Large format scanning service needed

I have a 22" x 36" poster that I want to get digitized.

It is a paper poster that was glued onto poster board so it could be framed. So it can be run through a traditional scanner with rollers and a non-straight feed path.

This will probably require a wide flat bed scanner, or a flat bed with overhead camera and lighting.

Does anyone have a recommendation for a local service that can digitize this? Have checked UPS store and FedEx Kinkos and they can’t do it, although they can digitize paper blueprints. Have tried a few print shops but no luck there either.

I think Triangle Reproduction used to, or AlphaGraphics. Some of the places that do car wraps might also.

You could also find someone with a 20 megapixel camera and just light and shoot it.

Unfortunately AlphaGraphics can’t do it.
The only Triangle Reproduction location that google maps shows is in San Antonio. Do you have any Dallas info for them?

I’m trying to avoid having to get lighting right to shoot it with a camera, and then still likely have do post-work perspective correction/dewarping

I found this place downtown that scans artwork. Looks expensive. Sent an RFQ; will report back what they want to charge.
https://americanlithocolor.com

There was a DMS class offered on photographing artwork:
https://calendar.dallasmakerspace.org/events/view/23213
that was offered by Peter Poulides.

That class was canceled but maybe you could let Peter know you would be interested in taking that class or letting him give you some tips.

Thanks, Andrew, I’ll ping Peter.

Not sure if it’s good form, but I posted (before I saw your post) my needs to this really old topic that’s related to Peter’s class. I’m now more open to trying to photograph the poster, with some help from others who are familiar with the requisite equipment and techniques.

Got the following reply/quote from these folks today (my emphasis).

“We can certainly scan it. To do a Match color scan of a 22x36 cost $400.00

I got the poster digitized/photographed yesterday with the assistance (well, he did all the work :grinning:) of @poulides. The results were fabulous and I can’t thank him enough for generously giving his time and knowledge to get this done.

Bravo @poulides! :clap: :clap: :clap:

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Glad to do it, Paul. Look forward to seeing the Tshirt.

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So what did you end up doing?

Shot it in the big classroom, using magnets to hold poster to a whiteboard on wheels. Used DMS’ 24MP Sony camera and two ??? lights on stands (one on each side) for illumination.

Beyond that Peter @poulides will have to give the details, since he was driving the camera to set the correct aperture, speed, and other parameters. Had to do a time-delayed shot because the camera stand was a bit sketchy - it moved a lot when pressing ‘shoot’ and took some time for the movement to settle out.

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Doing copy work breaks down into a few steps:

  • Get the artwork and the camera sensor parallel to each other so everything is squared up
  • Light the art evenly from both sides, usually with lights at about 45degrees.
  • If glare is an issue, use polarizers on the lights and on the lens.
  • Set ISO to lowest number (for least noise), set aperture to between f8 and f11 (to help with edge to ege sharpness but keep away from diffraction limiting at very small openings)
  • Use the camera meter to pick the best shutter speed.
  • Put camera on steady tripod, use self timer or exposure delay mode to let camera settle, turn off image stabilization.
  • Shoot in raw mode, preferably include a neutral grey target to use for white balance later in software.

It’s not a hard process to get great, color accurate files, it’s just a little tedious. But once it’s done, it’s easy to replicate next time with the same equipment.

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