i figure i can’t go wrong for 39 buckets, right?
Right on the money Dave.
First of all, you lost 39 bucks in the laundry last year in loose change (if you count what’s in the couch), so this is an easy one.
I’ve owned Microtek and Epson. I used to LOVE Microtek, but know what? Epson makes their own scanners, and they’re generally faster.
I personally like Microteks software better, and hopefully with your epson, you’ll get the TwainPRO software.
But hell, even if you don’t, I’d snap that baby up in a new york second.
Peace,
Tony
excellent! thanks tony… btw, they have a couple more there… look under clearence if anyone’s interested. guess the acer’s gonna be a doorstop now. even if it is faster the optical on it was only 600.
any word on the scan quality and speed of the 1260 photo for images/negatives?
Dave,
I have both an Epson 1650 with transparency adaptor and an Epson 2400 . They are good flatbeds, and do a creditable job on negatives and slides, but not up to a dedicated scanner. As Tony hinted at "I don’t know anything about negatives" , at 1200 ppi resolution on a 35mm negative, you’ll only have about 1.5 MP to work with . That may limit you to snapshop sized prints. The reduced number of pixels compared to the 2400 is probably the only significant issue. You can buy 5 of the 1250 for the price of a 2400, and , as I recall, you’re usually broke <G> . It’s a "no-brainer" !
Buy the 1250
🙂
Brent
( on re-reading, I see you already bought it. GOOD CHOICE ! <g>
But hell, if you are impressing friends and neighbors, as opposed to selling your prints, I still think this model is a bargain at 40 bucks.
that’s what I’m coming from. thanks.
That may limit you to snapshop sized prints.
That’s cool because my printer (oly 330n dye sub) only prints snapshots! ~4×5 🙂
brent, is there any value on using interopolation to get a higher res scan on the negs? the spec says it can do 9600×9600 w/interopolation.
for the price of 3 extra large pizza’s i guess no matter what i get i’ll be my "money’s worth". 🙂 but is there any advantage or disadvantage to "resing up" in the scanner as opposed to in photoshop?
cool. thanks for the advice tony.
There’s a school of thought, and I don’t speak to its validity, that one wants to perform as many manipulations as possible on RAW data from the CCD.
that’s kinda what I was thinking. I guess it’ll come down to trial and error. But I was hoping to get opinions on how much effort I should put into getting more out of the scanner itself. I gues it comes down to how good is the epson sw at working on the raw data.
thanks, dave
I gues it comes down to how good is the epson sw at working on the raw data.
Yeah, and realize that not all epson software/scanner combos are the same. As I said, I have Epson Twain Pro, which is a far cry from their other software, and THAT is not nearly as comprehensive as Microteks…
I got into this discussion late. Just two comments:
– Agree totally that if you are going to uprez, just try same with scanner interface AND PS, and compare at 100% size. If you can’t see any diff, there probably isn’t enough to be significant. Can tell you that with my old HP scanner, PS upsample *is* somewhat better than with the HP software. Don’t know about Epson’s current offerings. (and the 1260 is not really "current" is it?)
– A slightly divergent discussion about Epson scanners. Lots of knowledgeable folks (you can perhaps find discussions searching Google Groups in comp.periphs.scanners) say that in the higher rez 2400ppi model 2450 AND 3200, there is still only 1200ppi optical resoultion, as they both use two 1200 sensors and the 2400 is actually acheived from selective sampling/merging between the two. Not sure if other 2400ppi flatbeds like HP, Microtek,etc do the same thing. But certainly another reason that a decent dedicated film scanner (certainly for 35mm at least) still muchly outperforms these flatbeds in every measurement of rez, dmax/dmin, and dynamic range.
Mac
i actually went looking for info on this model…
<
http://www.macnn.com/news/20212>
referred to by zeb in the osx thread in the mac forum. but she-it. i couldn’t pass up the 39 bux deal. if it’s a dog, it’s a dog. i’ll find someone to take it and go get the newer one. i THINK i’ll be happy as long as the speed is ok. I HATED my paralell port scanners cuz they were dog slow. so I traded that one and got a scsi acer, which was fine for a couple of years. how is scanning via usb 1.1? (i have usb 2 ports, but that’s all the scanner will support).
Dave,
I got into this even later than Mac, and can’t add much, except to echo Mac’s comment that a low-cost film scanner will do a much better job on 35mm negs than the best flatbed-with-adapter.
It’s not just resolution. The film scanners have more dynamic range, and lower noise…black areas are REALLY black, not colored confetti when you blow them up! At least that’s been my experience.
Bert
USB 1.1 is slower than most all SCSI implementations.
However, the speed of the scanner itself is generally the slowest link, and scanning anything at 1200ppi is unlikely to saturate the USB 1.1 bus, and if it does, probably by only 10% over, if that.
Mac
cool thanks mac. it should be shipping monday as they transferred the package data late last night. i can’t wait to play! 🙂
bert, thank you too. i’ll have to judge it when i see it i guess. my acer did a fair job at transparencies and negs at 600dpi. (for my purposes, personal archive only). so i’ll wait and see.
does anyone out there actually OWN a 1260 photo? or will i be the first? ! 🙂
Re USB transfer speed: My Minolta Dimage Dual Scan II film scanner is the older version with USB 1.1. The newer Dual Scan III has USB 2.0. I was thinking of selling mine on EBay or something and buying the III until I did some measurements. In batch mode, at max (2820 dpi) resolution, it takes about 2 minutes per slide to do the whole process, including uploading the image data. The upload time for mine is 15 seconds. I decided it wasn’t worth the trouble to upgrade to the III to save, at most 15 seconds per slide out of a total of 2 minutes.
Bert
interesting. thanks bert!
Bill,
Thanks for the tips. I have been looking at the 2200 as a replacement for my 780. I’m a little put off by cartridge cost. A friend who has one told me that the seven(!) cartridges cost $11 each and he is getting the equivalent of about 25 8x10s…that’s $2.50 a print for the ink!
I’m also using Vuescan, but I haven’t used multiple passes much. I’m batch-scanning old 35mm slides for a family photo archive, and most of them are not great quality, even though they are important for historical purposes. I use the batch scan mode a lot!
Bert
Bert,
I got a tip here to try ITSupplies (ITSUPPLIES.COM) The price was $9.95 each with free shipping on orders over $75. I gave them a try and the delivery was as fast as orders from Epson. I’ve found, for my work, that the light colors run out faster.
(NO Dave, NOT out the door)
As for the cost of ink and paper for an 8×10… How much would you have to pay, per each, for a custom photo lab to print one of your pictures, in 8×10, the way YOU want it? And for that matter, how much does a normal photo lab charge for one done the way they want to do it? I don’t know the current price, but the last time I had one done it was around $5.
Bill
Bill,
Thanks for the lead on inkjet supplies.
You are certainly right that anything you print at home will be cheaper than going to a photo lab. I was just shocked at the ink cost for the 2200. My 780 5-color cartridge costs about $18 normally, sometimes as low as $16 if I catch a sale. I get about 18 8x10s out of a cartridge, so the ink cost is about $1 per print, which is much more than the cost of the best premium glossy paper I can buy. Somehow, that just seems wrong to me. I feel like the printer manufacturers are almost giving me the printer to "lock me in" on the cartridges. Now they’re even putting chips in the cartridges to prevent refilling, adding to the cost of the cartridges, just to maintain their monopoply position.
So when a new printer comes out…not a cheap giveaway one either…and the ink cost suddenly doubles or triples from previous models, even if I can afford it, it p****s me off. I don’t like to be ripped off!
Bert
Sounds just like my Agfa. Mine works great once it is hooked up. There is no real support from Agfa, however as they are out of the "home" market now. You should do well with yours. If you need support, then you will really find out what you got there!
Bert,
For the subjects I normally photograph, the lower cost (vrs glossy) Epson Enhanced Matte Paper does as well if not better than either Epson Premium Glossy or Premium Luster. The cost is substantually less with the matte.
I will be using the matte paper when the print will go behind glass and the luster when I suspect it well not.
Bill
Funny you should mention the Epson 1250/1260’s Dave.
I got a $100 Amazon Gift Certificate from my brother at the end of June, and have been looking at them as well. I’d LIKE to get a better, newer scanner, but the 1250 looks like it’ll do just fine for my needs at the moment. I had (have, really…it’s a serial connection, and it belongs to my presently hibernating PowerMac clone) an Epson Perfection 600 scanner that I liked quite well, and I generally trust their products. Don’t need a neg or slide scanner attachment, so that’s part of my search criteria. Besides that, I’m pinching my pennies into the G5 fund.
==============================
Now, indulge me while I air a pet peeve:
I HATE it that while looking at a page or two full of digital imaging devices in a catalog or online, that specs aren’t evenly stated for comparable models. For instance, I know that the Dmin-max rating is an extremely important consideration if you’re looking to grab good highlight and shadow in a scan, yet not all manufacturers list that spec, or they are ignored in catalogs or online. One scanner’s specs may have it listed, while a similar one won’t. WTF is up with that? How can one reasonably make a good informed buying consideration with details like that missing?
Dave….there are 3rd-party sellers offering refurbs just like the one you got for about the same price. Plus, I already have an account set up with Amazon.
And thanks for rerminding me about the cnet comparison shopping thing. Forgot about them.
there are 3rd-party sellers offering refurbs just like the one you got for about the same price.
yea, but they’re not epson! 🙂 spend the gift cert on led zeppelin’s new dvd and cd!
For the subjects I normally photograph, the lower cost (vrs glossy) Epson Enhanced Matte Paper does as well if not better than either Epson Premium Glossy or Premium Luster. The cost is substantually less with the matte
Bill,
Yeah, I was just giving an example. I like the Epson Matte Paper Heavyweight (S041257). It’s my favorite.
Bert
And I need the scanner more than the Zep set (though I WOULD like to have that as well)
Bite’cher tongue! You DO NOT need a scanner more than the new Zeppelin DVD! 🙂
my point was don’t but the scanner for 79 bux when you can get it for 39. that’s a waste. I guess it doesn’t really matter where you get it, if you’re getting a regfurb. i was just thinking it’d be better to get an epson product directly from epson, especially if it’s not new.
I look at a 3rd-party’s reputation ratings and comments. If I have questions, I email them. I make sure of return policies.
If it’s a factory refurb, with a guarantee, why not? Like I said, Dave, basically the same price.
Epson Perfection 1260 Scanner, NEW, for $50 from J&R <
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/stores/offering/list/-/ B00006AMSC/all/ref=sr_pb_a/104-5042299-1051932>.
Epson Perfection 1250 Flatbed Scanner, Factory Refurb, $39, from a seller with good ratings <
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/stores/offering/list/-/ B00005M25A/all/ref=sr_pb_a/104-5042299-1051932>.
EDIT: Just ordered the 1250 linked directly above from a David Kwan in South Carolina
hmm… well, good luck. i guess I don’t understand why you’d get a 1250 (standard, no tranny adapter) + shipping from there instead of the 1260 photo (transparency and negs) right from epson w/free shipping. was it the amazon cert?
whee! ups is showing delivered for the status! scanning tonight! 🙂
"i guess I don’t understand why you’d get a 1250 (standard, no tranny adapter) + shipping from there instead of the 1260 photo (transparency and negs) right from epson w/free shipping. was it the amazon cert?"
Because it’s easy, and I don’t need the tranny/neg adapter. The price difference is no big deal.
got it. only did a couple of scans to test, but it loads nice and easy. xp picked it up right away. so did ps. there’s an auto and manual mode twain drivers. the manual mode is pretty complex and has tons of customizable controls from gamma and color spaces to all kinds of corrections.
the scans are pretty nice. the tranny adapter is a small little dohickey thingy and it only does one frame of a neg strip at a time, but for the price, i can deal with it. the color neg scans ok. I’ve only done a couple and they look decent. the negs were pretty old so it’s hard to judge. i’ll test later or tomorrow with some newer ones taken w/a better quality camera. more to come…
After being out this evening seeing an old friend’s Jazz Quartet, I get home to check my email and I see that I just got a really attentive, smartly composed, well-intentioned (automated) response from David Kwan, who obviously took the time to make the response happen because he obviously cares about his business. I also got a confirmation that my scannner has been shipped, less than 3 hours after I hit the "Confirm" button on my order. "Automated" in this case feels OK, because the guy did it right. We’ll see if my gut-feeling is correct….
We’ll be comparing notes DaveM, because we’re pretty much getting the same scanner.
Phosphor likes Jazz, I play Sax. We have yet something else in common.
Surely anyone who loves PS, must be into jazz. Somehow they go together …
Phos,
Outstanding, friend. That is so cool. One of the things I love about Chicago (where I live) is the incredible number of jazz clubs. I’ve seen Dexter Gordan and countless other greats, and one ‘o my pals and I went to see Stanley Clarke – my pal got on stage with Stanley and jammed with him!
Colin,
Ya know, I think you’re right.
Tony:
I told you I kinda liked Chicago …
But have you ever been to the Boom Boom Room in SF?
Phos:
You’re a name-dropper.
But, in this case, that’s OK. It’s not just some talentless celeb.
Tony:
Well, next time you’re in SF, you’lll know …
And next time I’m in Chicago, I’ll ask.
Sooo…how did set-up and first scan go for ya, Dave?
According to Airborne tracking, mine should be here Monday the 4th.
awesome. VERY easy setup. Starting to scan like mad now. Don’t like that you can’t batch them, but it’s pretty fast so it’s not too big a deal. fill the whole bed w/pix, preview, then select each one. (alternately scan the whole bed into ps and crop from there.) I think you’re gonna love the software. It’s like moving from a model T to a Jaguar for me, going from Acer/Benq’s MiraScan to Epson’s twain SW. Soooo much to RAFO (read and find out)! The only other scan app I’ve seen w/this many controls is Hamrick’s VueScan.
I had considered biting the bullet and getting that, because with it I was able to use the Acer, but the bump from 600dpi to 1200dpi optical (for 39 bux vs. 50+ for vuescan) made that decision a desperate last resort if I didn’t like this scanner. And so far I really do like it. Plus it’s teeny! Fits on the same end table as my HP LJII w/o hanging off like the acer did! 🙂
I’ll know more after this weekend. I’ll be scanning some negs to test out. And I really need to read the full manual too.
If the software is similar to what Epson’s supplied in the past, I’m already familiar with it. I believe it was built around (or a custom, L.E. instance of) SilverFast’s scanning software. The software that came with my Perfection 600 DID allow batch scanning (dragging marquees around different areas on the glass…they are imported as separate image documents)…so I’m surprised this new SW doesn’t. Maybe you’ve just missed it so far.
Maybe you’ve just missed it so far.
very possible… i’m of to RTFonlineM now! 🙂
My 1250 is on the local Airborne delivery van right now…oughtta be here soon……………. (I love package-tracking)
Well….Epson’s "SmartPanel" scanning Software is bloated (120-some MB) and ugly (ummm….looks really Windows-like <g, r & d with ludicrous speed>). I found it problematic to install and remove and install again and remove a final time. Good-bloody riddance.
VueScan just has SOOOO many more features, and weighs in at less than 3 MB and doesn’t dump ANY crap on the hard drive; It just looks for the Epson Twain extensions (about 6.5 MB). The trade off is a no brainer.
If I was going to pay for vuescan i would’ve kept the acer! 🙂 But this 1260 photo was 39 compared to 50 for vuescan, plus it’s 1200 dpi optical vs 600 for the acer.
Actually I like the interface (you should’ve seen acer’s if you think this is bad). I’ve been having a pretty good go at scanning some pix that would never come out because they were to dark or too over/underexposed. The epson adjustments are really cool.
I don’t think I installed smart panel though. I’m a minimalist. I didn’t even run the install disk. I went to the site and got the latest twain drivers and just installed them. Like I said above, no fuss, no muss. So how do you like the scanner itself?
edit:
I’d LIKE the ability to multi select and batch scan, but the scanner’s fast enough that it’s not a big deal to preview the entire bed and single select just scans…
Already had the VueScan; Unlimited free upgrades with the Pro version. It’s just amazing…more options than any scanner software I’ve ever seen. Have you ever had a chance to use it, Dave?
The scanner’s just fine, but it feels a little slow. That could just be my perception, though, since everything else is faster these days.
Have you ever had a chance to use it, Dave
just the demo. i should’ve bought it before he raised the prices. oh well.
The scanner’s just fine, but it feels a little slow.
usb 1.1? i’m running on a usb 2.0 port, but I don’t think that makes a diff. cept maybe there’d be no bus saturation. i’m quite suprised at how fast it is compared to the scsi interface on my old scanner. VERY surprised! if i had to guestimate and i didn’t know which scanner used which interface, i’d say they were about the same or the epson was faster!
USB 1, dang it. It’ll be fine, for as little as I’ll use it. Easier than running 5 miles to my friends house, which is what I had been doing.
Come on, G5, I’m waitin’ for ya, baby!
