Tips for scanning old family letters

[im5150too]

Along with the old photo's, I'm in charge of scanning and protecting
some old family letters, some with quite a bit of historical
importance.

Some of these letters are on various color paper, some quite dark,
with different inks and colors. Some of the paper has acid and age
spots, and is quite fragile

Any tips for scanning these for archive purposes? This will probably
be the last chance for most of them.

Thanks, my project is going much better because of all your
assistance!

 

[lostinspace]

----- Original Message -----
From: "im5150too" <>
Newsgroups: comp.periphs.scanners
Sent: Monday, September 27, 2004 5:32 PM
Subject: Tips for scanning old family letters

Along with the old photo's, I'm in charge of scanning and protecting
some old family letters, some with quite a bit of historical
importance.

Some of these letters are on various color paper, some quite dark,
with different inks and colors. Some of the paper has acid and age
spots, and is quite fragile

Any tips for scanning these for archive purposes? This will probably
be the last chance for most of them.

Thanks, my project is going much better because of all your
assistance!

IMO, the best scans of these types of things are a result of using the FULL
Versions of Acrobat (or a generic) which scans directly into a PDF file.
I've done some extensive family handwritten items and other sich things
this way.

 

[degrub]

Take a picture ! Less risk in handling and you can get the light and
focus exact. i have used slow slide films with good success. You may be
able to rent the camera and lens that you need. Use a tripod with a
remote release. Then you can scan the films as needed.

Frank

 

[im5150too]

Take a picture ! Less risk in handling and you can get the light and
focus exact. i have used slow slide films with good success. You may be
able to rent the camera and lens that you need. Use a tripod with a
remote release. Then you can scan the films as needed.

Frank

I will consider using a camera for some of the most important ones,
but can you give me any tips on using the scanner for the majority?
Settings or other tweaks that will help make them more readable?

Thanks,
Don

 

[Roger Riordan]

I will consider using a camera for some of the most important ones,
but can you give me any tips on using the scanner for the majority?
Settings or other tweaks that will help make them more readable?

I scan letters as 'hi-res black & white photo', then adjust contrast in
photoshop to get optimum readability. Main problems are differential fading,
and differing illumination caused by paper not lying flat due to creases.
Result of these is that if you make the contrast too high some parts will be all
black, and others all white. I had a considerable problem with letters my
mother wrote from a military hospital in France in WW1. Often written on any
scrap of paper, on both sides, & started in ink, but swapped to pencil half way,
then filled in all the white spaces when she got to the end of the sheet. And
writing hard to read at the best of times!


Roger Riordan AM

 

[im5150too]

I scan letters as 'hi-res black & white photo', then adjust contrast in
photoshop to get optimum readability. Main problems are differential fading,
and differing illumination caused by paper not lying flat due to creases.
Result of these is that if you make the contrast too high some parts will be all
black, and others all white. I had a considerable problem with letters my
mother wrote from a military hospital in France in WW1. Often written on any
scrap of paper, on both sides, & started in ink, but swapped to pencil half way,
then filled in all the white spaces when she got to the end of the sheet. And
writing hard to read at the best of times!


Roger Riordan AM

Thanks Roger, sounds like you've been in the exact same spot that I'm
in. I've got different colored inks and papers, so scan in B/W? Or
did you mean greyscale?

 

[Don]

Thanks Roger, sounds like you've been in the exact same spot that I'm
in. I've got different colored inks and papers, so scan in B/W? Or
did you mean greyscale?

One idea may be to scan in color and then examine individual RGB
channels (or even some other color mode like LAB). Some inks may be
clearer in one channel, and others in a different channel. So, a
handmade composite in Photoshop (or similar) may yield best results
before converting to grayscale or B&W if that's the end goal.

A color scan is also very handy for removing things like coffee stains
and suchlike because they stand out much more in a color scan if the
actual letter content is essentially B&W (e.g. black ink on white
paper). Either way, it's all very labor intensive but may be worth the
effort for irreplaceable documents like that.

I myself will start scanning letters only after I'm done with slides
and photos and I expect a lot of "fun" when I get around to it. In
addition to multicolored inks and "bleeding through" when both sides
of paper were used, there are these airmail letters from Europe on
*blue*, very thin and practically transparent paper with *blue*
ballpen writing on both sides... Ugh... That's going to be a
nightmare!

Don.

 

[im5150too]

One idea may be to scan in color and then examine individual RGB
channels (or even some other color mode like LAB). Some inks may be
clearer in one channel, and others in a different channel. So, a
handmade composite in Photoshop (or similar) may yield best results
before converting to grayscale or B&W if that's the end goal.

A color scan is also very handy for removing things like coffee stains
and suchlike because they stand out much more in a color scan if the
actual letter content is essentially B&W (e.g. black ink on white
paper). Either way, it's all very labor intensive but may be worth the
effort for irreplaceable documents like that.

I myself will start scanning letters only after I'm done with slides
and photos and I expect a lot of "fun" when I get around to it. In
addition to multicolored inks and "bleeding through" when both sides
of paper were used, there are these airmail letters from Europe on
*blue*, very thin and practically transparent paper with *blue*
ballpen writing on both sides... Ugh... That's going to be a
nightmare!

Don.

I've got some of those too! Thanks for the advice. It seems like most
of mine are on some kind of dark colored paper, lot's of brown.
Probably because Dad was in the middle of WW2 and dark paper was a
less inviting target!

 

[Hecate]

I myself will start scanning letters only after I'm done with slides
and photos and I expect a lot of "fun" when I get around to it. In
addition to multicolored inks and "bleeding through" when both sides
of paper were used, there are these airmail letters from Europe on
*blue*, very thin and practically transparent paper with *blue*
ballpen writing on both sides... Ugh... That's going to be a
nightmare!

For those, velvet is the answer - black velvet. Buy a metre or so from
a dress shop. Lay the blue paper on the scanner. Lay the velvet over
the top. It's one of the best things I've seen at absorbing light and
should give you a clear scan with only the side facing the light
showing writing. If it doesn't work, it's useful glued to card btw
when you want a black edge on one side of a still life ;-)

 

[Roger Riordan]

(e-mail address removed) (im5150too) wrote:

..............................

I've got some of those too! Thanks for the advice. It seems like most
of mine are on some kind of dark colored paper, lot's of brown.
Probably because Dad was in the middle of WW2 and dark paper was a
less inviting target!

Or, more likely, easier to get!


Roger Riordan AM

 

[Don]

For those, velvet is the answer - black velvet. Buy a metre or so from
a dress shop. Lay the blue paper on the scanner. Lay the velvet over
the top. It's one of the best things I've seen at absorbing light and
should give you a clear scan with only the side facing the light
showing writing. If it doesn't work, it's useful glued to card btw
when you want a black edge on one side of a still life ;-)

And when I mention black velvet, girls call me kinky... ;o)

No, seriously, that's a very good tip!!! Filed prominently for future
use. Thanks!

I read once about using a photocopy with the lid up i.e., total black
as a background, but due to its texture black velvet is bound to
absorbe much more.

Don.

 

[im5150too]

One idea may be to scan in color and then examine individual RGB
channels (or even some other color mode like LAB). Some inks may be
clearer in one channel, and others in a different channel. So, a
handmade composite in Photoshop (or similar) may yield best results
before converting to grayscale or B&W if that's the end goal.

A color scan is also very handy for removing things like coffee stains
and suchlike because they stand out much more in a color scan if the
actual letter content is essentially B&W (e.g. black ink on white
paper). Either way, it's all very labor intensive but may be worth the
effort for irreplaceable documents like that.

I myself will start scanning letters only after I'm done with slides
and photos and I expect a lot of "fun" when I get around to it. In
addition to multicolored inks and "bleeding through" when both sides
of paper were used, there are these airmail letters from Europe on
*blue*, very thin and practically transparent paper with *blue*
ballpen writing on both sides... Ugh... That's going to be a
nightmare!

Don.

Well... after a lot of tinkering, I've scanned about 30 letters so
far. I've been scanning them in color, at 600 DPI. I'm very happy
with the results so far. It is a little tricky, getting letters that
have been folded for 60+ years old to lay flat! I haven't gotten to
the tissue paper thin ones with blue ink on both sides yet. I'm going
to try the black velvet suggestion. Then after a couple shots of
that, I'll get back to scanning them....

God Bless my Grandmother for hanging on to all these letters. I have
a weekly account of my Father's service, from training in the US, then
in England, to D-Day, to December of 1945. Some have cutouts from the
censors, but it's amazing how much info is in them. And thanks partly
to help from you folks, not only I and my siblings, but his Great,
Great, Great, Great Grandchildren will get to read about this modest,
genuine American Hero.