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Film scan resolution for use in After Effects
I have a situation where I need some 6cm x 6cm film negatives scanned for use in an AE project (720×480). I asked the photo lab to scan the negatives @ 1200 pixels per inch, which should produce about 2700 pixels/square of real estate, large enough to have some pan and zoom, but not so large as to take all day opening and resizing them in Photoshop.
The photo lab person told me I was dreaming (actually they used some different terms that I won’t mention here) and that they had never heard of a scan of such extreme resolution.
Maybe I was having a “seizure” and requested 12 million pixels per inch? Not likely.
So…
I am wondering if maybe the batteries in their calculator are overcharged?
Someone in another forum told me I was insane as well, because television was 72dpi.
(I am not joking)Same kind of batteries you reckon?
Thanks
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5 Replies
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Television is only 72PPi, pixels per square inch, not Dpi, dots per square inch, (thats print). 2700 per inch huh? Thats a lot more than you need, and more than they could push from your small film. Killer new film that pros use, (real film, not hd or video) can maybe be 3000×3000 (I think, somebody check that for me) so asking them to give you such a high res transfer. 6cm film negatives should produce res that you can use for pan and scan and zoom. At least 150 dpi (print speak) ppi
should be enough. And they wont say those things about you anymore. -
72 dpi or ppi is meaningless with respect to television. 72 dpi would mean that your TV is always 10 inches wide by 6.6 inches.
What matters (in non-print applications) is the final size of your scan in pixels. You should ask for the resolution (dpi or ppi) that will give you that pixel size. If your film is 2.25 inches each side, and you want, say, an image that is 2250×2250 pixels, you scan at 1000 dpi.
2.25 x 1000 = 2250.
If you scanned at 150 dpi, your image would only be 338 pixels on each side. I don’t think that’s what you want.
So begin with the end in mind (pixels), then choose a dpi value that will give you that size in pixels.
Steve
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Well…that’s what I did. I specifically said ” scan this 6cm x 6cm (2 1/4 Hasselblad) @ 1200 pixels per inch. The result should be about 2700 pixels square. This allows me to crop (or zoom) to about 1/3 or 1/4 or the image and still have usuable resolution.
I routinely use images of this pixel size in prep for AE projects. It sure makes it a whole lot easier to knock out a background and end up with a smoother edge (in photoshop).
LOL, I know guys that scan medium format materials at 10,000 pixels per inch for real big display signs.
Hmmm… why the confusion I wonder?
Maybe I’m French and just don’t know it?Or… maybe I was accidentally exposed to some country music and now the bubba factor has taken control of my vocal chords?
Mims/Nashville
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Heh … “bubba” …
Steichenlab in Toronto can scan at over 5400 pixels per side. https://www.steichenlab.com/pages/scan.htm . Look for the “64 base” figures at the top left.
Maybe you need a different scanning shop.
Steve
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Konica Minolta is now making medium format desktop film scanners that will give you all the quality you want for After Effects or print. I think they are around $1300. I use the one for 35mm and it is excellent.
Prints are gallery display quality from my old Kodachrome II’s
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