Taking photos was one of the vital activities in many essential events in the earlier period before the discovery of current cameras. Photos were taken on the most important events like weddings, among other ceremonies. All the images were printed on hard copies and kept for keeping the memories.
There are high chances that you may have a good number of the pictures in your shoebox. Most people nowadays are facing the challenge of keeping the photos for many years to come. With technology, you can scan them and digitalize them. But the question that most people do ask themselves is, how can I scan my old photos?
There are two main options for photo scanning. One is the use of phones in scanning the old images, and the others are the use of a photo scanning service from a professional image editor. You can scan the photos yourself or hire a professional scanner.
The use of a professional is ideal because you are assured of high-quality photo scanning services.
Photo Scanning Services
This is a process that involves scanning images. The process consists of using the best scanning company and sending them your photos with negatives to digitalize them. Once the process is done, you get your online galleries or DVD.
How to scan your images at home?
The digitalization process isn’t laborious, and therefore you can do it at your home. You can do it either by the use of a photo scanner or your smartphone.
Use of photo scanner
In this case, you need to have a scanner or a multifunction printer. You need to know how to use it; otherwise, your image quality will be affected if you are unfamiliar with it. With all the equipment available follow the following steps
• Clean your scan glass- Scanners are so sensitive to even minute articles. So, you need to ensure you have kept your photo and scanner clean. The scanning environment should be dust-free. Use alcohol-based or microfiber rag in cleaning the surfaces.
• Plan on your scan- You need to come up with an order in which you will scan your photos. You can organize them according to their event date or size. Make sure you have a good plan before you begin your scanning.
• Have multiple scans at once- Most scanners allow one to scan numerous photos and crop them later. However, some scanner has an automatic software that can do the same work at once. This will be good because you will use less time in scanning.
• Select your resolution- Try to choose the best resolution that you will like the photo to have.
• Take advantage of editing services- Most scanners have editing options; this will allow one to adjust color, crop, remove red-eye, among others. You need to take advantage of this option.
• Select your difficulty- Image scanning can be technical or fundamental, depending on your choice. You need to choose the best challenge for you to have a high-quality photo.
Use of smartphone in photo scanning
The use of photo scanning apps has become popular over recent. Various quality smartphones are variable with the apps. Before you begin your scanning, you need to clean your photo and phone lens. Scan your photo on a place that has good natural lights without shadows.
There is various photo scanning app you can use in smartphone for scanning. The most common apps are, Photomyne, Google photo scan, among other apps. The apps allow you to scan and have images of high quality.
Tips for photo resolution and file format
The file format and resolution of the images depends on the need of the photo. For those who are not aware of the need of the picture prefer to go for lower resolution. Majorly the scan photo should be 600 pixels, and it is in a TIFF format.
If you need the photo for an electronic computer or projector use, you need to have a high-quality picture. This will be ideal for easy display. It should be 800 X 600 P, which is the best resolution for images. For printing services, the resolution can be 300 pixels.
Keep technical notes
Having a full understanding of the scan at your home is so important. Various software is different depending on the scanner and its operating system. The first scan might be worst, but with time and master of the scanner, you are assured of a good result. With a time of using the scanner, keep your eye on the result of each scan. Here are some of the critical areas to check on,
a. Crop and straighten
Photo cropping and straightening are useful in fixing some of the problems the phot might have after scanning. If you are not aware or familiar with editing, you can use this technique to ensure you have corrected the issues.
b. Color edit, red-eye edit, and creases
Editing involves adjusting various issues on your scanned photo. With a digitally scanned photo, you can change the color, remove creases, and red-eye from the photo. This will need you to have some photo editing software such as Photoshop.
Photoshop is easy to use, but if you are not familiar, you need to hire an expert to do it. This is why hiring a professional photo editor is ideal.
c. Scan in color
You can scan your photo in color using a few color scans options. For sepia photos, you need to set your color setting on the scanning system. On the other hand, you can use black and white colors more, especially if the image has some ink spot or has been damaged. In this case, the grayscale set is ideal. It makes editing of the model comfortable and mark remove from the photo.
Bottom line
Having digital photos is ideal as compared to physical images. They enable one to keep their memories for an extended period without fear of being affected. With your old photos, you can scan them or hire a professional photo scanning services to do for you. The digital images enable you to print the images of different sizes you may need.
