2022
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5 Best Ways to Scan and Digitize Old Photos Written by: Brandon Harris, Smooth Photo Scanning Services
Today, many people still have boxes upon boxes of photos, albums, and scrapbooks full of precious memories of family, friends, and important occasions in their lives. And while there’s no question about the value of these memories, the photos themselves not only take up a lot of space but are also slowly deteriorating.
And because of that, many people eventually start looking for ways to digitize photos, considering whether to take on scanning old photos on their own or find a photo digitizing service to do it for them.
The good news is that today, you have many options to choose from and can find an approach that fits your schedule, budget, and goals. Let’s explore five of the best ways to digitize photos below.
Scan With Your Smartphone
If you’re looking for a fast and simple way of scanning old photos, you could opt for using your smartphone to transfer the photos to a digital format without using a photo digitizing service. Many Android and iPhone apps can turn your phone into a scanner, allowing you to fit each picture into the camera’s frame and getting the software to scan each part of the picture into a digital format.
However, as you can probably imagine, this process has its limitations. While it can be very convenient when you need a quick solution, the quality will not be comparable with some of the other methods on this list. What’s more, you will usually have to deal with glares, imperfections, and debris that can distort the pictures.
And while you can generally reduce some of the imperfections through software, the lower quality of the initial digitized images will be a limiting factor that will reduce the final quality of the digitized collection no matter how much time you commit to it.
Use Your Home Scanner
Another convenient method you could try is using your home scanner to get the photos into a digital format. Since many people have regular scanners they use for work, they’re an accessible option that can provide better results than your smartphone.
However, since the scanners are most often designed for scanning documents and not photos, the results won’t be comparable to having a scanning photo service handle the job for you. But even though the quality of using a home scanner won’t be the best, that doesn’t mean it can’t be a viable option if you just want to preserve the pictures and don’t want to invest more into the digitization project.
Get a Specialized Photo Scanner
If you want a more sophisticated DIY tool that will allow you to digitize photos in your home, you could consider getting specialized photo scanners. These can provide you with very high-quality and crisp digital images that you will be able to edit and work on to restore to their best shape.
The biggest drawback of using this approach is the cost. Specialized photo scanners are incredibly expensive, so getting them just for digitizing your old photos is not an investment you will probably be able to justify. In fact, unless you plan on digitizing photos regularly, it just doesn’t make much sense.
Find a Flatbed Film Scanner
You may be dealing not with photos but with photo negatives in some instances. And if that’s the case, the methods listed above simply won’t work for you. But the good news is that you can instead get a flatbed film scanner that will be able to handle your negatives and digitize them in the best quality possible.
However, just like with the specialized photo scanner, a flatbed film scanner is simply not a worthy investment for a single project, especially when you can get a digitizing photos service to handle the entire project for you. Today, there are plenty of convert photos to digital service providers that offer competitive prices and are available, so let’s explore that option below.
Use a Professional Service
Even though there are many methods you could use for digital photo restoration and scanning, the ones above have clear drawbacks that either require compromises in quality or are simply too expensive.
The good news is that you can instead opt to convert photos to a digital service that can take over the entire process and deliver you high-quality digital photographs you and your family can enjoy forever. Whether you have photos or negatives, you can entrust them with a reputable professional with the right equipment and the necessary expertise to digitize them with care, remove any imperfections, and ensure your satisfaction.
Bottom Line
We’ve explored some of the best available ways to scan your photos in this article. And while most of them can be done at home, a strong case can be made that the hassle is simply not worth it when you can use digitizing photos service providers who can save you a lot of time and money while also providing the best results.
My father has been in the document scanning industry for as long as I can remember. I worked for his company Smooth Solutions, Inc. during summer breaks growing up and for a couple years after college. Wanting to venture off on my own, I gained experience in several careers including wholesale seafood sales as well as owning and operating a bakery for several years. When my father approached me with the opportunity to expand upon his already successful business by providing high quality, professional scanning services to the general public, I jumped on board. From personal experience, I recognize how important it is for most people to have their family memorabilia preserved for future generations and I want to be a part of helping others do that.