| The costs:
Scanning costs can vary widely when you are paying someone per photograph. Spending more than a buck per photograph is, in my opinion, too much. The quality that these services provide generally will not exceed 100dpi (100 dots per inch) of scanning resolution. The low 100dpi resolution is adequate for viewing and is helpful in keeping down the memory required to host each picture. A low-end scanner (<$100) can usually scan at up to 600dpi of resolution, which is more than adequate. For several sites (links) for reviewing hardware (scanners,...) and software click here. You can also locate numerous other buying-guide sites by searching on "computer reviews -games". The "-games" means to exclude any site that reviews computer games. If you don't do this you will get too many hits and they will mostly be game review sites. Another source for scanning photographs is Kinko's. It's a do-it-yourself process and Kinkos charges around $.40 per minute to use their scanner, computer and software. A more specialized piece of hardware for scanning negatives and slides, which has a resolution capability of approximately 2400dpi, can cost around $500. Canon and Hewlett-Packard both sell a model. This device is required if you are scanning negatives or slides. Image editing can get expensive. The work required to restore an image to its original condition can vary widely. Most outside services charge around $60/hour to do this. A single image could take upwards of a 1/2 hour to repair. This again is something that you can perform yourself if you have the nack and are interested in doing so. Image editing software such as Adobe's Photoshop (~$500) or ULEAD PhotoImpact(~$200) can do most everything you might consider doing to an image. Given the above alternative, the main cost will not be dollars but your
time. A couple of tips in this regard are:
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