[LargeFormat] Scanning and Printing 8x10 film format

[Clive Warren]

At 3:38 pm +0000 17/12/01, philip Lambert wrote:
>I don't enjoy darkroom working and don't have room for one.  Is it possible
>to replace an enlarger and darkroom by putting a sharp 8x10 print on a
>scanner and printing it on an inkjet printer to A3 format?. This is below x2
>magnification so sharpness might remain good. Philip


The short answer is ....yes!

Everyone will have their own preferences for kit and I hope people 
will speak up if they are doing something similar.

My own setup is a Microtek ScanMaker 4 together with an Epson 
printer. The printer is only A4 but a friend has the A3 version and 
having seen the results have to say that it would be hard to beat - 
except in the darkroom of course :-)

The ScanMaker 4 has been superceded but is an excellent scanner that 
has trays for anything up to 8x10 trannies in addition to the normal 
flatbed glass top for prints. These scanners may still be on offer 
and if you can find one then snap it up as the new replacement costs 
an arm and leg and in my opinion does not buy you much over the 
original ScanMaker 4. I think the main difference is the the 
ScanMaker 4 has a SCSI connection and the later version has USB. 
There is a  claim for greater optical resolution with the new scanner 
but someone would have to prove that to me. The ScanMaker 4 is also 
usually packaged with SilverFast scanning software that is about the 
best you can get. (Waits for cries of "oh no it isn't!" and "oh yes 
it is!" - hey it's panto season here in the UK)

Cheers,
        Clive