Whether you are an active photographer or hobbyist with a home darkroom, or just have lots of old family photos or professional archives you’d like to get into digital format, it’s not hard to get set up to scan black-and-white or color 35mm negatives and slides.

The equipment needed to scan negatives and slides, as well as the related computer software, has become less expensive and more accessible over the years.

Many consider Nikon scanners to be top-of-the line, but there are other big-name brands such as Epson, Kodak and Canon. Other negative scanners include those made by: Wolverine, Innovate Technology, Veho, Imagelab, Pandigital, SVP, Ion, Plustek, and Cobra. It really depends on the volume you’ll be scanning, as well as the megapixels needed. I don’t recommend the very cheap, $50-and-under negative scanners you may see at discount stores and the like. The quality and speed just aren’t up to par for most people’s needs.

You’ll also need software such as NikonScan, VueScan, or SilverFast. In many cases, these tools are included with the purchase of a scanner. Later, you’ll manipulate and perfect your images with photo-editing software such as Adobe Photoshop, Photoshop Elements, or another program.

A negative or slide scanner (many nowadays scan both) is different from a flatbed scanner that you would use to scan documents or printed photos – also some good flatbed scanners now come with a transparency adaptor. The scanner you’ll use will typically come with a negative holder, or carrier. Ideally, you’ll have a strip of photos to slide into the holder (as opposed to a single cut negative, which is harder to handle.) Make sure the emulsion side is facing the right way when you place it inside the carrier, feeder, or filmstrip adapter.

For the best results, take the time to ensure your film is flat and clean, using compressed air to remove dust. Handle the strips by the edges to avoid fingerprints, and, once your negs are scanned, quickly return them to negative sleeves for safekeeping.
You will need to save each image in the file format you prefer such as JPEG (.JPG), TIFF, or RAW. Some software tools provide a means to automate this part of the process. You’ll likely have some control over calibrating color and other settings, too.

To speed up the process, organize your negatives first. That way, you can scan them in “batches,” which will likely save you time later.

One thing about scanning a lot of negatives or slides is that it can be time-consuming. If you have boxes upon boxes that you need digitized, you may prefer to send them off to a scanning service and pay a per-image or per-batch fee. However, the tradeoff is that you have to let them out of your hands. Before deciding on a scanning service, check to see whether they scan in-house (many send the negatives overseas), and determine if you feel comfortable with how your images will be handled. Also, you may find it’s worth extra money to have the negatives scanned by hand, by someone who will visually assess each image and do any needed color-correction and other adjustments.