Archive for July, 2009

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Creating Digital Albums From Old Photos

Tuesday, July 28th, 2009

Since digital cameras came into the market, most people use digital formats for new photos, and there are people keeping older film camera paper prints, slides and negatives. We will show how to convert them into digital formats.

Paper Prints

Sizes 4X6 and 5X7. If they are kept too long, tend to lose their quality, the paper might turn yellow, bend and colors faded.

Slides

Are similar to negatives but projecting photos on large screen.

Negatives

Are processed film usually 35mm roll which hardly used unless to develop new paper prints.

Want to know how to convert all those old photos from traditional paper and negatives to digital? This is easy to copy and a better way to keep the photos in the computer for long time. For amateurs try simple, easy and cheap methods. Professional photographers will spend time and money on this process scanning and requires different equipment.

Scan paper photos prints on a scanner yourself, is a cheaper way, unless you want to send to a professional scanning service that will scan and mail them back the originals and a DVD with the digital scans. Sometimes, it’s a risk to take, mailing the only hardcopy of your photos.

The Resolution is measured by the number of dots per inch, if you are going to scan it yourself. Usually the scanner can scan at 1200DPI or more. The higher the resolution the slower the scan and bigger photo file size. If the higher resolutions scan is at 300 to 600 DPI, you get better results.

When you buy a scanner check the slide scanning Speed, which is measured by number of scans per minute and check the speed at the DPI you’re going to use. Speed is important if you are using more than hundreds photos. For better results, scan at the lowest resolution possible, 300-600DPI is good enough.

Photo feeding is not an issue if only small number, but for more photos make sure that the scanner is fast and easy loading. A good scanner will automatically load stacks of photos, feed and scan them for you.

Scanning negatives and slides is harder than scanning paper prints, so a professional scanning service is easier and cheaper. Standard flat scanner will not be good enough; you need a film/slides scanner. Negatives and slides are high resolution sources and require scanning at higher DPI than paper prints. In this cases 2400DPI or higher should be used. So scanning home photo paper prints is good enough but scanning the source negatives is a not needed.

You can see how easy to photo paper prints by yourself rather than using professional scanning service. For a small investment, get an expensive automatic scanner which has all the functions to convert your original quality memories into digital format, for you and your children to enjoy.

Plus you can keep these photos stored safely on DVD hard drive or online where you can never loose them. And you can share your photos with the world faster then you can say cheese!

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Film Conversion, Anything to Digital

Tuesday, July 28th, 2009

There are many types of film conversions available that many people are not aware of. Some people are not aware that any 35mm film or APS can be converted to digital although this is very common. People often do not realize that any film even 110 film can be made digital. This is even true of slides, which most people do not realize is also a type of film that can be made digital or even into photos.

Some people still do not realize that they can easily convert their 35mm or APS film to a digital format. This is actually a very common type of film conversion. Most people take advantage of this at the same time they have their film developed. People are not often very aware of how the process actually works especially when they have a disposable camera. The film is merely inside the plastic casing which must be torn apart. The casing is then recycled while the film is then developed. After that the film is in a stable place and can be manipulated in many ways. It can be made into pictures or merely scanned and made into digital copies. Film conversion has advanced so far in modern days that anything is possible.

Since the machine that is scanning pictures is always making a digital copy, anything can be made into just a digital copy rather than get prints. Any machine capable of film conversion can handle even less common film formats. 110 film is an older format that few people choose to use anymore. This is because the quality is often very poor. Very few people still need the film developed. Rather they just want to make digital copies of their pictures. Although many people will choose to just scan their photos, going from film actually gives you a better quality picture. Many people are unaware that modern machines are still capable of slide scanning older formats. 110 film conversion is very available though.

Slides are another type of high quality film that people have certain misconceptions about. Although it does take special equipment to develop slide film and then mount it, it does not take special equipment to print from it. It can be used in the same types of film conversion any other film can. One can easily make a CD of all of their slide images. These digital copies can then be put online. Many people like taking advantage of this so that they can easily make an online portfolio. Some people think that because slide film is so large and in full color that it is special.

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Seven Steps To a Better Photograph Part One

Monday, July 27th, 2009

Taking better photographs is a combination of proper technique, talent, and experience. Once you have shot your best work, you should consider sending your pics to a company that specializes in digital photo printing services, digital photo restoration, and 35 mm negative slide scanning, in order to obtain digital quality prints, even if a digital camera is not your preferred medium. Photo printing, restoration, and scanning services also give you the option of purchasing a CD of your photographs, which can be an invaluable backup resource in the event that your original files, film, or prints are lost or damaged.

Go in for the close up. One thing that photo restoration and 35 mm slide scanning services notice is that most people stand too far away from their subject, and since most photos are taken with digital cameras nowadays, this problem is becoming more prevalent. Before digital cameras, professional camera men used the term shoe leather zooms, when describing their photography techniques
, meaning that if they wanted to zoom in on the subject, they just walked closer. Even if you are utilizing an antique camera, or a drug store disposable, you can improve your photographs, just by getting a little closer to your subject before taking the picture.

Use all of the space. It is important to focus on your subject, and less important to focus on the really pretty flower or interesting tree next to it. It may sound obvious, but you would be surprised if you knew that amount of crowded shots that the average digital photo printing service company sees in a week, let alone a day. In other words, going along with the first tip, do not be afraid to get closer and make the subject, not the background, the focus of the picture. Take a look through the photo archives, particularly those of family portraits, and you will see that more often than not, the subject, or subjects was always the focal point of the shot, regardless of what was in the background.

Remember the rule of thirds. You should think of the viewfinder of your camera as being divided into three columns and three rows, and position your subject in a way that will cover as many of these blocks as possible. Often, the only real distinction between a professional photograph and an amateur one, according to digital photo restoration and slide scanning pros, is the placement and size of the photographs subject. At the risk of sounding redundant: do not be afraid to move in for that close up.

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Scanning Paper Prints to Digital Photos On your Hard Disk

Monday, July 27th, 2009

Sometimes you find yourself in a situation when you have to scan paper prints, negatives or slides and store them as digital photos on your computer. Although the reason for doing that can vary there are some common considerations to scanning paper prints. In this article we will go over some of them and try to make your scanning experience easier.

There are three types of prints that you might be scanning:

# Paper prints: the most common, usually at sizes like 4X6 and 5X7.

# Negatives: also known simply as film. This is the processed film usually 35mm from which paper prints are made.

# Slides: very similar to negatives used for projecting photos on a large screen.

Scanning paper photos prints.

Photo paper prints are easy to scan. You can choose to scan them yourself at home (purchasing a scanner that can do the job is usually cheap and costs less than a $100). You can also choose to mail them (or hand them) to a professional scanning service that will scan them for you and mail you back the originals and a DVD with the digital scans (such services include www.digmypics.com, www.digitalpickle.com, www.britepix.com and many more)

There are pros and cons to both scanning at home and using a professional service. If you have a small number of photos slide scanning at home is easier. If you have plenty of photos using a service might be easier but you can end up spending more money.
When scanning at home consider the following:

# Resolution: the resolution of a scan is measured by the number of dots per inch that the scanner can produce. Most scanners can scan at 1200 DPI or more. Usually the scanner can be set to scan at different resolutions. The higher the resolution the slower the scan and the bigger the photo file size will be. For most paper prints scanning at 300 to 600 DPI is enough but you can experiment scanning at higher resolutions if you feel it provides better results.

# Speed: If you have a small number of photos speed is not an issue. If you have hundreds or more of photos scanning speed becomes important. To get fast scans you would have to scan at the lowest resolution possible that results in good enough scans – for most paper prints 300 to 600 DPI is enough.. Also if you’re going to buy a scanner check the scanning speed (usually measured in the number of scans per minute make sure that you check the speed at the DPI you’re going to use).

# Photo feeding: if you only have a small number of photos this is not an issue. If you have many photos make sure that the scanner you buy allows fast and easy loading of photos. Some higher-end scanners will let you load a stack of photos and will automatically feed and scan them for you. These scanners are the right choice if you are planning on scanning hundreds or more photos.

Scanning negatives and slides

Scanning negatives and slides is harder than scanning paper prints. In most cases it is easier and maybe cheaper to use a professional scanning service . If you want to scan at home your standard flat scanner will not be good enough. In most cases you will need to spend money on purchasing a film/slides scanner. Those scanners are more expensive than the flat paper scanners. Negatives and slides are small high resolution sources and thus require scanning at higher DPI than paper prints. In most cases 2400DPI or higher should be used.

The considerations for scanning negatives and slides are similar to scanning paper prints. If you need to scan just a few negatives or slides speed and ease are not important but if you’re going to scan hundreds or more you should spend more money on scanners that can feed the negatives or slides automatically or can just load a roll of film and scan it.

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Digital Film Scanning

Monday, July 27th, 2009

This fantastic little Digital Film Scanning not only scans negatives but also slides too. With the Digital Film SScanning software you can enhance, edit and retouch your images with ease. Our Digital Film Scanning is a wonderfully compact and nifty little negative and slide scanning that scans in your old 35mm photographic negatives and slides, uploading them directly onto your computer. Everyone nowadays has opted for the ease and practicality of digital cameras, but how many strips of negatives do you still have in boxes and drawers around your house? All those family trips, special occasions, embarrassing moments and fond memories on little strips of plastic. Photos get passed around, lost, ripped and fade with time, so why not get out those negatives and pop them into our USB Digital Film Scanning! You could email them to friends, embarrass them on their online profiles with old school photos or print out your pictures and create a new album full of fond memories!

Do you have a question about this product? Email us now
Digital Film Scanning
The Digital Film Scanning can scan 35mm film and slides
The film scanner is only 19 cm x 9 cm x 9 cm so won’t clutter up your desk and makes storage easy!
Our film scanners are powered by USB and are compatible with Windows XP and USB 2.0
The resolution of your images will be 5 mega pixels, equal to 1800 dpi (enhances to 3600 dpi)
The Digital Film Scanning also comes with editing software
Easy enough for ages 12 to 120!
Our Digital Film Scanning is the perfect solution whether you are using it for college work, sorting out your old photographic negatives or wanting to back up your old images onto your computer. Scanning in the negatives rather than the photographs produces a much higher quality and sharp image…unless you didn’t focus the camera or had your thumb over the lens. With our Digital Film Scanning you can relive all those memories! Can you imagine all the wedding photos, birthday snaps from 30 years ago, mom on the beach with her culottes and sun visor, dad in his Bros T-shirt and bum bag doing the conga at your sweet 16? Just connect our USB digital scanner to your computer and let the cringing begin!

This tiny Digital Film Scanning won’t make you David Bailey, but maybe it will also encourage you to dust off that old camera and have a play. We all love the simplicity of digital cameras and the ease of uploading the images, but with out digital scanner it is just as easy to upload your negatives! There really is nothing like the good old SLR cameras with their apertures, depth of fields, the smell of the 35mm film when you take the cap off that little black pot and the anticipation of what fantastic masterpieces lie in wait on that completed roll of film. You grasp onto your ‘Express Processing’ stub like a winning lottery ticket and rush to see what heads you’ve cut off this time and who’s eye’s are in the half-blink stage at the back…The USB Digital Film Scanning will give your old negatives a new lease of life and give you a new ‘friends and family blackmailing strategy.’
What’s in the Digital Film Scanning Box
1 x Digital Film Scanner with USB cable attached
1 x 35mm negative holder
1 x Slide holder
1 x Software CD
1 x Set of Instructions

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How to Scan Your Images and Use Your Scanner and Print Your Photos

Monday, July 20th, 2009

Here are some easy step by step instructions to get the most out of your scanner for you.

1. Carefully clean the scanner glass with a piece of cloth or glass cleaner and allow it to dry.
2. Make sure the scanner is on.
3. Place the item on the scanner glass with the image facing down. Ensure that the actual print area is parallel to the edges of the scanner.
4. After you start the scanner software, run a preview. If your scanner software does not run the preview automatically, do so yourself.
5. If your picture or graphic appears skewed or crooked in the preview, line it up better and repeat the preview.
6. On the preview, use your mouse to outline the desired scan area.
7. If you are going to use Photoshop (or any other image editing program), scan all color images as ‘millions of colors’. Otherwise, use grey scale for black and white.
8. Adjust the scanner resolution. Set it to 300 dpi to scan for printing and 72 dpi for slide scanning for use on the web.
9. Try the auto-exposure button if applicable in your scanner software to adjust brightness and contrast, if needed.
10. Click Scan or Final to scan the image.
12. Save image in tif, psd or bmp if you are scanning to print. Save it in jpg or gif if you are scanning for the web.

With all scanner software, the scanning features and scanning process are generally similar. However, here are a few scanner software programs that we recommend.

If you want to scan from your transparencies and produce good quality 24bit images somewhat automatically, then Silverfast AI Scanner Software could be a good choice for you. If you want to scan negatives, then you may find Vuescan Scanning Software pretty useful. Any program needs to be compatible with your scanner.

Other Recommended Scanner Software:

HP PrecisionScan
Microtek ScanWizard 5
Microtek ScanWizard Pro 6
Minolta Scan Dual II
Umax VistaScan
Umax MagicScan

Few final tips to add on scanning and printing your scanned images are:

• Choose the best possible photo. Although you can make adjustments on your image with the image editing programs, the better your original scanning photo, the better your final scan will be. For better results, choose pictures with good contrast and that also have good lighting.

• Always scan your image in the position or direction in which the image will be used. If you rotate the image in your image editing program, some detail will be lost.

• Scan only the part of the image that you need. If you don’t need the whole image but only a small portion of it, then just scan that portion. Your scanner software has the tools to do this.

• To make adjustments to color and sharpness on your scanned image, use your image editor, not the scanning software of your scanner.

• When saving a jpg, a quality of 2, 3 or 4 is generally sufficient for scanning for the web.

• When you are editing, don’t forget that the image’s appearance will change from monitor to monitor. Also, the height and width of the image will vary from software to software.

• Read the manual for your scanner software if available and get to know your scanner software. Or, just play with the scanner software until you are sufficiently familiar with it. As you make more and more scans, you will better understand how to get the best results from your scanner.

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Using a technical support specialist

Monday, July 20th, 2009

If you are setting up at home or in the office and think you need some help with pc troubleshooting, internet, network set up and more, you can use ISP (Internet Service Providers) and similar retailers, or you can use find companies dedicated to affordable services at your home or place of work.

Most technical support companies have a specialist team which offers you a fresh approach to solving IT issues. With these companies generally you get greater and more personal problem solving and technical support than you would receive from ISP’s, as ISP’s can be large companies with many clients to provide customer service to.

If you choose to use the services of a technical support company to help you set up or trouble shoot any technical related issue, generally you will find that these skilled specialists can cope and manage with almost any technical issue. Upon choosing your technical support company, you should be able to present any problem to these skilled technicians, and the problem will be solved.

Most good technical support companies will be able to provide a regular health check, to ensure your PC’s longevity and working functions, this can include virus scanning and removal, valet, checking and cleaning corrupt file slide scanning and optimization, advice on internet security and parental controls, virus software updates and detection and removal of ad ware and spy ware.

Technical support companies can save you time, money and hassles when getting connected to the internet, most services can provide quick and safe service and the benefit of dealing with just one skilled specialist. Most good technical support companies can also provide setup router or modem, security setup, web browsing, an ISP speed test, PC setup and more. It is advisable that you research and compare your chosen technical support company to other services provided by similar companies. Get specialist technical support and great customer services from reliable and reputable technical support companies.

If you need personalized technical support and trouble shooting and more, choose a skilled technical support company to take away all the hassles often faced with technical and PC issues. Get a technical support specialist which can provide you with a wide range of pc troubleshooting solutions which should be structured to incorporate a diverse range of pc related issues and setup, installation and upgrade needs. Choose a technical support specialist company to help you get on track with all your technical needs.

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Document Scanning Equipment And Services

Monday, July 20th, 2009

Document management is quite a tedious task and operating various documents to make them available for use as and when required. In an office, there are thousands of documents that need to be maintained for several purposes. Keeping these documents in place and making them available for future reference as and when required is no child’s play.

The idea of a paperless office system sounds great and will say goodbye to all the document management woes. This highly beneficial system not only reduces the amount of workload but also offers the added advantages of cost effectiveness by reducing operational expenses.

It also removes all the conventional inefficiencies related to document management and at the same time dramatically increases data security. Other than improved security and added cost effectiveness, going paperless has several other advantages. It gives you the opportunity to communicate with your personnel without being bothered about the physical distances that quite often prove as a hurdle. Data security, data disaster recovery, automatic document indexing/batching and auditing tracking are some other advantages that you can get working to your benefit with a paperless office.

With the world going digital converting you paper documents into an electronic document filing for form is a sensible approach. The electronic version of your paper documents allows easy accessibility and easy storage. That you electronic documents allow you to ensure that authorized users view your documents. Securely sharing information among staff members, quickly locating files and track user actions are among other benefits.

The swing from paper to electronic serves you with a plethora of benefits. Get you documents in an electronic form that can easily be edited and modified as per requirement. Now you can say good-bye to those expensive document slide scanning services. This service is a unique document-indexing tool that allows you to categorize documents with specific keywords.

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Scanners And Flatbed Scanners

Monday, July 20th, 2009

Scanners are devices used for optically scanning images, text or handwriting and converting them it into digital image form. Scanners come in several forms. Their purposes also differ. Presently, several types of scanners are made to meet different needs. Barcode scanners, biometric scanners, card scanners, check scanners, film & slide scanners, photo scanners, sheet fed scanners, wide format scanners; flatbed scanners, high speed scanners and hand held scanners are the mostly seen scanner forms.

Flatbed scanners are used primarily in offices and are installed along with a computer. They can scan anything from text to pictures to graphics. Hand-held 3D scanners are mostly used in a variety of applications including industrial design, reverse engineering, gaming etc. Hand-held document scanners are pulled across the surface of the matter to be scanned.

The initial form of scanner was the drum scanner, which is no longer produced. The flatbed scanner is the mostly used scanner form in offices. The scanner comprises of a clear glass platen on which the sheet meant for scanning is kept. A bright xenon or cold cathode fluorescent light illuminates the pane from underneath. For slide scanning, the image is kept face downward and the opaque cover is shifted on it, so that light from outside sources cannot enter. However, images on transparent material cannot be scanned like this, but some better equipped flatbed scanners have provisions to illuminate the image from above too, which can scan such transparent images.
High speed scanners offer optical resolution and are costlier. However, their performance is unmatched. In sheet fed scanners, the input sheet is fed into the scanner through a horizontal or inclined route. They take little space and are ideal for workplaces facing space crunch. Large format optical scanners scans larger inputs and digitalizes them into a computable format. They are most suited to scan large drawings, architectural plans, maps and engineering drawings and graphs. They come in overhead or flatbed forms.

The market for scanners is hot these days, and so is the competition among manufacturers. The result is increased options and better services for the customer. Epson, HP, Nikon, Sony, Xerox, Canon, IBM, Kodak, Panasonic and several other manufacturers produce a wide range of scanners. Some scanners are incorporated into all-in-one printers too. Such scanners are mostly flatbeds.

There is no doubt that introduction of scanners has greatly helped our offices, services and shops alike. With all the choices available, buying a scanner is a cumbersome, but productive undertaking. Most scanners come in delectable colors and sizes. If you are running a small office, a small scale flat bed scanner would do, but larger corporate and other sectors may need wide screens or hand held ones to meet their requirements.

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Scanner Review

Monday, July 20th, 2009

Are you having a hard time trying to decide on what kind of scanner to buy? Here are some scanner samples you can choose from.

There are different types of scanners. A flatbed scanner is used to convert any printed or reasonably flat material, such as photographs, into digital image. A document scanner is used to create digital records of a range of documents, especially for paper office documents. The film scanner enables you to scan film.

Canon CanoScan 8400F is a flatbed scanner with 3,200 dots per inch (dpi) optical resolution. It has four buttons located on the front part that automates some scanning function. The connection is via USB 2.0. It scans an actual area of 8.5 inch by 11.2 inch. Its transparency adaptor can scan one strip of medium-format film. It offers two modes, simple and advanced. Of course, the advanced mode produces the better scan. For $150 you get a very quiet scanner. However, it does not have the ability to reproduce a long tonal scale and it only works with Windows XP.

Another flatbed scanner is the Epson Perfection 4870 PHOTO with specs that call for 4,870 dpi. It has a transparency adaptor that will scan 35 mm or medium format film, either negatives or slides. This one offers three modes, full auto mode, home mode and preview mode. The full auto mode is the simplest and easiest. The home mode offers you eight different types of originals and allows you to set your resolution and image type. The preview mode allows you to manipulate your image with few limited adjustments. You get a fast scanner for only $450.

For $600, you can have a Microtek ScanMaker i900 with 5-inch by 14-inch slide scanning bed. This flatbed uses a dual-scan technology for scanning film. It connects via FireWire or USB 2.0. It comes with ScanWizard Pro software and uses ICE technology, a very good tool for photographers.

Super Coolscan 5000 ED is a 4,000 dpi film scanner with a new light source and a new ED lens. It offers an 8-bit mode and Scan Image Enhancement technology, and incorporates fourth-generation ICE technology. This one can give you a clean scan for a price of $1,050.

If you need a scanner that will enable you to scan an old film, use the Microtek ArtixScan 120tf. This film scanner is similar to Nikon 9000 ED and can scan medium-format film up to 6 cm by 9 cm. Only, it does not have the ICE technology. It has SilverFast software that offers smart removal defects (SRD). You can connect it through a Firewire or SCSI-2.

Imacon Flextight 646 is a high performance machine that will give you a high quality scan for a high price of $9,995. It comes with FlexColor software and has no ICE technology. It requires the highest level of operator skill. This scanner picks up every flaw in your film.

In choosing a scanner, consider your budget and the features the scanner offers. Your scanned images will tell the tale.

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