Digitization Guide

Please use the guide below to help you digitize your soccer artifacts, specifically papers and photographs. You can also download a PDF copy of this guide by clicking here.

Items Required

Flatbed Scanner 

For general scanning of photographs or paper, a generic flatbed scanner or all-in-one printer will suffice. To digitize slides and negatives, you will need a special scanner with a built-in transparency unit and film holders (included but not built-in), but this type of scanner is more expensive. The Epson Perfection V600 Color Photo, Image, Film, Negative & Document Scanner is a good product.

Photo-Editing Software

If you plan to edit any of the scans, you will need photo-editing software. Photoshop is a great product, but also a costly one. GIMP (GNU Image Manipulation Program) is a free alternative, which you may download from http://gimp.org/downloads/.

For Paper Artifacts

Step 1: Open your computer’s scanning program

Step 2: Customize your scan settings.

    1. Kind: Black & White, Text, or Color
    2. Resolution: 600 DPI or higher
      1. Any lower than 600 DPI and the scan will be low quality though. 1200 DPI is preferred, but it will make the file size larger.
    3. Name: Enter the name you want for the file
    4. Scan to: Location where you want the file to be
    5. Format: TIFF

Step 3: Click the preview/overview button

Step 4: Align the square around the image you wish to scan

Step 5: Click the “scan” button

Step 6: Open your photo-editing software if it does not open automatically when the scan completes

Step 7: Crop the scan further if necessary

Step 8: Export the file as a TIFF. 

    1. Use a descriptive name for the file.
    2. By exporting it as a TIFF, you have a master copy that you can edit in the future.

Step 9: Resize your file to be 200 or 300 DPI.

Step 10: Export the file as a PDF.

    1. Use the same name as the TIFF file

Step 11: Repeat Steps 3-10

For Photographs 

Step 1: Open your computer’s scanning program

Step 2: Customize your scan settings.

    1. Kind (Black & White, or Color)
    2. Resolution: 600 DPI or higher
      1. Any lower than 600 DPI and the scan will be low quality though. 1200 DPI is preferred, but it will make the file size larger.
    3. Name: Enter the name you want for the file
    4. Scan to: Location where you want the file to be
    5. Format: TIFF

Step 3: Click the preview button

Step 4: Align the square around the image you wish to scan

Step 5: Click the “scan” button

Step 6: Open your photo-editing software if it does not open automatically when the scan completes

Step 7: Crop the scan further if necessary

Step 8: Export the file as a TIFF. 

    1. Use a descriptive name for the file.
    2. By exporting it as a TIFF, you have a master copy that you can edit in the future.

Step 9: Resize your file to be 200 or 300 DPI.

Step 10: Export the file as a JPG.

    1. Use the same name as the TIFF file

Step 11: Repeat Steps 3-10

Compiled by Patrick H. Salkeld

Last updated April 17, 2020