How I Scan My Artwork! - Scanning Large Pieces with an A4 Scanner Using Photoshop

This video has been requested quite a few times so I thought I would finally make it! I show you how I scan my artwork, and I also show you how I scan larger artworks using just an A4 scanner then how I piece it together using photoshop. I really hope this helps some of you! :)
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[@doc_mubashar]

There is a automatic way of doing in Photoshop. Drag and drop all parts of scan in Photoshop then select all layers the go to Edit menu on top and then select auto align layers then auto blend layers select panorama and click ok. Photoshop will automatically blend layers seamlessly

[@lottielouiseart]

Ooh thank you! I will give this a try :)

[@stevewoodford358]

Hi I don't have photoshop but have seen people use photo merge which seems quicker and easier

[@lottielouiseart]

Ah thank you! I’ll have a look into it - thanks for letting me know :)

[@SarahNewburyArt]

Hi Lottie! Thanks for this video, you make it look really easy but I really struggle with things like this! I have just got photoshop as I want to scan my art too.. but the fact that they make huge manuals on how to use it- scares me!! 😊😩

[@lottielouiseart]

No problem! 😊 haha I know how you feel! Takes me hours to figure out anything on photoshop! This probably isn’t the quickest way to piece together artwork but this is the way I’ve figured out! 😀🥰♥️

[@opus125arts]

You’ll get a quicker and cleaner result if you use photoshop’s photo merge function (under automate) for stitching the multi part scans.

[@lottielouiseart]

I will have a look into this, thank you! 😃

[@opus125arts]

I have scanned paintings as big as 95 x 77 inches this way. @@lottielouiseart

[@jcookie9448]

This is super helpful! I know that there's also a function called "photomerge" that stitch multiple images together automatically, but I haven't tried it myself. When you're scanning larger artworks, have you ever experienced that the paper buckles from folding the lid?

[@lottielouiseart]

Oh okay, might have to try that out! The paper I use is super thick so it doesn’t ‘buckle’ or get ruined by the scanner lid, but I do have to crop the edges off otherwise the edges appear darker because they’re slightly bent when the lid is closed :)

[@timothy790110]

I just got a v550 for £50 so this video came in handy, cheers!

[@lottielouiseart]

No problem! :)

[@MrMichelPM]

This is a lighweight video. Try using that scanner, as I routinely do, to scan very large pieces of art/art prints or my own large format art. My scanned print art sizes can vary anywhere from 20 inches by 24 inches to anywhere from 24/28 inches by 36/54 inches. I worked on a personal project using a poster print artwork that was 36 inches by 54 inches in size, using an Epson A4 scanner. I had to clear a large area of my working, reference table to do this. Then, place the scanner in an optimal place on my art reference table ( which is about 40 inches wide by 22/24 inches deep tabletop. Then, proceeded to scan large art pieces/art prints in smaller overlapping sections ( for this particular poster, I scanned 12 overlapping sections ). Each section was scanned at a high resolution ( original scanned images were scanned at 700 dpi and later reduced down to a 350 dpi for the complete, assembled, final image ) edited ( straightened, trimmed and color corrected and aligned, in Photoshop ). Then these 12 sections were brought into Photoshop on separate layers, which were merged down as needed to control the file size of the digital image file, while scanning and importing these scanned sections. Then I actually started additional work on the image to enhance and add additional details to the final image. Final dpi image size was 350 dpi, 28 inch by 54 inch image, with final .psd file size of between 400-450 MBs. Copy of this final 450 MBs .psd image gets converted/compressed to a highly printable, high resolution jpeg file between 80-100% jpeg quality, anywhere between a file size of 18-25 MBs ( Gmail will only allow me to send a max attachments size of up to approx. 28 MBs for emailing a file ). The resulting large format print, printed at my local quick print shop ( that has multiple large format printers ), prints out at a very good quality level that stands up to the scrutiny of a printer's loupe or close scrutiny with a magnifying glass. This file can, also, be reduced to even smaller print sizes for an even sharper jpeg image quality and even sharper print quality. I use a much older computer and Photoshop ( a NO subscription version ) to do all of this!

[@lottielouiseart]

That is fab that you do all of that and it must take you ages! but this video was only intended to show the very basics which is how I personally use it!

[@brognaarts3266]

Mad I’m ONLY JUST SEEING THIS! But it’s exactly what I needed. I’ve been thinking of getting the V600 lately and it’s looking better by the day. May I ask how the quality of the scans compares to out sourcing? Have you ever gotten work scanned at a art print specialist? Are you happy with the quality of the scan? And then what’s the largest size of artwork you have stitched together using this scanner? Apologize for all the questions but this is a GREAT video. Thank you Lottie!

[@lottielouiseart]

Oh my gosh I have only just seen your comment a year later… I am so sorry! KZbin is so bad at notifications for comments :( I used to get my artwork scanned by another company and honestly my own scans turned out better than their professional scans did! The largest artwork I have stitched together using my A4 scanner is 30x40cm :) Hope this helps! And again, I am so incredibly sorry for the really late reply!

[@dorjanslogar6484]

Thanks for sharing!

[@artobsessionbybarbara2953]

Thank you 😘🦋

[@Nova9I]

Hi i just got that same scanner today, but sadly i've spent all day trying to get it to work on my pc but nothing work at all on any fix i tried online, flashing red error light and cannot communicate problem with the software. Got it to print out my art work, i'm so disappointed :( sadly i'm returning it tomorrow.

[@lottielouiseart]

Oh no I’m sorry to hear your scanner didn’t work! Perhaps it was a faulty one x

[@smallkidsean]

Thanks for posting this! It's so hard to find anyone posting this info about actual Art scanning, rather than slides or negatives scanning. I have a question as I've been looking at purchasing the same scanner - How does the scanner handle larger artwork on wood or cavnas, placed across the plastic (ie, it's not directly on the glass)? Can it still focus ? thanks so much!

[@lottielouiseart]

I am so sorry for the incredibly late reply, KZbin doesn’t seem to like notifying me when I have a new comment! I don’t think scanning things such as wood etc scans too well because you cannot close the lid. But honestly I haven’t tried it before so I am not 100% sure!

[@MrDvneil]

i find this model a bit annoying for texture scans, picks up too much texture because the light goes from an angle, and is just 1, so the sensor picks too much shadows on the valleys of the surface to scan. (talking about watercolor paper) something that IRL with proper light doesnt looks like

[@hannahthufvesson]

@@MrDvneil That's amazing info! Thank you! Would you mind terribly sharing if you have a scanner that you prefer? 🙏

[@MrDvneil]

@@hannahthufvesson epson v800 and v850 have light at both sides if the sensor. But that is minimum 500€

[@hannahthufvesson]

@@MrDvneil Okay, that's a price tag to be aware of! 🙈 But if I would use this with rough texture I wouldn't be disappointed with the results? 🙂

[@oscueq]

thank you for the video; any tips on scanning paintings from canvas boards?

[@lottielouiseart]

I’ve never scanned a canvas board so I’m not sure! I’d imagine you’d need to use a different sort of scanner 😊

[@lesley5387]

I usually scan canvas boards without any issues on my V600. For regular canvas, the lid lifts up. I've scanned 16"x20"x1.5" canvas paintings by lifting up the lid (not removing it). Then I place a large thick dark cloth over the whole scanning area/painting. Once done with scanning the various areas of the painting, I stitch the images in Photoshop. The prints come out gorgeous. I hope this helps. :)

[@Leon-qh9br]

hI I want use a scanner to scan 2D hand drawn animation to check my animation before I do ink and paint I have a all- in-one Mac and want to make sure I but a scanner that is compatible

[@lottielouiseart]

Hi! I’m not sure if this scanner is compatible with Mac, but I would assume it is. If you aren’t wanting to scan to a very high resolution then you could get away with using a cheaper scanner for the purpose you’re wanting it for :)

[@vane8062]

Is the cover detachable ? I’m wondering how I can scan a 18x24 painting

[@lottielouiseart]

No the cover isn’t detachable unfortunately!

[@Tatsu-nn1hu]

I want to see your donut printed :P

[@lottielouiseart]

What donut? 🤣

[@carolinemcdowell9084]

Heya! What do you think of this scanner for pastel pieces?

[@lottielouiseart]

Hello! Most of my artwork is done using pastels and I love this scanner. It scans to a really high quality 😊

[@carolinemcdowell9084]

@@lottielouiseart thank you so much for the reply. I’m a wee newbie artist trying to find my way just, didn’t realise it would be a challenge but I LOVE IT

[@lottielouiseart]

@@carolinemcdowell9084 no problem! I wish you all the best ♥️

[@carolinemcdowell9084]

May I ask what printer you would recommend??

[@lottielouiseart]

@@carolinemcdowell9084 hello! I don’t print any of my prints or my greetings cards myself - I get them printed by professional companies instead as it is just easier for me at the moment. So unfortunately I wouldn’t know what printer to recommend! :)

[@timothy790110]

here is a tip, lower the opacity of the upper most layer to more easily align the stitching. the

[@lottielouiseart]

Oh that’s a good idea! Thank you :)

[@tricraftual4316]

Do you have a PC or MAC?

[@lottielouiseart]

I have a PC :)