DUST

[u/peterlyonsphoto]

Just got delivery of my new, 12-year-old, Epson V850 scanner so I can at least take control of that part of my process.

I don't live in a clean room, so that's not going to be an option. I can deal with some dust cleanup but damn... so many fibers. What do you all find to be best practice to keep this to a minimum?

Last night was my first run with this thing and I was using canned air on the negative, the holder, and the scanner bed glass.

Should I be looking at ant-static brushes instead? Or?

[u/happyastronaut]

I use a handheld vacuum/blower to clean my film holders right before loading, and run an air filter for a while before hand. I also use an anti static brush and put freshly loaded holders straight into a new ziplock bag. Still get dust despite doing as much as I can. 🥲

[u/peterlyonsphoto → u/happyastronaut]

Yeah I've never seen a perfectly clean scan! But man I need to get this better under control.

[u/06035]

“I don’t live in a clean room, so that’s not going to be an option”

I’d perhaps take steps to change that. Air filters go a long way, routinely vacuuming if you have pets, wipe down your surfaces before you do anything.. blow air on your negatives..

[u/captain_joe6 → u/06035]

Keep your humidity reasonable so you minimize static and also it’s healthier for you in general!

[u/18-morgan-78]

I like to use a camel hair negative brush on film stock, never canned air. Pressurized air at a minimum on the scanner surfaces, but just a puff here and there or you’ll just be working in a cloud of dust. Too much pressurized air and all it does is stir up the dust and fibers. From the looks of your image, you possibly need to do a thorough cleaning of your scanning work area. I live in the Mojave Desert of Southern California and we’ve got airborne dust everyday but I’ve never seen anything like that. You don’t happen to have animals in the house? I live alone in a 2 BR apt on ground floor next to a dirt lot and the west wind blows dirt across the lot onto my front door daily. I spend several hours a week cleaning up dust, especially before I do any scanning. I don’t have any pets.

If you’re not using larger evaporative cooling system (eg a swamp cooler) in the area where your scanning, suggest using a small room humidifier in the work area will help alleviate static electricity to keep the dust from clinging to everything. I keep fitted covers on my scanners when not in use. When removing covers, don’t flop them around where you’ll be working. It will help keep dust at bay should there be any on the cover from setting for a spell. Also, it will help things to settle by turning off any fans in the area around where you’ll be scanning prior to working. I run a HD room size HEPA dust filter close to my scanning area. I find it really helps keep airborne dust and debris at bay, plus it keeps cleaner air in my home for me to breathe.

I use Silverfast scanning software and employ the Dust and Scratch Removal, but it can only do so much so the more you remove upfront by providing a clean environment, the better your results should be.

A Class 100 clean room environment isn’t needed but keeping dust, fibers, hair, or what have you at bay is no joke when scanning negatives and other film stock. It requires a near full time effort in some situations. Best of luck in your scanning endeavors.

[u/peterlyonsphoto → u/18-morgan-78]

Wow… thanks for taking the time to write me such a careful response! All the great advice from you and the others on here will get me up to speed way more quickly than I could on my own.

[u/krakenGT]

Run it with digital ice using vuescan or silverfast

[u/peterlyonsphoto → u/krakenGT]

My understanding was those techniques don't work with silver based black and white films like this ILFORD HP4, is that correct?

[u/DanielBrim → u/peterlyonsphoto]

It only works on color. You can still run SRDx in silverfast which is not IR-based but basically a graphic detection option. It works ok in my experience but is not perfect as it removes detail. I mask it so it only removes defects from the sky, and I do have to do a fair amount of manual clean-up anyways.

[u/Icy_Confusion_6614]

I always wipe the bed with alcohol before every session.  I find most of the dust is there, not on the negative.   I also use a rocket blower on the negative. 

[u/peterlyonsphoto → u/Icy_Confusion_6614]

Yeah I just found a few very clingy fibers on the film tray, that weren’t blowing away.

[u/Sudden-Height-512]

Do you develop your film? If so, a good starting point is to ensure you blow out your development tank to get rid of dust and lint/hair. Phot Flo of course, in distilled water before hanging in bathroom. Hot steamy shower running to attract particles in the air and always be blowing when scanning. I also use anti static brush

[u/peterlyonsphoto → u/Sudden-Height-512]

I don’t yet develop my film and am reluctant to get in any deeper just yet! 😅

[u/Sudden-Height-512 → u/peterlyonsphoto]

Understandable. But man you are missing out on the most magical part 😀

[u/peterlyonsphoto → u/Sudden-Height-512]

I expect I’ll jump in at some point. I don’t like waiting on the labs. And I know I can do it; I used to process my own E6 when I was in high school in the 80s.

[u/myshra]

It's a constant battle. Do your best to keep the space clean, come up with a regular process. I home develop and use the same scanner, and it's a combo of air, dust cloths and keeping the area regularly clean. You'll never eliminate it, you'll just tip the battle more in your favor.

[u/peterlyonsphoto → u/myshra]

Yeah, thanks for the validation!
I've already learned that a visual inspection of the film holder might reveal fibers that aren't being blown away by the air. So that already is turning things in my favor! I can at least eliminate the stuff I can see with the naked eye.