Making Digital Photographs and Slides Without a Scanner -- Part II
by
Michael Tobin, M.D., Ph.D.
Introduction
Shortly after my article "Making Digital Photographs and
Slides Without a Scanner" appeared in the May, 1999 issue of
Amazing Computing/Amiga, Seattle Filmworks altered its proprietary
.SFW image format. The result was that, temporarily, the SFWJPG
viewing program ported to the Amiga by Andreas Kleinert was unable
to display Seattle Filmworks' digital images.
To review, Seattle Filmworks is one of a number of commercial
photographic houses that will take 35 mm. film and return the
pictures as digital images on a CD-ROM. As an additional bonus
Seattle stores customer pictures on its website, from where they
can be downloaded, e-mailed, etc. Special software needed for
viewing Seattle's proprietary image format is provided only for PC
and Mac users. The situation improved recently when Everett Lipman
wrote a UNIX program
(http://www.lipman.org/software/sfw/)
for viewing Seattle digital images which Andreas Kleinert subsequently
recompiled for the Amiga --
(http://ftp.uni-paderborn.de/pub/aminet/gfx/conv/sfwjpg.lha).
Seattle Filmworks' decision to change its .SFW image format
was not arbitrary. At the time my article appeared, Seattle had
been providing pictures with a maximum of 768 x 512 pixel
resolution and 24 bit color depth, a resolution less than provided
by Kodak, Mystic Labs, and even most digital cameras. Seattle
responded by offering digital images with almost twice the original
resolution -- 1472 x 984 pixels. Seattle was then forced to modify
its .SFW image file format to accommodate the multiplicity of
resolutions now available to its customers.
Fortunately, Lipman was aware of the changes made to the .SFW
format and modified his UNIX programs accordingly. I e-mailed
Andreas about the problem, and as ever, he responded as a true
friend of the Amiga by modifying the Amiga versions of SFWJPG and
PWPJPG so they now work with both old and new .SFW image formats.
Although the situation is now stable and there is again viable
Amiga software for de-archiving .SFW digital images, one cannot be
be sure that Seattle Filmworks will not decide to change its
proprietary formats again. I therefore decided to look at other
options available to Amiga users.
SOME ALTERNATIVES
Mystic Color Labs -- Tried and True
I can remember sending film to Mystic Color Labs when I was
just a kid -- and that was a long time ago. Their service was
reliable and the quality of their prints, very good. So, when I
saw a Mystic ad offering to develop a 24 exposure roll of film,
scan the pictures onto a CD ROM, and then upload them to the
Internet for only $10.95, I decided to take a chance.
Within a few days of sending them a roll of print film, Mystic
e-mailed me that my photos were now accessible on the Internet
(http://www.mysticcolorlab.com).
I did have some difficulty setting up a password on my first log-on,
but this may have been due to AWeb 3.2's incorrect presentation of
Mystic's web page. Mystic's friendly staff cleared up the problem
the next day.
Mystic uses Kodak PhotoNet website online for Internet display
of customers' pictures. Each thumbnail image of the developed roll
of film can be viewed at higher resolution, e-mailed to friends, or
downloaded individually or as part of a group. To do the latter,
you can choose to receive your photos as a windows archive
(photos.exe). Because this is basically a "ZIP" file, you can
decompress it into individual JPEG images using the program
"UnZip," which you can find on Aminet (UnZip.lha). There is no
charge for downloading pictures as 24 bit color images with 728 x
512 pixel resolution.
Mystic's PhotoNet CD-ROM, which you receive by mail, is also
Amiga-friendly. You can find your images in JPEG format in the
"ROLLS" directory. Enclosed with your CD-ROM are prints and an
index picture.
Kodak Photo CD -- When Only the Best Will Do
I have described the Kodak Photo CD option in my previous
article. In Kodak's PCD format, each picture is stored as a 24 bit
color image in 5 different resolutions, ranging from 192 x 128 to
3072 x 2048 pixels. The Professional Photo CD also includes 4096 x
6144 pixel images at an additional cost.
Photo CD images are not in JPEG format. Rather, they are YCC
color encoded and, as I understand it, they are not compressed. A
Kodak Photo CD picture with 1536 x 1024 pixel resolution and 24 bit
color depth is a 4.7 megabyte file which is approximately 1000
times larger -- and, therefore, that much more detailed -- than the
same image on PhotoNet CD-ROM.
Because of the multiple resolutions per picture, a Kodak Photo
CD can hold only about 100 different photographs. A unique feature
of Photo CD's is that you can have a photo lab add more pictures,
providing you have physical space on the CD-ROM.
Kodak Picture CD -- A Photo CD for the Rest of Us
In addition to Photo CD's, Kodak now offers Picture CD's as a
less expensive option. When you bring in a roll of 35 mm. print
film for Kodak processing, you can get a CD-ROM of the same images
in JPEG format, 1536 x 1024 pixel resolution, and 24 bit color
depth. Images are stored in the "Pictures" drawer of the Picture
CD and are readily displayed with any JPEG-capable viewer. Judging
from the 4- to 5- kilobyte file size of each picture, the degree of
compression appears similar to that used by Mystic Color Labs.
With Kodak Picture CD, you receive prints and a CD-ROM.
Internet storage is left as an option. For a small additional fee,
you can have your pictures uploaded to Kodak PhotoNet online which,
you will recall, is the same service used by Mystic Color Labs.
Dale Laboratories -- A Challenge
Dale Laboratories
(http://www.dalelabs.com)
encourages you to try their product which they advertise humbly as
"The World's Best Picture CD." In exchange for your roll of exposed
print film, Dale will return your pictures as any combination of prints,
slides, and image files on a floppy disk, CD-ROM, or uploaded to the
Internet.
Dale Laboratories' CD-ROM, which they also call a Picture CD,
stores images in PCD format with the highest resolution being 1536
x 1024 pixels, 24 bit color depth. Image definition is that of a
Kodak Photo CD but the price less, being essentially the same as
for the CD-ROM's from Mystic, Seattle and Kodak. The only
differences between a Dale CD-ROM and a Kodak Photo CD is that you
cannot add more images to a Dale CD-ROM and the highest resolution
Photo CD images (3072 x 2048) are not included.
You can view the images on your Dale CD-ROM and convert them
into IFF format using the excellent program, PCD Manager, which you
can find on Aminet (PCD_Manager.lha).
AND THE WINNER IS?
The Amiga user is the winner because all of the choices are
excellent. I do have some guidelines, however.
If you need the highest resolution, say for prints and
enlargements, I recommend a Kodak Photo CD or Photo CD
Professional. If you do not have a professional photo lab nearby,
Dale Laboratories is a fine mail-order option.
If you want Photo CD quality and are satisfied with a maximum
1536 x 1024 resolution, Dale Laboratories' Picture CD is still your
choice. You will have excellent quality images and spend less
money than for a Photo CD.
If you are thinking of video or Internet applications in which
images need to be good quality but will have to be compressed, you
need look no further than either Mystic or Seattle. If you use
slide instead of print film, Seattle can put your pictures on CD-
ROM, inexpensively. The other photo labs require print film for
low cost CD-ROMs.
If the speed and convenience of local drop-off and pick-up are
considerations, you should know that many stores nationwide accept
film for Kodak Picture CD's. Image quality is competitive with CD-
ROMs from Mystic and Seattle. Consult Kodak's website for a list
of stores near you
(http://www.kodak.com/).
IF INTERNET PHOTOS ARE YOUR GAME ...
If having your photos on the Internet is important to you,
remember that both Mystic Color Labs and Seattle Filmworks will
upload your pictures at no extra charge and store them for one
month for all your friends (and foes) to see. Those with an
excessive number of friends or foes can extend their storage time
for a small fee. Your photos may very well make it to the Internet
before your CD-ROM arrives at your home.
Both Kodak and Dale Laboratories leave Internet storage as an
option for those who want it. Dale Laboratories' storage area is,
in my opinion, the nicest of the bunch. It is free of gratuitous
advertisements, the quickest to load, and the easiest to use.
Individual images are downloaded as .JPEG files while groups of
images are ".ZIP'ed" together first. Images downloaded from Dale's
website have a modest 510 x 340 resolution, which is still adequate
for e-mail and Internet purposes.
CONCLUSION
The longevity of the Amiga is enhanced by open standards. The
internet scripting language, HTML, and the image format, JPEG, are
but two examples of open standards used on the Amiga.
Proprietary approaches, on the other hand, are exclusionary,
limiting sales and usage to those with the "right" software or
computer. Proprietary solutions can create total dependence on one
manufacturer or supplier, which is a nuisance at best and a danger
at worst.
Photographic laboratories that use standard image formats like
JPEG, and standard archives like ZIP, allow everyone to enjoy their
products and services.
So, let's keep insisting on open standards and let's keep
implementing them on the Amiga.
************************************
FIGURES
Figure 1 --
Commercial labs differ in their approach to Internet
display of customer photos. Some web sites (e.g., Dale Laboratories)
load faster and are friendlier to the Amiga than others.
Figure 2 --
Before the days of scanners and digital labs, making prints
from slides meant photographing the slide. A flash lamp placed
behind the slide holder provided illumination for a 35 mm. camera
loaded with print film. An adjustable bellows allowed the image to
be centered and zoomed prior to exposure.