Using Picasa's Import Command with Your Scanner
I was visiting my Mom's and we started looking at old pictures. Between the two of us we could identify most of them and I wanted to preserve them. She has one of those all-in-one printer-copier-scanners. So, here's what I did:
- Make sure everything is connected and turned on!
- Put the photo on the glass of the scanner - face down
- In Picasa, click 'Import'
- Click the arrow for the drop down list of devices. You should see your scanner listed ... select it
- Now you will see a screen that depends on your scanner. There should be an option to 'Preview'. Click that.
- You should now see your picture, there may be some settings you want to change here, but if it looks OK then
- Click the button to Scan
- When it's done scanning, you're back at the standard Picasa Import screen. Click Import all.
- Select a folder to put it in. I made a folder called 'Old Photos' for the first one, then, for each subsequent scanned photo, I selected that existing folder from the drop-down list.
I scanned 53 old photos in this manner. It took me somewhat over an hour. Then I just took another few seconds to use Batch Edit and do an 'I'm Feeling Lucky' and 'Sharpen' to all 53 at once. I think the results are great. What do you think?
This is a photo from circa 1962 - me at 10 years old in Alaska. It looks better than the original!
GOT Class Members can also view related videos:
Importing from Camera
Sharpen and Batch Edit
Basic Editing Features
Retouching
Chris, we just got a big box of old pictures out last evening and started sorting them! Watch our blog and we'll soon have a few of them on display!
ReplyDeleteWe had a cousins party at one of their homes. The cousins came from all over the south. The point of a cousins party is as we were growing up and we visited each other, we took their pictures and they took ours and then went home. So if you had a big family and they were always taking out the "Kodak" there are probably some very nice shots of you own family that never got to your house. I prefer Photodex over Picasa, it too and most programs that are Twain compatible will make a scan. Keep up the good work, we hope to be full time soon when whe sell our Computer Store 23 years is enough!
ReplyDeleteOne more comment I have found the best way to scan is to sort the photos on size of the photo. That way you won't have to preview scan ever photo and it won't leave extra white platen that takes up space, yeah I know you can trim them but it takes a long time to trim them up.
Keep up the good work!
[...] forum about scanning a preprinted form. A past Picasa tip explains how you can scan things just using your scanner and Picasa - no scanner software to learn. This member needed to scan a preprinted form and she was [...]
ReplyDeleteThis tutorial help me, no need to use other scanner application.
ReplyDeleteI'm trying to scan some old photos but when I click on import -- my printer doesn't show up??? Can you tell me how to change this to the right printer --- I can't seem to find where it is listed when I go to the Import Files/Folder??? Thanks for any help you can give me.
ReplyDeleteWhen I wish to scan I click on Import I only get the option of "Folder" . If I do it from my husband's laptop I get a list which contains our printer name. Is there anything I can do to make my printer come up in the import options as scanning from his computer is a very slow process.
ReplyDeleteHope you are able to assist.