Some of us were working for Kodak in the early 90's when digital photography was just starting to become mainstream. There were a LOT heated discussions regarding the direction of digital imaging. One of those discussions was around how photographers were going to convert their slides and negatives to digital files. There was a camp which believed that "real" photographers would never give up shooting film because of the huge gap in image resolution between fil. The same camp was also arguing for the creation of "scanning centers" where large scanners would deliver 1 megabyte "high quality" scans for customers as an option along with their prints. It was a nice PowerPoint presentation.
Fast forward to today. Digital photography has eclipsed film photography in a huge way. Almost nobody shoots film or slides anymore. Some of our younger interns have never actually seen a film camera. So when this ImageLab scanner showed up at the office, they were not quite sure what to make of it. The older staff immediately said..."Finally, I can digitize those slides and negatives I have stacked on the shelf!"
Slide and negative scanners have evolved a lot in the past 10 years. They used to be large, low resolution, and expensive. This new unit from ImageLab is the complete opposite. It does not require a computer to operate, has a built in LCD display, can store the files to a removable SD card, and cost around $100. OK, at 5 megapixels, if you are a professional photographer, this scanner will not be right for you. However, for the 90% of the folks who want to transition some of their old "analog" images into the digital realm, this device may just be the perfect solution. The ImageLab scanner package comes with a 5 MegaPixel scanner, 4 trays, USB cord, and an AC power adapter. It does not come with any software...because it doesn't need any!
The unit is so portable that we can take it to our parents house instead of lugging all the negatives back with us and putting it on our shelf. Better yet...I think we'll give them a scanner, have them scan the slides and negatives, and just have them send us the SD card ;-) We'll have time this Memorial Day weekend to give it a test. Results of our efforts will be posted shortly. [Permalink]-ImageLab Scanner
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