making prints from 35mm color slides

drkhalsa · Sep 8, 2009

What do I ask for from a photo lab if I want to have one or more of my 35mm slides printed at 8x10 or up to 16x20. How is this done in this digital age?

I like some of my slide images and would like them printed as photographs.

I don't have a darkroom, so wouldn't be able to learn how to do it myself at this point.

Thanks,

Sat Kartar Khalsa

Konical · Sep 8, 2009

Good Evening, Sat,

Shouldn't be a problem for any decent professional lab. Lots of labs these days seem to use a process that's at least partially digital, instead of the traditional approach. If you want highest quality, you'll need to locate a lab that makes Cibachrome-type prints (expensive). Someone here on APUG will probably know where and chime in with information.

Konical

keithwms · Sep 8, 2009

Assuming that you don't want to have ilfochromes done (you still can! but they are very pricey), then the next best thing would be to have drum scans done of the slides, then use lightjet or chromira or similar output. Still further down in cost would be to have non-drum scans done, and some scans from the Nikon machines, for example, can be very good (albeit not good enough for 16x20 from 35mm slides, in my opinion; for those enlargements, I'd stick to drum).

If you have a lot of slides then you might consider purchasing your own Nikon scanner. I do not think anything less than a Nikon will do a good enough job on 35mm slides, though I did once have a Minolta scanner (now discontinued) that did quite well. A flatbed will not cut it with 35mm slides enlarged as much as you say, in my opinion. You'd have to overscan massively and it'd not be worth the filesize.

Neal · Sep 9, 2009

Dear Sat Kartar Khalsa,

If you don't want to spend a lot, most one-hour places should be able to accommodate you. It won't be as good as a proper professional lab, of course.

Neal Wydra

Ronald Moravec · Sep 9, 2009

Scan the slide and print with an optical laser printer. If you do some fancy scanning and punch up the shadows, you get good results.

Unless you mask the slide to lower contrast, Ilfochrome, the new name, looks bad. Our last Ilford rep thought it was a worthless process too.

Ektagraphic · Sep 9, 2009

If they are really stellar shots and you want the top quality have them printed on Ilfochrome. Dead Link Removed Otherwise, most labs will scan and print them.

drkhalsa · Sep 9, 2009

Thanks for all of the input, you all have helped me clarify the possibilities.

A local pro lab charges $7.50 for Nikon Coolscans and then $10.95 to print an 8x10.

They charge about $35 for an Imacon scan up to 50MB size.

So I will try a Coolscan and have them print from that.

I have an Epson V500 flatbed scanner and inkjet printer but would like to see what an optical print looks like.

Dwayne's will print 8x10 from 35mm slides for $4.50. I haven't called them to ask how they do it.

Again, thanks for the feedback.

Sat Kartar

Ektagraphic · Sep 9, 2009

If you want true optical you will have to go with Ilfochrome or internegatives....Dwayne's will scan and print.

drkhalsa · Sep 10, 2009

I will try Dwayne's first and if I like what I see, when budget permits, I will go Ilfochrome.

Again, thanks for all of the information, it's all useful.

Sat Kartar

making prints from 35mm color slides

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