Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

• Photo Scanning for Printed Photos?
• Slide Scanning?
• Negative and Film Scanning?
• Sideshow Movies?
• 8mm Film to DVD Transfer?
• Video Tape Home Movies to DVD?

• What formats can you scan and transfer?
• What is the scanning and transfer process?
• What is Don't Want, Don't Pay™?
• What is Real Time Scanning?
• Who will be working with my photos and film?
• Will my photos be safe and confidential?
• How long will you keep copies of my scans?
• My film is really old, is it worth digitizing?
• Can I see some samples of your work?

• How much does scanning/transferring cost?
• How long will it take?
• Do you offer rush service?
• Do you take international orders?
• Who pays for shipping?
• How should I pack my film for shipping?
• Will you return my originals?

• What are my storage options?
• How do I choose which resolution I want?
• How will you organize my files?
• How much will fit on a CD or DVD?
• Can I watch the DVDs in my DVD player?
• Can I make copies of the CD/DVDs myself?

We can scan just about any slides, negatives, and prints in various stages and conditions, as well as transfer many types of movie reels and video tapes to DVD or even to .avi files you can edit yourself and share with friends and family!

Not sure what you have?
Learn more about film formats...

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Digitizing your photos and film should be an easy process. All you need to do is pack up all of your photos, slides, negatives, movie reels, video tapes – or anything else you'd like us to scan for you – and ship it to our high-tech facility in Gilbert, Arizona.

1. Gather your photos and film then fill out an order form online. Once you hit the Submit Order Information button you will be able to schedule a FedEx Pickup or drop off or print a generic shipping label to use the courier of your choice.
2. When we receive your package, you will automatically be sent an email advising you that your project has arrived at our facility. We will then weigh, photograph and place your project in a sealed bin for placement in the queue.
3. You can now watch the progress of your order with Real Time Scanning and view your unenhanced images online as they are being scanned.
4. Once your images have gone through basic enhancement and quality review, you will receive the link to Don't Want, Don't Pay™ to Review, Delete or Approve and then Pay for your project online.
5. We then ship back your photos, film and new media so you can start smiling all over again!

Watch our Behind the Scenes video to learn more
about the scanning and transfer process.

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Once the images have gone through basic enhancement, such as exposure and color correction, you will receive an email with a link to Don't Want, Don't Pay™. You may then review and delete or approve your images online. We will credit up to 35% of each photo-type in your order. This provides you with the flexibility to delete as many images as you don't want and receive a credit of up to 35% off the scanning fee!

Please Note: Photo-type categories are those referenced on the DigMyPics Online Order Form. Specialty services such as expedite fees, slide remounting fees and album page removal fees are non-refundable. You will have up to 21 days to review and complete your order or be subject to full price.

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View your images online as they are being scanned with our revolutionary Real Time Scanning Service! You can check your order online, anytime, day or night. Not only do you know where your photos are at any given moment, you can even track your orders’ progress throughout the entire scanning and transfer process.

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DigMyPics hires only imaging and graphics professionals with college degrees in the arts. We invest heavily in training new hires to our high standards, and we have a strict set of policies and checks to make sure our standards for quality are maintained at all times.

When you call us toll-free at 1-866-364-5952 you'll speak directly to a knowledgeable customer service representative, no waiting on hold or navigating through an automated system. You can also email sales@digmypics.com with your questions. We will respond to your email promptly during business hours.

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Absolutely! We use FedEx for domestic shipping and you can track your precious package before it even reaches us. We take multiple precautions to ensure that each and every one of our customers' photos is kept safe and confidential throughout our entire process.

Our state-of-the-art facility, located in sunny Arizona, is under strict surveillance at all times to ensure your memories remain safe during the digitization process. Our highly-skilled photographers and graphic artists wear white cotton gloves while working with your photos and film to preserve their integrity.

See our Privacy Policy for details.

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We keep all of your files for at least 14 days after your order has been shipped back to you.  You can also opt to buy longer term storage using our Online Photo Sharing Site called Expo. While we think it is a great idea to have your images backed up on a hard drive and on discs, you can't beat the added protection of redundant online storage.  If you already use Picasa, we can upload your newly digitized photos to your Picasa Web Albums account.  Learn more about our Picasa upload service.

Learn more about Expo...

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If your photos and film are precious to you, we would strongly advise digitizing as soon as possible, even if they aren't in top shape. Generally, the better condition your film is in, the better your scans will be. However, we include enhancement services such as basic color correction and Digital ICE as part of our basic service package. Often, we are able to make older slides and film look much better!

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Absolutely! We have a few customers who were kind enough to allow us to use their photos on our site as examples of our work. Click on the links below to see samples of our scanning, transferring and Slideshow creation services.

Slide Scanning samples
Negative Scanning samples
Print Scanning samples
Slideshow Movie samples
Movie Reel Transferring samples

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Our pricing is based on the type of photo or film and scanning resolution. We have implemented a pricing calculator to help you get an estimate.

We include everything to make your photos "SlideShow ready". Our skilled technicians will crop, rotate, color and exposure correct your scans on an image-by-image basis. Other companies either don't offer that service, charge significantly more for it, or use automation. We've found that the results from blindly automating those functions to be simply unacceptable. Our method costs us more, but it gives you much better results.

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Here are current Turn Around Times:

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Yes! The additional cost for this service is 50% of the scanning price or $50, whichever is greater. We do this in order to pay an employee to work overtime in order to move a customer ahead in the queue to be processed. We will have to schedule a technician to work on your rush order, so please call or email ahead of time to see if we can accommodate your timeline.

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Yes! Place your order online. The only difference is our automated FedEx tracking system cannot handle international shipping. Just print out the generic address label and send your order through your preferred courier.

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When you fill out our online order form, we recommend that you choose FedEx shipping. Our partnership with FedEx allows you to print your own shipping label that you won't be charged for until we've completed your order. All shipping charges will be included in your order's total.

If you opt to use another courier, we strongly suggest that you use an air service with package tracking available. You also have several return shipping options on our online order form.

DigMyPics only charges the posted shipping rates on the FedEx and USPS websites for return shipping.

Take me to the online order form...

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We recommend that you group your images chronologically and by short subject. We ask that you keep your groupings to 40+ pictures. We may charge a handling fee of $1 per group if you consistently have groups of less than 40 images.

Learn more about how to pack your photos and film for shipping...

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Of course! All of the original materials sent with your order will be returned along with your digitized materials, unless you specify otherwise.

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DigMyPics now offers more options to receive your scanned photos and film back on than ever before! Choose from a CD or DVD with a professionally bound thumbnail album to an SD card for use in a digital picture frame.

• CD or DVD Set
• Professionally Bound Thumbnail Album
• SD Memory Card
• External Hard Drive
• EXPO Secure Online Storage

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When choosing a resolution to have your photos scanned at, it is important to understand the basics.

DPI is an abbreviation for dots per inch, which indicates the resolution of an image. Resolution refers to the sharpness and clarity of an image. Learn more...

For Prints:
We scan standard prints at at 300dpi (2MP) or at 600 dpi (8MP). That means from a 4x6" print, at 300dpi you'll get an image that is 1200 x 1800 pixels (or 2400 x 3600 pixels at 600dpi). Learn more...

300 dpi strikes the best balance between quality and size using standard photographs for viewing and printing purposes. If you plan to do significant cropping of your images, or plan to make reprints up to double the original photo's size, you may want to consider scanning at 600dpi.

For Film:
You have your choice of 7MP(2500dpi), 12MP(3200dpi), or 18MP(4000dpi). We recommend the 2500dpi option for most of our customers. A 35mm slide or negative scanned at 2500dpi will give you an image size that is suitable for making a good 8x10" reprint. Some commercial grade film can have an increased grain pattern at 3200 dpi, and a significant grain or noise pattern at 4000dpi. This is because the resolution actually outdoes the amount of "information" in the film. If your film is good quality and taken at a low ISO/ASA, then 3200dpi or 4000dpi may be a good option for you.

If you're still unsure what is right for your project, contact us and we will be happy to make recommendations based your individual needs.

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We will make every effort to help you organize your photos and make finding and enjoying your new digital files easy. Because small groups slow down our process, please help us by making each of your groups contain at least 40 or more slides, negatives, or photos. You can then give a name to each of those groups and we'll create folders with those names. We will scan your photos in the order they are received. Please contact us to discuss your special naming or organizational wishes.

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A CD can hold 650MB and a DVD can hold 4700 MB (4.7 GB). The number of files that can fit depends on the resolution, the file format you choose, and what kind of film or photo you are having scanned.

See Resolving Resolution to learn more.

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When we refer to storing your images on a DVD, we're talking about storing the TIFF or JPEG files on the disc for use in your computer. As an add-on service, we can also make a DVD Slideshow Movie using your images set to music that is formatted to play in most DVD players.

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Yes! These discs are yours to do with as you please. You must have the proper burning software and CD/DVD Burner Drive installed on your computer. DigMyPics cannot support you in making your own copies.

We keep all the files we need to make additional copies for 14 days after your order is complete. We can provide you with additional copies of your photos for only $6 per disc and even have them delivered to friends or loved ones as a special gift!

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