How To...
Scan Your Photos | Send Your Photos | Send Your Video
We provide these guidelines as a generalized resource to our customers. If you have specific questions regarding your digital media project, and would like one of our representatives to assist you, please contact us, and provide as much information as you can regarding the nature of your project.
Basic guidelines to follow when scanning your photos:
When sending scanned photos on cd-rom disc or via e-mail please follow these simple guidelines to ensure the best possible result for your project, and the safety of your irreplaceable photographs:
- Scan your photographs at a high-resolution; we recommend 300dpi. Scanning your photographs at a high resolution will yield images which are suitable for both printing and video display.
- A good guideline to follow is scanning your photos at their original size (100%). If your photograph is very small (i.e. locket size), you may want to increase the proportion of your scan to 200% and/or scan at a higher resolution than 300dpi.
- Always let your scanner do the enlarging, if necessary. Do not rely on an image editing application to enlarge the photo after it has been scanned. Enlarging your photo in an image editing application will degrade the quality of your scanned image.
- Always have the scanner save the image in a lossless format, such as bitmap (.BMP) or TIFF (.TIF). Saving the image in a lossy format such as .GIF or .JPEG will degrade the quality of the scanned image.
If your scanner is not capable of capturing at 300dpi or higher, or if you would feel more comfortable having our digital imaging professionals scan your photos for you, we'd be happy to do so. Please read the section which covers basic precautions to address when sending photographs and other delicate media via surface shipping methods.
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Basic guidelines to follow when sending us your photos:
If you desire your photographs to appear in a specific order in the video slideshow, please number the back of each photograph. We recommend applying a small square of draftsman's tape to the back of the photographs, or to the frame of photonegatives and slides, and writing the sequence number on the tape. Draftsman's tape is designed to stick safely to delicate vellum and onion-skin paper without tearing the paper when removed, and can be purchased at your local art supply store. If your photos are not numbered, they will appear in the slideshow in the order in which they are processed once we receive them.
Do not send your photos pre-mounted in a photo album, as this adds a significant amount of unnecessary weight to your shipment. We recommend sending your photos in a flat box which is then packed into a padded mailing envelope. Both items can be purchased at your local office supply store at a very affordable rate. Empty space inside the box should be padded to prevent your photographs from being damaged in transit. Plastic grocery bags work well as padding, since they will expand and keep the photographs held securely in place, and they add only an insignificant amount of weight to the package.
If you are sending your photos directly to us we highly recommend UPS as the preferred shipping method. They have proven to be the most reliable shipper and we have not had any problems using them for shipments. FEDEX would be a second choice but they are not as reliable as UPS. We do not recommend the U.S. Postal service simply because they have no way of tracking packages. Both UPS and FEDEX offer package tracking and insurance to help safeguard your valuable photographs. We recommend you consider insuring your shipment, and keeping your tracking slip in a safe place.
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Basic guidelines to follow when sending us your film or video:
If you require your film or videotape footage to appear in a specific order in your video or montage, please mark each cassette with masking tape or draftsman's tape. Although our video editing staff is creative and will do their best to merge your video into an appealing sequence, we prefer you let us know the specific order/placement of each sequence in the montage.
If your video cassette includes sequences of footage which you do not wish to be included in your edited video, please make note of your VCR's clock and jot down the entry and exit points of the sequences you wish to be excluded. Please ensure that your VCR's play clock is reset to 0:00:00 at the beginning of the tape, so that your time matches ours when we cut the scenes you wish excluded.
If you are sending your photos directly to us we recommend UPS as the preferred shipping method. They have proven to be the most reliable shipper and we have not had any problems using them for shipments. FEDEX would be a second choice but they are not as reliable as UPS. We do not recommend the U.S. Postal service simply because they have no way of tracking packages. Both UPS and FEDEX offer package tracking and insurance to help safeguard your film and video cassettes. We recommend you consider insuring your shipment, and keeping your tracking slip in a safe place.
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