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Don’t miss out on promos,
how to properly save your
memories, and more
Don’t miss out on promos,
how to properly save your
memories, and more
We may refuse to scan content if we feel it infringes rights of privacy, publicity, copyrights or other intellectual property rights without the express written permission of the owner of these rights and the persons (or their parents or legal guardians, where applicable) who are shown in the material if applicable.
We've pioneered a number of industry best practices to guarantee the safety of customers' precious memories on our premises and in transit, including door to door tracking and the following:
DPI is a common, often misunderstood technical term that stands for "dots per inch." DPI designates the number of pixels per linear inch that a scanner produces in a scan file. The higher the dpi, the larger the scan is in pixels and megabytes, which means larger files.
At ScanCafe, we think high resolution is important because you never know what scans might be used for in the future (e.g. making prints). In general, a scan needs to have high enough resolution to enlarge, print, and crop from the scan file. On the other hand, it's possible to scan with too high a resolution–in some cases, highly detailed scans can actually pick up and magnify the grain of the paper (if a print) or the film itself (if a negative or slide). We think our standard resolution of 3000 dpi for 35mm slides and negatives and 600 dpi for paper photos strikes the right balance.
Yes, we now offer services that can restore nearly any photo to its former glory. When you upload digital files of severely damaged photos, we'll repair them pixel by pixel. And if you're uploading many photos, you can tell us specifically which ones require restoration. You can also write to our customer service team with any inquiries and they'll answer your questions (e.g. if restoration is possible). Prices range from $5 to $40.
Most people have thousands of pictures in different formats. Over time, it’s common for slides, negatives, prints, and videos to shift in color, fade, and get damaged. Professional scanning restores and preserves these precious memories so you can enjoy them for years to come. Scanning photos also provides other benefits, including:
Our office hours are 9:30 AM –7:00 PM EST Monday to Friday, closed Saturday and Sunday. During office hours, we make every effort to respond to emails within six hours and return voice mails within four hours.
Please only use secure and sturdy boxes to ship your precious images. DON'T use flimsy department store boxes (e.g. Macy s or Nordstrom), Kleenex boxes, thin paper/cardboard boxes, moving boxes, or shoeboxes. In addition, you should never use bubble mailers because the contents will likely be damaged. Always be careful to fully tape up the box on the top and bottom. The UPS store or your local post office has appropriate shipping materials. Here are UPS guidelines for proper packaging:
Videos and jpeg files downloaded directly from your account to your local drive will play on all computers. When playing off a USB, you will need a device that has a USB port such as computers or some modern TVs.
With ScanCafe gift cards, you simply select the dollar value you wish to give and the recipient will be able to purchase services up to that amount without being charged. ScanCafe gift cards are an ideal present to give to special people in your life who have expressed the desire to preserve precious memories. In fact, giving a ScanCafe gift card may be just the encouragement your friend or family member needs to get photos scanned and will save them the hassle of DIY scanning. A ScanCafe gift card is the perfect solution for preserving photos, negatives, or slides before they incur irreversible age damage. And they'll remember your unique gift every time they look at their wonderful digital memories! Further, there's no need to worry about a card getting lost or misplaced. Should this happen, simply contact us at [email protected]
As per ScanCafe's Terms of Service, we will not accept or process content in any format that includes nudity. If your video contains nudity, we'll attempt to process sections without nudity, if appropriate and warranted. In addition, we cannot process videotape that has been copyrighted. As such, we consider recorded TV shows or movies as de facto copyrighted work and will not process them.
You can send the photos in albums as is – we currently don't charge extra for scanning photos sent in albums. Our technicians remove the photos from the album in sequence and then scan and replace them in the same sequence. If the photos can't be removed from the album for any reason, we'll contact you prior to scanning to discuss possible solutions.
Many of our museum, art gallery, photography, and professional clients select one of our pro scanning options to suit their needs, however, you don't need to be professional to appreciate these features. ScanCafe offers the following three premium options for anyone who wants to start with a "blank canvas" from which to apply professional processing as they see fit:
Pro Resolution: This option is ideal if you're interested in printing scanned files to a larger size than 8 x10 inches, or you plan to use scans in publications. During the scanning process, greater detail is captured per square inch, resulting in the ability to choose from larger image sizing options from the final scans, including enlargements up to 16 x 20 inches and beyond.
TIFF: Unlike standard JPGs, TIFF files use lossless compression (or no compression at all), so they're very, very large in size. For example, TIFF files scanned at 3000 dpi (our default setting) range in size from 60 to 120 MB per image. If you'd prefer fully edited images to be in TIFF format versus JPG, simply select TIFF.
Pro Library: With this option, you’ll receive two complete sets of images. The first set is a compressed JPG with our manual image processing applied (cropping, scratch removal, color correction, red eye removal, etc.) The second is a lossless TIFF with no image processing applied.
Yes, when you select this service, you can review your order online within 8 to 10 business days as long as the order is
Yes, a USB drive is one of our standard delivery options. If you plan on editing your digitized video, we suggest selecting the Uncompressed H.264/MPEG-4 Files option. This format has a much higher bit rate than the compressed file, and thus, provides the best possible quality for editing.
We retain the compressed version of your digitized video for a period after your order is completed and shipped to you. This allows us to make additional copies should there be delays or difficulties in transit.
If you specifically wish to receive duplicate copies, we recommend that you make this request when you place your order.
As per ScanCafe's Terms of Service, we will not accept or process content in any format that includes nudity. If your video contains nudity, we'll attempt to process sections without nudity, if appropriate and warranted. In addition, we cannot process videotape that has been copyrighted. As such, we consider recorded TV shows or movies as de facto copyrighted work and will not process them.
Unfortunately we do not allow for the ability to review or reject video or audio files, however, we do provide the files in the form of a download prior to order shipment. We do remove blank footage as part of our service and also try to repair damaged videos at no extra cost.
When you place your order, we provide a film calculator that helps you estimate the footage you have. (This is a ballpark calculation.)
The actual length of the film is calculated using this formula: Total Run Time (in minutes) x 16.67. If you know the total run time, use this formula to determine how much film you have.
Yes, at ScanCafe, it is part of our standard practice to clean movie film, both physically and electronically, as well as splice it if needed.
Old movie film is often amazingly dirty, so cleaning it is an important part of our quality control process. Each speck of dirt will show up on your final image, and this can make watching old home movies less enjoyable. But removing all dust and scratches physically is virtually impossible. Therefore, we incorporate the additional step of digital cleaning to help further reduce the appearance of dust and scratches.
Please leave your film in the original packaging. If you group and label your originals inside your box, we will scan your order accordingly and your digital files will be organized as such. If you choose to label film, we ask that you keep the titles relatively short (20 characters or so). You can also provide a printed out title worksheet, which our team will reference when digitizing your film. For additional packing tips, click here.
Most people have thousands of pictures in different formats. Over time, it’s common for slides, negatives, prints, and videos to shift in color, fade, and get damaged. Professional scanning restores and preserves these precious memories so you can enjoy them for years to come. Scanning photos also provides other benefits, including:
Videos and jpeg files downloaded directly from your account to your local drive will play on all computers. When playing off a USB, you will need a device that has a USB port such as computers or some modern TVs.
You can send the photos in albums as is – we currently don't charge extra for scanning photos sent in albums. Our technicians remove the photos from the album in sequence and then scan and replace them in the same sequence. If the photos can't be removed from the album for any reason, we'll contact you prior to scanning to discuss possible solutions.
If most of your photo collection is comprised of negatives, scanning them is preferred to prints because:
You can send slides in carousels without removing them, however, there's a surcharge of $5.45. Slides sent in magazines or slide display pages aren't subject to this surcharge. We handle slides the same way whether you send them loose or in their original boxes, carousels, magazines, or protective sheets. It really comes down to how much you can fit in a shipping box, the possibility of needing several boxes, and that leaving slides in carousels adds significantly to shipping costs. Regardless of how you ship them, it's important to secure loose slides with rubber bands or wrap them in saran wrap and then place them in Ziploc bags. This will prevent them from shifting around in the box during shipping.
Yes, we can scan single negatives that have been cut from larger strips.
No, aside from using air to blow off dust, we don't remove mold or use any cleaner or clothes that can scratch the surface of slides. Even so, our advanced restoration techniques may enable producing a "clean" digital file from slides impacted by mold.
Currently we use the 2.5" 500GB drive from Western Digital (WDXMS1200TN) which has "in-line" power so no external power supply is required - they are extremely convenient. They connect via a USB port and fit in a shirt pocket. Scans in JPEG at 3000 dpi are between 5-7MB. The usable space on the drive is about 310 GB. Consequently, we can store about 16,000 images on a drive. We don't offer larger or smaller drives. For now this is the only option we offer.
When we receive a page that is larger than 8x10 and contains multiple images pasted on it, our standard is to have our editing team individually crop the pictures. We understand that some customers prefer to keep the entire page instead. We are glad to accommodate this kind of special request and ask that it is communicated by utilizing the "customer comments section" on the final screen of the order form. Sending an email to our Customer Service team once you have an order placed is also extremely helpful!
Please only use secure and sturdy boxes to ship your precious images. DON'T use flimsy department store boxes (e.g. Macy s or Nordstrom), Kleenex boxes, thin paper/cardboard boxes, moving boxes, or shoeboxes. In addition, you should never use bubble mailers because the contents will likely be damaged. Always be careful to fully tape up the box on the top and bottom. The UPS store or your local post office has appropriate shipping materials. Here are UPS guidelines for proper packaging:
When you place your order, we provide a film calculator that helps you estimate the footage you have. (This is a ballpark calculation.)
The actual length of the film is calculated using this formula: Total Run Time (in minutes) x 16.67. If you know the total run time, use this formula to determine how much film you have.
Yes, at ScanCafe, it is part of our standard practice to clean movie film, both physically and electronically, as well as splice it if needed.
Old movie film is often amazingly dirty, so cleaning it is an important part of our quality control process. Each speck of dirt will show up on your final image, and this can make watching old home movies less enjoyable. But removing all dust and scratches physically is virtually impossible. Therefore, we incorporate the additional step of digital cleaning to help further reduce the appearance of dust and scratches.
Please leave your film in the original packaging. If you group and label your originals inside your box, we will scan your order accordingly and your digital files will be organized as such. If you choose to label film, we ask that you keep the titles relatively short (20 characters or so). You can also provide a printed out title worksheet, which our team will reference when digitizing your film. For additional packing tips, click here.
You can send slides in carousels without removing them, however, there's a surcharge of $5.45. Slides sent in magazines or slide display pages aren't subject to this surcharge. We handle slides the same way whether you send them loose or in their original boxes, carousels, magazines, or protective sheets. It really comes down to how much you can fit in a shipping box, the possibility of needing several boxes, and that leaving slides in carousels adds significantly to shipping costs. Regardless of how you ship them, it's important to secure loose slides with rubber bands or wrap them in saran wrap and then place them in Ziploc bags. This will prevent them from shifting around in the box during shipping.
Your image files will be organized based on how you did so in your folders and we scan them in sequence. We also try to use your titles in full, as character space allows. Both videos and jpeg files will play on all computers and digital media players. If your images or videos were sent on a USB drive, this should be playable on devices with a USB port (e.g. computers, modern TVs).
Many of our museum, art gallery, photography, and professional clients select one of our pro scanning options to suit their needs, however, you don't need to be professional to appreciate these features. ScanCafe offers the following three premium options for anyone who wants to start with a "blank canvas" from which to apply professional processing as they see fit:
Pro Resolution: This option is ideal if you're interested in printing scanned files to a larger size than 8 x10 inches, or you plan to use scans in publications. During the scanning process, greater detail is captured per square inch, resulting in the ability to choose from larger image sizing options from the final scans, including enlargements up to 16 x 20 inches and beyond.
TIFF: Unlike standard JPGs, TIFF files use lossless compression (or no compression at all), so they're very, very large in size. For example, TIFF files scanned at 3000 dpi (our default setting) range in size from 60 to 120 MB per image. If you'd prefer fully edited images to be in TIFF format versus JPG, simply select TIFF.
Pro Library: With this option, you’ll receive two complete sets of images. The first set is a compressed JPG with our manual image processing applied (cropping, scratch removal, color correction, red eye removal, etc.) The second is a lossless TIFF with no image processing applied.
Yes, when you select this service, you can review your order online within 8 to 10 business days as long as the order is
Digital downloads for a-la-carte, value kit, and gift boxes are available for 30 days after the order has been completed. We do offer a subscription storage to re-activate your downloads, which can be found on the "My Account" page.
Yes, a USB drive is one of our standard delivery options. If you plan on editing your digitized video, we suggest selecting the Uncompressed H.264/MPEG-4 Files option. This format has a much higher bit rate than the compressed file, and thus, provides the best possible quality for editing.
We retain the compressed version of your digitized video for a period after your order is completed and shipped to you. This allows us to make additional copies should there be delays or difficulties in transit.
If you specifically wish to receive duplicate copies, we recommend that you make this request when you place your order.
The digital download link will be sent to the email you provided. Due to the large size of the entire order, this will be sent as a ZIP file. In order to access the digital image files in the ZIP file, follow these easy steps:
ScanCafe allows you to share scanned image albums with friends and family. After you review your scanned images and check out, you’re offered an option to share your images for free. You can also buy extra USB drives when you initially place your order and during the final checkout process. While the USB drives we send are high-resolution images, the images you view online are low resolution, therefore not a good way to share. Another option is to upload select high-resolution images from the USB drive to a cloud (e.g. Google) and share the link with family members.
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