Standards
Scanning Standards by Type of Material
- Text (Books)
- Documents (Handwritten, Ledgers, Receipts)
- Photographs (Prints)
- Photographs (Negatives and Slides)
- Large Format (Posters and Maps) Above 17 x 24 inches (A2)
Digital image collections incorporated into the UNT Libraries' permanent collections must adhere to the minimum requirements given below. Depending on the specific objectives of the projects, higher resolutions may be desirable for some materials. Please note that this document is not intended to address all technical issues and does not describe the details of operational procedures. See project-specific guidelines for further information.
Text (Books)
| Image Types | Bit Depth | Color Space | Resolution (ppi) | Scale | File Format |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| B&W Text Only | 1-bit | Bitonal | 600ppi | 100% (1:1) | Tiff (uncompressed or lossless compression no LZW) |
| B&W Text with Illustrations (Photos, Drawings, Plates, Charts) | 8-bit | Grayscale | 400ppi | 100% (1:1) | Tiff (uncompressed) |
| Text w/ Continuous-Tone Images & Photos (Color) | 24-bit | RGB | 400ppi | 100% (1:1) | Tiff (uncompressed) |
Documents (Handwritten, Ledgers, Receipts)
| Image Types | Bit Depth | Color Space | Resolution (ppi) | Scale | File Format |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| B&W Text Only* | 1-bit | Bitonal | 600ppi | 100% (1:1) | Tiff (uncompressed or lossless compression no LZW) |
| Handwritten Documents, Ledgers | 8-bit | Grayscale | 400ppi | 100% (1:1) | Tiff (uncompressed) |
| Correspondence, Letters | 24-bit | RGB | 400ppi | 100% (1:1) | Tiff (uncompressed) |
* We recommend scanning handwritten documents in grayscale or color.
Photographs (Prints)
| Image Types | Bit Depth | Color Space | Resolution (ppi) | Scale | File Format |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| B&W Photographs | 8-bit | Grayscale | 600ppi | 100% (1:1) | Tiff (uncompressed) |
| Color Photographs | 24-bit | RGB | 600ppi | 100% (1:1) | Tiff (uncompressed) |
*As of April, 2009, we scan both sides of a photograph even if one side is blank.
Photographs (Negatives and Slides)
| Image Types | Bit Depth | Color Space | Resolution (ppi) | Scale | File Format |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| B&W Negatives & Slides | 8-bit | Grayscale | 5000 pixels across the longest side* | 100% (1:1) | Tiff (uncompressed) |
| Color Negatives & Slides | 24-bit | RGB | 5000 pixels across the longest side* | 100% (1:1) | Tiff (uncompressed) |
* Not sure how to figure 5000 pixels across the longest side? Download a film sizes guide.
* For copy negatives, scan the entire negative. Do not crop to the original image. Do not crop out written notes.
Large Format (Posters and Maps) Above 17 x 24 inches (A2)
| Image Types | Bit Depth | Color Space | Resolution (ppi) | Scale | File Format |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| B&W Maps/Posters | 8-bit | Grayscale | 5000 - 10000 pixels across the longest side | 100% (1:1) | Tiff (uncompressed) |
| Color Maps/Posters | 24-bit | RGB | 5000 - 10000 pixels across the longest side | 100% (1:1) | Tiff (uncompressed) |