Epson Perfection 3200 Photo Flatbed Scanner

Delivering fine 3,200 x 6,400 dpi resolution, the 3200 Photo offers phenomenal clarity and detail, whatever the task at hand. With Epson's ColorTrue II Imaging System and 48-bit scanning, it consistently delivers vivid, true-to-life colors. Combining advanced imaging technology and a powerful software bundle, it provides a complete digital imaging solution. It even includes Hi-Speed USB 2.0 and IEEE 1394 (FireWire) connectivity for Windows and Macintosh systems, plus a convenient built-in 4-by-9-inch transparency adapter. Epson provides a one-year warranty covering parts and service.

What's in the Box
Epson Perfection 3200 Photo Scanner, 4-by-9-inch transparency adapter (built into the scanner lid), 3 film holders (35mm slides, 35mm film strips, and medium format), CD-ROM with Epson Scan scanning software, Productivity Software, Electronic Reference Guide, CD-ROM with Adobe Photoshop Elements 2.0, CD-ROM with LaserSoft SilverFast SE 6, USB 2.0/1.1 cable, scanner setup poster

Product Description
The EPSON Perfection 3200 brings high-quality film scanning with the flexibility of a flatbed scanner. Offering an optical resolution of 3200x6400 dpi, it also features a built-in 4"x9" Transparency Unit and a custom-developed ASIC for high-speed film scans.The 4"x9" Transparency Unit makes the Perfection 3200 ideal for medium and large format film, and it can also scan up to twelve 35mm originals at a time, making it the ideal solution for both photography enthusiasts and professionals. At home or in businesses it is a flexible high-quality scanner for general-purpose use.A high optical density and 48-bit color recognition means that excellent reproduction quality is guaranteed, and the subtlest variations are recognized.Boasting both USB 2.0 Hi-Speed and IEEE1394 (FireWire) interfaces the Perfection 3200 Photo is compatible with both PCs and Apple Macintosh computers. Combined with the custom ASIC chip for transparency scanning, the Perfection 3200 Photo is approximately three times the speed of its predecessor, the Perfection 2450 Photo.Different interface configurations are available to suit home, amateur and advanced users.

The big thing for me is the transparency scanning, so I'll focus on that. I've scanned both slides and negatives, and both are great. The color is good, I don't have to sweat bullets in Photoshop trying to salvage the scan, like I have done with previous scanners with so-called "transparency adapters". This scanner puts all the other transparency adapters I've encountered to shame. An awesome transparency adapter, indeed!

However, I have some underexposed Kodachrome slides, so they are always going to be a little more difficult. But, with some tweaking with the bundled Silverfast scanning software, my scans (even on dense, undexposed Kodachrome) have been fine.

I find scanning negatives to be quite nice as well. I get good color on them (especially when using Silverfast). However, this is not a professional level transparency scanner, and it should not be mistaken as such. (It may be surpisingly close to pro-level in some cases, however!)

The only complaint about the Silverfast software (which is a "lite" version) is that it won't scan in 48 bit. But 24 bit mode is OK for me. My file sizes (when scanning a 35 mm transparency) are about 35 to 40 MB at 3200 resolution, 24 bit. This translates to a 14" x 9 1/2" print, at 300 dpi (good resolution setting). It'll yield a much bigger print if set at 150 dpi, obviously. That's more than enough for most people using ink jet printers.

I have been frequenting a message board that has reviews on this scanner, and many professional photographers are also most pleased with this scanner. I'm not at the professional level yet ("serious hobbyist" is more like it) but I can get a bit picky with my photos. But these pro photographers were far pickier than me, and they liked this scanner. Those who were scanning large format negatives (larger than 35 mm) were very pleased with the quality of this scanner, especially for the price. They said that there wasn't that much of a huge difference (at least not several thousand dollars difference) between the 3200 and a high-end thousands-of-dollars professional scanner. Don't get me wrong--you'll still need and want a dedicated "pro" scanner for certain things, but for most people, (even some pros) this scanner more than fills the bill.

I installed it on a Macintosh G4 running OS X.2. Installation was seamless. My Mac loves this scanner! I have it attached to the Firewire port, but it comes with USB as well. I have a lot of RAM loaded on my Mac, and as usual, lots of RAM is recommended when dealing with large graphics files.

I tried the Epson "Scan" software (which will scan in 48 bit) but it's not quite as nice as the Silverfast software. (By the way, Silverfast is considered to be excellent scanning software, and sells for a tidy sum separately.) Epson's software tends to crop the negatives and slides too much when set in "thumbnail" mode. I highly recommend using Silverfast, or just avoiding Epson's "thumbnail" mode. Also, there are several plastic film holders, so your transparencies are kept in place. Very handy.

Also bundled with this scanner is Photoshop Elements 2. This "little brother" to Photoshop is an excellent software package and great if you don't yet have your own graphics software. (I had Photoshop 7 so used that most of the time.) Photoshop Elements will suit most users' needs more than well enough.

I highly recommend this scanner. And apparently, many other (far more experienced) photographers share my viewpoint. Most of the buzz about this scanner is very good.


Great Scanner, Easy Setup, Kudos to Amazon for their Service   September 6, 2003
Alan E. Cook (Shoals, IN USA)
58 out of 58 found this review helpful

I bought this scanner after a lot of research into scanners within my price range (under $500). This scanner's predecessor, the Epson Perfection 2450, consistently came out on top in user reviews. So, I came to Amazon, and found they had the best price on this newly released model.

HOWEVER, when the scanner arrived, it had DUST UNDER THE GLASS. There was one VERY LARGE piece of debris under there that was particularly troubling. I knew that unless I could somehow remove it, I'd have to edit every picture to take out that spot. Now I love Photoshop's "healing brush," but I don't see why I should have to use it on my own scans from a BRAND NEW scanner!! That's what I call a self-inflicted wound!

After trying for considerable time to figure out how to get under the glass and clean it, and consulting with my wife and a friend, I decided that if I took the scanner apart I would probably void the warranty and possibly do some damage. I had read that Epson support was a little lacking, so I turned to Amazon. And I'm glad I did! Without any hesitation, Amazon agreed to send me a new scanner (which arrived before I sent the original back), and paid the return shipping on the original item. I have to say that Amazon's attitude restored my faith in customer service--in fact exceeded my expectations.

By the way, Amazon sent me the replacement scanner by 2nd Day Air! (the oriiginal came by super saver shipping, i.e. FREE!).

I now have the best scanner in it's class and price range, with no dust underneath the glass!

I'll add that I am a Macintosh user (fanatic might be a better word!), and this scanner works great with my 1 Ghz Dual Processor G4 running OS X 10.2.6. The software was a breeze to install and simple to use.

Thanks Epson for a great scanner (shame about the dust!), and thanks Amazon for the best in customer service.


Dust inside, but a good scanner   September 5, 2003
32 out of 33 found this review helpful

Recently, I purchased the 3200 Photo. Initial setup was fairly painless, but after the first attempted scan, there were some obvious issues. The first scan had white "flecks"(dust, when scanned at 600dpi or larger looks like flecks) that covered the scan. Despite the scanner being new, and some moderate cleaning by myself trying to remove the dust particles, alas, it was not to be. The dust was inside the scanner itself, not on its scanning surface. Despite the quality scans the unit appears capable of grabbing (the images scanned, excluding the dust flecks, were top notch. They were rich in color, the adjustments by the included software enhanced the already good scan to a superb level), the dust renders this unit non-viable. I am currently working with Amazon to get a replacement, as I still desire a unit with the capabilities of this scanner, but it must go back till I get one without the internal dust.

You must also be aware that SilverFast, one of the included software packages, while providing a very user friendly scanning interface, has some rather bad issues with not finding Adobe's "plugin.dll" file. After trying some things that Epson stated would fix the problem, launching the program crashed the system and forced a reboot. Uninstalling and reinstalling it several time (3+) finally got it to quit crashing the system, but the program itself still can not find plugin.dll, no matter how many times I point it to it or copy the file itself into the directory structure of the program.

Overall, the scanner appears to have a vast untapped potential, and if you can get one without dust, and one with a copy of SilverFast that works, you will be very pleased with this scanner. I have yet to try the film scan, but if its retains the quality of the general art book scans I have performed, it will provide you with an exquisite copy of your favorite pictures.


Great Scanner, But Keep a Can of Compressed Air Handy...   November 26, 2003
Woo Song (Irvine, CA USA)
32 out of 33 found this review helpful

I bought this scanner as an upgrade to my old Epson Perfection 610 Scanner. There was nothing wrong with the old Epson, but I wanted a scanner that could do 35mm negative scans.

I've had this scanner for about 4 days now, and it's worked great. The setup was effortless and the scans are great, rich in color. As I said, I primarily use it for film scanning and the tools they've bundled with it are terrific. You can scan 12 35mm negatives, or 4 slides, or even 120 medium format film. I've tried scanning at 3200 dpi, and it produces files which are around 800k-1.5mb in size with a resolution of about 10-12 megapixels. 2400 dpi is acceptable, but I really wouldn't go lower than that.

Also, when scanning in your negatives, you can do up to 12 35mm negatives at a time. However, I'd suggest doing just 6 at a time when using the higher dpi settings. That's because the top lamp tends to "cook" the negatives if you leave them on the tray too long. Maybe cook is too strong a word, nothing happens to them - it's just something to be wary about.

I've tried out both the Silverfast scanning software as well as the standard Epson scan software. It works great if you're only interested in scanning the pictures/negatives. However, the only drawback to it is that the dust removal software that's bundled with both are pretty much useless. It adds twice the overhead/time to the scanning process and does nothing to remove dust or scratches. I'd say get familiar with the Photoshop Elements 2.0 software that comes bundled with it, or use Photoshop 7's Healing Tool.

Because of the software's inability to remove dust, I keep a can of compressed air handy and give the tray and film a quick burst of air right before I scan them in. BTW, the Silverfast software is ugly and very unintuitively designed - it reminds me of an old Windows 3.11 app.

I'd say, overall, I'm very happy with the scanner. However, because of the software's limited functionality, I give it 4 out of 5 instead of the 5 out of 5 it could've gotten.


What A Surprise!   September 13, 2003
R. Lade (Palm Beach, Florida)
25 out of 25 found this review helpful

I'm flabergasted over this scanner!!!! What a versatile piece this is. I can scan pictures, negatives, slides, and most of all, shooting in 4X5 format a lot, I can scan the negatives and transparencies from my 4X5 as well.

The clarity from this scanner, in my opinion, rivals scanners that are twice the price. Another big plus for me is the speed. Since it's USB 2, I can scan into my Sony laptop which is also USB 2 and it's done before I can decide on the next picture I want to scan.

I'll even go so far as to say that the software that comes bundled with this scanner is actually useful. Photoshop Elements 2.0 is a great program. Since I bought the "pro" version of the scanner (which I got for the non-pro price) I also got Monaco EZ color and Silverfast. Good stuff!!! However, if you have Adobe gamma loader on your computer, (which will be on the Elements CD), you don't really need to load Monaco. It's basically the same thing from what I can see.

The only addition that would have been a nice touch would have been the inclusion of digital ICE. Other than that, this is one dynamite scanner!!!!