How to scan film with a digital camera | VALOI 360

[@doyoudevelop]

10% off your Valoi / Kamerastore Purchases on KAMERASTORE with the code "doyoudevelop" :)

[@andrewtongue7084]

Sublimely presented, Jahan. I was considering a Flatbed, but given the less expensive Valoi equipment (I've just finished researching their 360 system), I'd consider the latter to be a no-brainer, & frankly, I have thousands of negatives - a remnant of shooting 35mm exclusively over forty years, it is about time I rendered a digital catalogue of same. Combined with D & P 35mm film stock myself, this will add another exciting dimension to the process; it's a win-win scenario !

[@doyoudevelop]

Thank you! Yes, it’s a game changer compared to a Flatbed when working through big archives. And I enjoy the fact that you get “raw” images of your negatives, rather than a tiff/jpeg. If you haven’t ordered already: -10% off with the code doyoudevelop on the valoi/kamerastore page :)

[@andrewtongue7084]

Jahan, I have indeed made my purchase thru' Kamerastore - Thank you for facilitating a discount !

[@doyoudevelop]

@@andrewtongue7084 Lovely! Enjoy it!

[@andrewtongue7084]

Thank you !

[@GaGaBisii]

Thanks for this, super helpful. Currently I’m scanning with this super old scanner and it takes ages, so will definitely get one of those valoi set-ups!

[@doyoudevelop]

That's great! Happy to help you out! :)

[@eelandy]

this is VERY LITTLE about the Valoi and mostly about using negative lab pro. That part is good but I wanted to know more about Valoi and how it compares to other units.

[@doyoudevelop]

What other units are you thinking of? I've only scanned on the Epson V800 and some high-end scanners like the Imacon or Noritsu lab scanners.

[@MarcoVerna]

Great video man! I just got the valoi system myself. I have a question, I'm using the standar Valoi 35mm holder and I noticed that it covers the borders, it's a bit tight. How did you manage to show the borders like here 5:20 ? Thanks

[@doyoudevelop]

Thank you, Marco! That's great! There are two different 35mm holders I believe, one is the standard one and the other is the "full frame" holder -- that'll show the entire negative including border.

[@LadyK462]

Thanks for this video. I’m switching from another scanning system to the Valio 360. I’m curious, in which direction do you load the negatives? Shiny side up or matte side up?

[@doyoudevelop]

Absolutely! Good choice. The emulsion side (matte) faces down, that means you're looking at the shiny side.

[@LadyK462]

@@doyoudevelop Great! Thanks!

[@jean-marcfrybourg6461]

How does Valoi equipment fare when scanning color slides? There is a lot of info about scanning films (color or BW negatives) but very few if any about slides.

[@doyoudevelop]

That's a good point -- i've scanned some fair amount of slides with it and I certainly prefer the results towards traditional scanners. Obviously the key is getting the right light temperature to avoid colour shifts in the film. I usually reference the colours to the colours my slide projector produces against a plain white wall. The overall sharpness is certainly better too, as a macro lens picks up more details than say a traditional flatbed scanner. There's also a slide holder for mounted slides, which allows for quick scanning.

[@valbou1089]

Hi, Thanks for this video. Do you get good colors easily with Negative Lab Pro as you had with Epson scanner using SilverFast?

[@doyoudevelop]

Thanks for tuning in! Muuuuch better colours actually. I would not want to go back to SilverFast.

[@valbou1089]

@@doyoudevelop Ok, thanks.

[@bori-1897]

How do you digitize the prints, when not using a flatbed scanner? My prints are all curvy and very shiny, hence I was thinking I must invest in a flatbed to scan them.

[@doyoudevelop]

If they fit the flatbed, I scan with my Epson V800, but for anything else, I make sure the print is perfectly flattended in the drying process and then simply take a proper photograph of it in a studio set up :)

[@Betay32]

How were you able to get the full frame in the shot? I have a 105 Nikon macro adapted to my Sony, and I keep getting 1:2!

[@doyoudevelop]

I reckon you have to find the right distance to the negative to get a full frame. Maybe in your case that's further away?

[@FranzSchuier]

Interesting to see you didn't set the white balance to 2500 in camera as NL recommends. Did you test and compare? Thnx!

[@doyoudevelop]

Yes, excellent point! I'll have to see if there is a signficant difference! I believe my first tests were made with 2500 while these in the video weren't, but there is no noticeable difference to my eyes! Perhaps it also depends on the film?

[@valoico]

It's a good point, but for the final conversion it doesn't matter since you are shooting RAW, provided you add enough exposure compensation. Jahan is setting the white balance in Lightroom (at 8:36 in the video), so that overrides any white balance set in camera anyway. The only benefit to setting the white balance in camera is that it helps the camera meter read the film more accurately. That said, it's nice to set up three custom white balances: One off the leader of C41 film, one off the leader of BW and one off the light source (for E6 slide film). - Arild

[@doyoudevelop]

@@valoico That makes a lot of sense. That's how I assumed it would work. Definitely worth shooting in RAW all the time.

[@Aviator168]

I am using a digital camera to scan my negatives also. But the end result is a bit more grainy than I like when blowing up to 200%. I don't know if the "noise" were introduced by the camera or they are just the grains from the film. Is there any way to tell the difference? I was using ISO 100, f/6.3, keeping histogram right at the middle, and of cause using remote shutter control.

[@doyoudevelop]

You can try to scan something that isn't film, maybe like some printed text. See if the "noise" is also as strong then. If not, it's the grain from the film :)

[@Aviator168]

@@doyoudevelop Ha, thanks. Should've figured that out. That's also a challenge since a printed text needs to be framed the same size as the 35mm negative.

[@doyoudevelop]

@@Aviator168 Yeah, shouldn't be too difficult though. You could just try and cut out a slice from the box of a 35mm film. That should be printed pretty nicely, and could be a good background to check the "Noise" :)

[@Aviator168]

@@doyoudevelop Don't have any of those boxes anymore. I took a shot of a piece of well polished material and found it was combination of both. The noise introduced from the camera could be easily removed by profile denoising.

[@joshmcdzz6925]

There's nothing faster about this method compared to a flatbed scanner especially if you don't have a dedicated space for the setup. Plus, it's very finicky all that mirror thing, horizon level.. etc.. and NLP is not so reliable..

[@doyoudevelop]

I'd argue that's very subjective! :D Also my Epson V800 definitely takes up more space than the Valoi. Especially because it's a bulky machine that can't be comfortably rearranged. But hey, thanks for stopping by :)