Plustek OpticFilm 8200i SE 35mm Scanner

[Outdoor Writer]

You guys could be in big trouble since I could have an endless supply of NEW images to post.

I'm about to pull the trigger on this scanner. It's $399 on Ebay or Amazon. The one feature that sounds really good is the IR function that automatically gets rid of dust & scratches. All the reviews I've read have been good to excellent.

Anyone here ever use this specific scanner?

 

[Newtosavage]

I haven't. There are so many good scanners out there these days that it's hard to keep up. I went with the Epson flatbed because I had medium format images to scan. But a dedicated 35mm scanner is much more efficient. All of them have dust removal software these days, but be aware that it takes MUCH longer to scan a slide when you choose that option, so it comes with a cost.

Storage and sorting of scanned images can be a real burden too, unless you're retired (or so I hear... )

Enjoy the process. I really do. Brining back some of my favorite film images lets me journey through those places all over again.

 

[Outdoor Writer]

I haven't. There are so many good scanners out there these days that it's hard to keep up. I went with the Epson flatbed because I had medium format images to scan. But a dedicated 35mm scanner is much more efficient. All of them have dust removal software these days, but be aware that it takes MUCH longer to scan a slide when you choose that option, so it comes with a cost.

Storage and sorting of scanned images can be a real burden too, unless you're retired (or so I hear... )

Enjoy the process. I really do. Brining back some of my favorite film images lets me journey through those places all over again.

I have nothing but time.

This one has dust removal hardware, in addition to software. It uses infrared rays, which won't penetrate the dust & scratches, & automatically does the deed.

I've used two different HP flatbed scanners with slide adapters over the years and also own an old Nikon Cool Scan, which is similar to the Plustek in operation. The Nikon did okay, but it doesn't do dust & also won't run with Win10.

Here's some relevant input from PC MAG:

The next step up from the Plustek OpticFilm 8100in the company's line of dedicated film and slide scanners, the Plustek OpticFilm 8200i SE ($449) offers the same 7,200 pixels-per-inch (ppi) resolution, the same set of scan utilities, and essentially the same speed and scan quality. But it adds one key feature than its less-capable cousin lacks: hardware-based dust and scratch removal. As expected, that boosts how well dust and scratch removal works, which makes the 8200i SE a more attractive choice.

Speed and Scan Quality
Plustek rates the 8200i SE at the same speed as the Plustek 8100, so it wasn't surprising that the two delivered similar, although not identical, speeds in my tests. For the 8200i SE, prescanning a single slide or frame of film consistently took between 18 and 19 seconds. The actual scanning ranged from 34 seconds at 1,800ppi to 4 minutes 11 seconds at 7,200ppi.

Scanning with the SilverFast Multi-Exposure feature adds significantly to the scan time. The feature takes two scans using different exposure times and integrates the information to increase the scanner's effective dynamic range (i.e., its ability to distinguish detail based on shading, particularly in dark areas of the image). With the 8200i SE, I timed scanning at 7,200ppi with Multi-Exposure at 11:10.

The 8200i SE was also similar to the Plustek 8100 in terms of scan quality, with near-excellent output. The scans showed appropriate detail for the resolution and maintained detail based on shading in both dark and light areas of the image. On one picture from a color negative, with a bride being walked down the aisle, for example, the scan handled skin tones well, and it showed both the white-on-white detail in the bridal gown and the two levels of black in the tuxedo. However, to get that level of quality, I first had to get familiar with the settings choices in SilverFast.

Because the key difference between the Plustek 8100 and the 8200i SE is the addition of hardware-based dust and scratch removal, and because both the software- and hardware-based features are available in SilverFast, I made a point of scanning a dusty slide using the 8200i SE with both features off, with the software-based feature, and with the hardware-based feature, which adds a second scan of the slide in infrared to better identify dust and scratches.

The software-based feature did a good job of getting rid of most of the dust specks. However, the hardware-based version did even better. As an alternative to cleaning your slides perfectly before scanning, or cleaning up the scans later in Photoshop, the added hardware-based dust removal is well worth the extra cost.


I'd like this scanner a lot better if, in addition to SilverFast, it offered the kind of sophisticated automated scan option that would reliably give you good, if not the best possible, scans with little to no effort. If you want to do all your scans with that level of automation, you'll be better off with the Editors' Choice Epson V550. And if you want the full capability of SilverFast when you need it, but would like the option of a more automated approach as well, you'll be better off with the Epson V700, which also has the advantage of scanning larger film sizes, up to 8 by 10 inches.

That said, if 35mm film and slide scanning is all you need, and you're willing to spend the time both mastering SilverFast and adjusting the settings individually on every scan, the Plustek OpticFilm 8200i SE can be a good choice. And its hardware-based dust and scratch removal is a significant plus that makes it worth the extra $100 over the Plustek 8100.

 

[bigmoose]

Sounds good Tony. I'm looking forward to seeing that "endless supply" of photos !

 

[Outdoor Writer]

Sounds good Tony. I'm looking forward to seeing that "endless supply" of photos !

It will be "endless" as in at least time available before I'm turned into ashes.