Sunday, August 14, 2011

Digitizing Photos The Right Way

By Alexis Hodge


When photograph lovers want a sensible way to preserve photographs electronically, they have to use the right methods for digitizing photos. For most people, this is an essential aspect of preserving these timeless mementos. After all, digital files can be expected to last far longer than paper images.

Some might be surprised by this claim, since it is obvious that digital devices do wear out with time and usage. The key is to know how to create and backup image files properly, and to have a strategy for redundancy that ensures that there will always be at least one surviving digital copy of each of these images.

A quality scan

Getting the best scan is the key to successful archiving. Many people simply use their home scanners to create digital copies of each photograph. Others with a lot of photographs to scan might choose to pay others to do the scanning for them. It really does not matter as long as a good scan of each image is obtained.

This is key to any archive program. Get the best possible scan of every image in the collection. Though this will result in a larger image file that takes up more space on a storage drive, it will also result in an image that can be printed at larger sizes later one.

The storage

All of these images need to then be placed onto an external hard drive that is devoted to this one purpose. Do not use compact discs, DVDs, or other storage media that may get broken, scratched, or otherwise abused. The best results require a permanent, dedicated solution.

As a final form of protection, select a good online backup option and store the images there as well. Then put the original photographs in a safe location. Used correctly, this method for digitizing photos can help to ensure that none of those irreplaceable photographs are ever lost.




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