What should be the resolution for scanning a pencil drawing?

[LTD]

Hi!

I was wondering, when scanning a pencil drawing, what should the resolution (dpi) be set at? Because the last time I scanned a picture (a year ago) it looked like crap.

[lemorris]

try scanning at 300 dpi

if you have photoshop or something like that adjust the contrast just a tad, and then adjust the levels.

I can't believe 1 bad scan scared you off for a whole year! LOLOLOL

seriously though you have to play with stuff sometimes. My scanner is different than yours. I had to play with it to figure out the best settings for the particular application.

Mess with it.

-Lemorris

[mike@af]

300dpi on my scanner can be completely different than your scanner.

[lemorris]

My point exactly.

However 300 dpi is going to give you a nice large file . That's math. You can figure out size in pixels based on dpi.

The tricky part with pencil work is getting a decent scan and then making whatever adjustments are necessary so you can keep the integrity of the drawing in tact.

A higher resolution scan gives you greater flexibilty. After you make whatever adjustments, change the image size to 150 or save for web at 72 dpi, but always keep your original scan.

Also for anything that is published (print media) They will want at least 288 dpi or higher especially if they have a digital press.

Once again you can't wait a year between scans and expect them to be better. Your scanner is a tool just like your eraser. Learn to use it.

-Lemorris

[Ra_15]

Anything above 200 dpi is fine. Above 300, you really don't need any more. I tryed to scan at 9600 dpi once, but my PC froze, probably due to the crazy size that the file would be.

[LTD]

Thanks for the tips and advice, everyone.