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Scanning Your Originals

If you want to provide us with a digital file instead of sending us your original art work - then it needs to be scanned in or photographed. Many new PC's now come with printer and scanner bundles and digital camera's now have the pixel size to print large images from - so it's never been easier to digitise your art work.

Resolution: We print all our images at 300dpi (dots per inch), so when you scan your original, the resolution needs to be 300dpi. If you are intending to enlarge the original, it should be higher - 600dpi will give us the pixels we need to resize it, up to twice the original size, or more if needed. Scanners have a optical scanning resolution and a maximum resolution, if you can find out what the optical resolution is (it should be printed in the instruction manual), then that is highest you should set the resolution, because any higher the scanning software will just make the enlargement which usually won't be as acurate as photoshop doing the same task.

A Flat Image: If you have a watercolour painting sometimes the paper will ripple with the paint that has been applied to it, this will then create shadows on your scan. If the scanner isn't heavy enough to suitably flatten your original then use something white (or wrapped in white paper) to 'squash' your original flat on to the scanning surface.

Roll over the above image
to view the difference.

Descreen: This will need to be applied, especially if your original is slightly reflective, as the setting takes into account the reflection caused by the scanning light on your work. Roll over the scanned image to see the difference in having descreen turned on and off.

Colour Adjustments: When you first place your original in the scanner you can select 'preview image' which will take a low resolution snap shot of your original. This will give you the opportunity to adjust the colours as well as the brightness and contrast, most scanning software will have an 'advanced' option where you can adjust the settings of colour and brightness. So if your image is too dark, just increase the brightness or if it is fairly dull and the whites are fairly dark and the darker shades are too light, increase the contrast - this will make the lighter parts lighter and in contrast, the darker parts darker. The colour settings will work in a simular fashion, just have a play around with the sliders and controls to see what happens - you can always reset what changes you've made by allowing the scanning software to adjust the colours automatically.

Photographing Your Originals

The other option for getting your original work in digital format is to photograph it, especially if the original is larger than your scanner.

Natural Light: The best conditions to photograph your work is in daylight - but not direct sunlight or anywhere that is shaded.

Camera Settings: The camera needs to be set so it takes the largest possible image with the lowest compression. Usually the compression setting will be named 'Quality' so make sure that it is set to 'Fine' rather than standard or normal.

As Straight as Possible: The easiest way to support your work is to position it on an artists easel, and then to use a tripod to keep your camera steady. Make sure the camera is facing directly at your artwork, you'll be able to see in the camera's screen if you are not, as it will appear in a slight perspective. Your work should be photographed as large as possible, so it will fill the screen in your camera's viewer.

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