All You Need to Know About Image Resolution When Scanning Old Photos

scanning old photos

Whenever you rediscover a bunch of old family photos, your first instinct may be to scan them. However, many people find this overwhelming and put it off. This is ill-advised as old photos are especially vulnerable to deterioration and scanning should be done as soon as possible. You can always go to a photo scanning service in Perth like Scan Ur Pics, but before you do, it’s important that you understand the different terms that play a role in determining the quality of the resolution.

What affects photo resolution?

In the same way that printed images consist of many small dots, digital images consist of pixels. A pixel is the smallest individual unit that merge together to create the visible image that you’ll see on your electronic display. Zooming in far enough on any digital image will uncover little monocoloured squares. Certain images will appear pixelated if you zoom in too much so it’s important to try and avoid this (unless that is the intended effect of course.

The image quality will improve if there are more pixels per inch. Frequently referred to as PPI, pixels per inch utilises a red, green and blue colour model which is typical for electronic images. These colours will be blended together at the pixel level, creating a consistent hue. The more pixels within an inch, the robust and clear the colours are, creating a more vibrant image.

Printed images don’t have pixels and instead have DPI, short for dots per inch. DPI can however also be used for digital images. The colour scheme is different as it uses the CMYK model which stands for cyan, magenta, yellow, key (which is black). These colours are what determine the amount to red, blue and green light is reflected from white paper.

The DPI that you should use when you convert photos to digital will vary depending on whether you want to print new images or just have a website copy. 72 to 96 DPI will be acceptable for the latter, but the former will require a minimum of 300 and as much as 600 if you intend to enlarge the image.

How to increase the resolution of your photos

DPI and PPI are the two factors that determine the quality of an image’s resolution. As such, increasing these factors are the only ways you can increase the image quality. For example, if you were to use a photo scanner to scan a 4×6 inch image at 96 DPI it would have a lower resolution than if you were to scan it at 300 DPI. This lower resolution means that the file will be smaller, but it will not maintain its quality when enlarged. If you want to know more about image resoluiton, click here to learn more.

When you are using a photo scanning service in Perth, it is important that you choose one that has the option of scanning with a high DPI. Scan Ur Pics offers the option for resolutions of all kinds and by entrusting them with your precious memories, you are guaranteed to have the same care and consideration applied to your precious memories as if it were their own. Immortalise your memories now with Scan Ur Pics, the best photo scanning service in Perth.