Correct scanning resolution for yearbook?

Question

Has anyone successfully made a good quality dvd from scanned yearbooks? I lost my yearbook years ago and borrowed one from a good friend. I scanned a few pages and then made a dvd and when i looked at it on my 32" hdtv, the pages scanned were OK but the names of the classmates were somewhat blurry. I scanned at 200 dpi, using grey scale and descreening. Can anybody tell me a success story and if so were the names sharp on TV and what resolution did u use? Gray scale or photo??

Answer 1

The things that determine scanned image quality are resolution, followed by contrast. Resolution is by far most important! To view your yearbooks on your 32” HDTV, you need to scan at 600 dpi. The reason for this is complex, and I explain more on our website at http://dpsdave.com/resolution.html



Now for the contrast part! Your eyes are much more sensitive to contrast than detail or color, due to the ratio of rods versus cones. An old printer’s trick is to crank up the contrast in a picture, and people will perceive this as a higher quality print. Check out a magazine, and you will see what I’m talking about. Every page is full of very high contrast images and print. If you have access to a photo editing program, run the 600 dpi scans of your yearbook through and boost the contrast. If you don’t have such a program, you can download a very good program from Google for free at http://picasa.google.com/



Good Luck!

-Dave

DpsDave.com

Answer 2

Yearbook Scanning

Answer 3

Like everything computer related, What are you going to do with the scans? If it's for the web, then a quick scan using 72dpi@8bit will suffice. If you're going to be using photoshop (or other image software), then use 600-1200dpi@24 or 16 bit for the scan. Make sure you're package can use the higher colour depth first. Use 8bit if you're unsure. Also choose the image size when you choose the scan resolution: you can change them independently. Perform your colour changes on the image, then convert (within photoshop) to 8 bit so you can use the filters. Once you've finished manipulating the image, save it at 300dpi (disable the re-sample check box) and you're ready to print.

Answer 4

Well 200 dpi seems fine to me. it should have worked ok. I usually scan in at 240 or even 300 but that's probably overkill. How flat did you manage to get the pages down to scan? Maybe that's your problem. The pages have to be totally flat in order to be recorded properly.

Either that or you may have a smudge on the glass. A good clean might sort out the problem.

Answer 5

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Answer 6

Well

I found a free download of Picasa here http://bitly.com/1xTBjU6

It's the best choice.

Good Bye