Any Scanner Experts?

[bikebloke]

I just spent 2 and 1/2 hours scanning old negatives. My scanner is a Canon 1800F Canoscan. I set the scans at 300 dpi and it was saying the file size would be about 600 kb. I know I should have checked after the first couple, but I guess I was lazy. Anyway, all my scans came out miniscule (around 70 kb) and thus unusable. Should I crank up the dpi's or is there something else I have to make sure of?

[CC]

1. Not sure about the specifics of your

scanner but it sounds like even though you checked the dpi, the size in inches or centimeters was set very small. Check it though have a feeling you are going to have to rescan everything.

[bikebloke]

2. Thanks

After I walked away from the mess I'd made and let the smoke clear, I reckoned that the file size showed was collectively for all the images on the negative strips(with photos I had scanned during development, 500 KB to 1 MB worked). I guess I'd better play around with a single image until it works out. That's what I get for rushing towards a whimsical deadline on my latest creative project - giving sound and motion to old still images.

[RagingInMiami]

3. When it comes to computers

Nothing ever works correctly the first time. Or second time. Or even the third time.

[bikebloke]

4. Found something

It's a slow day at work, so I went hunting. Here's a spot for scanning advice, in case anyone else is interested:

http://www.scantips.com

** All this started because an old mate rang me up Saturday night. I'd told him before about my film project. Twenty-five years ago, we were on the same kibbutz in Israel. I want to bring my old photos to life, then post the videos on my blog. So he asked if I put up anything new. I got cracking.

[MichaelHarris]

5. BB

when I scan my imgages I set it to 300 and increase the output size. That way no matter what size you print the quality will always be 300 dpi.

[bikebloke]

6. Size does make a difference.

A-ha! I found the output size. That makes a difference. When I want to sail through landscapes or have people scattered, I'll scan real large. A medium size scan will work for simpler shots. The scanner is pretty slow for larger sizes though. It'll take most of the week. Though I can assemble the film as the photos I want to use come up. So my mates will have to wait. Anyway, those in Europe will probaly be off on holiday soon.