Need Help With Wedding Pictures...

[photeknick]

Hello all: I have a quick question:

I have some 5x7 photos that are only a few years old. My fiance and I would like to scan them and make them larger for a computer screen. We don't want to print them larger. They will be put on the plasma screen for our image montauge. When we use our standard lexmark scanner, it looks just like the original photo but when we zoom in it gets distorted. How can we scan these photos so that they can be enlarged on a computer via zoom and not be so distorted?

thanks in advance for you help...we really appreciate it.

 

[Big Mike]

Welcome to the forum.

Scanners run the gamut from really crappy to really great. You also have to take into account the settings and method you use to scan...and then the image will probably need some tweaking (sharpening) with image software.

Do you happen to have the negatives? If so, take the negative into a photo lab and get it scanned. A good lab should give you the option of a high resolution scan.

If your photographer still has the negatives...call them and ask for the negatives or for them to scan it for you.

One option, would be to take the print to a lab and have it scanned...but if you don't own the negatives (and or rights) to the image...then it wouldn't be legal for the lab to scan the image for you....since the photographer owns the rights. And I certainly don't condone violating a photographer's image rights.

Have you tried the image on the Plasma screen? Any image will look distorted if you zoom in far enough...and you probably won't be viewing the screen with your nose presses up against it. It may be that your scanned image just needs some sharpening.

 

[photeknick]

Thanks for your quick reply Mike.

I do not have the negatives, but we do own the pictures. Essentially we just want to scan them and be able to zoom in on our computer for now to look at them more closely. We don't need to zoom abnormally close just a little bit. I called Kinkos and they said that they can do but I need to know what DPI I want. I have no idea about that. We just want to zoom in a little on our computer without it getting distorted....your thoughts or recommendations?

Thanks...

 

[Flash Harry]

Try rescanning it yourself, when your scanner software opens up look for an image size and DPI, set your output image size to what you want and your DPI to 300, once the file is scanned, open in PS or similar image editing suite and give it some unsharp masking till your'e happy with the result.

You'll be able to zoom all day at this res, then again if the scanner is a cheapo and not up to the job take the pic to the lab and get them to scan, sharpen, etc

 

[photeknick]

Thanks guys...my scanner is horrible and it said I needed more virtual memory in my PC to do it at that resolution....gonna have to take it to kinkos or something....When you say lab what do you mean? a moto photo?

 

[JIP]

Do you own the pictures or the paper they were printed on. Just because you paid the photographer whatever sum of money you paid him/her doesn't mean you own the rights to copy them. Unless you got a signed release from the photographer who shot them you really should check with them to get a copy and hey who knows they might just give you quality shans cheap or free.

 

[W.Smith]

Do you own the pictures or the paper they were printed on. Just because you paid the photographer whatever sum of money you paid him/her doesn't mean you own the rights to copy them. Unless you got a signed release from the photographer who shot them you really should check with them to get a copy and hey who knows they might just give you quality shans cheap or free.

Someone who's got probs scanning prints isn't exactly a copyright threat, JIP....