Film Developing / Scanning Service at DVinfo.net

Peter Moore · December 28th, 2004, 06:51 PM

Does anyone know - are there any services out there that will develop your film and provide full resolution digital images from the film? And by full-rez, I mean something like 4000 x 2000.

Thanks a lot.

Peter Moore · January 5th, 2005, 06:38 PM

Well, is there any way to scan 35mm film negatives? Are film scanners any good?

Boyd Ostroff · January 5th, 2005, 07:20 PM

Camera shops used to be able to send your film to Kodak for this. I got a roll done several years ago on a photo CD. There were files in different resolutions on the disk, the highest res were similar to what you want. The scans looked really good.

I had a Minolta Dimage film scanner for awhile and used it to digitize a lot of my photos. The results were pretty good, but I heard the Nikon Coolscan was better. I would have gotten that instead, but at the time they were so popular that nobody had them in stock.

But since I haven't touched any of my film cameras in about 4 years I just haven't kept up with this...

Peter Moore · January 5th, 2005, 11:58 PM

I know about Kodak picture CD but I thought those were pretty low res. Does anyone know if they're higher res, and if that's still around?

Boyd thanks for the info.

Ken Tanaka · January 6th, 2005, 01:33 AM

I've just begun scanning my film images with a Dimage 5400 film scanner. It's terrific, better (and less costly) than the comparable Nikon.

Depending on how many images you plan to scan, and how fussy you are, you might actually best benefit by investing in a good film scanner.

Many good photo development services will produce high-res scans on CD for additional fees. It's been a while since I've used a Kodak Photo CD but I believe they are actually produced in several resolutions (low, med, high). The best place to begin looking for a local service is to inquire at a local camera stores.

Emre Safak · January 13th, 2005, 11:11 PM

Big brand film scanners are very good, however I do not recommend getting one because scanning is so laborious.

Alex Ratson · January 14th, 2005, 12:39 AM

Just about all labs I have dealt with can provide scans of slides although this is costly and adds up vary fast if you get every roll done. For a while I would just get them developed and mounted and have the keepers scanned although even that added up to the point that it was cheaper to buy a good scanner. So I did. I went with the Minolta although The Nikon line is vary good and I actually would suggest it over Minolta if you have a lot of slides to scan.

December 28th, 2004, 06:51 PM	#1
Peter Moore Trustee Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Arlington VA Posts: 1,034	Film Developing / Scanning Service Does anyone know - are there any services out there that will develop your film and provide full resolution digital images from the film? And by full-rez, I mean something like 4000 x 2000. Thanks a lot.

January 6th, 2005, 01:33 AM	#5
Ken Tanaka Retired DV Info Net Almunus Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: Chicago, IL Posts: 6,943	I've just begun scanning my film images with a Dimage 5400 film scanner. It's terrific, better (and less costly) than the comparable Nikon. Depending on how many images you plan to scan, and how fussy you are, you might actually best benefit by investing in a good film scanner. Many good photo development services will produce high-res scans on CD for additional fees. It's been a while since I've used a Kodak Photo CD but I believe they are actually produced in several resolutions (low, med, high). The best place to begin looking for a local service is to inquire at a local camera stores. __________________ Lady X Films: A lady with a boring wardrobe...and a global mission. Hey, you don't have enough stuff! Buy with confidence from our sponsors. Hand-picked as the best in the business...Really! See some of my work one frame at a time: www.KenTanaka.com

January 5th, 2005, 06:38 PM	#2
Peter Moore Trustee Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Arlington VA Posts: 1,034	Well, is there any way to scan 35mm film negatives? Are film scanners any good?

January 5th, 2005, 07:20 PM	#3
Boyd Ostroff Wrangler Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Mays Landing, NJ Posts: 11,787	Camera shops used to be able to send your film to Kodak for this. I got a roll done several years ago on a photo CD. There were files in different resolutions on the disk, the highest res were similar to what you want. The scans looked really good. I had a Minolta Dimage film scanner for awhile and used it to digitize a lot of my photos. The results were pretty good, but I heard the Nikon Coolscan was better. I would have gotten that instead, but at the time they were so popular that nobody had them in stock. But since I haven't touched any of my film cameras in about 4 years I just haven't kept up with this...

January 5th, 2005, 11:58 PM	#4
Peter Moore Trustee Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Arlington VA Posts: 1,034	I know about Kodak picture CD but I thought those were pretty low res. Does anyone know if they're higher res, and if that's still around? Boyd thanks for the info.

January 13th, 2005, 11:11 PM	#6
Emre Safak Trustee Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Brookline, MA Posts: 1,447	Big brand film scanners are very good, however I do not recommend getting one because scanning is so laborious.

January 14th, 2005, 12:39 AM	#7
Alex Ratson Regular Crew Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Squamish, British Columbia, Canada Posts: 149	Just about all labs I have dealt with can provide scans of slides although this is costly and adds up vary fast if you get every roll done. For a while I would just get them developed and mounted and have the keepers scanned although even that added up to the point that it was cheaper to buy a good scanner. So I did. I went with the Minolta although The Nikon line is vary good and I actually would suggest it over Minolta if you have a lot of slides to scan.