Step 1: Choose a Good Scanner

Before you embark on scanning your photos, it is wise to do some research and select a quality scanner. There are two types of scanners out there – flatbed scanners and film scanners. Flatbed scanners are great for general usage, that is, for scanning printed photos and text documents. Film scanners are more costly and allow you to scan photo slides and negatives. Decide which type is more suitable for your scanning needs.

Step 2: Check Your Photos

Ok, once you’ve purchased your trusty scanner, check the photos you wish to scan. If you find any dirt or smudges, use a lint-free photowipe to remove them. Remember not to touch the photos, especially if you have them on slides. The purpose of doing this, of course, is to ensure that you’re scanning the best possible photo right at the start. Removing dirt now will save you from any image editing work later.

Step 3: Check Your Scanner

Besides checking the photos to be scanned, make sure that the scanner glass is also clean and free from smudges or fingerprints. Never try to clean the scanner glass with your fingers. If you need to clean the glass, you should use some lint-free wipes to do it.

Step 4: Specify the Scan Parameters

The next step is to specify what kind of scanning you wish to do. Most of the scanners in the market allow you (through the use of some software) to specify what image resolution you want to capture. I try to choose 300 dpi as a minimum for my photos, but usually use 600 dpi. Of course, scanning at a higher resolution means a slower scan speed, but remember – a high quality scan will help to preserve your photos so that they are as close to the original as possible.

Step 5: Start Scanning

Next step is to place the photo face-down on the scanner glass and start scanning. When placing the photo, it’s sometimes quite tough to get the alignment right. I usually place the photo first, then do a preview of the scan. If it’s out of alignment, you can then slowly adjust it until it’s ok. When doing the preview, it’s also helpful to check that no part of the photo has been cut off and that it is free from specks or dirt.

Step 6: Repair and Restore Your Photos

Right, assume you’ve finished scanning and obtained your picture files. You can do an optional step – that is, to repair and restore the photo. If a scanned picture looks bad, I will try to use a photo editor to clean it up. Most photo editing programs will filters to remove noise, dust and speckles from images. For example, in Paint Shop Pro, you can use the Despeckle Filter. Other tasks to be performed include the adjustment of color and contrast, removal of red eye and image sharpening.

Conclusion

I hope I’ve given you some idea of how to scan and digitize your old photo collection. Scanning your old photos is time consuming, but it is very rewarding. It’s great to have the feeling that your old photos are forever preserved in digital format and insusceptible to wear and tear. So, the next time you want to scan photos, do remember the above tips and your job will be a lot easier. Or give us a call and let us do the job for you. The cost is only twenty cents per picture and there is no tax. This includes the cost of the CD. 

• Determine that you, in fact, have the rights to copy the DVD for your own personal use. It is not legal to copy DVD’s for any and all purposes

• Obtain a DVD ripping program. This is a bit easier said than done. Legal threats have deterred some of the larger software companies from distributing DVD ripping software. Thus the only software you will find will be from companies you may not have heard of. Do an online search on “DVD ripping software” for a list of options. Compare different products, read any disclosures carefully, and look for non-biased reviews (reviews that do not have conflicts of interest) on the products to decide on the right product for yourself.

• Launch the DVD ripping program on your computer. This is any program that can read DVD format, extract the digital information, then encode it into a file format that is readable on your personal computer.

• Insert the DVD into your computer’s DVD drive and follow the instructions.

• Choose the drive the disc is inserted into.

• Reauthor it. Choose the chapters, scenes and audio tracks you want to rip.

• Click rip or backup.

• Choose a destination folder.

• Choose whether you want to rip it to files or a single file.
  • DVD-Movie discs are simply a collection of files. VIDEO_TS/AUDIO_TS structure with valid VOB, BUP and IFO files.
  • If you want to rip it to a single file it can be ISO or IMG. You can test these in VLC.

• If its a commercial movie DVD its probably encrypted so you need decryption DVD ripping software.

• Beware transcoding. Basic ripping doesn’t require transcoding unless you want to shrink it.

Tips

• If you want to burn the ripped DVD to a fresh 4.7 GB DVD, often you will need to shrink it first, as original DVDs usually contain more than 4.7 GB of data. Use the excellent freeware program DVD Shrink for this. It can produce a ripped DVD directory that fits on a 4.7 GB disk, without discernable change in image or sound quality.

• The ripping process could produce a dozen or more individual files, so it’s often best to create a new folder on your hard drive for each DVD.

• If you are using a Mac, use a software like Handbrake that will make it easier to rip a DVD. It will let you rip the DVD in any format (like for iPod or iPhone: MPEG-4). It creates one individual file on your Mac and saves it to your desktop, so there or no worries about having multiple files.

Warnings

• CD/DVD copy protection is a blanket term for various methods of copy protection for CDs and DVDs. Such methods include DRM, CD-checks, Dummy Files, illegal tables of contents, over-sizing or over-burning the CD, physical errors, and bad sectors. Many protection schemes rely on breaking compliance with CD and DVD standards, leading to playback problems on some devices.Most CD-ROMs use the ISO9660 file term to organize the available storage space for use by a computer or player.

• Understand copyright laws in your country before ripping any copyrighted DVD.

• Do not promote or partake in piracy. Although there is some doubt over whether it is legal to copy your DVDs for your own use, making copyrighted DVDs available in the public realm is against the law.

Blu-ray video disks can play standard DVDs as well as disks mastered in the newer Blu-ray format. Blu-ray players also can “upconvert” the DVD image, offering a slight improvement in picture quality if not a genuinely higher resolution, according to CNET.

Let’s focus for a moment on what a 35mm slide is, because it is this essence that is the central subject of your care. A slide is actually a piece of 35mm photographic film that was exposed in the camera. One side of the slide is actually an acetate base, while the other side, which possesses the image, is a complex, multi-layered film of gelatin and dyes. Both sides are delicate and slides should therefore be handled with extreme care from the outset. Early slides used a nitrate base, which over time, destabilized and became highly inflammable. Acetate became the more stable base.

The older color slide films have life expectancies of approximately twenty to twenty-five years if they are well cared for. Low heat, low light, low humidity, and vertical storage in a slide mount are essential. There is no ‘best’ 35mm slide film. Kodak, Fujifilm, and a number of others produce exceptional quality film products for use with different lens speeds, for different lighting environments, different ‘graininess,’ as well as color vs. black-and-white types. The professionals always suggest experimentation until you get the look and effect you want.

Mounting and Storage
All that said, the little piece of delicate film needs to be placed in a mounting. The majority of slides have been mounted by default in cardboard mountings. The mounting is like a picture frame. Ideally, the film is not stuck to the mount; rather the mounting material simply holds the piece of film in place by its frame borders. Most of the slide mountings are probably high-quality, safe materials, unless you went a “budget developing route.” (Kodak, Panaflex, Fuji and other names are always trustworthy.)Cardboard slide mounts are always questionable for acid and lignin content. If you re-examine some old slides and see the mounts are yellowing, browning, warping, or the ply is separating, you may want to take action. Companies sell plastic or, better yet, glass slide mounts for the especially important slides you want to preserve. Keep in mind that the film is delicate, and protecting it in a quality mount, and between glass, will prevent scratches, gouges, tears, and will lower contamination risks from other compounds.

Slide carousel trays themselves are plastic and may be a source of contamination. You might want to check on that, but typically the trays are designed of high-quality, high-impact, heat-resistant plastic (or even old bakelite) and will remain stable and relatively neutral. However, a carousel is not where you want to store your slides for extended periods.

When you aren’t taking slides to be presented, they should be stored upright in acid-free containers. I remember the paperboard boxes the slides came in, and the larger cartons in which we lugged the loaded carousels from place to place. They were probably not acid- and lignin-free, and the glue used to hold the carton structure together was probably not of a neutral chemical content. An examination of your collection today and the condition of those paperboard and cardboard boxes will generally show any problems. Discoloration of the cardboard, decomposition, fading of color in the slides, yellowing mountings are all warning signs. However, today there are many storage options for you.

And don’t forget the labeling process! You will want to label your slides, the boxes, the drawers, and other containers with the date, location and subjects’ names.

An Action Plan
The bottom line here is that you should excavate your 35mm slide collection from the closet, basement, or attic, and check its condition. If you are serious about protecting and preserving them, you’ll need to determine the scope of your collection and its problems, decide on what supplies you will need, develop a reasonable budget, and set about the project.

Start by donning a pair of white cotton gloves for handling the slides. Look at individual slides, paying careful attention to the condition of the film and to the mounting material. If the cardboard mounting is yellowing, deteriorating, warped, separating, or otherwise damaged, you need to replace it. Depending on your budget and the scope of your collection’s needs, you may choose from archival quality cardboard mounts, plastic mounts of various types and colors, and glass mounts between which the film can be sandwiched.

Replacing slide mountings should not be a difficult task. With a little training and experience, the right tools, and some patience, you can do all the work yourself. Again, check photographic supply houses and Internet-based archival supply companies for supplies, and don’t overlook volume-pricing discounts for which you might qualify.

Finally, with the mounting work under way, you will want to decide how best to store the slides over the long term. Storage boxes, bins, plastic and polypropylene cases and pocket sleeves, and metal or high quality plastic drawer units are all among your options.

And While You’re Working . . .
Don’t rush headlong through your archival preservation project. Take the time to view share your finished slides with other family members as you go along. Ask for help in identifying people, places and dates, and you may be surprised how many helpers will want to help in various ways. As you watch your skills grow and the collection become more organized, you are sure to rediscover images of people, events, and things you’d completely forgotten. You also may kindle the spark in the next family historian, genealogist or archivist. What a great legacy to give to your family: a well-organized, restored, and preserved visual heritage in 35mm slides. And I personally promise not to yawn through your after-dinner slide show. Just invite me over for coffee and dessert and see.

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Somewhere at the back of your closet or out in the garage or tucked away in the attic are priceless memories: your home movies and home videos. How do you care for those valuable artifacts and hang on to some version of Billy’s sixth birthday party or your parent’s fiftieth wedding anniversary bash?

• Step 1
  Keep your originals, no matter what. Even if you transfer the film or video to DVD, keep the film. It lasts a long time–longer than video and DVD formats.
• Step 2
  Label your films and tapes. Include the title, date it was shot, where it was shot, the type of element (“original 8mm film” for example), your name, address, and phone number. Then keep a separate sheet of these notes in a plastic bag next to the materials or in a paper or computer file.
• Step 3
  Store the films or videos in a cool, dry, dust-free place where the temperature and humidity won’t vary much. Would you store a bag of flour there? No? Then don’t put your film there. A cupboard or drawer in your house would work–the hot attic or damp garage would not.
• Step 4
  For film: store them in plastic cans or coated metal cans. then lay the cans flat and don’t put too much weight on them (air needs to circulate). Cans are available where film supplies are sold, or check the internet. Store 16mm film on plastic cores, not on reels, because over time, the reels will cause spoking. As for 8mm and Super-8mm films, they do best on plastic reels and inside of cans and keep them in their original boxes (you probably wrote info on the boxes already, right?)
• Step 5
  For videotapes: store them on their spine, not flat. Keep them in plastic cases and away from magnetic fields.
• Step 6
  Make protection copies. Store the duplicates at different locations away from your home, like at a friend’s house or at your workplace. Be sure they are stored correctly there, too. Make sure they are labeled so they’re not thrown out by your well-meaning friend or the efficient janitorial person.
• Step 7
  Copy your films to video or DVD. And hang on to the original–DVDs are not indestructable. You’ve seen DVDs that have skips in them due to a scratch.
• Step 8
  Copy your videos onto DVD. You can make subsequent transfers from the master DVD without loss of quality.
• Step 9
  If you’ve shot on digital (DV-cam, mini-DV–which have thin and fragile tapes), you can make a DVD copy. In fact, make copies. Plural. Give them to the relatives for souvenirs, and voila, you’ve got back up storage.
• Step 10
  Consider placing your films and videos at an archive. There are archives that actually collect HOME MOVIES. The mission of an archive is to care for and store these materials well–and they will store it for free.

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