The Film Scanning Service
Our Noritsu film scanning equipment is the industry standard for quality and is even used in some of the Fuji Frontier range. We offer three sizes of 8-bit scans (nominally 4.5,18 and 48Mb+) to suit a variety of applications: whether emailing / web-use, cropping / printing or archive and we are happy to advise which is likely to suit your need at the time of placing the order. Below are the bare statistics and the equipment we use does not allow for variation: the difference between The Darkroom UK Ltd and other laboratories lies in the image assessment by our technicians. Every machine has an 'economy' setting for image assessment, where images are scanned on 'auto', but we believe that when you come to a professional laboratory you should expect the best that can be achieved from your film image. We aim to get things right first time but sometimes our interpretation may not match your style, but don't suffer in silence - if there is something we can do to meet your expectations we can discuss your requirements and see what can be done.
There may be occasions where individual attention is required through Adobe Photoshop and we can offer this as an extra, tailored to your requirements: you might need an image scanned for subsequent reproduction in a magazine and in these cases a little consultation and adjustment can make the difference between an average photograph and a great one. We know which you'd prefer so we'd like the time to make sure you get what you intended. In addition to our Noritsu workhorse we have Nikon and Epson scanners which can be useful for individual scans.
| Title | File size open | Average file size stored | Pixel dimension | Max recommended prints size* | Standard format | Quality | Saved at dpi | Individually assessed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Small 4.5Mb | 4.53Mb | 300kb - 2Mb | 1024 x 1545 | 5" x 7.5" | Jpeg | max | 72 | Yes |
| Standard 18Mb | 18.1Mb | 900kb - 4Mb | 2048 x 3089 | 10" x 15" | Jpeg | max | 72 | Yes |
| Archive 48+Mb | 87.1Mb | 1.1Mb - 12Mb | 4492 x 6774 | 16" x 24" | Jpeg or Tiff | max | 96 | Yes |
Typical 35mm Panoramic
| Title | File size open | Average file size stored | Pixel dimension | Max recommended print size* | Standard format | Quality | Saved at dpi | Individually assessed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Small 4.5Mb | 8.21Mb | 300kb - 2Mb | 1024 x 2804 | 4" x 10" | Jpeg | max | 72 | Yes |
| Standard 18Mb | 32.9Mb | 900kb - 4Mb | 2048 x 5608 | 7" x 18" | Jpeg | max | 72 | Yes |
| Archive 48Mb+ | 158Mb | 1.1Mb - 18Mb | 4492 x 12297 | 16" x 45" | Jpeg or Tiff | max | 96 | Yes |
6 x 4.5 format 120 (15-on)
| Title | File size open | Average file size stored | Pixel dimension | Max recommended print size* | Standard format | Quality | Saved at dpi | Individually assessed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Small 4.5Mb | 4.1Mb | 280kb - 2Mb | 1024 x 1398 | 4"x5" | Jpeg | max | 72 | Yes |
| Standard 18Mb | 16.5Mb | 1.2 - 3.6Mb | 2048 x 2796 | 7" x 9" | Jpeg | max | 72 | Yes |
| Archive 48Mb+ | 48.8Mb | 2.4Mb - 8Mb | 3533 x 4824 | 17" x 24" | Jpeg or Tiff | max | 96 | Yes |
6x6 format 120 (12-on)
| Title | File size open | Average file size stored | Pixel dimension | Max recommended print size* | Standard format | Quality | Saved at dpi | Individually assessed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Small 4.5Mb | 3.04Mb | 200kb - 2Mb | 1024 x 1039 | 4" x 4" | Jpeg | max | 72 | Yes |
| Standard 18Mb | 12.2Mb | 850kb - 2.9Mb | 2048 x 2079 | 7" x 7" | Jpeg | max | 72 | Yes |
| Archive 48Mb+ | 65.8Mb | 3.2Mb - 10Mb | 4824 x 4760 | 24" x 24" | Jpeg or Tiff | max | 96 | Yes |
6x7 format 120 film (10-on)
| Title | File size open | Average file size stored | Pixel dimension | Max recommended print size* | Standard format | Quality | Saved at dpi | Individually assessed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Small 4.5Mb | 3.68Mb | 220kb - 2Mb | 1024 x 1255 | 4" x 5" | Jpeg | max | 72 | Yes |
| Standard 18Mb | 14.7Mb | 1 - 3.4Mb | 2048 x 2510 | 6" x 8" | Jpeg | max | 72 | Yes |
| Archive 48Mb+ | 81.3Mb | 4.2Mb - 11Mb | 4815 x 5902 | 24" x 30" | Jpeg or Tiff | max | 96 | Yes |
6x8 format 120 film (9-on)
| Title | File size open | Average file size stored | Pixel dimension | Max recommended print size* | Standard format | Quality | Saved at dpi | Individually assessed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Small 4.5Mb | 3.68Mb | 220kb - 2Mb | 1024 x 1381 | 4" x 5" | Jpeg | max | 72 | Yes |
| Standard 18Mb | 17.5Mb | 900kb - 4Mb | 2048 x 2761 | 7" x 9" | Jpeg | max | 72 | Yes |
| Archive 48Mb+ | 92.7Mb | 4.5 - 12.4Mb | 4903 x 6610 | 24" x 33" | Jpeg or Tiff | max | 96 | Yes |
6 x 9 format 120 film (8-on)
| Title | File size open | Average file size stored | Pixel dimension | Max recommended print size* | Standard format | Quality | Saved at dpi | Individually assessed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Small 4.5Mb | 4.37Mb | 220kb - 2Mb | 11024 x 1491 | 4" x 6" | Jpeg | max | 72 | Yes |
| Standard 18Mb | 17.5Mb | 1 - 4Mb | 2048 x 2982 | 7" x 10" | Jpeg | max | 72 | Yes |
| Archive 48Mb+ | 100.1Mb | 4.5Mb - 13Mb | 4903 x 7139 | 24" x 36" | Jpeg or Tiff | max | 96 | Yes |
Notes
| Title | File size open | Average file size stored | Pixel dimension | Max recommended print size* | Standard format | Quality | Saved at dpi | Individually assessed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Descriptive Name | A | B | C | D | E | F | G |
Notes
A Title / File size open: as a guide the title description refers to a nominal size when opened in Adobe Photoshop. Other software packages describe a Jpeg size in its closed state, which is largely meaningless. Check the pixel dimensions when making comparisons between different files because this shows the true image size.
B Average file size stored: The compressed, stored size will vary depending on the complexity of the image: a simple shape on a plain background compresses down to a smaller file than, for instance, a stained glass window that is full of detail and different colours.
C Max recommended print size: This is only a suggestion because the perceived quality of an image will vary from one image to another. Fine line detail is quickly affected and seen as pixelation whereas normal landscapes etc will mask this effect and be quite acceptable at larger sizes.
D TIFF or JPEG: The choice is yours: we are happy to save in either format but consider which is best for you.
E Quality: Every file we save in Jpeg is at best quality.
F 72 or 300dpi: The most important ‘number’ regarding a scanned image is the overall file size (expressed as Mb).
G Individually assessed: We never turn our equipment to Auto unless you specifically request it.
THE VERY USEFUL JPEG
A couple of points with regard to Jpegs: there is lots of technical information on the web about the maths behind the format and you are welcome to explore its complexities if that's of interest.
THE RULE
The only Jpeg rule is this: If you are working on an image over a number of sessions then save in either a Tiff or Photoshop format.
BIG IS NOT (NECESSARILY) BEST
If you have the latest Nikon with a 16.2Mb sensor, the resulting files will be around 48.6Mb in RGB.
WHICH SCAN SIZE Small 4.5, Standard 18 or Archive 48+Mb?
Good question and we'll always ask "What are you using it for?"
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