I'm going to bust another scanning myth... That JPG files are rubbish!

If your file is going to be used in a low resolution use (like clip art, Facebook, more or less anywhere online in fact), then a JPG file is what you need. In some quarters this opinion is considered absolute heresy. "How dare you recommend that" and so on... But wait! There is a reason here... read on.

I'm starting out this installment by assuming you are new to film scanning. What's the biggest single problem you have? Apart from the terminology and technical juggling of options and places to click in the software, I bet its trying to get consistent and decent results. Well, here is a myth busted. Read on for the best place to start out.

The reality is that most film photographers today are neither 100% analog nor are they 100% digital but use some crazy mix of hybrid techniques to get their results. Sure there are those for whom the darkroom is the only place to print and there are those that will never in their entire lives set foot in one, but most of us are somewhere between those two extremes. Most of us who shoot with film, will therefore at some point in time also scan our prints and/or the negatives. 

You may already have a scanner - I have gone through a collection of multi-function printer/fax/scanners in my time mostly for the printer, but have used just about all the Epson range at work. I can't afford the Epson that I'd like, so my own purchase is a compromise.