Scanning Photos

[didikai]

Apologies as I've asked this question before.
I have thousands of photos I want to put onto CD / DVD.
I'm looking for the most painless way to do this. From previous answers there is no real short cut. I just wondered if there was any new software / hardware that will make the task simpler.
I'd welcome any suggestions or advice regarding best resolutions etc.
Thanks

[LloydAZ]

Look for a Photo Scanner that has an auto-feeder attachment on it. Otherwise you will have to scan them one at a time.

Of course, if you want to make modifications to the pictures you'll have to do them individually. If you are doing the same kind of processing on a folder of images, you can create a droplet in Photoshop to process all of the images in a folder the same way.

As for resolution, it would depend upon what you want to do with the images after you scan them. Print them out, make DVD Slideshows, archive them. Just remember that the higher the resolution you save it at, the larger the file size.

[alabamawolves]

try SPAM ,plz...
i have using it long,it's easy to use...

You are in breach of the forum rules and are being banned.
/ Moderator mats.hogberg

[normcar]

If you are scanning photos, you only need to scan at about 600dpi max. If you are scanning negs, then you can get neg scanners that can be much higher, and faster. Neg scanners also have built in correction for dust etc. Photos are only at about 300-600 dpi, so scanning them at a higher resolution is a waste.

[dphirschler]

Whatever you decide, keep the scanner glass clean. You will be re-scanning many photos if you don't . Keep the photos clean too. and put a weight on the scanner lid. I use a heavy tape dispenser at work. At home I have a 2-3 pound weight that I use.

A shortcut I will do often is to put four or six photos in the scanner and scan them all at once. Save them as Tiff or Png... something lossless. Then you can cut them up later. Doesn't matter which way they are turned.


Darryl

[Wile_E]

Are these printed lab photos (4x6, etc), or negatives or 35mm slides? Printed photos are not the best to use for scanning. You will be much happier with the results of scanned negatives or slides, using a dedicated film scanner. For 35mm negs and slides, I tried several flatbeds and was never satisfied. Then I bought a Minolta Dimage 5400 which scans at 5400dpi. Talk about detail! The files are huge, 100MB TIFF, but are worth it for archiving. 5400dpi is equivalent to about 40MP. 35mm film, especially negs and slides does have this resolution and possibly a little more. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise. Of course, we are not there yet with digital cameras.

Make sure the scanner has true hardware, infrared dust removal called Digital ICE. These scanners use infrared light to find dust and remove it. Many flatbed scanners only have software dust removal, which doesnt work as well.

[normcar]

Then I bought a Minolta Dimage 5400 which scans at 5400dpi. Talk about detail! The files are huge, 100MB TIFF, but are worth it for archiving. 5400dpi is equivalent to about 40MP. 35mm film, especially negs and slides does have this resolution and possibly a little more. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise.

You are correct about the slides and negs having that high resolution, but the prints from those sources do not have that high resolution. The prints have a max resolution of about 600 dpi.

Negs and slides have resolutions much higher than the 5400 dpi. Expensive drum scanners can go much much higher.

[trossin]

Is the goal to show the pictures on your TV or is to archive them. If it is just to show the pictures on the TV then use 150dpi as the extra resolution will just be averaged away. This will create 900x600 images from a 4x6 image which is above DVD resolution.

If the goal is archival then I agree with normcar on the 300 to 600.

[ozymango]

Lotsa good answers so far but a lot also depends on what you mean by "put on CD/DVD." Like, do you want to view these on a TV using a DVD player? Or are you indeed archiving them for other purposes (e.g. printable backups, etc)? Because that'll dictate your file size and resolution and a bunch of other stuff.

A good slide/negative scanner is great but this assumes that the bulk of your images are on slides or negatives. If all you've got to work with is an actual photograph, that changes everything, and you will need a good flatbed scanner. As for automating the scanning process ... I've tried a bunch of ways, including the sheet feeder, but you're still gonna have to count on a lot of hand-editing of stuff. If all your photos are the same size, and/or you are using negatives/slides, that definitely speeds things up as you can set your imaging device to scan a bunch of same-size objects using whatever kind of "feed" mode it has (slide/neg scanners use strip holders, and can usually scan at least 4 and sometimes 8 or more images automatically).

Frankly, unless you're going to submit these for electronic printing, I can't see saving 100mb tiff files -- your original slides and negatives are your archives, so keep those originals safe!!! But again it all depends on where these are gonna end up.