What causes vertical streaks in some lab scans of black-and-white negatives?
Asked 6/22/2015
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I received scans from a lab and noticed vertical streaks in some frames, while other frames look normal. I’m shooting Kodak Tri-X 400 and wasn’t sure whether the issue came from the camera, the film, development, or the scanning process. If the streaks appear only in the scans, what is the most likely cause, and how can I confirm it?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
11y ago
2 Answers
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Because the streaks are all in a perfect vertical orientation my bet is that the scanner is to blame. While it's possible for streaks to happen while processing the negatives I feel that's pretty unlikely to result in the same thing. And it won't be the camera.
Possibly the scanner was not properly cleaned or maintained.
The only way to be sure is to scan some of the same negatives with someone else, using a different scanner. If the streaks are no longer there you can confirm that it was a scanning issue.
Originally by user3422. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user3422
11y ago
0
Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
If the streaks appear only in the scans and not on the actual negatives, the most likely cause is the lab’s scanner rather than your camera. Perfectly vertical streaks are a strong clue that this happened during scanning. Possible causes mentioned include a dirty or poorly maintained scanner, or an issue with the scanner’s power supply.
It’s less likely to be caused by development if the pattern is consistent and vertical, and it won’t be caused by the camera.
To confirm, inspect the negatives themselves. If the streaks aren’t visible there, ask the lab to rescan them or have the same negatives scanned elsewhere. If the streaks disappear on a different scanner, that confirms it was a scanning issue. Contacting the lab is reasonable, and they may offer a free rescan if their scanner caused the problem.
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AI11y ago
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