filmscanners: On dust

[tflash <tflash@earthlink.net>]

on 6/28/01 4:26 PM, Steve Greenbank wrote:

> I have also found that if you scan slides the moment you open the
> box for the first time, it takes less than 5 minutes to despot them and you
> don't lose any overall sharpness compared to ICE. Usually you can despot
> whilst scanning the next slide.


There is much discussion of dust, with little on removal. I mean physically
removing it, not digitally.

I use Ilford Antistaticum cloths (about $5 - $6 each, at your finer photo
stores - ant photo store really) to gently rub both sides of the film. Then
a spray on both sides with canned air, and I get very few dust marks. I scan
with a Leaf, which Austin claims keeps dust from settling on the film (you
judge the impatiality of that one. ;-)) but I used the same technique in the
wet darkroom with similarly good results. I was also a custom printer
(silver BW) in two labs which also used these cloths. They're an industry
standard.

HTH, 
Todd