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Quickly digitize the Dark Age with this DIY Automatic Film Slide Scanner

May 26, 2015 by Allen Mowery 2 Comments

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For those alive (or with family alive) during the days of film cameras, you have probably encountered the phenomenon of film slides (considered by some to be the precursor to PowerPoint, but Bill Gates refused to comment on where he originally came up with the idea). The problem with them, however, is moving them over into the digital era.

That is where photographer and DIY-er Stefan Lindgren took it upon himself to build a more-affordable alternative to the SlideSnap Pro, which weighs in at a hefty $3,395. (Heck, I don’t even spend that much on a car!)

Hacking an old carousel slide projector and USB relay board, and programming his own desktop app to automate the entire process, Stefan created an ingenious solution for rapidly and automatically digitizing his old slide collection. (We’re pretty certain it would digitize yours as well…)

Growing up, slides were all I knew for large-scale presentations until the mid- to late-90s. Having gathered quite a stockpile myself over the years from my own photographic endeavors as well as others, and wanting to digitize the countless slides my dad has of my early childhood overseas, I may just have to give it a shot (extra stroke of genius preferred).

Read all about Stefan’s project, including step-by-step instructions on building it, here.

[The D.I.Y high speed slide film scanner | Stockholm Views]

P.S. Want an easier (albeit, manual) method for digitizing slides and negatives? Check out our comprehensive DSLR scanning tutorial here for a full tutorial!

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Make your own automatic 35mm film scanner using an Arduino Nano and Python Build A DIY Slide Scanner For $10 FilmToaster lets you use your DSLR to digitize film photos FILM Ferrania gearing up to turn E6 slide film production into a reality

Filed Under: DIY Tagged With: 35mm Slides, analog film, DIY, diy build, Scanning, Slides

Allen Mowery: from diyphotography.net

About Allen Mowery

Allen Mowery is a commercial and editorial photographer, pseudo-philosopher, and wannabe documentarian killing time amidst the rolling hills of Central Pennsylvania. When not shooting client work or chasing overgrown wildlife from his yard, he loves to capture the stories of the people and culture around him.

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