How to Digitize Old Photos (We Compared 3 Top Photo Scanning Apps and a Scanner)

We don't have to worry about what will come back from the drugstore with digital imagery because we don't have to worry about limited shots. All is ready to be shared on a screen near you. Older people's memories are linked to aging images on paper and put into frames or plastic pockets. It's possible to dig out favorites and make them available to be shared on screens, through messages, or on social media. It can bring moments to life for people who weren't there, and for people who weren't there.

I scanned a collection of old photos, many of which were forgotten in an old shoebox, and spent a couple of hours reliving special days with my wife as our kids looked on incredulously. Is that actually you? The mother looks gorgeous. You were an emo father. Yes, still is, and I was a huge fan of the genre. Long dead relatives, old friends, and younger versions of ourselves need to be stirred into the digital photo frame mix. It is easy and requires your phone or a scanning device.

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A photo is scanned.

It's the easiest way to get rid of old photos. You can use a photo scanning app to get better results than taking a photo. I compared the results of the three popular photo scanning apps against several old photos and chose the one I liked the best. Senior WIRED writer and reviewer Scott Gilbertson was the one who gave me a blind second opinion.

We don't cover photo digitizing services because they are expensive and require you to send your photos away. There are tips on how to prepare your images and what to do with them after scanning.

There is a photo scanning service by the internet.

I found the first app to be a good choice for anyone who uses photos from the internet. The app is easy to use, but scanning photos is time consuming. The process requires you to take multiple images and then combine them into a single picture. You can take a photo by holding the phone over the four circles that appear when you tap the Scan button.

It will take a long time with this app. I found that Photo Scan wasn't always glare-free. The flash and glare-free tool can be turned off. Some of my photos came out with some glare. Tools are turned off with good natural lighting.

PhotoScan did a decent job subtly enhancing the images, and it was the most cumbersome of the bunch. I liked the results from PhotoScan on a few of the test photos, but it did a poor job with an old black-and-white shot. It's a good idea to have them automatically uploaded to the Google Photos app, but you can always use other apps to make edits.

It's free for both devices.

There is a microsoft lens.

It's a great app for documents and business cards, but also handles photos. Microsoft subscribers who use the app for backups will be happy to know that it can be uploaded to the cloud or exported into Microsoft documents. It is easy to use. Set it to Photo mode, line up your photo in the viewfinder, and then tap the Scan button.

You have to do them one at a time, but it is easy to do. You could save multiple photos in a single PDF, but you would have to crop each one out in order to make a picture. You can use the basic editing tools in the lens app to clean your images.

The majority of the results were good, and Microsoft Lens was consistent, but it came bottom of the pile. It was an issue with more than one image and you need to be careful with your lighting and angle. The most blemished test subjects were preserved by the lens scans.

It's free for both devices.

Photomyne has a picture scanning app.

The Picture Scan App by Photomyne was our final app, and it was available on both the iPad and the phone. The app was fast and easy to use. The app will crop and process multiple photos at the same time, but the results are better if you only take one photo at a time. There are basic editing tools you can use. You can save photos to your device, send them to the cloud, or both.

It delivered the best color rendering and skin tones. I sometimes had to adjust the corners because of the autocropping. The images had some reflections and glare. The app that produced the most pleasing results was this one.

There is a problem. Photomyne has a lot of apps and subscriptions. If you want unlimited use of the tools and unlimited cloud storage, you need to subscribe. It costs $5 a month or $40 a year to subscribe. You can choose to pay separately for specific tools, such as the colorize feature for black-and-white photos, when you get a promotional offer.

You can subscribe for $5 a month or $40 a year.

Canon's Lide 400 is called the Canon Cano Scan.

If you want to go the hardware route, the Canon flatbed document scanning is a good choice. Plug it into your computer and begin scanning. Each scanning takes a few seconds, as you have to position photos and tap the button to start. Scans can be uploaded to your cloud service.

A few of our test photos were taken with the scanner. It did a good job with a black-and-white photo. The results were close to the original photos but that isn't always a good thing. Several images had to be cut out due to the scanner picking up every blemish.

The upfront cost of scanning photos is high and it takes a long time. You don't get automatic processing or editing tools, but you can save your photos to a cloud and use them later.

You can buy from Amazon.

There are tips for digitizing old photos.

If you want to use a photo scanning app, choose the best phone you can afford. Older phones don't do as good a job as the newer ones, so you shouldn't expect them to do as well. After comparing the results, I used the photo editing tools on my phone to make my photos look better.

Don't feel like you have to take a lot of photos. We used to have to wait for duds to be developed to see how they turned out, so just select your favorites.

It's tempting to save time by scanning photos in frames or albums, but plastic and glass will increase the risk of reflections, so remove from albums.

Dust can be removed with a soft brush or compressed air. If you see marks or stains, try a lint-free cloth, but don't use cleaning supplies. Water is likely to cause damage. It's easier to clean an image after it's been scanned.

Scan apps can find the edges of your images if you use a plain background. A white background works well for us. It's a good idea to avoid patterned or textured surfaces.

It's important to find a location that has bright and soft natural light. Artificial light can cause glare.

It's important to be as close to the photos as possible. Don't take shots at an angle, and make sure they are in focus before scanning. It is important to be still and not to blur.

Friends and family will get a real kick out of forgotten photos, so it can be fun to share them privately by sending them in messages or email. It is a good idea to check with the people in the photos before posting them.

We put our favorites in a folder that is displayed on the Nest Hubs and Chromecast TVs. A digital picture frame could be used.