Scanning printHP4c) vs negative(Nikon 4000)-why does quality differ?

[David Causier]

From a roll of film developed and printed by a local processor, I've
noticed that my HP4C can duplicate the print nearly exactly, whereas
scanning the negative of the same picture with my Nikon 4000 rarely
matches the print quality, although the detail is usually sharper. The
same applies when I scan slides-the scanned image is never of the
quality of the projected slide. The problem seems to be somewhere in
color management in the Nikon. I'm getting ready to batch scan several
hundred slides, and obvioulsy don't want to have to tweak each one.
Any suggestions? Thank you.

 

[hpowen]

I have the same two scanners. Besides *much* sharper overall detail,
you should see an enormous difference in the shadow and highlight
details as well.

As far as color management goes, there have been literally hundreds of
posts here dealing with Nikon's proclivities. Many people advocate
turning CM off in NikonScan, or at least attempting to. Others use
Vuescan with good results. If the results coming from your Nikon aren't
far superior to your prints in every respect (assuming that you are not
paying for custom prints), there is either something wrong with your
scanner or your workflow.