I’m not too sure what you mean when you ask if the scanning process degrades the image. Do you mean does it harm the quality of the original slide? Probably not, although I don’t remember anyone ever asking that question before, and I haven’t researched it. If you mean something else, I guess I’m still not quite following. I seriously doubt you’ll ever get a digital image that’s as high in quality as a slide being shown using a good projector and screen, and you’d never be able to get that size in a print! However, if you scan your slide at a high resolution and work on it in a non-lossy format, there really isn’t anything to "degrade" between the scanning process and the editing process.
And, I usually sit and scan a bunch of slides, move them to folders, and then go back and do the editing as a separate process. I don’t think that makes any difference at all; I just find it more efficient timewise. Of course I have to move my scans to a different computer, too, so I tend to work in batches.
Beth Haney’ Yes, that’s what I mean – does it harm the original slide to scan it several times? I read or heard somewhere that everything you do to an imagedegrades it somewhat. I’m not after big prints, just the best I can do to store on a CD until I’m ready.
Thanks for helping.
Bonnie L.
I do know that it’s hard on old photographs and documents to be subjected to the harsh light of scanners or photocopiers, however I can’t answer your question about what it might do to the original slide. That would be an interesting thing for you to research. If you get an answer to the question, please post it so others of us who are doing these projects will know, too. Generally, though, slides are run through the scanner only once – maybe twice – and that’s it. I wouldn’t think the light of a scanner would be any harder on them than being repeatedly subjected to the bright light of a projector lamp.
Every film manufacturer tells you to store your pictures and slides in a DARK place. That is because light fades every piece of photographic material, negative, slide, or print.
So, every time you project a slide (or scan it), you are degrading the image. How much are you degrading it? Probably nothing you will ever notice in your lifetime. Unless, of course, you project that slide for a long time every day!
So scan your slides, make prints, and enjoy them.
Thanks for your opinions. They have to be scanned anyway – goes better with reassurance. BL
