Is there a secret to editing color negatives in Photoshop?

[alaskahistorystore]

It's probably just that mostly I work in black & white, so inverting the negative image I scanned is simple. But, color doesn't seem to work that way. Does anyone have a trick I can use for scanning color negs and then taking them into Photoshop and making them look correct?

 

[Eric Rose]

What scanner and software are you using? Know that would help us a lot.

 

[Alan Klein]

What scanner are you using? I use an Epson V600 scanner with the Epson software and don't have a problem. The software on Auto gives me good color from negative color film You can check my Flickr site below. One thing. Do not include any of the black border as that throws off the auto adjustment.

Another way I can do it is to scan flat with no scanner adjustments at all. Then in Elements 8, in auto or using Levels, I get the correct colors. I do have to adjust in both cases contrast and other minor adjustments but these are really to fine tune the results.

 

[jslabovitz]

Doing it by hand

If you really want to do it by hand, here's what I've had good luck with:

- Scan the image as RGB positive.
- Invert.
- Go into the Levels dialog.
- Select the Red channel (cmd/ctrl-1, if I recall).
- *While holding the opt/alt key down,* drag the black triangle inwards until you start to see a few important pixels.
- Do the same with the white triangle (you'll be dragging the opposite direction).
- Do the same (black/white) with the Green and Blue Channels.

Doing this will get you remarkably close. You may have to adjust white balance. I can't remember at what step I did that -- maybe after all the above.

--John

 

[cabbiinc]

Some people use a plug-in called ColorPerfect Vuescan & ColorPerfect, A Guide. | Urban Motion but I've found that using an iT8 target and calibrating my scanner, then using my scanning software (Vuescan) to do the inversion is all that's needed for my needs. My needs may not meet your standards though. I've tried ColorPerfect, I've tried the locking the film base thing in Vuescan, but for me the scanner calibration gave the most true results. My Nikon scanner was already pretty spot on, my Canon FS4000US was off a fair bit, my HP Scanjet G4050 looks horrible without calibration and my Microtek Scanmaker 5 was pretty old and just needed replacing (with my HP Scanjet G4050).

 

[alaskahistorystore]

Thanks to all who have offered assistance. I will try the suggestions made and see if that helps. I am scanning through a Canon 5D Mark 11, using Capture One software. So, I shoot in RAW and when the image is processed to a tif, I then have tried working on it in Photoshop CS 11, 111 and IV.

 

[TheFlyingCamera]

I suspect that part of your issue is with your capture method. Do yourself a favor and get at least a high-end flatbed scanner with transparency capability, if not a dedicated film scanner. Not that there's anything wrong per se with shooting the negatives with a DSLR and then inverting, but you're definitely making life harder for yourself. How are you shooting these? Are you using some kind of macro lens and/or slide duplicating rig? taping them to a light box? Part of your problem doing it either way is the issue of white balance - if you're using a fluorescent light box, even the "daylight balanced" fluorescent light boxes/tables are in the end still fluorescent, and your eye tends to fill in the spectral gaps that the fluorescent bulb produces, but your camera doesn't - it accurately records what it receives. So you may have some color balance issues from incomplete illumination. This is still true when shooting with daylight as a light source - the color temperature of daylight ranges from tungsten-ish (2800-3200K) at dusk/dawn to over 5500K at high noon on a bright sunny cloudless day. If you're at higher altitudes, it can get well above 5500k. The only sure way to illuminate for copying is to use electronic flash, which is consistent in color temperature at all times in all places. Or use a scanner, which has a much more consistent color temperature to its lamp than a garden-variety light box, and can be calibrated.

 

[cabbiinc]

While I agree with TheFlyingCamera about getting a scanner (life's too short already) part of your problem may be the processing before any inversions are able to take place. With a scanner workflow, usually the software doing the scanning is taking the raw data from the scanner and inverting it in the same program, no saving, converting, compressing, limitations of a file type, etc.... With a camera RAW workflow though you've got intermediate programs. You'll find that you'll get different results from different software for your regular files, so it shouldn't be unreasonable to expect different results from negatives shot with the camera. However, you may try shooting in raw and providing the unmanipulated .CR2 file straight to Vuescan VueScan 9 Release Notes and see if that gives more accurate or pleasing results. You could also use ColorPerfect (which I linked too above) in Photoshop. Either way, you're going to want to get the least manipulation of the file to the program of choice.

 

[alaskahistorystore]

To give furher details on workflow, I have one system that is used with slides and negatives and another strictly for prints (the print system has 4 filtered copy lights @ a 45 degree angle). For the former, the negative or slide is laid on top of a color-balanced daylight light box, with even illumination. A sheet of plate glass is laid on top, to hold all flat. I get fantastic results from black & white negatives, slides and prints. It's just the color negatives that are problematic. White balance is not a problem.

In addition to the DSLR systems, I also have a Kodak CREO Eversmart 11 flatbed scanner. When I have larger jobs, I use this, as it can handle 40 35mm slides at a time. Or, it can handle several strips (6 or 7 negs. each) of negatives. This scanner can be set to "positive" for slides or "35mm negatives (productive)" for negatives. I get fantastic results from black & white negatives and slides. Again, it's just the color negatives that are problematic. White balance is not a problem.

I will have a look at Color Perfect and VueScan - just haven't had the opportunity yet.

The results I get from the DSLR system and the CREO scanner (which uses OXygen scan 2.6.4 software) are the same. So, it doesn't seem like the problem lies with the lighting, scanner type, software or operator. (there are 2 people using both systems)

I really feel that I lack understanding about how to deal with color negatives in Photoshop, so that is my real question. I will take the suggestion that jslabovitz gave about a specific way to do this "by hand".

Thanks much

 

[Eric Rose]

I find I get better "scans" from B&W negs using a DSLR (D700) than using my Nikon 35mm scanner. Less problems with the scanner freaking on grain.