Even though physical images have a special beauty, digitising them is your best bet for keeping them around indefinitely. No matter how carefully you store your photos, harm is always a possibility. There is always a chance of mould growing if you store them in a box. They can be at risk of fading or unintentional tears if you frequently bring them out to share with your friends or family. Your old photos will be preserved forever if you digitise them. You can also use this method to digitally fix any errors and make it simpler to share your old photos with loved ones. Here are 3 quick methods for scanning and digitising old images.
Learn how to colourize your old black-and-white photos here.
Summary of Contents
Scan photos at home
If you have amassed a sizable number of images over the years and intend to keep doing so, you might want to consider purchasing a tiny photo scanner. While utilising a home scanner to digitise images may take some time, it’s the ideal approach for a work that is unique to you.
There are many scanners available that are designed specifically for use at home. Choosing one is advised based on how frequently you use it. Not to mention that you can scan documents like your driver’s licence, ID card, and other items using a scanner in addition to digitising images.
There are a few useful suggestions you should bear in mind before starting to scan and digitise old images at home.
- Organisation is key: While at first scanning pictures may seem a straightforward task, it can become pretty daunting if you go into it without a strategy. If you are an avid photographer and have collected physical copies of images over the years, it is probable that you ve amassed several boxes of old photographs by now. If you randomly start digitizing them, you will soon lose track of your task. It is advised to have a sorting criterion before you begin scanning.
- Curate your collection: You do not need to scan every photograph you have. Go through the photographs you ve set aside to digitize and select the ones that are worth preserving. Weed out any duplicates, irrelevant, or faulty photographs.
- Be thorough: Your digital photograph will stay with you forever. Make sure you can render the best possible digital scan. The two things you need to keep in mind are the quality of the physical photograph and the quality of the scanner. The quality of your digital photo depends on both of those factors. So, before you begin to scan a photograph, wipe the dust off its surface and check it for any blemishes. Make sure it s in the best condition possible. Similarly, make sure the scanning surface is dust-free as well.
- Know your device: Before you begin digitizing your photographs it is a good idea to familiarise yourself with the scanner you re using. Carry out a few test scans and explore the different modes that the device offers. See what works best for your pictures and then embark on the task in front of you.
- Manage your time: If you ve got a big collection of photographs, it is unlikely you ll be able to scan them in one sitting. Do not bite more than you can chew. Take out time in advance and select the number of photographs accordingly. It is better to go about your task in small well planned sessions.
Use an app for your phone
Sometimes scanning a small number of images is all that’s necessary rather than digitising a large collection. Perhaps you do not have access to or do not wish to purchase a scanner. Fortunately, there is still a way to keep your pictures safe. You may scan your old images using a variety of smartphone apps, which will make the process quick and simple.
Even though the scan’s quality might not be on par with that of a real scanning device, the untrained eye might not be able to tell the difference. When you want to share a single photo with someone but do not want to give them the actual copy, a scanning app could also be useful.
You could also use your phone’s camera for this operation, but there is a significant quality gap between it and an app made specifically for picture scanning. When scanning, ensure sure your image is positioned in front of a plain background and has plenty of light. By changing the angle of your camera before scanning, you can reduce glare and light reflection. To change the background, crop the photo you just took.
Online stores offer a wide variety of scanning applications.
Digitization Services
One of the greatest ones is PhotoScanby Google. It not only takes excellent scans but also has Google picture features built right in. Microsoft Office Lens and Photo Scan App from Photomyne is another option.
You can always use a digitization service to do it for you if you don’t have the time or desire to scan and digitise old images yourself. Scan Corner and Scan Junction are two services that can scan your photographs for you at a reasonable cost, saving you time and labour. All you have to do is box up your pictures and send them over. They provide the option of fixing old damaged images at a specific price in addition to digitising your photo collection.
You can also use a nearby photo studio’s services if you don’t want to ship your pictures. Today, digitisation services are offered by the majority of photo studios. The main disadvantage of this choice is that a third party gains access to your photos, and although while most services conduct themselves professionally, it may still put off those who place a high value on privacy.
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There are many things you can do with your photos once they have been digitalized. First off, it’s crucial to remember that you will still need to organise and arrange your digital copies, especially if you have a lot of photos. On your computer, organising things chronologically in various folders is a good place to start. Your photographs can also be edited and captions added as desired. Sharing them with friends and family is also made simple by having digital copies.
Additionally, even after you’ve digitised your images, there is always a chance that you will lose them. If your gadget malfunctions, you could lose all the data on it. As a result, it is recommended that you make a backup of your digital photos. You can either make an offline backup on an external hard drive or a USB device, or you can use online backup services like Dropbox or iCloud.
