Lab Scanned Negatives Backwards

[Michael J. Flynn]

Hey all, 

I recently directed a short on Super 16, and when I got the 4k scan back, I realized the image was backwards - flipped horizontally.  If they scanned the wrong side of the film, would that affect image quality at all? I feel like some of the shots are softer than I expect from Super 16 and Super Speeds, but I guess that also could be the fault of our 1st AC lol..

Just looking for some opinions/guidance on this, and whether or not it's worth it to try and get the lab to rescan the emulsion side.

[Robert Houllahan]

Depending on the scanner they might have just left a software switch flipped, so it would not matter Pix quality wise, this is possible on a machine like the Scan Station or Xena that has a "flip horizontal" button in the setup.

A DFT Spirit 4K Arriscan or other machine that uses mechanical sprockets or pins cannot really be loaded backwards like a Scan Station could be so again if ithe pix is flipped it was a software choice.

So IMO if you flip it back in edit it should be fine just check that you are seeing grain finely scanned to be sure.

[Phillip Mosness]

"Depending on the scanner they might have just left a software switch flipped, so it would not matter Pix quality wise, this is possible on a machine like the Scan Station or Xena that has a "flip horizontal" button in the setup."

 

Ha ha Robert. That happened to me from some 35mm you guys  scanned for me a few years ago, I flipped it in post and it's still some of the best footage I've gotten scanned .