16. November 2001
Finding a Medium Format Scanner

The problem is: I like medium format cameras, but I also like to print digitally as well as manipulate images digitally.
The answer to this problem is : Keep shooting medium format and buy a medium format scanner.
Sounds simple doesn't it?
Well, like everything else digital, performance and prices changes dramatically all the time. So at the moment there are a number of options for scanning roll film.

In the world of 35mm film I think most people now realize that a good and descent film scanner is the best option, because they have become reasonable cheap in the last years.
Medium format film scanners are also dropping dramatically in price, but they started at a very high level and are still too expensive for most amateur photographers.
(One could perhaps state, that if you can afford to shoot medium format, then you could also afford the scanner, but here one must remember that used medium format equipment can be cheaper than good and new 35mm gear).

Flatbed scanners
Flatbed can be used to scan medium format material (slides and negatives). At the moment I'm using an Epson 1640SU Photo scanner which is a flatbed scanner with a transparency adapter on top.
The resolution of this scanner is 1600 x 3200 dpi or so the spec says, but in reality it is perhaps more like 1000 dpi.
The Epson 1640SU does a very good job, considering the low price (the price is less than $300). It seems that is has become rather popular among amateur photographers.
Now Epson has got two new flatbed scanners; the Epson 1650 and the Epson 2450. The 2450 is a 2400 x 4800 dpi scanner which I guess does a very good job scanning medium format.
Canon is also producing a 2400 x 4800 flatbed scanner now, called Canon 2400U.
Let my finally say about flatbed scanners, that high-end flatbed scanners actually are capable of producing very good scans from transparencies, but that they are very expensive, rather big and, I my opinion, not very interesting for photographers seeking ways of scanning their slides, unless you shoot large format also.
If you are interested perhaps you should look at Agfa scanners - they have some flatbed scanners that are in the lower price end, but still very good for slide scanning (see the links below).

Film scanners
If you want really good scans from slides or negatives, then of course you need a film scanner.
In the world of medium format desktop film scanners there is a "king" called Imacon. The Imacon Photo is a desktop scanner capable of extremely high quality scans. They have a good reputation and the build quality is very high. Unfortunately so is the price - you will have to pay at least $5000 or so for an Imacon Photo scanner.
In the cheaper end a few competitors has emerged. It's the Polaroid SprintScan 120, the Nikon 8000 ED and finally the Minolta Dimage Scan Multi Pro.
The Polaroid and the Nikon are both 4000 dpi medium format scanners (they will also scan 35mm and a number of other formats) while the Minolta is a 3200 dpi scanner (4800(!) dpi for 35mm).
The prices for the Nikon and the Polaroid is somewhere around 3000$ while the Minolta is a bit cheaper (at least in Europe).
These three scanners, is making it possible for amateurs to dream of scanning medium format. Imacon actually lowered the price on their Photo scanner because of the competition. It is, however, generally accepted that Imacon still is the superior scanner. Actually when I recently visited the local pro photo shop, they wouldn't "allow" me to call the Nikon or the Polaroid "high end" scanners - they only called the Imacon "high end" (!).

We are perhaps seeing the very last film scanners in these times. In a few years to come it will perhaps all be digital and only people with large archives of negatives and transparencies from the past will use scanners.

Update (30. January 2002):
I decided to buy the Minolta Dimage Scan Multi Pro.
Read my own review.

Links
There a many pages and sites on the net dealing with the subject described here.
I've gathered some links to help you find some of the resources I find interesting.

Manufactures
• Agfa Scanners
• Epson scanners (US)
• Epson scanners (UK)
• Imacon scanners (DK)
• Minolta Scanners (US)
• Minolta Scanners (UK)

Dealers
• Amazon Scanners
• Amazon Scanners (UK)
• CyberPhoto (SE)
• Digital4U (DK)
• RitzCamera (US)
• Robert White (UK)
• DigitalFirst (UK)

Reviews
[Update 18.03.05] : • EPSON 3200 vs. EPSON 4870 (vs. CANON 9900F) - a very interesting comparison of two flatbed scanners and a dedicated medium format scanner.

• Computer Darkroom (Polaroid 120)
• Imaging Resource (Nikon 8000ED)
• Imaging Resource (Minolta Dimage Scan Multi Pro)
• Luminous Landscape (Imacon Photo)
• Luminous Landscape (Nikon 8000ED)
• Ken Rockwell (Epson 1640SU)
• Ken Rockwell (Minolta Dimage Scan Multi Pro)
• PHOTOgraphical.NET (Minolta Dimage Scan Multi Pro)
• SAPhoto (Minolta Dimage Scan Multi Pro, Imacon Flextight Precision II, LeafScan 45)
• Virtual Traveller (Epson 2450 Photo)