot of film will be a lot of work and it will take a lot of time. I've read posts by many people who wanted to scan their entire collection of negatives and gave it up because it was too much work. I only scan the slides or negatives that I want to use on the computer (to make prints myself or put them on the web, for example).

[scottbergerphoto]

I have the Nikon Coolscan IV which was replaced by the V linked above. They are great film/slide scanners and come with Digital Ice for noise/dust/scratch removal. The process is time consuming, but unless you are going to pay alot of money for someone else to do it, it's the only way to go. You might also check out www.scantips.com and www.hamrick.com .
Regards,
Scott