Posts Tagged ‘picture scan’

Picture Scan Technology Makes Personal Photo Cards Possible All Year

Thursday, December 24th, 2009

Photo Cards With Vintage Images Make Great Thank You Notes

Send Custom Greetings Throughout The Year

HolidayCardArt_VintageSepiaPhoto cards are a popular way to spread yuletide cheer, especially if you’ve got adorable little ones underfoot. But why should they be relegated to just year-end holidays and children’s birthdays? A smart way to continue the photo card tradition next month is by creating custom cards and calendars as a Thank You for all of the presents received.

Many parents like to take their kids into photo studios for a formal portrait for the Christmas card. But a unique – and very affordable – way to design such cards is through picture scan technology. Rather than including recent shots of your family, look for old photos that recipients will enjoy. This also might be easier on fussy young kids who’d rather be playing in the dirt than dressed up in scratchy blazers and velvet party dresses.

Take into consideration who the custom creations are for, as well. You can send a single, friendly card to a co-worker or acquaintance, but keep the 12-month calendar filled with children’s photos for the grandparents, who would likely appreciate it more. Another fun and interactive way to approach these custom greetings is to keep your recipients guessing. Include baby photos of everyone in your family, but refrain from identifying the babies. Or perhaps you can team up with your adult siblings and surprise your parents with a decades-old photo, such as the one in this image.

There are many designs to choose from when creating these personal greetings. You can select a colorful and graphic background, or opt for classic black and white images. If you have time, pick different ones to match each recipient’s personality. A service like ScanDigital has the picture scan technology to clean up old pictures and preserve them on CD. This makes it easier to access and share treasured photos from your past.

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Picture Scan: Story Behind The Annual Presidential Turkey Pardon

Wednesday, November 4th, 2009

White House Tradition  Dates Back To 41st President

Did You Know Two Turkeys Are Pardoned Each Year?

turkey pardonYou know what comes before Thanksgiving, right?

A turkey gets pardoned. Actually, make that two.

This yearly tradition started under the presidency of George H.W. Bush, the 41st president of the United States. Many people, though, mistakenly think it dates as far back as 1947 to Harry Truman; that’s the year the National Turkey Federation began giving a live turkey to presidents.

Photo ops exist every year for this lighthearted White House event. When Bush presided in 1989 to 1993, digital photography was nowhere near as prevalent as it is now. Someone had to take that annual picture, scan it and share.

Live turkeys, of course, can be unpredictable, which is why there are two turkeys on hand for each pardoning ceremony (in case the first one doesn’t behave). After a pardoning, turkeys have been flown to working farms, petting zoos and even Disney World to live. Last year, the uncooked pair – generally called the National Turkey and the Alternative National Turkey – was named “Pumpkin” and “Pecan” through an online poll. Pumpkin went on to serve as the honorary grand marshal of the Thanksgiving Day Parade at Disneyland. You can find images online of the turkeys that came before Pumpkin, too, thanks to picture scan technology that allows people to upload and share photos.

So how does a turkey get chosen for a presidential pardon? The process starts with the chair of the National Turkey Federation, who selects a half-dozen contenders several months before the actual ceremony. These birds are placed under conditions similar to those at the White House affair. They are surrounded by people dressed in dark blue clothing and submitted to lots of noise, clapping and petting. The two finalists are picked based on plumage and poise, but also behavior, since they will have to interact with the president and children eager to pet them.

Lucky birds.

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Picture Scan: A Trip To Grauman’s Is A Historic Walk Down Memory Lane

Wednesday, September 16th, 2009

A Picture To Scan: Historic Theatre Is Where Old & New Meet

Both Architecture & Photos Of This Landmark Worth Preserving

Grauman's Theater picture scanA trip to the movies is an extra special experience at Grauman’s Chinese Theatre. It’s not about the bonbons, the buttered popcorn or even the film that is playing on the screen – it is all about the building.

To this day, the majestic structure in Hollywood still leaves visitors in awe. It stands 90 feet tall and is flanked by a pair of bold red columns. The two Chinese “Heaven Dogs” guarding the entrance, temple bells and pagodas were all imported from China. The building looks timeless – just take a look at a current picture. Scan an old image and compare the two.

Grauman’s is the site of numerous movie premieres. The theatre, named after Sid Grauman, opened on May 19, 1927. Architect Raymond Kennedy designed it. Countless celebrities have walked the red carpet there. Besides the actual building, the hand- and footprints of the famous, called the Forecourt to the Stars, draw more than four million visitors a year (and likely a similar number of photographs!). The list of actors and other Hollywood types immortalized there is impressive, from Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks – who were also part owners – to Will Smith and George Clooney.

The Asian-inspired movie theatre was granted landmark status in 1968. It has undergone a lot of preservation efforts to retain its original state. Today, there is even a Web cam to monitor tourists. What a difference this must be from when the original owners, who also included Howard Schenck, started it. Mann Theatres operates Grauman’s now.

A place like this should be preserved not just architecturally, but also digitally. Historians should take an old picture, scan it and save in a format that makes it simple to share with enthusiasts down the line. After all, what is the present or future without the significance of the past to learn from? We can understand so much more about our predecessors when we have their memories and accomplishments to cherish and study.

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1st White House Photo A Historic Picture. Scan To Save

Thursday, July 23rd, 2009

 Need To Save A Picture? Scan It, Like This White House Photo, For Memories

History Lives On Thanks to Digital Photos

Is there any building more recognizable than the White House?

You studied it in school, constantly see it on television and read about it in the newspaper. It’s an image you and the rest of the world know well.

But have you seen the first photograph ever taken of this amazing building? The image dates back to 1846, and the credit goes to Welsh daguerreotypist John Plumbe, Jr. (In case you were wondering – and you wouldn’t be the first! – a daguerreotypist produces photos on silver or silver-covered copper plates.)

It’s a rich piece of history, and we’re lucky to have the picture. Scan historical photos like it so the past can live on. So people years from now can look at it and think, So this is what the White House looked in the mid 1800s. The president in 1846 was James K. Polk, our nation’s 11th commander-in-chief and a North Carolina native.

The White House, at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, has been called the President’s Palace and the Executive Mansion. George Washington first named it the President’s House. Architect James Hoban drew up the design, which took about eight years to complete. Despite Washington’s efforts to construct the White House, John Adams was actually the first president to live in it.

The White House has been rebuilt, renovated and expanded multiple times, in part because of damaging fires. (But a picture? Scan it and it lasts indefinitely, serving as a memory that can be built upon.) In its current state, the storied, six-level building has 132 rooms and 35 bathrooms. (President Theodore Roosevelt is responsible for the famous West Wing.) In total, the president’s home and office run about 55,000 square feet in size, and the fence around it encloses 18 acres.

Running water was introduced in 1833, central heating in 1837 and running hot water in 1853. Today, the vast, historic building is teeming with Blackberries and Bluetooth.

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