Scanning pics of tractors (using slides)

[Richard]

Ok... (fessing up here) I might be stretching the title a bit but since my Mom has a boxload of slides there certainly might be a picture of a tractor in it /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

That said, seems my mother has a large box of slides, numbering in the several hundred, encompasing numerous years or decades. She wants to preserve them and scan them.

I've done some cursory investigation on slide/film scanners and read some good/bad.

My base inclination is to purchase (new or used) a nicer, higher resolution scanner, use it, then resell it. I do not really think we'd have an ongoing need for a dedicated slide scanner.

Preferences are:

Automatic feed, or multiple slides per scan (if flatbed)
High resolution, good color rendition
Easy to use software, as Mom barely knows how to use windows explorer

My guess is $500 is probably a lower end amount and other than reselling it, I start to get nervous about $1,000...

that said, I DO put quality first, so I'm not afraid to pay for it.

Any thoughts, opinions or advice on a slide scanner?

Oh...and when this project is done, if we DO find any pics of tractors, I WILL post them here /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Richard

 

[BillG_in_TX]

Well, if you're willing to spend that kind of money, why not use a service, like Saugus Photos Online ?

Lots of options, guaranteed results, and no investment in time or equipment for a one-time project.

 

[jinman]

Richard, I echo what Bill said about using a service, but I think you might find a local photo lab that will scan your slides to a Kodak Photo Disc or for a slightly higher price, a Photo CD. The Photo Disc can get up to 500 photos on one CD and the Photo CD is limited to about 120. I'd check the yellow pages and look for photo finishing labs in your area.

Where I work, we used to have thousands of photos in slide trays for our aircraft ground schools. We had them all scanned to Photo CD and now we have an archive of digital images. If you start scanning slides, the first thing you will notice is the biggest investment will be your time. Scanning slides is very slow and tedious work unless you have high speed professional equipment. /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

 

[Bird]

What kind of price does it cost to have slides put on a CD? I've got just about a thousand slides in the "carousel?" type (round) slide trays (100 to a tray), but my old Keystone slide projector went kaput, I couldn't find parts, so I trashed it. I doubt that my slide trays would fit any other brand of projector.

 

[Richard]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( What kind of price does it cost to have slides put on a CD? )</font>

Bird, all..though I've not looked into it myself, word from my mom is, she was quoted either $1.00 or $1.50 per slide. If that is accurate, it would definately be worth paying $1,000 for nice one and reselling it. Seems she might have 1,000 or more.. said she had two boxes full of slides. Boxes measured roughly 12"x6"x6".

I DO understand time is a factor, but she's now retired and this might help keep her from getting into too much trouble

/forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

Hmm.. just realized my Dad might also have some slides. Now THAT would be the trick... Mom buys scanner, uses it, then sells it to my Dad for a profit lol (divorced).

 

[MossRoad]

<font color="blue"> Hmm.. just realized my Dad might also have some slides. Now THAT would be the trick... Mom buys scanner, uses it, then sells it to my Dad for a profit lol (divorced). </font>

LOL /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

I've got some relatives that could do that and not bat an eye! /forums/images/graemlins/crazy.gif

As for the scanner, if you buy one for $1000.00 and plan on scanning a thousand slides or so, my guess is, by the time you complete the project, the scanner will be obsolete and you won't get much back out of it.

Try an el cheapo scanner and see how you like the results. I have a $29.00 scanner that I picked up at Big Lots and it does a decent job on the old slides. I plan on setting it up permanently in my basement and having my retired mother-in-law scan all of her old family photos and slides on a Win98 workstation. It also has OCR software that does an OK job of reading text. Nice for scanning in invoices, bills, reciepts, etc... and keeping the information on CD rather than file cabinets.

I also have an older scanner for 4x6 photos and slides that does a great job on slides. It was about a hundred bucks 6 years ago. Takes about 2 minutes per slide at the highest setting. Can't get drivers for anything over Wiin98 for that one, so it doesn't see much work anymore, but it, too will go on the Win98 workstation in the basement.

Has anyone tried those little kiosks in Walgreens? I know you can take your digital photos there and make prints for 29 cents, but does any place have one that you can scan slides at. Of course, standing in Walgreens with 1000 slides could take you a while /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif

 

[AndyM]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( Has anyone tried those little kiosks in Walgreens? I know you can take your digital photos there and make prints for 29 cents, but does any place have one that you can scan slides at. Of course, standing in Walgreens with 1000 slides could take you a while )</font>

All of the stores in the Giant Eagle chain offer a similar service-- You can upload digital images to their web page and they have the prints waiting for you at the store within the next day or two for $0.39 each. I'm sure they would have some sort of service for slides at a reasonable price also.

 

[DocHeb]

What are you going to do with the scanned images? If you are going to print enlargements, the size of the enlargement will depend on the scanning resolution. If you're just going to view them on a computer (say at 1600 x 1200 resolution), you certainly don't need a $1000 machine.

 

[Richard]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( What are you going to do with the scanned images )</font>

honestly? probably nothing /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

However (and I'll be very impressed if anyone here has heard of the following)

Back in elementary school, we had what was called "Hamilton Mini Circus" Upshot, we (the school) put on shows in Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana, Florida, travelled in the Indy 500 parade. We had gymnastics, high wire, synchronized jump ropers, unicycles (I myself, rode a 10 footer) and just a myriad of things. It really brought the school together and this past summer, I went to my 25th high school reunion. Saw some guys there that were in the circus with me. I have a picture of us 5 riding tandem at roughly 8 years old, and here 35 or so years later, we were all 5 standing in same formation to have our new pictures taken.

It's this kind of pic that Mom is wanting to save and explain. I presume she then wants to give a copy of the completed project to each of us (3 kids).

do I really think any pics will be printed, blown up and framed? not likely, but who knows.

Her main concern is making sure they are all "saved" from any (or any further(?) degredation than they might already be experiencing)

Oh.. I also road a "bedstead" in the Indy 500 parade. It was an oversized bed headboard the fathers made & essentially looked like a HUGE bicycle. I wore some kind of leopard outfit as best as I can recall...they even had whiskers drawn on my face. We watched the parade the next day (back when it was delayed) and they showed Mini Circus travelling though... but where was I??? I looked & looked, then, just moment before they were cutting to a commercial, not only did I come along, but I did an entire camera shot, hogging the entire frame and blocking out the rest of the parade!!! /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif

(sorry to ramble, I just got done waxing nostalgic)

/forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

 

[jinman]

Bird, we averaged about $100 per Photo CD with 120 images, but bear in mind that a Photo CD image an extremely high resolution image that's compressed. There are multiple images in one compressed file an they go from thumbnail size all the way up to poster size. Anyhow, If you want to use a slide scanner, I have a HP photoscan that I'll loan you. I don't use it very much because it takes so long, but if you have a few special photos, it works really well. ...let me know.