Scanning Negatives and Slides: Digitizing Your Photographic Archives [Paperback]

Sascha Steinhoff (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 193395230X | ISBN-13: 978-1933952307 | Publication Date: March 7, 2009 | Edition: Second Edition

Many photographers have either moved into digital photography exclusively or use both analog and digital media in their work. In either case, there is sure to be an archive of slides and negatives that cannot be directly integrated into the new digital workflow, nor can it be archived in a digital format. Increasingly, photographers are trying to bridge this gap with the use of high-performance film scanners.

In this 2nd edition, you will learn how to achieve the best possible digital image from a negative or a slide, and how to build a workflow to make this process efficient, repeatable, and reliable. The author uses Nikon's film scanners, but all steps can easily be accomplished while using a different scanner. The most common software tools for scanning (SilverFast, VueScan, NikonScan) are not only covered extensively in the book, but trial versions are also provided on a DVD, which also contains other useful tools for image editing, as well as numerous sample scans.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Sascha Steinhoff is a computer expert by training and a photographer by passion. He used several rainy seasons in Galway, Ireland to learn everything he needed to know about scanners and scanning software. He soon realized that a good scan requires as much work and know-how as a good camera shot, and that a scanning workflow is essential to get the job done efficiently.

Sascha recently gave up his position as an editor of a leading German technical magazine to move to Bangkok, Thailand, where he is currently working as a freelance journalist and project manager.

Complementary information about the scanning techniques described in this book, as well as as a place where Sascha will reply to inquiries, can be found on his website at http://scanguru.info.

Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Rocky Nook; Second Edition edition (March 7, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 193395230X
• ISBN-13: 978-1933952307
• Product Dimensions: 9.9 x 8.1 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (39 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #74,083 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #97 in Books > Arts & Photography > Photography > Equipment

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

184 of 191 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars If you want some introduction to scanning, buy it. If you want to improve your scanning, search elsewhere, November 10, 2007

By 

NG S. T. Nevin (Hong Kong) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Scanning Negatives and Slides: Digitizing Your Photographic Archives (Paperback)

I'm an amateur photographer who is learning how to scan film. When I see this book I'm very excited and expect it can improve my skill in getting a better output. To be frank I'm totally disappointed when I read the book. The book gives you a very good introduction about scanners, basic scanning principle and terminology, and popular scanning software like Nikon Scan, Vuescan and Silverfast........and it ends here.

If you expect it teaches you how to tweak options in these software? Look elsewhere. If you expect it teaches you how to extract every details from a film using a particular software? Look elsewhere. If you expect it teaches you how to handle a problematic film? Look elsewhere. If you expect it teaches you varies in-depth workflows in scanning film? Look elsewhere.

Even the pictures in the book are bad. e.g. How you can illustrate the sharpness effect of a curl film in scanning if your picture is not sharp in the first place?

Bottom line: If you know nothing about scanning, this maybe a good book for you to get "just" started. If you've been using your scanner already, skip this book and use the money to buy more film.

104 of 110 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Good introduction to scanning, March 26, 2007

By 

Rakesh Malik (Silver Spring, MD USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Scanning Negatives and Slides: Digitizing Your Photographic Archives (Paperback)

This is a well written book that will guide someone new to scanning slides and negatives through the learning process. The author uses plain English and a lot of good examples to show how to optimize your scan settings in NikonScan, VueScan, and SilverFast. If you're interested in learning to scan negatives and slides, this book will help you learn what you need to know to choose a film scanner and how to use it.

There are probably other books out there that are more detailed than this one, but as far as introducing you to the world of scanning and getting you started on learning how to maximize your scans, this is a great book.

56 of 57 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Scanning Slides and Negatives, November 15, 2007

By 

MD_Dillo - See all my reviews

This review is from: Scanning Negatives and Slides: Digitizing Your Photographic Archives (Paperback)

While the book has some helpful information, it is all in all disappointing for readers who already own scanners and seek help in using them to best effect. Specifically, over 50 pages of the 230 in the book seem aimed at helping the reader decide WHETHER to digitize slides and negatives in the first place. I would have liked a clearer and more comprehensive explanation of whether, why, and how one can use the multitude of settings and tools on the better scanners. The writing, editing, and use of illustrations are passable but not as good as I had hoped and not nearly of the quality found, for example, in the Ben Willmore books on Photoshop. The Steinhoff book includes a DVD containing little of readily apparent value; the promised software turns out to be limited trial versions easily found on the web, should you want them.