Salvaging holiday shots » I Like Cameras

So Derek scanned them in but the results are poor. Flat, lifeless colours, scratches and noise along with jagged borders and low detail. He asked me if there is anything one can do to pep the photos up. I took a look and saw that it would take some serious Photoshop skills to get much out of the photographs.

This has to be one of the main benefits of digital for me - no need to scan photos if I want to email them, or display them online (which to be honest, is what I do - I haven't yet actually printed a photo that I've taken with the digital cameras I've had since 1998).

But, many people aren't in that position - keen SLR users without the budget to move to digital, with a lot of existing glass (lenses) and other kit that would be just too expensive to replace, or people who just plain have a good appreciation of the solid machinery of cameras from days gone by (like my much used Pentax KX).

Scanning prints is a fairly ugly option - but the prints are salvageable, if you're prepared to spend a bit of time in photoshop. Paul shows us some techniques that while it won't make a bad scan into a great digital photo, it will make them look a hell of a lot better.

Technorati Tags: camera, photography, photoshop, SLR