SCANNING
FAQ:
Normal Turnaround and Rush Services
24 hours turnaround is
our standard for reasonable quantities but some orders will take longer. Reasonable quantity depends on the
original format, the scan specs and the quantity. We'll always do our best to
provide the fastest turn
possible that's consistent with quality work.
Which
film scan service is best for me?
Choosing the right film scanning solution can be tricky because there are no numbers or
firm rules to guide your choice. Both our film scanners are the best of their
kind.
The Durst Sigma offers terrific quality at a low price and is arguably the most advanced CCD
scanner available. It captures color very accurately along with most of the printable highlight and shadow detail
without noise and is eminently suitable for most film scanning needs. The
film chip is held by masks, so there is a slight loss of image area (about 1/16")
at the edges and only standard formats like 35mm, 4.5x6, 6x6, 6x7, 6x9 and 4x5
can be scanned.
The Aztek drum scanner accurately captures everything in the film. Period. D-Max
is 4.0 and true optical resolution can be up to 8000 dpi. Aztek drum scans
are preferred when an image contains very subtle highlight or shadow detail that
must be reproduced very accurately or any other time when only the best possible
is acceptable, regardless of cost. Formats up to 8x10 can be scanned, including panoramas like
6x12 or 6x17.
Scans
saved CDR or DVD -- or FTP delivery
for a nominal charge.
Scans are normally saved to CDR. We will save to DVD for very large jobs, at our discretion.
For ASAP delivery, we
can upload reasonable amounts of scan data to our FTP site for faster retrieval
for a nominal charge of $20 per order. Please call our digital department for
information.
Custom
ICC profiles for accurate color management
We create custom ICC profiles for our scanners using
calibrated targets and X-Rite Spectrophotometric instruments to assure the most accurate scanning possible.
The latest
ICC-profile compliant software from Durst and Aztek insures that all colors
are captured as precisely as modern scanning technology will allow. We can
accurately scan either negatives or transparencies.
Why do we
offer Raw Scans?
Many clients
want access to our high end scanners but want to make their own final corrections to the image
files.
Raw scans allow them that freedom and save them money.
What is scanner
optical resolution?
All scanners offer certain fixed resolutions, called
optical resolutions, that are dictated by the layout of their scanning
sensors. Each optical resolution will produce a specific file size from a
film format because the area being scanned (film format), the
optical resolution and the file size are mathematically linked. For file
sizes that are in between those provided by the optical resolutions, the
scanner will operate at the closest optical resolution then use it's
software to interpolate (enlarge or reduce) the file to reach the desired size.
Do we use
oil when scanning with the Aztec?
No.
We use Kami fluid, exclusively. It's oil-free and film comes off the acrylic drum
instantly dry and in pristine condition; it's even cleaner than when it was mounted.
This is more costly for us but Kami fluid protects and and even rejuvenates
precious film originals.
What is
the difference in 8-bit and a 16-bit color?
RGB color scans have
three channels: red, green & blue. An 8-bit channel uses 256 colors, creating
16.7 million possible colors for each pixel (3 channels=256x256x256=16,700,000). A 16-bit
channel uses 65,536 colors for each color for a total of 281 trillion possible colors.
The human eye can only discern 10
million colors so 8-bit color is more than enough to cover what we can see and
8-bit files are the industry standard. 16 bit color is overkill, to say the
least.
That being said,
our Aztek and Cruse scanners do scan in 16 bit color and the Sigma scans
in 14 bit color. The scans are then converted to 8 bit files but retain
additional quality because they originated as 16 bit.
Should I
ever use a 16-bit scan?
After making thousands of
beautiful photographic prints we feel that 16-bit
color files add nothing to the printing accuracy but they do double the
file size and add to digital overhead. Some people with other
kinds of scanners may feel differently, especially with less capable scanners
that do not perform as well as ours.
Some digital
cameras use 16-bit capture to maximize accuracy with their CMOS or CCD
sensors. The final files, though, will not benefit and should be saved as 8-bit
color.
You may find a rare situation where
a 16-bit color file is helpful so we do offer 16-bit scans at an additional charge. Please call for
more information and we will be happy to discuss your needs.
| 
Demanded
by museums, the
Cruse Synchron System touchlessly scans artwork while preserving
detail much more evenly and accurately than other scanners or any digital camera. RGB
scans up to 450 MB are possible.
