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Digitizing slides, photos or negatives - Which method?
Reading time: 8 minutes - December 12, 2022 - by Markus Igel

Digitizing slides, photos or negatives - which method?

The dark season moves in many people's nostalgia for the past and the old slides and Super 8 films are pulled out and subsequently viewed. The analog treasures of the past are nevertheless for various reasons not durable for eternity or even fire-hazardous.

Why should you digitize slides

If you want to preserve your old treasures for eternity, you should see to it that they are digitized. Slides, negatives or Super8 films are susceptible to damage, this can always look different. For example by UV radiation, dust, humidity or temperature.

With your own scanner

Scanners such as the Reflecta 3 in 1 are able to scan: pictures, negatives or photos, thereby the user must only exchange the images after the scan. The images can be stored on the device, an SD card, or the PC itself.

The scanner can scan 3 different formats for photos:

  • 9x13cm
  • 10x15cm
  • 13x18cm

The Reflecta 3 in 1 is also able to scan negative with a color correction (inverted). The scan is only conditionally suitable for backup, it can be quite color cast, where a service of digitization can prevail. On the other hand, the slide scan is quite suitable in terms of detail and color reproduction. A more professional scan from a digitizing service will provide more detail and better color reproduction.

Overall, the scanner delivers solid quality, but depending on what your own standards are, you may not find what you were looking for here.

Reflecta 3in1 Scanner

  • 3in1 Scanner
  • Resolution of 1800 dpi
  • computer independent
  • stores on SD, SDHC, MMC, MS and MS Pro memory cards
  • scans slides, negatives and photos

Advantages +amp; Disadvantages

Vorteile

  • Cheap
  • Fast scanning
  • Fast setup
  • No PC needed

Nachteile

  • Limited formats
  • Limited settings options
  • Image quality average +amp;+amp; Requires a lot of post-processing
  • Despite fast scans, a lot of time is needed

Photographing photos +amp; negatives

Another option for digitizing the old pictures +amp;+amp; slides is to photograph them, this method is quite inexpensive, but not really automated. It therefore costs a lot of time, of course, you are much more in active contact with the camera and the pictures thereby and the nostalgia blooms again.

For the photographing of the slides or negatives a macro lens is needed, with a reproduction scale of 1:1, or a macro lens, which is screwed on the lens. In this process, the risk of errors is quite high, to name a few factors:

  • Bad light
  • Dirty sensor
  • Megapixel of the camera
  • Exposure performance of the lens

Kaiser Slide Duplicator Digital

  • Photographing of slides
  • Is screwed into the filter thread of the lens
  • Connection thread 52 mm
  • 1:1 copies with lens focal length 80-120 mm

Advantages +amp;+amp; Disadvantages

Vorteile

  • Favorable

Nachteile

  • Without good light, with a high Ci, increased risk of color aberration
  • Limited options in lenses
  • Focal length must be considered on the crop factor
  • Large expenditure of time

Photograph photos via app

We all have a smartphone by now, which has a pretty good camera. So you could also simply digitize the old pictures with this device. But is the quality really good? The Google Photoscanner app, for example, offers this function. First of all, this app is available on Android and iOS. The handling of the app is quite simple, after you have started it and allowed access to the camera and the file system, you can also virtually start scanning.

It is important to note that the points are all approached with the camera, as soon as they have all been scanned, the image is scanned. Now you can decide whether the scan is saved on the image, Google Photo or saving on the device is available here. When using the app, also note the tips offered by Google here. Google takes a single image at each point and later puts it together properly through an algorithm. These functions are not new, because they have been used for a long time in Adobe Lightroom or other programs.

The advantage of this technique is that the image resolution is much higher than with a single shot. This file then has X times the images that were used, in megapixels. Afterwards, a small image processing takes place to better display the image afterwards. The quality of the photographs is quite acceptable, but if you plan to reprint them larger, the resolution is missing here. As with the classic photographing, the system costs a lot of time and is more worthwhile for a few moments that you always want to have with you.

Use digitization service

There is no shame in using a digitization service, because you truly save yourself a lot of time and have a professional on hand to assist you with all aspects of digitization. Many digitization service providers offer a wide portfolio of digitization options, including Super8 film, or special formats of photos and negatives. Many service providers charge in the low cent range and also offer you some options on how you can send your slides to the service provider. Mostly you will get your pictures and films back within a few days or weeks.

Optionally, the data is delivered mainly on various media such as USB sticks, hard drives or DVDs.

Advantages +amp; Disadvantages

Vorteile

  • Time saving
  • Reliable quality
  • Color +amp; error correction
  • High resolution
  • Quality selectable
  • Prices often transparent

Nachteile

  • Costly

Digitize now

Conclusion

If you want to save time, money and effort and get good and reliable quality, the best way is to use a digitizing service. Of course, the costs are higher here, but as an old saying once said: Quality has its price. If you want to do a little more work, you can also do well with a slide scanner from Reflecta. Be clear about your requirements and budget in advance, and always remember: your time is precious. If you have old Super 8 films, you should not digitize them at home, because the equipment is expensive and a digitization service has more experience in this field.

Final digression on storage

We can't leave it alone and of course we want to take up storage again and give you the best tips here so that your pictures survive a few years longer without suffering any damage.

Negatives will always age, but we can influence this process to be slower. When storing negatives, use dry places if possible and add a silica gel bag to remove possible moisture. The ideal humidity for negatives is 15%, this is not guaranteed in most attics and basements, which can cause the longevity to be reduced by up to half. (At 60% humidity) Humidity provides mold or other contaminants that can affect the negative.

Storing in the garage is also not recommended, as the exhaust fumes there can damage the negatives, also the exhaust fumes from radiators or other acids can damage the negatives. As a rule, storage in a cool and dry place improves the shelf life considerably. Ideal here would be a dry 7°C degrees instead of a room temperature of 20°C degrees +, this already extends the life 10 times.

Slides have a lifespan of about 20 years, during which time the decay of the old treasures begins. This is manifested by fading or color casts. The cold, is the slide his friend! In an ideal environment of minus degrees a slide would survive best, but so it is also valid here that 7°C can improve the life span clearly. Furthermore, it is also important to keep the humidity as low as possible and to use a silica bag for storage.

Essentially, these are stored like negatives, but there is one difference: Photos can sweat during storage. In plastic drawers, photos tend to sweat. Again, we advise storing photos in a cool, dry place.

Reconstruct images

Do you use Adobe Photoshop? In 2021, some new functions were added to the CC version, which, thanks to artificial intelligence, are able to reconstruct images in color again, among other things. Another filter helps you to repair small scratches +amp;+amp; cracks in your digitized images.

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