SAVH Loc: La Jolla, CA

This long "idle" period has prompted my wife to again raise the subject of digitizing our slides and prints and putting them on discs so that when our house burns down, we will still have our important and prized pictures. I have been reading that the Epson V850 is a good scanner. What I need to know is whether I can scan the slides and prints into files that I can readily transfer to CDs or thumb drives after annotating them. I see that one appears to also need separate software to deal with the files. I use a PC with Windows 10 but am not particularly facile with software and programs. I would hope to be able to gradually process all of my photos that we deem "important" and store them in case of some sort of disaster. Thorough explanations as to why one or another system might be better will be sincerely appreciated.

Scotty

MDI Mainer

Consensus from prior threads here on UHH -- Epson V550 or V600 for the best combination of reasonable cost and quality of results. I've been totally satisfied with my V550, but the V600 for about $20 more has better Digital ICE feature to remove dust, imperfections, etc. from the original image for a cleaner scanned image.

So that's around $220, as opposed to over $1000 for the V850. Bottom line -- the V850 is not worth the additional cost unless you absolutely need an output file for really high-end printing etc.

Also no problems with the included Epson software; for me works fine with Windows 10. In my judgement it's easy to use and fairly intuitive, including for adding a descriptive name to the scanned image file. After scanning and saving the image files, I just use the Windows OS to copy the files from my hard drive to a disk.

https://epson.com/For-Home/Scanners/Photo-Scanners/Epson-Perfection-V600-Photo-Scanner/p/B11B198011#

https://epson.com/For-Work/Scanners/Photo-and-Graphics/Epson-Perfection-V550-Photo-Color-Scanner/p/B11B210201

SAVH Loc: La Jolla, CA

Thank you very much. Are you able to annotate each file with information once scanned? If so, does it appear with the scanned photo or somehow separately on an adjacent line?

Scotty

D_Bird Loc: Fairbanks, Alaska

Like MDI Mainer I use an Epson V550 and have been very happy with it. The Epson software works just fine for me but I use Adobe Photoshop 2020 with TOPAZ add-on apps to clean the ones that need it. I have cleaned a little over 2000 35-mm slides so far and have a bit over 30 trays (300 slides per tray) and 20 carousels, (some 80 some 140), to go.
You will find once scanned and zoomed up a lot of your slides will show dust specks, small hairs, etc. I began by using a lean eye-glass cloth and bulb blower you operate by hand. (It helped but was a lot of work and never cleaned them good.) I tried a few elaborate things to keep from spending more money. The last half of the cleaned slides I used PEC-12 and PEC PADS. A 2 oz bottle and 100 pads. A tiny bit goes a long way. I have cleaned over 300 slides so far and have not used half the PEC-12. Two small drops on 1/4 of a pad will easily clean 4 to 6 slides. It could be available elsewhere, but I ordered my from Adorama.

MDI Mainer

When the scan is finished the Epson software outputs something with a default name like Untitled Scan 34.jpg where 34 is the 34th scan in whatever directory you've created (or selected if it's an existing directory). So you can name the directory say Acadia NP 1988.

Then you can change the default file name to say Thunder Hole Oct 12 and any other data you want, as long as it's a permissible Windows 10 file name format. Click save as and your done.

If you want to write the information on the image itself, so that it's displayed when you're looking at the image on a screen, then you'll need something additional like Photoshop Elements or Photoshop. I have a subscription to Adobe's photography bundle so use Photoshop if I want to write on the image.

My guess is that there are other, probably less complex and expensive, programs that will let you annotate the displayed image, but I've no information on that. I do know that if you need you can usually find an older version of Photoshop Elements on disk (with an unused key) on eBay for a lot less than the current version.

PS The software will let you create a separate image file for each image in a multiple image scan, e.g. for the four slides in the slide holder.

Here's the V600 manual if you want to peruse it.

https://files.support.epson.com/pdf/prv6ph/prv6phug.pdf

jwreed50 Loc: Manassas, VA

I am using the Epson V850 to scan both slides and film (and the occasional print). Yes, it's more expensive, but it's "top of the line" for a reason. It offers excellent resolution and dynamic range. I've been using it with Silverfast Ai Studio 8 scanning software, which is an excellent software package although it does have a learning curve to use it well. Vuescan is another excellent scanning software package. Either Silverfast of Vuescan will provide you with features and capabilities that the Epson native software does not have.

With good scanning software (i.e., Silverfast or Vuescan) you have a choice between what adjustments or corrections you want to perform during the scanning process versus what corrections you want to perform later during post-processing. I generally batch scan using Silverfast and do some dust/scratch removal and sharpening during the scan process. I'll later do steps like minor exposure adjustments or color correction using Lightroom. You can also do other things (i.e., add "annotations") during post-processing. Like other photo editing programs, scanning software will allow you to name the scanned files using whatever naming convention you choose.

A dedicated film scanner (like the ones by Plustek or Pacific Image) are high resolutions scanners that can give you even better results than a good flatbed scanner like the Epson V850 can provide. Those types of films scanners, though, generally do not have a "batch" scanning capability, so the scanning process is slower and more tedious. The also don't offer the flexibility that a flatbed scanner does.

There are other good flatbed scanners below the price point of the Epson V850 -- the Epson V600 and V550 are also good scanners -- but in the scanning world you generally get what you pay for. Like most things in life, the range of options are driven by the budget you want to allocate to the task.

MDI Mainer

In the real world, the main difference between the V600 and V850 will be the slide capacity. The V600 will hold 4 slides at a time; the V850 12.

Carusoswi

You might also consider the v800 which is physically identical to the v850. I read that the optics in the 850 are coated to squeeze the very last ounce of quality out of your source material. However, I own the v800, and it does an excellent job.

It also comes with Silverfast and Epson Scan. I also purchased VueScan because it will work with any scanner and also runs in Linux.

Having used Epson Scan for years, that software was very easy for me to use. Silverfast can seem very complex when you first start using, but there is an automated path offered that will guide you through your first several attempts until you develop some comfort with the interface. Now I find it no more difficult than the Epson software, and I really appreciate all the options that it offers. Vuescan I also found to have a learning curve, but it is very well supported, and I enjoy using it as well. You can get the pro version of Vuescan for a one-time fee of less than $100.00 and it comes with lifetime free upgrades. Too unlock the full version of Silverfast will set you back some $300.00, but to me it is worth it. All three applications are capable of producing excellent scans.

Where the sweet spot between cost and quality falls is subjective. For years, I scanned my slides and negatives with an Epson Perfection 2400, and I was always happy with the results at the time. Since purchasing the 800, I have re-scanned all my material and I do notice the difference.

The negative holders for the 800 do aid in flattening old negatives that have started to curl during storage.

I also shoot a lot of negative film on my two Minolta Maxxum 9 film cameras. Not only is film not dead, it is really not in short supply, and the available films are very highly developed, of excellent quality, and lend themselves nicely to scanning.

My advice would be to get the best scanner you can afford. You will not be disappointed.

Good luck and happy scanning.

Caruso

repleo Loc: Boston

E-Z Photo offers high speed, high quality, slide and photo scanners for rent. The slide/photo scanner is a bit expensive, but the photo only scanner is reasonable.
https://store.ezphotoscan.com/pages/rental-products-overview

billnikon Loc: Pennsylvania/Ohio/Florida/Maui/Oregon/Vermont

Epson V600

CaptainPhoto

Yea - to rent the photo-slide scanner the cost for 3 Full Scanning Days: $325.00
5 Full Scanning Days: $450.00. Dang, you can buy the Epson for $220 and scan all you want and then sell it for $100. And your not constrained by 3 or 5 days.

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

Yes, the V600 is a good all-around choice. I've done thousands of scans on two of them.

JeffL Loc: New Jersey

I have been using the Epson V550 with the Epson software and have been very pleased with the results. So far, I have scanned negatives and prints. I clean up the negatives with 98% alcohol to remove dust and grime, wearing white cotton gloves and using magic fiber cloths. The holders for the negatives that come with the scanner keep them flat so they are in focus. I tried to use the Silverfast software and didn't find it significantly better than the Epson software and not as convenient to use.

AzPicLady Loc: Behind the camera!

When my Nikon died for the second time, I purchased the Epson V850. It came with SilverFast and its own program. After fighting with this scanner for months, I've reverted to using the Epson software in auto mode. There's little control, but it does a better job and is a lot faster than using the professional method or SilverFast. Be prepared to do a lot of spotting. The DeICE doesn't seem to work at all - or when it does you wish it hadn't! The scanner is fast, I'll give it that. My Nikon used to take up to an hour to scan a single neg or slide. The V850 can do 15 negs or 12 slides in about 15 minutes. Not bad.

I bought the 850 because of some large negs that I have. If you don't have large format negs or slides, you can probably get by with a lesser model.

Architect1776 Loc: In my mind

I have the predecessor to the V850 (V750) and it is very easy to use and scan. You get JPEGS that are easily transferable to a CD or DVD etc. There is no hidden crap in the scan but the photo you scan that you can work with in any PP program that works with JPEGS.
That is an incredible scanner that is better than my really good V750.
If you can afford it you will love all it can do and the EXCELLENT scans of all format film, slides and prints it can handle including 8x10 negatives.