Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

Converting old negatives to digital

Collapse
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

  • Converting old negatives to digital

    I just went to Longs and they told me that they nor Kodak will process old 110 and 126 (Instamatic) negatives anymore. I'd like to convert probably less than a dozen old negatives to digital as well as prints. I've found a couple of places on the Internet, but they require minimum orders of $50 or more. Is there anywhere locally that can do this?

  • #2
    Re: Converting old negatives to digital

    I've never seen this sort of film but a little googling and I'm very intrigued. Would love to see the photos if you ever work this out. Have you tried asking at Rainbow Photo Lab? It doesn't say anything on their website but they might know someone else. http://rainbowphotovideo.com/
    Four Thousand Miles (blog) | MacRatLove (comic)
    Better Holes and Garbage (rats) | Perfectly Inadequate (music)

    Comment


    • #3
      Re: Converting old negatives to digital

      Try King Digital in Kakaako. Or Hawaii Pacific Photo. They both have scanning services available.

      I believe 126 Instamatic is actually about the same size as 35mm film. 110 was about the size of 16mm.

      Comment


      • #4
        Re: Converting old negatives to digital

        I converted my old 35mm negatives to digital using my scanner. I don't see why that wouldn't work with instamatic etc. negatives. Also, you might try calling a place called Media Systems located on Bishop St. to see if they can help you - maybe with a reference? I know they have also converted old pics to digital.
        "Democracy is the only system that persists in asking the powers that be whether they are the powers that ought to be."
        – Sydney J. Harris

        Comment


        • #5
          Re: Converting old negatives to digital

          I have an older Scanjet that is supposed to be able to handle slides and negatives, but the transparent media adapter (TMA) isn't working and doesn't light up. I do have a bunch of slides that I would like to process too, but the cost might be an issue. I'm going to try an online service first. I've just mailed 4 negative strips for them to process. I'll see how these work out first then I might check locally to see if the prices are comparable. I went with digmypics.com Comes out to about a buck per image scan, so this one will cost me about $12 plus shipping. I'll post a link to the scans of the negatives when they're pau.

          Comment


          • #6
            Re: Converting old negatives to digital

            Flatbed scanners don't have the dynamic range and sensitivity required to get detail from the denser portions of negatives and transparencies.

            The Nikon Coolscan and similar equipment dedicated to the task are much better suited for this, especially if its for archival purposes.

            Comment


            • #7
              Re: Converting old negatives to digital

              You're right. When the Scanjet did work properly, the slides that I scanned were dark and lacked any kind of detail. The Coolscans are pricey though.

              Originally posted by Composite 2992 View Post
              Flatbed scanners don't have the dynamic range and sensitivity required to get detail from the denser portions of negatives and transparencies.

              The Nikon Coolscan and similar equipment dedicated to the task are much better suited for this, especially if its for archival purposes.

              Comment


              • #8
                Re: Converting old negatives to digital

                Originally posted by bueller555 View Post
                The Coolscans are pricey though.
                True.

                But if there's a LOT to scan, it might be worth the price. And the Coolscan can probably be sold afterward to recoup some of the cost.

                Comment


                • #9
                  Re: Converting old negatives to digital

                  I'll second the Nikon filmscanners. Top rate and the software has some very powerful features.

                  BTW, Kaimuki Camera and Hawaii Digital offer slide scanning services.

                  gchun

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Re: Converting old negatives to digital

                    I have a Epson with a built-in transparency adapter that seems to do well. Maybe not as great as a Nikon, but the slides look fine to me. These are for family photos, not high art.

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Re: Converting old negatives to digital

                      I've got a nine-yr old Canon scanner that worked pretty good with some slides I had taken in the Philippines in '71. I'm sure negatives would work, too.

                      FYI while attending this year's MacWorld in Moscone Ctr in San Francisco, I saw a $99.00 scanner that scanned four slides / negatives at one time. Right now, I'm on a library computer, so I can't look to see if I kept their brochure.

                      At that price & depending on the number of slides, you could make up its cost in no time. BTW this scanner is, of course, compatible with Macs - dunno about PCs.
                      Born in Hawaii, too - Truss me

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Re: Converting old negatives to digital

                        Since I already have a scanner, I'm going to experiment with this. Got nothing to lose.

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Re: Converting old negatives to digital

                          On a side note, I finally picked up the 35 mm reprints from Longs. OMG! They were horrible! Zero color correction and slightly blurred. I know that the negs were old, but there was a yellow tinge over the entire image. It wasn't even worth the $0.99 that I paid for them. Hopefully my mailed-in negatives will fare better.

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Re: Converting old negatives to digital

                            If you've got a number of them to do, you might want to look into a Epson Photo Perfection 4490 scanner. I've got an older 3170 and it comes with some easy to use tools to restore the color and all.

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Re: Converting old negatives to digital

                              Originally posted by bueller555 View Post
                              Since I already have a scanner, I'm going to experiment with this. Got nothing to lose.

                              Bueller555, how did your experiment work out? The writeup made it seem like an easy process.


                              BTW that $99 scanner I mentioned in a previous post is the HP Scanjet G3110; L2698A - street price $99.00
                              - Photo, film & document scanning @ 4800 x 9600 dpi
                              - Up to 9.2 sec for 4 x 6 color photo; about 27 sec multiple scan; 8.5 x 11 text page to Microsoft Word up to 28 sec; up to 21 sec for 4 x 6 photo to share / e-mail
                              - Flatbed, 4 slides, 5 negative Transparent Materials Adapter built into lid

                              I googled this scanner and got "fair" rating in one writeup in PC Magazine.
                              Born in Hawaii, too - Truss me

                              Comment

                              Working...
                              X