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Re: [Digital BW] re: B&W Printing . . . Polaroid SS4000

Re: [Digital BW] re: B&W Printing . . . Polaroid SS4000

2003-08-15 by Peter Marquis-Kyle

Rick Schiller wrote:
> My experience with the original SS4000 was very disappointing.
[snip]
> The most glaring
> imperfection of the Polaroid is the lack of sharpness.  It was
> simply no sharper then the Canon 2720, which is/was a basic 3.0
> dmax/ 2700 dpi scanner.

Rick -- just to set the record straight -- could this lack of
sharpness
have been due to the 'focus bug' in the Polaroid Insight software?
(See Tony Sleep's review of this Polaroid ss4000 scanner here:
http://www.halftone.co.uk/tech/filmscan/pol4000/pol4000.htm )

Peter Marquis-Kyle
www.marquis-kyle.com.au

RE: [Digital BW] re: B&W Printing . . . Polaroid SS4000

2003-08-15 by John Swain

Rick,

Your experience is the exact opposite of mine.  The main reason I changed
from the coolscans (LS-20 and LS-2000) was the lack of sharpness.  My
problem was the depth of focus with the coolscans.  My understanding is that
the coolscans use a low intensity light source therefore requiring a wide
aperture lens.  This results in a BIG difference in edge/centre sharpness as
the film is usually curved.

The coolscan manual focus allowed me to have sharp centre or sharp edges but
not both. I tried for many months to solve the problem, but could not.  I
have read of many with a similar experience.

It was a while ago so forgive my sketchy description.

Maybe they have now solved this problem with the LS40??

js
Show quoted textHide quoted text
-----Original Message-----
From: Rick Schiller [mailto:rschiller@...] 
Sent: 15 August 2003 07:49
To: DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com

I just noticed this message, that someone was going to buy a Polaroid SS4000
for BW, I assume to scan traditional film and it will be the newer 4000+
model.

My experience with the original SS4000 was very disappointing.  I purchased
a refurbed demo directly from Polaroid and had to sell it in a month.
Previous to that I was using a low-end Canon 2720.  The Polaroid may have
had subtley better dmax; but, the 4000 dpi vs the 2700 dpi simply didn't
matter at all.   The most glaring imperfection of the Polaroid is the lack
of sharpness.  It was simply no sharper then the Canon 2720, which is/was a
basic 3.0 dmax/ 2700 dpi scanner.

I ended up buying a Nikon LS40, which has since dropped in price to a very
reasonable level.   The Nikon works much better in every respect to the
Polaroid SS4000 I had.   The newer Polaroid SS4000+ has higher dmax but the
same technology and I would not believe it to be any sharper then the
original one.   Also the negative holders in the Polaroid are a pain.
Loading a strip of negatives into the Nikon is a breeze, you don't even have
to put them into a holder unless they are very curled.

The Minolta scanners would probably be worth looking at also.

Rick
www.rickschiller.com




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RE: [Digital BW] re: B&W Printing . . . Polaroid SS4000

2003-08-15 by John Swain

Forgot to mention - I use Silverfast on all the scanners.

js
Show quoted textHide quoted text
-----Original Message-----
From: John Swain [mailto:john.swain@...] 
Sent: 15 August 2003 12:05
To: 'DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com'

Rick,

Your experience is the exact opposite of mine.  The main reason I changed
from the coolscans (LS-20 and LS-2000) was the lack of sharpness.  My
problem was the depth of focus with the coolscans.  My understanding is that
the coolscans use a low intensity light source therefore requiring a wide
aperture lens.  This results in a BIG difference in edge/centre sharpness as
the film is usually curved.

The coolscan manual focus allowed me to have sharp centre or sharp edges but
not both. I tried for many months to solve the problem, but could not.  I
have read of many with a similar experience.

It was a while ago so forgive my sketchy description.

Maybe they have now solved this problem with the LS40??

js

-----Original Message-----
From: Rick Schiller [mailto:rschiller@...] 
Sent: 15 August 2003 07:49
To: DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com

I just noticed this message, that someone was going to buy a Polaroid SS4000
for BW, I assume to scan traditional film and it will be the newer 4000+
model.

My experience with the original SS4000 was very disappointing.  I purchased
a refurbed demo directly from Polaroid and had to sell it in a month.
Previous to that I was using a low-end Canon 2720.  The Polaroid may have
had subtley better dmax; but, the 4000 dpi vs the 2700 dpi simply didn't
matter at all.   The most glaring imperfection of the Polaroid is the lack
of sharpness.  It was simply no sharper then the Canon 2720, which is/was a
basic 3.0 dmax/ 2700 dpi scanner.

I ended up buying a Nikon LS40, which has since dropped in price to a very
reasonable level.   The Nikon works much better in every respect to the
Polaroid SS4000 I had.   The newer Polaroid SS4000+ has higher dmax but the
same technology and I would not believe it to be any sharper then the
original one.   Also the negative holders in the Polaroid are a pain.
Loading a strip of negatives into the Nikon is a breeze, you don't even have
to put them into a holder unless they are very curled.

The Minolta scanners would probably be worth looking at also.

Rick
www.rickschiller.com




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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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 flames
- 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/ 



[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]



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 flames
- 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/ 



[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

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