hi i have a epson stylus CX3600 Scanner. i have tryed many times to get good scans from it but i havent had any luck :( has anyone out there got the same Scanner that knows any good settings for it.. or do you know of any good scanning programs i could try out.

Do you have photoshop?

hi i have a epson stylus CX3600 Scanner. i have tryed many times to get good scans from it but i havent had any luck :( has anyone out there got the same Scanner that knows any good settings for it.. or do you know of any good scanning programs i could try out.

I don't have that particular scanner however the specs look good. Whats the problem, is it that the quality is low?

You need photoshop or some other alternative as nobody mentioned to edit the scan.

I always scan at 600dpi so that I can edit the scan before reducing it to 300dpi.

Make sure the de-screen setting is on to reduce the moire pattern (crosshatches). Its best to edit setting such as contrast and blur in photoshop because it provides more control.

You can always upload a sample of your scans and I can show you how to improve it.

yes m8 ive got photo shop 7 but i didnt know it could scan covers.. i just used the program that came with the scanner. ive tryed scans at 300 600 and 800 but they all look like low res covers.

Try it in photoshop then. Make sure your scanner bed is clean and try to eliminate any dust you can.

Open photoshop and select file>import>twain. Set the scan to 600 dpi and turn off other default filters (they may be making you scan look low res).

Look here (http://www.scantips.com/basics06.html) for what I consider to be a pretty informative walk through of how to scan images and what settings to use etc.

thanks m8, trying photo shop now. and thanks for the link and help guys :)

Sorry to hi-jack the thread, but would a trial version of Photoshop be enough or would I be limited in some way? I'm a University Student so I can get the program free or for a small fee (have to check). I just want to know if the trial version would be enough or would it be better just to get the real deal?

Sorry to hi-jack the thread, but would a trial version of Photoshop be enough or would I be limited in some way? I'm a University Student so I can get the program free or for a small fee (have to check). I just want to know if the trial version would be enough or would it be better just to get the real deal?

I have never seen or tried the trial version, however I assume it has all features available although you can only use it for X number of days before it expires. Best to take the trial first though to see if you like the program.

I scanned a Xbox360 cover, didn't seem to turn out quite as good as yours. Maybe I'll have to play with some settings, anyway can you offer any advice, or is it good enough to post?

If its fine I can do some more.

Edit: ya... the link: http://sbytes.info/images/NFSMW.RAINMAN.jpg

You scanned it very well, the quality is good. The problem with all the covers which have been submitted to site so far is that the spines are not flat and that the black levels are washed out.

Spines that are not flat are usually dark on one side and light on the other. here's what I mean.

http://img267.imageshack.us/img267/4441/image1bu3.th.jpg (http://img267.imageshack.us/my.php?image=image1bu3.jpg)

But generally we can clear this up easily, particularly when only one color in the spine, in this case black. I use the level tool to add contrast because in this case the black levels are washed out.

http://img266.imageshack.us/img266/659/image2bt2.th.jpg (http://img266.imageshack.us/my.php?image=image2bt2.jpg)

Basically you move the black slider in to darken the blacks and the white slider to whiten the whites. The central slider adjusts the mid-tones. A basic rule is to move the black bar to just after what I call the hill (which is where the color level rises).

This pretty much fixed the problems with the spine. You can use the brush and clone tool to fix any rips or dust marks.

http://img164.imageshack.us/img164/602/image3eq7.th.jpg (http://img164.imageshack.us/my.php?image=image3eq7.jpg)

Anyway Here's how I quickly edited your cover.

http://www.dvdcoversfuzion.com/forum/preview/NFSMW.RAINMAN.jpg

I will create an official tutorial to help with these issues. There are many techniques that will help others edit covers.

Nice guide. Rainman had a pretty good original but I like how silentwarrior edited the cover to look even better. No wonder you have such good quality on the site, everything looks top notch;) .

Nice guide. Rainman had a pretty good original but I like how silentwarrior edited the cover to look even better. No wonder you have such good quality on the site, everything looks top notch;) .

I should also mention that RAINMAN's cover is acceptable and that it would be accepted into the gallery. I would however edit it myself as I showed and re-upload it into the gallery. I don't expect people to do it perfectly. I have repaired hundreds of covers so its easy for me:D.

In saying that every scanned cover needs to be repaired in some way. I don't think I have ever scanned a cover that didn't need repair. One tip for getting flat spines is to take the cover out of its case and pile a stack of heavy books on it. Come back in a few days and the cover is almost flat. Makes the scanning job a lot more easier.

Secondly, apply a little pressure on the scanner lid when in the process. Some scanners don't push the cover down fully which also causes problems.

I'm gunna do some practice and stuff during my break this week and hopefully I can create a better cover. I was looking at it and there are some blurry sections that I can fix if I press down and keep the cover flat. (ohh and its a crappy 3 in 1 printer-scanner POS.)

(ohh and its a crappy 3 in 1 printer-scanner POS.)

Most are these days. I have an epson standalone scanner and a newly purchased HP all-in-one, which prints and scans. The all-in-one does a better job than the epson standalone.

do you know that a 99% of scanning machines will withstand the weight of an average guy standing on it:cool: