Scanning card images

[hcv123]

Most important thing is to get a scanner with a "CCD". I use a Canon 9000F MarkII and love it. There is also a highly rated Epson model (I forget the model number).
In response to can scans be enhanced - easily and absolutley.

[toledo_mudhen]

Originally Posted by hcv123

Most important thing is to get a scanner with a "CCD". I use a Canon 9000F MarkII and love it..

Another vote on the Canon +1

[Snapolit1]

Thanks for the recommendations.

I guess what I was trying to understand is how a AH image could vary rather dramatically from what PSA has on their website. Are there perfectly reasonable explanations for some degree of variance other than enhancement?

[rugbymarine]

Originally Posted by Snapolit1

Thanks for the recommendations.

I guess what I was trying to understand is how a AH image could vary rather dramatically from what PSA has on their website. Are there perfectly reasonable explanations for some degree of variance other than enhancement?

I believe a lot of AH are using photographs now instead of scans, and I assume they're using professional setups. (stands, backgrounds, ideal lenses & settings, etc...) since it is very much in their best interests to portray the card in the best light possible. That is not as true with the stock images I've seen on PSA registry/inventory.

[Carter08]

Originally Posted by rugbymarine

I believe a lot of AH are using photographs now instead of scans, and I assume they're using professional setups. (stands, backgrounds, ideal lenses & settings, etc...) since it is very much in their best interests to portray the card in the best light possible. That is not as true with the stock images I've seen on PSA registry/inventory.

On higher end cards it would be nicer to see a short video of the cards front and back.

[sb1]

Epson V series, 33,39 and several others, all inexpensive and work great right out of the box, but also allow for several adjustments.

Some AH are using big photograph setups, others use large flat bed scanners. Typically scanners will bring out far more details as to creases/wrinkles, etc where photos tend to mute the issue.

[jingram058]

This is what my buddy Louis had to say: he has experience with AH submittals, due to his fondness for old cars and the ephemera that accompany them. He also prepares the St. Jude web presence. He says digital photography is okay for one's own personal use, but a scanner set up for cards, with minimal handling, is the only way to go with an AH submittal. His recommendations are Canon (best) and Epson (2nd best).

[rugbymarine]

I put off buying one for a long time as well. Once I did, it's a total game changer. Ditto what Lonnie and Howard said. I have the Epson v600 and could not be happier.

As for your question on different looking scans from different scanners, absolutely. And just speaking from experience, there's a range of options within a scanner and software that you could make scans of the same card that look very different. I spent the week after I bought the v600 finding the right combination of settings. I found the same thing that you mentioned on a card that PSA already had a scan of in their database. Their scan looked dull and faded compared to when I held it in hand. I don't think they're using cheap equipment, but I don't think they're spending as much time as the owner of the card might to make a catalogue image really look good. Just my $.02