Scanners.
We’ve compiled a list of our favourite ways of scanning and the pros and cons of each.
Camera Scanning
This is the most economical way of scanning your film if you already have a digital camera and a macro lens.
There are two types of setups for camera scanning, lens attach modules, or copy stand setups.
Modules that attach to your lens normally have a built in lightbox and a feeder for your film. These are awesome, portable and great quality, but usually only do 35mm or smaller formats.
The Valoi Easy35 is our fave to date
Pros:
Quick, good quality, portable, you scan scan without needing to be glued to the computer
Cons:
Need digital camera and macro lens, access to Photoshop
and/or Lightroom to invert negs, or pay subscription for FilmLab app
Limited to 35mm
Copy stand camera scanners
These are similar in theory to the above in that they utilise your digital camera but offer the versatility of being able to scan in larger formats of film.
There are lots of options on the market with a huge variety of price.
As these are essentially all just a light source, a negative holder and a system to control the angle and distance from your negative to your camera, you can also DIY your own, check out these creative approaches to get some inspo
Feed Scanners
These are dedicated film scanners where the film is fed through (sometimes frame by frame). You need a computer with scanning software as well as the scanner.
Pros:
Able to produce good quality, high resolution scans
Cons:
Not the fastest option and each frame must be pushed through manually
Flatbed scanners
These are multipurpose film scanners that can scan both negatives as well as prints and smaller artworks.
Pros:
Good for batch scanning and proof scanning, can scan all film formats and sizes. Can also scan prints and documents.
Cons:
Not portable and difficult to move around. Requires power to run. Can be slow and the focus can be soft.