Digital Photo Scanning Comparisons

_{Our standard service is 600dpi photo scans that include digital enhancement / correction. We don’t charge you for the media that we send your images on. Instead, we give you the micro SD card FREE.}

Digital Productions Studio

We’re comparing 300dpi and 600dpi photo scanning with and without image enhancement / correction

You can do a lot of research on the particulars of dpi (dots per inch). I will try to simplify it…

DPI stands for “dots per inch” and refers to the resolution of an image. It is particularly relevant when it comes to printing images. Essentially, the DPI of an image refers to the number of dots that can be printed within a one-inch area. The more dots that can be printed in that area, the higher the DPI, and the more detailed and crisp the image will look. However, it’s important to note that DPI is not the same as the total number of pixels in an image, which is its resolution. Rather, DPI is a measure of how many of those pixels will be printed within a given area.

Comparing “resolution” and “dpi”

Though the two terms are fairly similar when describing image quality, there is a difference.

Resolution refers to the total number of pixels in an image, typically measured in pixels wide by pixels tall (e.g. 1920×1080). DPI, on the other hand, refers to the number of dots that can be printed in a one inch area of the image. So resolution is more of an absolute quantity, while DPI is a measurement of how tightly those pixels can be packed into a physical size.

For the purposes of scanning print photographs, dpi is the common measurement used. So, when comparing service providers, you’ll most commonly see “dpi”.

Digital Image Enhancement / Correction

The below phots are my personal photos that I took as a very young man in the Coast Guard. They were captured with a VERY cheap 35mm camera that had (terrible) auto-focus and no zoom at all. Without spending a lot of time to do detailed enhancement / correction, I applied the basic image enhancement we do as a part of our regular service for you to see typical results.

Below are two examples of the same photo scanned at 600dpi. The first is with no enhancement / correction. The second has the basic image enhancement we apply as part of our service.

Photo Scanning at 300dpi vs 600dpi

Below are images showing 300dpi scans vs 600dpi scans with and without enhancement / correction. Even though these were grainy photos taken from a cheap 35mm camera, the differences in 300dpi vs 600dpi are noticeable. 600dpi scans are a better quality product.

Compare the below two images left side, top and bottom. Both have our standard enhancement / correction. The top is 300dpi and the bottom is 600dpi. Even on these little contact-sheet-size photos you can see there is more detail in the water ahead of the ship in the 600dpi scan. With the actual, full-size images you can zoom in more on the 600dpi scan and see even more detail and more color. It’s a better quality product for your money.

Which Photo Scanning Service will You Choose?

A lot of our competitors offer low sticker prices, but are only offering you 300dpi images. Many don’t specifically state whether they do any sort of digital enhancement or correction. They are just offering a bulk scan of your photos at a cheap price. If you only want to archive some print photos, Digital Productions Studio will gladly do that service for you. Contact us to quote it as a custom job and we’ll do it at a very, very low cost.

Our Standard Service

Our standard service is 600dpi photo scans that include digital enhancement / correction. We don’t charge you for the media that we send your images on. Instead, we give you the micro SD card FREE.