I know, it’s an irrational thought.  But that’s the BIGGEST reason why I scanned my parents slides, negatives, and photos.  I was afraid all those images would get ruined, or even destroyed in a fire.

Let me tell you how I learned how to succeed with scanning slides, negatives, and photos…

About 7 years ago I was scanning my parent’s originals, and got very frustrated with the quality of scans I was getting from my scanner.  It was the most expensive scanner out there, and it promised to “bring back colours to their original luster”.  But no what I tried, no matter how much I played with the setting, I was still getting bad scans.

Then I tried to contact a scanning company.  At the time there were only 2 scanning companies,  and they all used EXACTLY the same scanner I hae: Nikon 5000 film scanners, with Digital ICE 4.   I wasn’t going to pay for the same results I was getting at home.

Well, after a lot of hard work, trial and error, I finally figured it out — and kind of by accident.  One day I forgot to press all the scan enhancement features (Digital ICE, ROC, DEE, etc.).  What I had was one ugly natural scan.  Then it hit me! Why not use Photoshop to fix the scan!?  Photoshop doesn’t have Dust Removal and Color Fix, but it’s worth a shot.

I finally figured out what the common problems are with a scan (dust, colour cast, RBG values not level, exposure mid-tones too low or high, etc). And got far better results than if I would have used Digital ICE.

Now I have a system.  I scan and edit each slide, negative, or photo individually in Photoshop.  And I can get ANY scan to look brand new.

I guess my system works.  I’ve been scanning since 2005.  I now have 4 employees, in three locations.  I’ve helped scan for all types of people — from an 84 year old gentleman with 1 slide to a diamond mine up North with 35,000 photos, slides, and negatives.

I Know Offer Free Trial Scans

It’s easy to talk about my business and how I get perfect scans.  But there’s a lot of claims on the internet talking about “quality”.  Who cares.  I want to prove it.

That’s why I want to scan 30 of your slides, negatives, and photos as a FREE trial.

I know you’ll love your scans.

To start your trial scans, email me at info@scancanada.ca and ask me about “Free Trial Scan”.

Your friend,

Konrad Michniewicz

When you save your slide, negative, and photo scans as JPEG digital images, make sure the “compression” level is not too high. In this article you’ll learn how to properly setup your scanner so that your scans are saved at the highest quality JPEG’s possible.

Next time you scan your slides, negative, and photo, watch for something called JPEG “compression” level.  Don’t worry, all this will make sense soon.

For now, just know that your scanner’s default “compression” level is probably set too high.  This means your scans will lose some pixel quality.  I will show you where to adjust the JPEG compression levels.

But first, you need to know two things about JPEG image files.  Once you know this stuff, then you’ll be able to control the quality of your JPEG files.

1.  JPEGs Files Are Compressed

Professional photographers and graphic designers like to use TIFF image files.  TIFFs are huge.  Sometimes they are 500 MB in file size.  They’re great because TIFF’s have a lot of digital data.  And the more data they have, the more a person can manipulate and edit that digital image.

But, for you and I, TIFFs are over-kill.  Most of this digital data is redundant, and doesn’t add to the overall quality of your image.

So, somebody figured out a way to remove all this useless data that didn’t affect the quality using a compression method.  Your TIFF file is sized down from 500 MB to 5 MB — but without losing any picture quality.

So what you end up with is a high-quality digital image, but at a file size that won’t clog up your computer space or take forever to upload.

2.  You Can Control This Compression

When you save your slides, negative, and photos as JPEG’s, your scanner will give you the option to change the compression level.

Except the problem is, maybe like my scanner, your scanner’s default compression level is too high.  The more compressed your JPEG, the less detail you’ll see.  It doesn’t matter if you scanned your slide at 4000 DPI.  If you save that slide scan at a high compression level, it will take a way some detail.

3. Where Can You Change Your JPEG Compression Level When Scanning

Now that you know that you have the option to change the JPEG compression level, you’ll need to read your scanner’s manual to find this option.  With my scanner, the option to change the compression level of the JPEG comes up when I’m about to save my scan.  There’s an “JPEG Option” box I click to adjust the compression level. Once I have this set, I don’t have to touch it anymore.

My scanner’s default compression level is 6 out of 10.  That’s too high.  It gives me a small file size. But who cares.  I want quality pixels.  So I changed my compression level to 1 out of 10.  This will ensure that all my scans will be the highest JPEG quality possible — with the lowest compression level possible.

Need Help With Your Slide, Negative, Photo Scanning Project?

Hello, my name is Konrad.

If you’re stuck with your home scanning project, check out my free scanning guide:

HowToScan.ca: Free Slide, Negative, Photo Scanning Tips

Thanks for visiting!

Konrad M.

ScanCanada.ca: Slide, Negative, Photo Scanning Services — Guaranteed 100%

Learn How Your Own Scans Will Be Edited Into Hight Quality Images

In this article, I’ll show you what it takes to turn a 57 year slide and make it look brand new.  This is exactly the editing process I’ll go through with your own slides, negatives, and photos.

Let’s begin…

1.  Getting A “Natural” Scan Means I Won’t Lose Detail

My scanner’s use 6 line, CCD optical lenses that can get a 16-bit pixel.  Basically, what this means is that the pixels are going to be as sharp, as defined, with as much contrast as possible.  I don’t apply any scanner editing processing such as Digital ICE, Dust Removal, etc.  Remember, I want as much detail as possible — this means all dust and scratches too.

Anyway, here’s the natural scan I’m working with:

My goal is to achieve the highest quality scan — something like this:

Follow along, and I’ll show you how I achieve quality scans using Photo Shop.

2. Color Balance Tool To Correct Cast

Whenever I scan a slide, negative, or photo there will always a be a colour casted over the image.  That’s because my scanner also scans the glossy surface of a scan.  Using the Color Balance tool, I adjust the RGB values according to what colour is casted over the scan.  In this slide scan, there’s a yellow cast to it.  Here’s a before and after…

3. Noise Filter To Fix Film Grain

Because I get a natural scan, I’m going to get a lot of noise.  But that’s good.  Noise means detail, and sharper pixels.  But I do need to remove some grain — especially if your slide, negative or photo was shot using a high iso speed.

Using the Noise Reduction filter, I can remove grain WITHOUT messing with the detail.  Here’s a before and after…

4. Heal Brush, Clone Stamp — Tool To Remove Dust And Scratches

Noise reduction gets rid of grain.  But to get rid of the larger dust and scratches, I need to do this “manually”.  Photoshop has a lot of great tools like Heal Brush tool to clean up artifacts like dust and scratches.  This takes a while.  But it’s the only way to maintain detail. Here’s a before and after…

5. Fix Faded Colours Using Hue/Saturation And Exposure Levels

The last step is to brighten faded colours, and to even out the mid-tones.  Here’s the before and after…

Final Image: Slide Scan Edited Using Photo Shop

Here’s a before and after…

Put Us To The Test With A Free Scan Test-Run

At ScanCanada.ca, my team and I dedicated to our craft, and are more than happy to show off our work.

But don’t take my word for it. Put us to the test. Send 30 of your slides, negatives, and photos for a scanning test-run.

If you’re happy with the quality and service, then send the rest of your scanning project.

If not, you can keep your scans, and your originals are returned in the same order and condition they left your home. A scan test-run is a free service from ScanCanada.ca.

To start your scanning test-run contact me at info@scancanada.ca, or visit:

Slide, Negative, Photo Scanning Services Guaranteed 100%

My name is Konrad, and I’ll be happy to help you with your slide, negative, photo scanning project.

Thanks for dropping by!

Konrad M.

The Purpose Of A Free Scan Test-Run Is So That You’re 100% Satisfied
Before You Hire A Scanning Company

How it works is, send us 30 of your favourite slides, negatives, and photos, and put us to the test.

If you’re happy with your scan test-run, then send the rest of your scanning project.

If not, you can keep your scans and your originals are returned in the same order and condition they left your home.

It’s easy to talk about “quality”.  But all your scans are professionally edited  in Photo Shop, and we want to prove our quality first before you hire us.

Feel free to contact me at 647-726-2265, or info@scancanada.ca to get started with your test-run scans.

In the mean time, check out some of our work…

Slide, Negative, Photo Scanning Gallery: ScanCanada.ca

Thanks!

Konrad M.

ScanCanada.ca: Professional Slide Negative Scanning Services

Digital ICE can’t give you consistent quality scans like you can in Photoshop.

Here’s a quick video of how I scan my client’s slides, negatives, and photos in Photoshop:

About ScanCanada.ca

We’re a small team of graphic designers, dedicated to slide, negative, photo scanning services. Located in three locations: Toronto, Calgary, and London.

Before you a scanning company, be sure you’re 100% comfortable with somebody else handle your only copy. At ScanCanada.ca, you’re invited to scan a small batch before you decide to commit all your scans.  This is a free service from ScanCanada.ca, and you’re under no obligation.

Please visit, ScanCanada.ca for more info.