I'm trying to scan some negatives as a contact sheet using PhotoShop CS and a Canon 8400F flat bed scanner. It appears that the only way I can scan a negative and get a positive on the screen is to scan each negative strip using the film carrier, which is not what I want to do. I don't see a filter in PhotoShop that will convert a negative image to a positive. I would appreciate a recommendation for a filter that will do this, preferably free.

Usually the scanner software would be the place you would choose film type (slide, neg, maybe even type of film)

I don't know the Canon scanner, though. It can be achieved in PS, but its not ideal. (a color-correction nightmare on some film types, you are basically creating a profile)

Does hitting command+i in PS do the trick?

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What Mavic said - in the menu bar it's >> Image > Adjustments > Invert

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papercup - I wasn't clear in my original post. As soon as I click the "negative" option, the scanning software, expecting the negatives to be in a single strip in a negative carrier, gives an error message saying something about the film needing to be in the negative carrier and refuses to go on. It needs an option to allow specifying that the film negatives are in a contact sheet. But it doesn't work that way. I will give the Mavic suggestion a try.

I tried the Invert and it does not give a positive image.

Invert and then Auto color should get you prety close

Mr645 - Just now tried it. The Invert makes the picture a light blue color and Auto Color does essentially nothing. Surely there is a filter out there specifically intended for this sort of thing.

The "auto correct" is overcorrecting for the orange mask of the color negative

Try doing the correction manually using the color correction and adding blue / cyan

It might take a little practice but it is doable

You might try scanning a mask only area of one of the films - that is an area that has the orange mask
but no exposure information. These masked areas can be found on the front or back of the film.
That will give you a base line correction for the mask (no additional color info)

Each film base will be a little different too - so to batch them they will need to be the same
film type ( ie Kodak 400 , Agfa 100 etc ...) or you will still have large differences.

Try that and se if it helps

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It's a PITA, I would mod the scanner/tray, or use another one.

This may get you started in PS, but every image/curve will be different. [www.flickr.com]

That's a good tutorial 'cup (and it is a PIA)

Probably worth sending them out if you have lots of them

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there is a plug-in that converts negatives to positives and it has very good color controls, but i can't remember it to save my life...maybe this link will help out:

[www.c-f-systems.com]

I thought I had it when I found that Graphic Converter has three negative filters under Picture -> Invert. However, none of them even comes close to doing what I want.