$40 each to convert a slide to a photo seems like a lot. Especially if you have a bunch of them. Here is something I do from time to time. It's not a perfect science. I take a picture of a negative or slide with my digital camera on the close-up mode. Then I have a digital file to do with as I please. In the B&W shot of my wife you can see my reflection at the top. Both of these photos were taken almost 50 years ago.