Objective:

To help you will understand how to use the camera in your smartphone to obtain high quality images of documents and photographs in environments typically encountered by genealogists.

Downloads

Overview

  • When You Should NOT Use Your Phone
  • Why is a scanner so good at digitizing images?
  • The Basics of Digital Images
  • What is a digital image?
  • How a Digital Camera Works
  • Digital Image File Formats
  • Digital File Formats: TIFF, JPEG, PNG, RAW and PDF
  • Camera Basics – how a digital camera works
  • Steps to Follow to create optimal images
    • Make Sure You Have Memory Available
    • Clean The Lens
      • And the screen!
    • Choose the Best App
      • Camera+ (runs on iOS & Android) gets best reviews
      • Avoid using “scanning software” as you cannot be sure what they are doing to “optimize” the image
    • Optimize the App Settings
      • Resolution
      • File Format
      • Compression
      • Flash or no Flash
      • Adjust white balance
      • HDR
    • Get Good Light
      • Sunlight (move the document near a window or take it outside)
      • Bright single light source (lamp)
      • Light from multiple directions (minimizes shadows and glare)
    • Minimize Surrounding Glare
      • Dark, non-reflective background
    • Keep the Document Flat
      • Coins, Books, Keys, Rulers, Coasters, Hands, etc…
    • Fill the Frame
      • Utilize as many pixels as possible to capture the image (not the background)
      • Orient the phone to maximize resolution
      • Do NOT use Digital Zoom
    • Keep the Camera Parallel to the Document
      • Avoids distorting the image
    • Stabilize the Camera
      • Use the App’s anti-shake mode if available
      • Mono-Pod or Tri-Pod (Suggested: Qualiassu Cell Phone Tripod)
      • Brace the phone against something solid
    • Set the Focus/Exposure area
      • On most phones: tap the center of the screen
    • Large Documents
      • Overview Picture – Entire Document
      • Overlapping closeups (top left, top middle, top right, bottom left, bottom middle, bottom right)
        • Keep the camera at the same height
        • Keep it parallel to the document
      • Closeups of “important areas” (lets you zoom in with high level of detail)
        • How close is “too close”?

References/Additional Information

General Photography

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