Scanners

Scanners

Generally, when you’re picking a scanner, you’re trying to strike the best possible balance between speed and quality, and there are options across the spectrum. Some scanners have features like automatic document feeders and large trays that can hold many photos at a time – ideal for batch-scanning. These will generally scan at resolutions of around 300 to 600 dpi, and are ideal if you’ve got a large volume of images to digitise (such as an attic full of slides).

If you prioritise quality, however, you’ll want to choose a scanner with a much higher resolution – some offer dpi counts of 5400, 7200 or 9600, for example. The colour depth will also likely be higher, with premium scanners offering 48-bit colour for superior accuracy. While you get a much more detailed digital file which you can do a lot more with, the trade-off is that the process takes much longer. Many scanners also offer a range of quality settings, so you can adjust depending on your needs for a specific set of images.

Dedicated photo scanners often come with film holders that allow you to easily insert different film formats for efficient, high-quality scanning. Depending on how and where you want to use the device, you may want to consider different formats – standard flatbed scanners work well in a home office, but there are also more portable options with smaller footprints. This can be hugely useful for archiving – after all, it’s much easier to bring a small scanner to a basement full of photos than it is to do the reverse!

It’s worth checking your connectivity options on a scanner. While many offer Wi-Fi or Bluetooth connectivity, the typical size of scanned photo files means it’s good to have the option of a wired connection. USB is good; USB-C is better.

If you’re also going to be scanning documents, you’ll be able to take advantage of Optical Character Recognition (OCR). This is a process that recognises and reads printed text, and machine-encodes it to make it editable on your computer. Most modern scanners have this functionality, though performance can vary between models.

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