Photo Scanning Tips

The following ideas are taken from the article "Yes, You Scan!" by Rick Crume  published in the  Jan/Feb 2013 issue of Family Tree Magazine

1. Equipment
1. computer, scanner and cloud storage or external hard drive
1. Multifunction printers do not perform as well on photos as standalone scanners do
2. Free photo programs Picasa.google.com and windows Photo Gallery
2. Preparation
1. Wear white cotton gloves or wash hands with soup, rinse and dry well and only handle edges of photos
2. Remove staples, paper clips, rubber bands etc from photos
3. Keep photo collections together and in order to help with identification
4. Keep scanner glass clean - spray cleaner on lint-free towel and then wipe the glass
5. Use soft brush to remove dust from each photo before scanning
3. Scanner Settings
1. Color - scan in color not grayscale even for black and white or sepia photos
1. This gives more options when editing
2. Resolution: - 300 dpi for reprinting same size as original
1. scan small prints at 1,200 dpi and large at 800 dpi
1. Higher resolutions take longer and require more storage
3. File Format - Uncompressed TIFF or optimal quality
1. retain more detail than JPEG and require more storage space will not degrade each time to save as a jpeg will.
2. To edit a JPEG file, save i n TIFF as the original unedited copy
4. Scanning
1. Advanced mode allows you to change the dpi
2. Do rough scan to see if anything needs to be changed
3. Image setting allows for corrections such as removing dust, adjusting color balance, brightness/contrast and tone.
1. Faded picture - increase the contrast
2. Scan back to pick up any written information
5. Label and Editing
1. label with "tags" and captions
2. Edit a copy not the original image
3. Back up work
6. Slides - can get adapters to scanners to do slides