I have to experiment to get the best results. It also works with VueScan's calibration feature though the calibration profile is definitely different from that out of SilverFast. I use SilverFast mostly and have it apply a small amount of unsharp masking at scan time. You have to experiment to find what works best for you.
You also want to add a small bit of unsharp masking to the image and some do it using the scan software but others use Photoshop to edit the file after. I'd definitely only use it when absolutely necessary. If you can be more methodical about blowing dust off the slide first, you might not need ICE.
Take a scan you know is soft and scan it with ICE off and see how it looks. I used to use ICE but found the lack of sharpness to outweigh it's benefits on all but the dirtiest and most scratched images.
I can write up some steps you can take to do this but I'm not home at the moment.īy the way, if you use ICE at medium, the scans will soften up more than you want. So the scanner does focus and you just have to do it right. Of course VueScan will auto focus every time as will 5.x so the scanner is fine! 5.x used to focus properly every time but 6.x won't and LaserSoft has no solution as they say their equipment auto focuses so mine must be broken.
I have to use the manual focus every time. All three will work with the focusing capability of the 2000 though SilverFast 6.x refuses to auto focus every time. I have been using mine with Nikon Scan 3, SilverFast 5.x & 6.x and VueScan Pro. I think you should be able to do what you need to with the existing scanner and not pay out another $1k if you don't have to. I recently had a guy on ebay clean and lubricate it for $100. It also no longer works with W7 so I have to dual boot into XP to keep using it. It's been fine though I sure would like a newer version that connected by USB instead of the 2000's SCSI. I bought an LS-2000 new about 10 years ago for $1200. I'm really hesitant to throw $1000 into the unknown and it would help to hear what some experienced folks have to say. Please be honest - if you wouldn't waste your time with an LS30, say so.
Plus it appears that gaining access to the mirror is not as daunting a task as it is with the older ones. I understand that it's not just the dpi - the newer ones allow me to use Vuescan's calibration functions, the lens is better, etc. I'm willing to start over with a Nikon V ED (looks like about $1000 on eBay for a good one) if you guys say that there's a big leap between the older 2900 dpi Nikons and the newer ones. I have the funky old Nikon software, which can tell the scanner to pick a spot, but my limited testing doesn't seem to give any better results. Nothing about telling Vuescan to tell the scanner "focus right here". All I've found in Vuescan is a "Manual" setting for Focus under the Input tab.
Some posts talk about manually focusing newer Nikons with Vuescan, but it sounds like a process that may not be available on these older scanners, or I don't know how to get to it. Whenever I had questions about a scan, I'd pop it in the other machine and try again. I've scanned a few hundred slides on both machines. The mirror looked like a piece of gray plastic! I bought two older Nikons, an LS30 and an LS2000. My 83 year old father's been talking about digitizing his slides for years. I hope you don't mind if I ask a few questions which undoubtedly have been answered before. This forum seems to have the most knowledgeable folks regarding slide scanning.