Film Scanner For Under $100 – Gotta Have It!!!

ThinkGeek :: 35mm Slide & Negative Digital Converter

Take 35mm Slides or Negatives and scan them at up to 1,829 DPI for easy conversion to Jpeg or whatever digital image format strikes your fancy. This handy scanner connects with USB and comes with easy to use Windows software for editing, cropping and resizing photos.

Oh yeah, this is one of those things that if not delivered for Christmas will surely find its way into my home shortly thereafter !

I’ve laid out my photographic equipment inventory in an earlier post and you will surely notice that most of it uses film. I’d love to bow to the suggestions of my friends and go all digital, but money and artistic intent combine in different areas to discourage this.

The cameras which I feel could take me digital in the 35mm and medium format areas are $8,000 and $39,000 respectively. Somehow, I just don’t have $47,000 plus tax for camera gear right now .

Cost is one thing, but there’s something else at work in my photography – artistic intent. I love my old Polaroids ! Yes, the film is $30.00 for twenty pictures, but they have the look I’m trying to capture – they look old from the time I peel the last piece of paper off the picture. I find that I only keep between 25% and 50% of the pictures I take – instant pictures like this are like gold at airshows. You see, these aircraft pilots and owners just love ‘em! It’s my little way of giving back to the guys and gals who bring these aircraft to the public – and there’s a bit more access gained at times, too .

Aside from the cost and artistic standpoints, it just makes sense right now to use what I’ve got. I also have quite a lot of film to scan with this nifty little device from years past.

Sure, I can have the pictures put onto CD when they’re developed (at least for the print film), but this offers much more control. I also have a whole bunch of slides that I’d like to have on my computer…