Hello,

I want to change from Kodak Photo CD to slide scanner to get the results quicker.

I think of buying a LS30 or a LS2000 but is the difference in quality really as big as the price-difference. I will not buy this feeder so I did not need the 2000 for this item.

I normally use Fuji Velvia and Provia slide-film.

Hope that you can help me to make up my mind

Dirk from Germany

-- Dirk J. Scharff (d-j-s@gmx.net), September 05, 1999

Answers

To narrow down your choices ask yourself a series of questions: High Cost: Do I have a lot's of money to spend and want the best, and/ or I'm going to use it professionally so I can earn back the cost? Imacon ($10,000+), Polaroid 4000 ($1800+), Nikon LS 2000 ($1600). Moderate Cost: Cost is important and I still want the best (almost). Minolta Dimage Scan Speed ($800) and older high end Polaroid scanners. Wide dymanic Range: I have many slides with important details in the deep shadows. How can I capture this? Imacons, Polaroid 4000, Nikon LS 2000, Minolta Dimage Scan Speed. "Normal dynamic Range": Are my slides are well exposed and rarely/never have important details in the deep shadows? All the above plus Nikon LS30 and Minolta Dimage Scan Dual. Professional Output: Will I have my images printed by a professional service bureau? See High Cost, more expensive is better. Dirt: I have lots of dirty slides. How can I quickly fix this? Both Nikon scanners have ICE; Polaroid claims its 4000 removes defects. Picky Printing: I'm going to print my wide dynamic range slides on high quality inkjet printers such as the Epson 900/1200/3000 and I'm very picky. What's best? More expensive is better. Easy Printing: My slides are well lighted and I'm thunderstruck that such cheap stuff gives such amazing results. Which scanner for this? The Nikon LS-30 ($800+rebate?) and my favorite of all, the Minolta Dimage Scan Dual ($360). CD storage: Why print? Store all your images on CD's ($200/300 for CDR) and display them on the monitor and rarely or never print. Any decent scanner will do: Nikon LS-30 and Minolta Dimage Scan Dual stand out here.

-- Bill Eadie (wae@slip.net), September 12, 1999.