Making Photo Scanning A ‘Heavenly’ Experience

Pedro Diniz. “Cleanliness is next to Godliness”.   2010-Apr-17. 2012-Jul-11. http://flic.kr/p/7UdzTy

All world faiths have some variation on the concept that to be clean is very close to connecting with divinity. Around the world for generation after generation mothers have used some form of this saying to validate their pleas to countless number of children in order to get them to clean up. Academic researchers have even conducted scientific studies on the impact of cleanliness upon our behavior.

The Road To Photo Scanning ‘Hell’
So, if cleanliness directs one to a more divine path; is the corollary...failure to do so paves a road to some less inspired destination?

Perhaps nothing proves that point more distinctly than in the world of scanning photographs! If you have ever scanned in an environment that has not been properly attended to then you may very well felt as though you were working in a place of pain and turmoil.

The process of scanning photographs printed onto an analog media, such as paper, converts that image into a digital one using one of a number of available imaging technologies. However, if the environment in which this process is conducted is not carefully attended to, it is possible to introduce artifacts that can obscure, alter, and most likely impact the overall resulting digitized image in a very negative way. This is where cleanliness really can matter!

Measure Twice, Cut Once.
When scanning photos you want to adopt measures to help ensure artifacts that can be introduced from an unclean (a.k.a.; unfriendly) environment are eliminated. Such artifacts include, body oils transferred onto photos from handling, dust, foreign objects that scratch and mark, liquids that can spill, and excessive temperature, to name a few.

One good practice is to embrace the 16th century working mantra first accredited to John Florio, of “Measure twice cut once.” Doing so, will make sure before scanning you are double checking everything - including the work environment’s cleanliness - before bring out the first photograph to start scanning.

Brillianize Your Way to ‘Heavenly’ Scanning!
In addition to paying extremely close attention to the work environment, keeping the scanning surface clean is of the utmost importance. To accomplish this, there is one product that needs to be in your scanning tool box and used religiously. Doing so, will guarantee that ‘heavenly’ experience as a result of a clean and polished scanning platen or flat glass surface on which the photos are scanned.

Brillianize is specially formulated to clean, preserve and protect high performance big screen televisions, LCD and plasma displays, photo copiers, scanners, precision optics, cameras and lenses. Typically, a starter kit that includes a Brillianize Detailer Kit and Micro Fiber Cloth is shipped with most professional, high quality, high production photo scanners

Brillianize is safe non-toxic and environmentally friendly. Its formula contains no alcohol, no ammonia, no sodium lauryl sulfate, no ethylene glycol butyl ether or other less expensive chemicals found in many household cleaners. It is safe to use around children and pets.

Today Brillianize is a leading supplier of plastic cleaning and polish products to the consumer electronics, entertainment, film production, aquarium manufacturing, plastic fabricating and manufacturing industries.

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Digital Directions is sponsored by E-Z Photo Scan where making digital preservation easy is our mission. Visit E-Z Photo Scan to learn more about the possibilities for achieving your digital preservation goals.