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Slides to Digital Scanning Services

Premier Service is CurrentlyAvailable.

On this page: What We Do / Carousels & Trays / How to Order / Space-SaverTM Service / Large Format Slides / Damaged Slides / Special Mounts / Stereo Slides / High Resolution / Our Process / Two Service Tiers / Premier Service / Third Approach / Examples / File Formats / Large Orders / Pricing / Free Scans
See our Large Order Discounts forSlides

We Will Convert Your Slides to Digital Images

We will digitize your slides, in 2" x 2" mounts (cardboard, plastic, glass mounts, or metal mounts), whether 35mm, or other film sizes. We can also scan "oddball" slide formats as well - all for the same low price. You can even try us out free of charge! Slide Scanning is what we do best - we convert slides to digital images. We scan 35mm slides, we scan 110 slides, we scan half-frame slides - in other words, if it is a slide, we can scan it (or to be more exact, we can digitize it, with higher resolution than services that actually use scanners!). You don't need to buy a slide scanner and spend days scanning slide one at a time - just send them to us! We can give you a much better result, with no hassle.

Special Inflation-Buster Sale!

We have reduced the cost of Direct Image Service (Image Only) to $0.39/slide for all 2" x 2" mounted slides.

Large Format Slides

If you have large format slides, such as 2-1/4" x 2-1/4", or other large format film types, we can digitize those slides too. We can produce digital images from those slides with than 16 MP resolution (for square formats - up to 24 MP for rectangular 3:2 formats). Our special digitization process allows us to handle any large format films you may have.

Concierge Service (Free of charge): We provide (free) extra services that others don't. For example, we will customize your directory structures if you wish. If your slides are grouped according to film rolls, or in carousels, we will digitize them in the original sequence. Perhaps most importantly, we will preserve all written information on or in the containers, and make it part of your photo archive. Our guiding principle is to provide personalized service, at a fair price.

Another service we provide, also free of charge - if your slides arrive with date information on the containers (carousels, boxes, etc.) or groupings, we will do our best to process them in chronological order, so that your image library is presented in the most logical fashion. In addition, when ever possible, as we process slides or negatives that are from a single roll of film (not mixed together with others), we will process the images in the order in which they were taken, using the frame numbers on the film, or slide mounts (when present, and readable!).

How to Order: To request conversion services, just fill out the Scanning Request Form.

Enjoy Your Slides on Your TV


In addition to providing your image files on a flash drive or DVD, for a small additional charge ($0.09/image + disc cost) we can assemble your pictures into a HDTV Video Slide Show. We can then put that slide show on a DVD  that you can play in your DVD player so you can enjoy your pictures on your TV set, as well as your computer. Our slide scanning service can bring your slides back into your life.

Slides in Carousels or Trays?

Are your slides all loaded in projector carousels or linear trays? No problem! Just send them to us that way. We will scan your slides and return them to the carousels or trays in the same order in which they were received - at no extra charge. Other services will charge extra for that - as much as $4.95/carousel!

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NEW! Space-SaverTM Service!

If your slides are in carousels or projector trays, we now offer a great alternative to keeping them that way. When you think about it, slide carousels are a very inefficient way to store slides. What's more, once you have your slides in digital form, it is almost 100% certain that you will never use your slide projector again.  So - why keep your slides in those bulky trays?

For a nominal charge of $1.20/bundle,(36 - 70 slides/bundle) we will take each slide after it has been imaged and place it in a stacking fixture, preserving the sequence of the slides in the original carousel. When the entire carousel has been imaged, the slides will be bundled with a printed label that ties the bundle to the information found on the original slide carousel. When we do this, it actually reduces the space you need to store your slides by at least 90%.   Check it out:

space-saver(TM) space-saver(TM)
This top photo shows a stack of 16 slide carousels, each with a capacity of 100 slides. In front of the carousels you can see the bundled slides that were in those carousels.   The lower photo shows a close-up of a bundle of slides. Take note of the label that has been included with each bundle.

We get as close to 70 slides/bundle as possible, subject to the way the slides are organized. For a 140 slide carousel, that yields two bundles, as does a 100 slide carousel. For a linear tray, that will produce one bundle. For slides that have been stored in slide boxes, we combine the contents of various boxes when possible, depending on the needs of the Customer.

The Folio number label on the bundle corresponds to an entry in a spreadsheet that contains all the identifying information from the carousel, plus the index numbers of all the images from that carousel. Of course, a copy of the spreadsheet is included with your order, in both excel format and as a PDF document

The space saving is clearly evident - and then there is the money you'll save by not having to pay the shipping costs to return all those heavy carousels - you'll pay just for the weight of the slides.

In the example shown, the box that the carousels arrived in measured 18" x 18" x 18"; the slides were returned to our customer in a box measuring 10" x 10" x 4" - and there was room to spare in the box! Just think of all the closet space you'll gain when you convert your slides and dump those space-hogging carousels!

Note: if you absolutely insist on getting your carousels &/or trays back, there are two options - we can re-stack them back into the carriers (in sequence, but not oriented) for $0.05/slide (to partially cover the extra time this takes). The other option is that we can put the slides in a plastic bag, and return them and the carousels/trays in the same package (at no extra charge), and you can restack them later. Shiping costs, of course, will be higher in this case, because of the additional size/weight of the carousels/trays.

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Damaged Slides?

delaminated slide

We can scan damaged slides. Many older cardboard-mounted slides have de-laminated, where two or three edges of the mount have separated, so that the slide film is just floating around in the gap. Large scanning companies who use commercial bulk scanners cannot process slides in this condition. They will simply send them back to you, or they will charge you for remounting each slide before scanning - which will more than double the cost.

We have processed many slides in the condition of the slide shown here, which was photographed on a light-table. As you can see, the film is completely loose in the cardboard mount.

We use a different process, and handle each slide individually using proprietary equipment to image the slide. Because we do this, our slide scanning service is able to process slides that most other providers cannot handle.

Special Mounts?


Many commercial scanning houses will not accept certain types of slide mounts. Costco, for example, will process only plastic or cardboard mounted slides. So - if you happen to have glass-mounted slides, or metal-framed mounts, or any other odd type of slide mount, you're out of luck at those places. On the other hand, we accept all types of slide mounts. To put it in its simplest terms - if you can shine a light through it, we can digitize it!

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Stereo Slides

We may be the only service that can digitize your Stereo Slides! Not only that, but in addition to scanning and digitizing them (either one side only, or both images in each pair), we can print your stereo images in pairs so that you can view them in 3-D, even without a stereo viewer.

Because we do not use a conventional slide scanner, we are able to convert both images from a stereo slide pair, so that none of the information in the original scene will be lost. Best of all, in addition to digitizing your stereo slides, we can print the two images together on a single sheet, so that you can actually view the stereo image. When you have your stereo slides converted, we will send you a PDF document that will explain the technique that can be used to view prints of your stereo pairs without a viewer.

Because the cost of preserving the full stereo pair is significantly higher than the cost of digitizing traditional slides, we also offer a "Single View" option:

Stereo Slides: Single-View Option

Because the creation of a stereo pair of images requires a lot more work, the cost of the "true stereo" processing described above is more expensive than the cost of processing a standard 35mm slide. We recognize that in some cases it may not be possible for customers to have that done for a large collection of stereo slides.

Accordingly, we also offer a "Single View" option for stereo slides, in which we will digitize just one of the two stereo images (typically the left side). This, of course, does not preserve the 3-D information that the pair of images contains - it essentially reduces the stereo slide to a standard single-view slide. It does, however, make it more affordable to perserve the memories that those stereo slides contain.

While slightly more expensive than digitizing a standard slide, this option can make it much more affordable to preserve your family's memories, that had been recorded in stereo slides, in a digital form.

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High Resolution Images


Our custom conversion technology will allow us to convert a 35mm slide to a JPEG image with a resolution of 24MP (equivalent to over 4000 DPI). That means that you could enlarge your 35mm image into a print size of 11" x 16" while retaining superb sharpness. Beyond that, you could actually enlarge it up to 40" x 60" (Poster Size!) without going below 100 DPI in the finished print. That kind of image resolution also means that you can crop the image heavily (to enlarge a small portion of it) without losing the sharpness of the original image.

With our Premier Service, each individual image will be opened in our photo editing software and manually corrected for dust and scratches, color corrected for film-base color shifts as much as possible, adjusted for under/over exposure, and put in the proper orientation in the JPEG image file.

Your processed files will be stored on the storage medium of your choice: DVD, BluRay, Thumb Drive (Flash Drive), M-Disc, or, for large orders, an external hard drive. You may indicate your choice of media when you fill out the Order Form/Packing List that you will receive from us when we are ready to receive your order. You can also receive multiple copies of your files, if you wish.

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Our Process

We don't really scan your slides. Instead, we take each slide and place it on an LED light-box. We then actually photograph it full-size with a macro-photography setup. This avoids the artifacts that can be introduced by a scanner, and provides a higher resolution than almost any scanner. Essentially, it is the equivalent of going back in time and re-shooting your slides with a modern digital camera.

Two Tiers of Service

We offer two categories of digitization service for your slides. The first, and most economical, is our "Image Only" service. This service consists of simply capturing the digital image of your slide, with no image post-processing at all. The cost for this service is just $0.39/slide.

With this service, all images will be in the landscape orientation (with the long axis horizontal). You can easily rotate the images that were taken with the camera in the vertical orientation using the Windows Photo Viewer. Or, if you prefer, we can do that for you for a small additional charge of $0.03/image, based on the total number of images in your job (because we have to review every slide). The second Service Tier is our Premier service, which adds $0.50 to the cost per slide.

What is Premier Service?

Premier Service takes the "Image Only" image and crops out the border, leaving just the image itself. It also includes making adjustments to each image to improve the quality as much as practical. This is a fully manual operation, and includes adjustments for color shifts and color fading, under- or over-exposure, removal of dust and fiber shadows, etc. Here are some comparisons of the two versions:

Prem. sample 1 Prem. sample 2 Prem. sample 2

These options can be combined in a single order. You can sort your slides into two categories: Image Only, and Premier Service, as long as they are clearly marked when we receive them.

If you prefer to have your image files in RAW or TIFF formats rather than JPEG, these are both available at a small additional charge (see Price List), and include the JPEG images as well.

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The Third Approach

There is one other option that we can offer. If you have your slides digitized with the "Image Only" option, after you receive the images you may decide that there are some that you would like to have processed through the "Premier Service" option. In those cases, you can send us the file names of the images you would like to have edited and cleaned up (we retain your image files for at least six months after delivery), and we will process those images at a cost of $0.60/image. There is a minimum $7.00 order size for this service.

The obvious question at this point is: "Why is it more expensive to have the images edited after paying for the 'Image Only' scans?" The answer is that the pricing of our "Premier Service" is based on the fact that in a batch of slides, some will require no editing at all, some will require just a few touch-ups, and some will require more detailed attention, so the amount we charge represents an average cost.

When slide images are sent in after scanning for further processing, we know that all of the images will require more work, and more time, so we have to charge more for processing those images.

Examples

Here are some additional examples of the kinds of things we correct for with our Premier Service:

Slide Film Misalignment

Many people don't realize it, but when slides are developed and mounted, the film frequently ends up being slightly misaligned with the slide frame. This results in one or more black edges in the image:


slide Film Borders

We crop the image slightly to remove those borders:


slide Film Borders

Dust & Dirt

Virtually every slide is dirty - that is, covered in dust and fibers. When we capture slide images, we first remove as much of that stuff as possible, but it is never practical to remove it all.  That means that the last of it must be removed from the image itself (note that these images must be viewed at 25% - equal to a 13" x 9" image to see the dust clearly ):


slide Dusty Image

The same slide after manual image editing:


slide Cleaned Image
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Exposure Improvement

In any collection of photographs, there are always a few that are under- or over-exposed, or have flat contrast, or other problems. While we post-process images, we can sometimes improve the condition of an image.

The slide as imaged:

slide scaznned Image

After exposure adjustment:

slide Cleaned Image

it is important to note that you will always receive the "raw" image as well as the "adjusted" image, so that if the adjustments made change the intent of the photographer when the photo was taken, the original is always available.

Other File Formats

In addition to JPEG files, we can also provide TIFF and RAW image file formats. Because these files are much larger than JPEG (between 4-6x) the processing time for image post-processing is much longer, we charge an additional $0.10-$0.15/image for those file formats.

Slides in Carousels or Trays?

Are your slides all loaded in projector carousels or linear trays? No problem! Just send them to us that way. We will scan your slides - at no extra charge. If, for some reason, you want your slides returned in the carousels or trays, we can return them to the carousels or trays in the same order in which they were received, at a charge of $0.05/slide. But - be sure to check out ourSpace-SaverTM Service(above) - you can gain a lot of storage space!

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Large Orders:

Large orders will be divided into file sub-directories of about 60 -70 images (unless otherwise instructed), and all orders will include one or more Index images that contain a thumbnail image of each picture, together with its file name. That way you can quickly search for a particular image, or easily review all of the images in the file. Slides in carousels will be placed in folders corresponding to the individual carousel, unless otherwise specified. Of course, we will organize the images into specific categories of your choosing if you provide the necessary instructions.

Pricing:

Our prices for scanning slides are $0.39 per slide (Image Only) or $0.89 per slide (Premier Service) for 2" x 2" mounts. This includes not just 35mm but 110, 126 & 127 camera formats (The MP size of the image for some non-35mm slides may be slightly smaller). It also included all special slide mounts: glass, metal frame, etc. at no extra charge. As mentioned above, If you want TIFF or RAW file formats in addition to JPEG, there is an additional charge of $0.10/image for RAW, $0.20 for TIFF (because it requires RAW images). (Please Note: Prices for larger slide formats are higher (seePrices).

Compare our prices to places like COSTCO, where you pay $0.32/slide with NO manual image processing (and they don't tell you what resolution you get for that!). Other scanning services charge from $0.46 - $1.29 for high-resolution scans. In addition, to get to the lower end of their price scales, you have to have a large order quantity. We prefer to just start out with low prices, so that all our customers can save money, instead of just those with deep pockets and large slide collections.

Digitizing Slides

 Film Size (mm)  jpeg Res.  Image Only**  Premier Service***
35mm 24MP $0.39 $0.89
110 (13 x 17) 24MP $0.39 $0.89
126 (26 x 26) 18MP $0.39 $0.89
127 (38 x 38)* 18MP $0.39 $0.89
120 (45 x 60) 18MP $0.99 $1.49
220 (60 x 60) 15MP $0.99 $1.49
Stereo Pairs† 15MP $1.45 $2.45
Stereo/Single†† 15MP $0.70 $1.20
Space-Saver $1.20/ Bundle (35 - 70 slides)
Notes: Prices above are totals; example: 100, 35mm images including Premier Processing = $99.00. When you elect Premier Processing, you get both sets of images: Image Only, & Premier.
*  We are able to Scan 127 Super slides without cropping the images. (Most places can't do that!). The MP resolution is somewhat lower, however, because of the square format of the images.
**  Image Rotation available for $0.03/slide.
**  Add $0.10/image for RAW, $0.20 for TIFF (requires RAW) files.
***  Includes Image Rotation; Add $0.20/image for TIFF/RAW files.
We do NOT cut stereo slides
†  "Stereo Pairs" includes conversion & processing of both Left & Right Images separately. For an additional charge of $2.00/pair, we can produce a third, combined image with both the left and right portions of the image side-by-side, at a scale that, when printed, allows viewing the 3-D image without a viewer. For more information, send a request to: support@digitalconversions.biz.This charge is included in the pricing (below) for Stereo Pair Prints ($4.50 each).
††  "Stereo/Single": This service captures just one of the two images in a stereo slide, turning it into the equivalent of a standard slide.

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Large Order Discounts for Image Only Stage (Slides)

 Film Size (mm)   1 - 2000  2001 - 5000  5001 - 10,000  10,001 - Up
35mm $0.39 $0.375 $0.36 $0.35
 115 (13 x 17)  $0.39 $0.375 $0.36 $0.35
186 (26 x 26) $0.39 $0.375 $0.36 $0.35
187 (38 x 38)* $0.39 $0.375 $0.36 $0.35
180 (45 x 60) $0.99 $0.95 $0.92 $0.91
220 (60 x 60) $0.99 $0.95 $0.92 $0.91

NOTE: Prices are for a single Order, they are not cumulative over multiple Orders. Prices apply to each increment of quantity as listed. For example, for a 2000 slide Order, the first 2000 slides would be $0.39/slide, the next 3000 slides would be $0.375/slide. Premier Service, if available, adds $0.50/image for all quantities. Discounts do not apply to governmental, institutional, or commercial Orders.

Try Us out for Free!


As a way of introducing you to our Service, we invite you to try our Slide Scanning Service for FREE. We will scan up to six slides absolutely free of charge. The resulting jpeg images will be sent to you via Dropbox, and your slides will be sent back to you in a return envelope that you will provide to us.

To get your free scans, just fill out the Free Scan Request Form. We will reply with an email providing you with instructions on how to send us your slides, along with a mailing label that you will need to use for your envelope. Please, do not send us any materials without receiving this instructive email.

Of course, if you do not have any slides you would like to submit for free scans, you could choose to send us up to fournegatives,, or a couple ofphotographs,which have quantity limits (for free scans) that depend on the size of the photographs.

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Examples of Our Work


When scanning (or - more precisely, for us at least - converting) slides and negatives to digital images, one of the most problematic issues is that of dust and dirt on the original image film, which becomes very evident when the image is converted to digital form. Companies who process large volumes of slides in bulk try to use automated software programs (like "Digital ICE") to correct and remove these defects, but their success is limited, at best. For example, follow this link take a look at the results when slides were scanned byCostco.

Our "Premier Service" process involves taking each individual image and inspecting it - and then correcting it - for any traces of dirt or dust. This is an approach you are not likely to find at any of the large commercial operations, either in stores or on the web.

To give you and example of the kind of results you can expect from us, one of our clients, Ken Wright, was generous enough to grant us permission to present some of the images we converted for him from his 35mm slide collection as examples of our work product. Ken's comment about our work was: "I appreciate what a good job you did to scan them so cleanly. I will recommend you to friends with no hesitation."

Because contaminants show up most readily in images which include large areas of sky, or water, or clouds, we have selected images of that type for your inspection. The images should be viewed at a large size to fully appreciate them. (Note: because these images are large files, to allow you to zoom in on them, they may take a while to load.)

French Countryside
French Countryside
French Countryside
French Countryside
French Countryside
French Countryside
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We offer the lowest cost high resolution photographic slide scanning service on the Internet.

You can trust Digital Conversions LLC to handle all yourslide scanningneeds.


35mm slides to digital