On 18 Jan 2016, at 18:47, Paul Schilliger <pschilliger@sunrise.ch> wrote:
I did once some comparison scans when I worked with a drum scanner (a mid range one), wet and dry, and as far as super fine grain films are concerned, the gain was there when peeping at pixels, but at sight distance it was anecdotal. But the trouble of wet mounting is considerable. I thought it was better to scan dry, not to soak my precious slides into gels and solvents that might alter their life span. So, yes the process needs to be mastered and I am just supposing, but I'm expecting results that will please.
Oil mounting isn’t about reducing grain — you do that on a drum by opening the aperture manually and/or adjusting the focus point :) You oil mount to stop light scattering when it hits the uneven (and scratched) surfaces of the film. Reducing scatter as light passes through the film means you get more contrast and more detail. It also gives you a very clean scan with no clean up required. Also, oil and film cleaner don’t “soak” film — water is far more penetrating. -- Martin Orpen Idea Digital Imaging Ltd