Breath new life into old photos: Scanning old photos to digital files

Have you ever found yourself digging through boxes in your parent’s basement, and wonder where to begin with digitizing the images? I’ve been there, so I thought I’d share a little bit about my process!

A photo of my father and I

Need to Scan Photos With a Phone?

When you get the lens of your smartphone close enough to the image, the resolution will then be high enough to reproduce a beautiful print in an album, or to reproduce a print. Simply find a well lit spot and start snapping (think natural light in a nearby window or well lit space). You'll want to avoid direct sunlight, which can change the color and look of your photographs. 

I've found it useful to create a small shadow with my body by hovering over the photo to ensure there is no glare on the original print. Hold your phone overhead and make sure the image is in focus first. You are able to focus most smartphones by simply tapping on the middle of the screen on the subject. Then click away!

There's an App for That

You heard that right. Skip the old-school scanner and let your phone do the work. New apps allow you to quickly scan photos and documents right from your mobile phone. Here are a few of our favorite photo scanning apps that are free to download:

  • Pic Scanner — Photo specific and gives you the ability to batch scan.

  • Google Photo Scan — Detects the edges of your photo and automatically removes glare.

  • Photomyne — Allows you to store multiple images in one go.

  • iPhone Native Notes App — Simply start a new note, click the camera icon at the bottom of the screen, and tap "scan documents."



The Best Way to Scan Old Photos

Sorry, smartphones — when it comes to quality, the scanner is still king. In most cases, your at-home scanner can capture visual information at up to 1200 DPI (dots per inch). That's four times the resolution of a print-quality image, which is an especially big deal if you're looking to enlarge a photo for printing. Simply put, it means you should be able to scan a print and reprint it four times larger, all the while keeping the quality of the original scanned image intact. 

Pro tip: Start by increasing the resolution in your scanner settings, as it most likely won't be set to 1200 DPI automatically.

Hello there and thank you for stopping by! I’m Katrina, the heartbeat behind Fifty Two Hundred Photo + Film, in Durham, North Carolina. I specialize in capturing meaningful and precious memories for remarkable families in North Carolina. I hope you enjoyed this story I shared today and if you are interested in learning more about The Time Capsule membership, or let’s connect. Not quite ready to connect, but you would like to follow along the journey? Follow me on Instagram and let’s be friends!

Katrina is a family photographer and family filmmaker in Durham, North Carolina. She offers lifestyle newborn photography, family photography and family videography which focuses on capturing authentic and honest moments for families. Her clients love that not only do they get digital files from their session but artwork to display in their home. She is happy to custom albums so you can revisit your favorite memories for years to come! Be sure to check out the Adobe partnership to see Katrina sharing her knowledge on capturing magical light to highlight the essence of each family. 

Want an easy way to make something beautiful out of all your phone photos and videos? Learn more about the Time Capsule Membership here. 

Katrina serves Durham, Raleigh, Cary, Carrboro, Apex, Chapel Hill, North Carolina.

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