[pdkid]

Hi I read Serj's post, just a few other things

ok 150 dpi is the resolution - ok

1) what colur 256 or 16m (best color?) - approx what size meg wise should each scan be? 6 megs?
2) what is the width 8.50 and height 11.70 of the scan? what should i set it at?

thanks! 

pdkid

[cimmerian32]

Apparently you're asking scanner questions...

Here's what I do...

Scan at 300 dpi
save using Windows Paint (this way you have more wiggle room when you edit the scans in Photoshop)
Edit in Photoshop
   -straighten using the measure tool
   -crop
   -Image/adjustments/brightness-contrast/+14 to brightness/+20 to contrast
   -image/adjustments/hue-saturation/+14 to saturation
   -image/adjustments/selective color/black - +100 to black
   -image size/dpi to 150, width to 1152 pixels
   -save at jpeg quality 8 (this gives you a per scan size of around 700 kb's

Hope that helps ya out!

Cimm

[moondood]

Golden-Agers...

I've unlocked a few really good files and tried to reverse engineer the scanning process.

I started scanning my GA Books (a small collection) about 2 years ago...long before I discovered this site.  Through trial and error, I've found that scanning at 150 dpi at the comic's actual size [100%--roughly 6 by 9 inches] -- the scans look pretty good.  200 is better, but then the file size goes up.  And if you're like me and want hundreds of these comics, the smaller the file size, the better--as long as the image quality is retained.

I've also discovered that saving as jpegs in photoshop at quality 9 is virtually no different than saving at quality 2...but the 9's are waaaa-aaay bigger than 2's and take up much more space.  You may see a difference between 2 and 9 if you get reeee-eeaaa-aaaly close in on the image, but for reading purposes, it's pretty un-noticeable.  Do a test to see if I'm not bonkers.

Anyway, I notice that some files from this site are 72 dpi, but the image is really big--like 23 inches--maybe 250% of the actual comic.  These look surprisingly good.  And some others are 300 dpi but with a really small screen size--like 2 by 4 inches...maybe 50% of the actual comic....and these look really good, too.  Not sure if the odd screen sizes are created in the scanning process or later in photoshop.  But whatever "screen size" the files really are--they all fill up the CBR viewer for terrific readability.

I have not compared overall file sizes yet, so I wonder which way will offer good image quality with small(er) file sizes.  Depending on the settings, I've found that a jpeg file can be in the 400-500kb range and look good in the CBR viewer.  The final CBR or CBZ file size depends on the page count....68 pages vs. 52 vs. includes all ads, etc...

Any of you scanners out there figure out the BEST ratio of DPI to screen size?  To keep file sizes, down, that is.

The file size and image quality may depend on the scanner used, I'm not sure....but all of you please run the scans through photoshop or other image or photo editing program before creating .cbr or .cbz files.  Use the program to straighten out crooked pages, crop near the art's border, and adjust color levels.  I use Image menu>adjustments in Photoshop...then adjust brightness and contrast...nothing too garish, but enough to lighten dark scans and bring out the color a bit so it "pops"...but not so much that it looks like a DC or Marvel GA reprint hardcover.  We like to see the paper texture and its color, even though the musty smell is missing.

I have done this with a bunch of books I DL'd from this site already and I'd be happy to re-upload them if there's a demand.  I'd also be happy to do this for anyone without Photoshop--and they can upload it here if they want the credit, or I can.  Though, I'm still waiting for upload FTP info as I write.

Anyway, I'm at: ComicsCommando@gmail.com if anyone wants to send scans for me to run through photoshop.  I can also do non-public domain comics, but this site won't upload them, so it'd be just for fun.  But any scanners would get their files back with photoshop corrections.

Did I mention I loooo-ooove this site!!

ComicsCommando

[Drahken]

1) Truecolor/16M colors. JPG format can't use 256, and even if it could, it would be a poor choice.
2) It's best to scan at actual size & 300 DPI, then resize the image to 50%. This gives you a good quality image that isn't insanely large, yet also removes moire patterns and other such scanning anoyances.
3)

Anyway, I notice that some files from this site are 72 dpi, but the image is really big--like 23 inches--maybe 250% of the actual comic.  These look surprisingly good.  And some others are 300 dpi but with a really small screen size--like 2 by 4 inches...maybe 50% of the actual comic....and these look really good, too.

The DPI of the saved image has no bearing on how it looks on screen. In fact, you can change the DPI of any image quite easily, and it doesn't affect the image itself. DPI only comes into play when converting between real media/screen media (when scanning in or printing out). For example: an image which is 1,000 pixels x 1,000 pixels with a DPI of 100 will print out at a size of 10 inches by 10 inches, but if you change the DPI to 200, that exact same image will print out at 5"x5", but it will still be 1,000px x 1,000px on screen. The only time DPI affects an image on screen is when dealing with certain, specific file types such as DJVU or PDF.
4) Contrary to popular belief, you don't need to shell out a fortune for photoshop to enhance your scans (nor do you need to use Paint). There are many freeware progs which are small, free (obviously), and can do all the basic functions you'll need (converting, cropping, straightening, adjusting color/gamma/contrast/brightness/etc, resizing), and nearly all of them can access your scanner so that you can scan directly in to the program. One prog I'd recommend is xnview (irfanview also works well).
If you have a one-touch type scanner, the easiest way to do it would be to pre-set the DPI and such and set it to save the scans in TIFF format (which is perfect quality, but high filesize), then scan in all the pages from the comic. Now open xnview (or whatever prog you prefer), open each of those TIFFs you created, do your cropping, resizing, and other adjustments, then save them in JPG format at around 85% quality. Once you're done, you can just delete all the TIFF files.
5) When you're ready to pack them, 7-zip or Izarc are good choices for archiving programs. They aren't very large, are freeware, and have nearly all the functions of the commercial progs. They can't create rar/cbr files, but that doesn't really matter (no format can compress JPGs to any significant degree).