Favourite film for scanning

[rnwhalley]

I have been experimenting with a few different films recently but was very impressed by the ADOX CMS 50 ART. Not because of its fine grain and nice tones but because of the claimed anti static qualities. I thought this was a gimmick at first but having done a few scans now there is far less dust on the ADOX films than some of the others I have tried (Kodak, Ilford and Rollei).

Do you have a favourite film for scanning and why?

 

[imazursky]

I really like Kodak 160NC-2, 400NC-3 and Fuji Pro 160s for color neg.
Fuji Provia RDP3 and Kodak E100G for chrome.
Kodak Tmax 100/400, Trix, Fuji Neopan, Ilford FP4 and HP4 for B&W.

I mount everything with Kami on my drum scanners so dust isn't that big of an issue.
When you squeeze the kami or mounting fluid under mylar, it tends to push the dust towards the edges.
It should be the same on flatbeds or drum scanners.

I recently bought an anti static ion fan and ion gun off of ebay, they were really cheap surplus from a clean room.
It took me a week to clean it (gross) and rewire it (clean room must have meant something else to them!).
It really helps to reduce the static attraction that film naturally has.
Years ago static master had a brush that had small nuclear element in it that did the same thing.
They were great but short lived and expensive. Im not sure they make it anymore but it worked.

 

[Lee L]

Years ago static master had a brush that had small nuclear element in it that did the same thing. They were great but short lived and expensive. Im not sure they make it anymore but it worked.

Staticmaster has been continuously in business for decades. They were not short lived. They are still in business and the products still made in many forms. Refill cartridges are also available, although expensive.

Lee

http://www.amstat.com/solutions/staticmaster.html
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/produ...ster_ST1C200_StaticMaster_Brush_for_Film.html

 

[imazursky]

Lee, thanks for pointing that out. I knew the parent company was still around but i didn't know about the elements.

I tried to order one a few years back, b&h (or was it adorama) said they couldn't get it because of shipping restrictions on the element.
I guess it must have triggered the nuclear alarms at the post office and i don't blame them. It must be different now.

To me the elements are short lived for the price, some lasted a little longer then a year and others went within a few months.
I bet it had something to do with the time spent on the shelf before shipping.
The prices have also gone up significantly compared to 5 or more years ago.

Instead of buying lots of them, i bought one of the ion guns off of ebay and it seems to work as well as the elements did.
I know its not a solution for most since it needs an air compressor but i did the math and it has already paid for itself.
I love surplus! They have so many interesting things that are reasonably priced.

 

[Lee L]

Yes, the prices have gone very high. It's the polonium 210 that is a potential shipping problem, and likely cause of the high price. It doesn't emit gamma rays, only alpha rays, which won't even go through paper or human epidermis. I think there's been a crackdown on it since the former Russian agent Litvinenko was poisoned with it by ingestion. (The only way it's harmful to humans is if it physically enters the body). You may recall news accounts of the tracking of the traces of polonium 210 across Germany, in airplanes, taxis, hotel rooms, and to restaurants in London.

In any case, I've also gone to a Milty Zerostat ion 'gun', commonly used for LP phonograph records, and have been using an air compressor since '88.

Lee

 

[imazursky]

I think i remember that news story, scary stuff. I think they said he ingested a lot of it.
Id rather use an ion gun attached to my compressor then the static master.
It allows me to dust off film from a distance and without touching it with a brush.