My Love-Hate Relationship with Image Scanning
- Stephen Stewart
- Aug 29, 2015
- 2 min read
As a new photo technician, I was skeptical of image scanning. After all, if people have the physical pictures, what’s the point of having the photos scanned onto DVDs and CDs? “What a waste!” I thought. Then, there was one day when it finally clicked into place for me.
Surprising Parents with Old Forgotten Scanned Photos
A middle aged brother and sister came to the shop and placed a manila folder overflowing with pictures on the counter. They were planning a surprise anniversary party for their parents, who would be celebrating their 60th anniversary. As I carefully flipped through the chronological photos, I noticed the difference between the married couple’s dating pictures and the pictures that would be toward the end of the slide show.
Here’s what I held in my hands: a 63 year old black-and-white Polaroid picture of a young, love-struck couple staring into each other’s eyes. The photo was creased with wrinkles, yellowed with age, and one of the corners was torn off. But it held precious memories for that couple (and obviously for their children, who were anxious to have their images scanned).
As I flipped through the remainder of the photos, image scanning really began to grow on me. These precious photos wouldn’t be able to last much longer. Some of them were fading, while others had coffee stains from late night scrap booking accidents. Even the photos that were ten years old had a noticeable difference in condition and color compared to the most recent photos.
Photo Scanning Keeps Authenticity of the Pictures
After completing the image scanning, I tested the DVD. Amazingly, the image scanning kept the authenticity of the photos! Because of image scanning, the envelope crammed full of photos fit in a space the size of my palm. There in my hand I held over 60 years’ worth of photos, all thanks to image scanning.
Surprising Daughter with Timeline of Photographs
A couple months later, another customer handed me an envelope of photos for image scanning. She was a single mother, and her worn clothes and wrinkled hands told me she bore a work-filled life. But there was pride in her eyes as she flipped through the photos, eagerly showing pictures of her daughter, who had just graduated with a doctorate degree.
The mother was throwing a graduation party for her daughter, and she made a slideshow of photos so the guests could see her daughter’s journey. From toddler pictures in a tiny pink tutu, through some awkward class pictures, to the blossoming of a young adult, each picture told a piece of the story of how the daughter became who she was.
Pictures are Temporary While Digitizing Can Preserve
From these experiences and many more encounters, I really began to see the importance of image scanning. Without image scanning, pictures are so temporary. Water, age, and careless hands are only a few enemies of precious photos. With the help of our image scanning, these factors will no longer be a worry. Your memories will last for generations to come!
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