Digital BW, The Print

----- Original Message -----
From: "frankg_photo" <fh.gross@...>
To: <DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Friday, May 02, 2003 8:20 PM
Subject: [Digital BW] Sprintscan120/Silverfast6 & Glass holder sharpness
problem


> Martin,
> Thanks for this - all good points.
>
> My issue with SF is that film in the glass holder will not be
> focused - although the focus icon is "on" in the SF interface it does
> not actually focus the hardware (on the film plane) !

Frank,

Keep bugging SF techsupport and perhaps bug Polaroid too. If they are
bundling SF with the scanner they have an obligation too.
>
> Maybe someone else with the Sprintscan, Silverfast and the Glass
> Holder can jump in here and tell what their focus experience has
> been ?

I didn't use the scanner much with the glass holder as I got the holder
about the same time I got the Howtek. I don't recall any focus problems.
>
> Since trying Insight I have had better focus - but there are 2 things
> that I miss already compared to SF:
> 1. the Histogram with the little sliders to bring the scan into the
> high & low range.

There is a simple Levels/Histogram tool with sliders. Getting to it is not
obvious and unfortunately I no longer have the software installed to tell
you how to open it but it is there.

> 2. For the occasional col transparency there is no 'calibration' like
> the IT8 supplied with SF

If you do a raw scan with Insight I believe you should be able to apply
calibration when you open the tiff file with SF HDR, but color is not my
strong point.
>
> To clarify your workflow described below; you choose the 16 bit Raw
> scan option in Insight, save it as a Tif. Then open SF HDR and import
> it. Make global adjustments, then export to PS. ?

Yes. In Insight you choose to scan to file and it opens a window that let's
you choose the file type. One of the choices is 16-bit raw tif. When you
open the file with SF HDR you have all the same tools you have in regular
SF. Remember that SF is just manipulating the data stream from the scanner.
The only difference between using SF directly and the RAW-to-SF HDR method
is that SF is doing the adjustments on the fly.

Leaving the glass holder out of the workflow for the moment, try scanning in
SF and make a note of your settings. Do a raw scan in Insight and open it
with SF HDR using the same settings you used with SF and see how the results
compare.

Martin

>
> DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com, "Martin Wesley"
> <mwesley250@e...> wrote:
> > Frank,
> >
> > I've used the Sprintscan 120 and SF before I got my Howtek. I would
> not have
> > bothered to move up to the Howtek except I needed a way to get top
> quality
> > scans of 4x5 negs. I would have to give the Howtek the edge in
> sharpness at
> > the scan level but, as Antonis pointed out, it is the print
> sharpness that
> > really matters and the difference is minor. I think you would be
> hard
> > pressed to look at two prints and say one was from a Howtek scan
> and one was
> > from a SS120 scan.
> >
> > A year or more back Tim Spragens and I compared the output of the
> SS120 and
> > the equivalent Minolta unit. The scans were not precisely the same
> but we
> > concluded there was no difference in quality.
> >
> > Silverfast has often been a pain though. When the scanner came out,
> there
> > was a bug involving SF, Window 2000 and Firewire connections. For a
> > considerable time I did raw scans using Polaroid Insight. I then
> opened the
> > raw file either with the Silverfast HDR module, which you should
> have, or
> > directly into Photoshop.
> >
> > This is a very good workflow and essentially how I use SF with my
> Howtek. I
> > do a raw scan to a TIFF file and then "scan" the data using SF HDR
> making
> > first overall adjustments and outputting a 16-bit file to PS. The
> has the
> > advantage of being able to make different corrected "scans" very
> quickly.
> >
> > The other thing to watch with Silverfast is that they will get
> around to
> > fixing the problem. (I actually thought they had corrected this
> particular
> > one.) They also occasionally lose fixes when releasing upgrades.
> The trick
> > is to check their site often and stay on top of the often frequent
> upgrades
> > and save all the versions. In the meantime just use Insight. As far
> as I can
> > tell it's a fine okay program for B&W work.
> >
> > I also do all my sharpening in PS and not during scanning since I
> find the
> > amount needed is print size dependent.
> >
> > Martin Wesley
> >
> > http://www.borderless-photos.de/guests.html
> >
> >
> >
> > ----- Original Message -----
> > From: "frankg_photo" <fh.gross@s...>
> > To: <DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com>
> > Sent: Friday, May 02, 2003 2:10 PM
> > Subject: [Digital BW] Re: Sprintscan120/Silverfast6 (& Glass
> holder) scan
> > sharpness problem
> >
> >
> > >
> > > Thank you for the offer to test scan a couple of frames - maybe
> I'll
> > > take you up on this.
> > >
> > > Yes I have been in email contact with SF tech support all day - it
> > > seems that the Focus button which you refer to that greys out or
> is
> > > col (off/on) is not effective with the glass holder!
> > >
> > > In other words there is effectively no scanner focusing when the
> > > glass carrier is used. It is just focused on wherever the
> > > default/manual setting is - which is pretty close but probably the
> > > thickness of the glass away from being optimum.
> > >
> > > Try a few transparencies or negs in this usual mode and then try
> them
> > > with Polaroid Insight (f you have it installed - if not it's free
> > > from the polaroid>support>download site) - you may be very
> surprised
> > > at what you thought was in focus. I was - suddenly there is detail
> > > and texture that i never saw before !
> > > Frank
> > >
> > >
> > > --- In DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com, "Shilesh
> Jani"
> > > <shilesh.jani@s...> wrote:
> > > > Yes it is.  Have you confirmed this with people at Silverfast? I
> > > know
> > > > SF 6 cannot manually focus the SS120.  But there is a tab for
> this
> > > > function - must be in all versions of SF.  It toggles between
> being
> > > > grayed out and showing an "A".  I have assumed that "A" stands
> for
> > > > autofocus - hey how about the SF documentation, eh ;-(.
> > > >
> > > > Quite frankly, I have not encountered "soft" scans when scanning
> > > > transparencies (which is mostly what I use).  But, I am going to
> > > > explore this further.  For me, at least, it may be a lesser
> problem
> > > > because I don't scan too many negatives, and in fact have
> recently
> > > > decided NEVER to shoot them any more.  I like the grain I get
> from
> > > > Fujichrome Provia 400 when pushed 1 or 2 stops.  And, it is so
> much
> > > > easier to scan than Tri-X or Ilford Delta 3200.  I like some
> > > features
> > > > of SF 6, but I can live without them.
> > > >
> > > > Is it possible that the problem is in your scanner?  If you
> like, I
> > > > would gladly scan a couple of your negatives  to test it out.
> > > > Contact me off-list.
> > > >
> > > > If all esle fails, time to be rid of the scanner, and go with a
> > > > Minolta or Nikon (argh  $$$$).
> > > >
> > > > Regards.
> > > >
> > > > Shilesh
>
>
>
> Please visit the Group Homepage to check the Files, Bookmarks, Polls and
other resources as they are often being updated. The page is at:
>
> http://groups.yahoo.com/group/DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint
>
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>
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> - As threads develop, trim off excess portions of earlier messages to keep
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>
>
>
>
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>
>
>

----- Original Message -----

From: "frankg_photo" <fh.gross@...>
To: <DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Saturday, May 03, 2003 5:20 AM
Subject: [Digital BW] Sprintscan120/Silverfast6 & Glass holder
sharpness problem


> Martin,
> Thanks for this - all good points.
>
> My issue with SF is that film in the glass holder will not be
> focused - although the focus icon is "on" in the SF interface
it does
> not actually focus the hardware (on the film plane) !
>
> Maybe someone else with the Sprintscan, Silverfast and the
Glass
> Holder can jump in here and tell what their focus experience
has
> been ?
>
> Since trying Insight I have had better focus - but there are 2
things
> that I miss already compared to SF:
> 1. the Histogram with the little sliders to bring the scan into
the
> high & low range.
> 2. For the occasional col transparency there is no
'calibration' like
> the IT8 supplied with SF
>
> To clarify your workflow described below; you choose the 16 bit
Raw
> scan option in Insight, save it as a Tif. Then open SF HDR and
import
> it. Make global adjustments, then export to PS. ?
>
> Frank

Frank,

I guess Vuescan will support the Polaroid Sprintscan. You could
try the demo to check the focussing in that program.
Most of what Silverfast does is in that program too and with less
hassle in my opinion.
IT8 calibration available and you can use the IT8 target of
Silverfast (which is probably a Wolf Faust IT8).
Using it with a Nikon 8000 + Epson 3200 with glass holders and
wet mounting etc.

Pricing has been changed but still a lot cheaper than Silverfast.
Supports almost all the scanners available in just one license,
license covers 4 OSses, and the user is allowed to use it on 4
systems. Sounds a lot better than the Silverfast deal. But you
got that one already .....

www.hamrick.com

Ernst

Martin,
I'll try out the workflow you suggest experimenting with.

SF will no longer develop for Polaroid because ogf the 
discontinuation of the scanner - and also there is some issue on 
olaroids part about not changing anything since they got into 
financial difficulty
Frank

--- In DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com, "Martin Wesley" 
<mwesley250@e...> wrote:
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "frankg_photo" <fh.gross@s...>
> To: <DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com>
> Sent: Friday, May 02, 2003 8:20 PM
> Subject: [Digital BW] Sprintscan120/Silverfast6 & Glass holder 
sharpness
> problem
> 
> 
> > Martin,
> > Thanks for this - all good points.
> >
> > My issue with SF is that film in the glass holder will not be
> > focused - although the focus icon is "on" in the SF interface it 
does
> > not actually focus the hardware (on the film plane) !
> 
> Frank,
> 
> Keep bugging SF techsupport and perhaps bug Polaroid too. If they 
are
> bundling SF with the scanner they have an obligation too.
> >
> > Maybe someone else with the Sprintscan, Silverfast and the Glass
> > Holder can jump in here and tell what their focus experience has
> > been ?
> 
> I didn't use the scanner much with the glass holder as I got the 
holder
> about the same time I got the Howtek. I don't recall any focus 
problems.
> >
> > Since trying Insight I have had better focus - but there are 2 
things
> > that I miss already compared to SF:
> > 1. the Histogram with the little sliders to bring the scan into 
the
> > high & low range.
> 
> There is a simple Levels/Histogram tool with sliders. Getting to it 
is not
> obvious and unfortunately I no longer have the software installed 
to tell
> you how to open it but it is there.
> 
> > 2. For the occasional col transparency there is no 'calibration' 
like
> > the IT8 supplied with SF
> 
> If you do a raw scan with Insight I believe you should be able to 
apply
> calibration when you open the tiff file with SF HDR, but color is 
not my
> strong point.
> >
> > To clarify your workflow described below; you choose the 16 bit 
Raw
> > scan option in Insight, save it as a Tif. Then open SF HDR and 
import
> > it. Make global adjustments, then export to PS. ?
> 
> Yes. In Insight you choose to scan to file and it opens a window 
that let's
> you choose the file type. One of the choices is 16-bit raw tif. 
When you
> open the file with SF HDR you have all the same tools you have in 
regular
> SF. Remember that SF is just manipulating the data stream from the 
scanner.
> The only difference between using SF directly and the RAW-to-SF HDR 
method
> is that SF is doing the adjustments on the fly.
> 
> Leaving the glass holder out of the workflow for the moment, try 
scanning in
> SF and make a note of your settings. Do a raw scan in Insight and 
open it
> with SF HDR using the same settings you used with SF and see how 
the results
> compare.
> 
> Martin
> 
> >
> > DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com, "Martin Wesley"
> > <mwesley250@e...> wrote:
> > > Frank,
> > >
> > > I've used the Sprintscan 120 and SF before I got my Howtek. I 
would
> > not have
> > > bothered to move up to the Howtek except I needed a way to get 
top
> > quality
> > > scans of 4x5 negs. I would have to give the Howtek the edge in
> > sharpness at
> > > the scan level but, as Antonis pointed out, it is the print
> > sharpness that
> > > really matters and the difference is minor. I think you would be
> > hard
> > > pressed to look at two prints and say one was from a Howtek scan
> > and one was
> > > from a SS120 scan.
> > >
> > > A year or more back Tim Spragens and I compared the output of 
the
> > SS120 and
> > > the equivalent Minolta unit. The scans were not precisely the 
same
> > but we
> > > concluded there was no difference in quality.
> > >
> > > Silverfast has often been a pain though. When the scanner came 
out,
> > there
> > > was a bug involving SF, Window 2000 and Firewire connections. 
For a
> > > considerable time I did raw scans using Polaroid Insight. I then
> > opened the
> > > raw file either with the Silverfast HDR module, which you should
> > have, or
> > > directly into Photoshop.
> > >
> > > This is a very good workflow and essentially how I use SF with 
my
> > Howtek. I
> > > do a raw scan to a TIFF file and then "scan" the data using SF 
HDR
> > making
> > > first overall adjustments and outputting a 16-bit file to PS. 
The
> > has the
> > > advantage of being able to make different corrected "scans" very
> > quickly.
> > >
> > > The other thing to watch with Silverfast is that they will get
> > around to
> > > fixing the problem. (I actually thought they had corrected this
> > particular
> > > one.) They also occasionally lose fixes when releasing upgrades.
> > The trick
> > > is to check their site often and stay on top of the often 
frequent
> > upgrades
> > > and save all the versions. In the meantime just use Insight. As 
far
> > as I can
> > > tell it's a fine okay program for B&W work.
> > >
> > > I also do all my sharpening in PS and not during scanning since 
I
> > find the
> > > amount needed is print size dependent.
> > >
> > > Martin Wesley
> > >
> > > http://www.borderless-photos.de/guests.html
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > ----- Original Message -----
> > > From: "frankg_photo" <fh.gross@s...>
> > > To: <DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com>
> > > Sent: Friday, May 02, 2003 2:10 PM
> > > Subject: [Digital BW] Re: Sprintscan120/Silverfast6 (& Glass
> > holder) scan
> > > sharpness problem
> > >
> > >
> > > >
> > > > Thank you for the offer to test scan a couple of frames - 
maybe
> > I'll
> > > > take you up on this.
> > > >
> > > > Yes I have been in email contact with SF tech support all 
day - it
> > > > seems that the Focus button which you refer to that greys out 
or
> > is
> > > > col (off/on) is not effective with the glass holder!
> > > >
> > > > In other words there is effectively no scanner focusing when 
the
> > > > glass carrier is used. It is just focused on wherever the
> > > > default/manual setting is - which is pretty close but 
probably the
> > > > thickness of the glass away from being optimum.
> > > >
> > > > Try a few transparencies or negs in this usual mode and then 
try
> > them
> > > > with Polaroid Insight (f you have it installed - if not it's 
free
> > > > from the polaroid>support>download site) - you may be very
> > surprised
> > > > at what you thought was in focus. I was - suddenly there is 
detail
> > > > and texture that i never saw before !
> > > > Frank
> > > >
> > > >
> > > > --- In DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com, "Shilesh
> > Jani"
> > > > <shilesh.jani@s...> wrote:
> > > > > Yes it is.  Have you confirmed this with people at 
Silverfast? I
> > > > know
> > > > > SF 6 cannot manually focus the SS120.  But there is a tab 
for
> > this
> > > > > function - must be in all versions of SF.  It toggles 
between
> > being
> > > > > grayed out and showing an "A".  I have assumed that "A" 
stands
> > for
> > > > > autofocus - hey how about the SF documentation, eh ;-(.
> > > > >
> > > > > Quite frankly, I have not encountered "soft" scans when 
scanning
> > > > > transparencies (which is mostly what I use).  But, I am 
going to
> > > > > explore this further.  For me, at least, it may be a lesser
> > problem
> > > > > because I don't scan too many negatives, and in fact have
> > recently
> > > > > decided NEVER to shoot them any more.  I like the grain I 
get
> > from
> > > > > Fujichrome Provia 400 when pushed 1 or 2 stops.  And, it is 
so
> > much
> > > > > easier to scan than Tri-X or Ilford Delta 3200.  I like some
> > > > features
> > > > > of SF 6, but I can live without them.
> > > > >
> > > > > Is it possible that the problem is in your scanner?  If you
> > like, I
> > > > > would gladly scan a couple of your negatives  to test it 
out.
> > > > > Contact me off-list.
> > > > >
> > > > > If all esle fails, time to be rid of the scanner, and go 
with a
> > > > > Minolta or Nikon (argh  $$$$).
> > > > >
> > > > > Regards.
> > > > >
> > > > > Shilesh
> >
> >
> >
> > Please visit the Group Homepage to check the Files, Bookmarks, 
Polls and
> other resources as they are often being updated. The page is at:
> >
> > http://groups.yahoo.com/group/DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint
> >
> > If you wish to receive no emails or just a daily digest, or you 
wish to
> unsubscribe, please edit your Membership preferences by visiting 
this same
> page.
> >
> > Please follow these basic guidelines:
> > - Include your full name with your message.
> > - Include the address of your website, if you have one.
> > - As threads develop, trim off excess portions of earlier 
messages to keep
> them short.
> > - As the topic of a thread changes remember to change the subject 
header.
> > - Good manners are required at all time. No personal attacks or
> &amp;amp;quot;flames.&amp;amp;quot;
> > - Complete your Yahoo profile.
> > - Before posting a question, search the message archives and the 
various
> resources on the homepage.
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to 
http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/

> >
> >
> >

Martin & Frank

Thank you for the good ideas.  I tried using Insight (for the first 
time), and sure enough the sharpness was a tab bit better, not by 
much though.  I was scanning 6 x 9 slides at 4000 dpi, and down 
sampling the file for a 360 dpi, 12 x 18 print, at which point the 
minor sharpness difference was no longer discernible.  But now, I 
actually like Insight:-)  It is faster, and I don't get the 
occasional banding I was seeing in SF.

To use the histogram in Insight:  First you must NOT have a profile 
tagged to the scan.  You do this in "user preferences" in the "scan" 
tab.  After you prescan, open the curves tab, and hit the histogram 
button.  You will now have the black/white/mid point contols.

Regards.

Shilesh

--- In DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com, "Martin Wesley" 
<mwesley250@e...> wrote:
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "frankg_photo" <fh.gross@s...>
> To: <DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com>
> Sent: Friday, May 02, 2003 8:20 PM
> Subject: [Digital BW] Sprintscan120/Silverfast6 & Glass holder 
sharpness
> problem
> 
> 
> > Martin,
> > Thanks for this - all good points.
> >
> > My issue with SF is that film in the glass holder will not be
> > focused - although the focus icon is "on" in the SF interface it 
does
> > not actually focus the hardware (on the film plane) !
> 
> Frank,
> 
> Keep bugging SF techsupport and perhaps bug Polaroid too. If they 
are
> bundling SF with the scanner they have an obligation too.
> >
> > Maybe someone else with the Sprintscan, Silverfast and the Glass
> > Holder can jump in here and tell what their focus experience has
> > been ?
> 
> I didn't use the scanner much with the glass holder as I got the 
holder
> about the same time I got the Howtek. I don't recall any focus 
problems.
> >
> > Since trying Insight I have had better focus - but there are 2 
things
> > that I miss already compared to SF:
> > 1. the Histogram with the little sliders to bring the scan into 
the
> > high & low range.
> 
> There is a simple Levels/Histogram tool with sliders. Getting to it 
is not
> obvious and unfortunately I no longer have the software installed 
to tell
> you how to open it but it is there.
> 
> > 2. For the occasional col transparency there is no 'calibration' 
like
> > the IT8 supplied with SF
> 
> If you do a raw scan with Insight I believe you should be able to 
apply
> calibration when you open the tiff file with SF HDR, but color is 
not my
> strong point.
> >
> > To clarify your workflow described below; you choose the 16 bit 
Raw
> > scan option in Insight, save it as a Tif. Then open SF HDR and 
import
> > it. Make global adjustments, then export to PS. ?
> 
> Yes. In Insight you choose to scan to file and it opens a window 
that let's
> you choose the file type. One of the choices is 16-bit raw tif. 
When you
> open the file with SF HDR you have all the same tools you have in 
regular
> SF. Remember that SF is just manipulating the data stream from the 
scanner.
> The only difference between using SF directly and the RAW-to-SF HDR 
method
> is that SF is doing the adjustments on the fly.
> 
> Leaving the glass holder out of the workflow for the moment, try 
scanning in
> SF and make a note of your settings. Do a raw scan in Insight and 
open it
> with SF HDR using the same settings you used with SF and see how 
the results
> compare.
> 
> Martin
> 
> >
> > DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com, "Martin Wesley"
> > <mwesley250@e...> wrote:
> > > Frank,
> > >
> > > I've used the Sprintscan 120 and SF before I got my Howtek. I 
would
> > not have
> > > bothered to move up to the Howtek except I needed a way to get 
top
> > quality
> > > scans of 4x5 negs. I would have to give the Howtek the edge in
> > sharpness at
> > > the scan level but, as Antonis pointed out, it is the print
> > sharpness that
> > > really matters and the difference is minor. I think you would be
> > hard
> > > pressed to look at two prints and say one was from a Howtek scan
> > and one was
> > > from a SS120 scan.
> > >
> > > A year or more back Tim Spragens and I compared the output of 
the
> > SS120 and
> > > the equivalent Minolta unit. The scans were not precisely the 
same
> > but we
> > > concluded there was no difference in quality.
> > >
> > > Silverfast has often been a pain though. When the scanner came 
out,
> > there
> > > was a bug involving SF, Window 2000 and Firewire connections. 
For a
> > > considerable time I did raw scans using Polaroid Insight. I then
> > opened the
> > > raw file either with the Silverfast HDR module, which you should
> > have, or
> > > directly into Photoshop.
> > >
> > > This is a very good workflow and essentially how I use SF with 
my
> > Howtek. I
> > > do a raw scan to a TIFF file and then "scan" the data using SF 
HDR
> > making
> > > first overall adjustments and outputting a 16-bit file to PS. 
The
> > has the
> > > advantage of being able to make different corrected "scans" very
> > quickly.
> > >
> > > The other thing to watch with Silverfast is that they will get
> > around to
> > > fixing the problem. (I actually thought they had corrected this
> > particular
> > > one.) They also occasionally lose fixes when releasing upgrades.
> > The trick
> > > is to check their site often and stay on top of the often 
frequent
> > upgrades
> > > and save all the versions. In the meantime just use Insight. As 
far
> > as I can
> > > tell it's a fine okay program for B&W work.
> > >
> > > I also do all my sharpening in PS and not during scanning since 
I
> > find the
> > > amount needed is print size dependent.
> > >
> > > Martin Wesley
> > >
> > > http://www.borderless-photos.de/guests.html
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > ----- Original Message -----
> > > From: "frankg_photo" <fh.gross@s...>
> > > To: <DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com>
> > > Sent: Friday, May 02, 2003 2:10 PM
> > > Subject: [Digital BW] Re: Sprintscan120/Silverfast6 (& Glass
> > holder) scan
> > > sharpness problem
> > >
> > >
> > > >
> > > > Thank you for the offer to test scan a couple of frames - 
maybe
> > I'll
> > > > take you up on this.
> > > >
> > > > Yes I have been in email contact with SF tech support all 
day - it
> > > > seems that the Focus button which you refer to that greys out 
or
> > is
> > > > col (off/on) is not effective with the glass holder!
> > > >
> > > > In other words there is effectively no scanner focusing when 
the
> > > > glass carrier is used. It is just focused on wherever the
> > > > default/manual setting is - which is pretty close but 
probably the
> > > > thickness of the glass away from being optimum.
> > > >
> > > > Try a few transparencies or negs in this usual mode and then 
try
> > them
> > > > with Polaroid Insight (f you have it installed - if not it's 
free
> > > > from the polaroid>support>download site) - you may be very
> > surprised
> > > > at what you thought was in focus. I was - suddenly there is 
detail
> > > > and texture that i never saw before !
> > > > Frank
> > > >
> > > >
> > > > --- In DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com, "Shilesh
> > Jani"
> > > > <shilesh.jani@s...> wrote:
> > > > > Yes it is.  Have you confirmed this with people at 
Silverfast? I
> > > > know
> > > > > SF 6 cannot manually focus the SS120.  But there is a tab 
for
> > this
> > > > > function - must be in all versions of SF.  It toggles 
between
> > being
> > > > > grayed out and showing an "A".  I have assumed that "A" 
stands
> > for
> > > > > autofocus - hey how about the SF documentation, eh ;-(.
> > > > >
> > > > > Quite frankly, I have not encountered "soft" scans when 
scanning
> > > > > transparencies (which is mostly what I use).  But, I am 
going to
> > > > > explore this further.  For me, at least, it may be a lesser
> > problem
> > > > > because I don't scan too many negatives, and in fact have
> > recently
> > > > > decided NEVER to shoot them any more.  I like the grain I 
get
> > from
> > > > > Fujichrome Provia 400 when pushed 1 or 2 stops.  And, it is 
so
> > much
> > > > > easier to scan than Tri-X or Ilford Delta 3200.  I like some
> > > > features
> > > > > of SF 6, but I can live without them.
> > > > >
> > > > > Is it possible that the problem is in your scanner?  If you
> > like, I
> > > > > would gladly scan a couple of your negatives  to test it 
out.
> > > > > Contact me off-list.
> > > > >
> > > > > If all esle fails, time to be rid of the scanner, and go 
with a
> > > > > Minolta or Nikon (argh  $$$$).
> > > > >
> > > > > Regards.
> > > > >
> > > > > Shilesh
> >
> >
> >
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> >
> >

> 
> Yes. In Insight you choose to scan to file and it opens a window 
that let's
> you choose the file type. One of the choices is 16-bit raw tif. 

Is there any reason not to simply open this file in Photoshop (saved 
in Insight as a RAW Tif 16 bit)?
If PS cant they now have a plugin called Camera RAW Jpeg 2000.