Blowing dust from 35 mm slides
I have a lot of 35 mm slides that I want to scan into jpeg files. Many of the slides have dust on them that will show up when they are scanned. I know there are a number of photographers here on the creek. What would you recommend to clean the dust from the slides without damaging them. I know that many canned air products are flammable, which may harm the positives.
cleaning and scanning slides
Lee, I would definitely use an anti-static brush made for negatives and slides. The one I had in my darkroom days, er, years, worked extremely well - I used it on every negative before enlarging.
I don't know if they still make them this way, but I was told the one I bought contained a small amount of radioactive polonium, an alpha emitter - similar to what is used in smoke detectors. (Polonium is an alpha emitter - totally safe if you don't eat it or grind it up and suck the dust into your lungs! Alpha particles are stopped by a piece of paper or the skin.) The ionizing radiation, combined with conductive bristles on the brush, reduced the static charge on the film and dust particles so they could be brushed away. I read that beta emitters are used now since the half-life of polonium is short.
I also used gentle canned compressed air made just for cleaning film.
Even without an ionization source, I'd go with an anti-static brush since they have conductive fibers which can discharge the particles so they don't jump back onto the film. Otherwise the simple act of brushing the film can create charges that can attract dust!
Ah, and don't do this in the wood shop after sanding. Duh. :D
Do you have a good scanner? I have a professional Nikon scanner made for 35mm film and slides, used very little. I haven't used it for years and can't guarantee how it works but if you are interested I can send the model number and you can research it. If it looks like it might work on your computer then YOU can use and store it for a year or 10!
If there is some buildup of dirt or something else that won't come off easily there are other methods, more involved. The worst thing to encounter in old slides is what looks like some sort of fungus that fans out from spots on the film. I hope you don't find that!
JKJ
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Lee Schierer
I have a lot of 35 mm slides that I want to scan into jpeg files. Many of the slides have dust on them that will show up when they are scanned. I know there are a number of photographers here on the creek. What would you recommend to clean the dust from the slides without damaging them. I know that many canned air products are flammable, which may harm the positives.