Tutorial: Flatbed Scanning

Flatbed scanners currently available in the Multimedia Studio (MMS) at Meyer and residential clusters include the Epson Perfection V200 and Epson Expression 1680. The Epson V200 allows for flatbed film scanning, and the Epson 1680 allows for multi-sheet scanning via an Auto Document Feeder (ADF), which are discussed in the noted sections.

Basic Scanning using V200

• Make sure the scanner is connected to the computer and turned on.
• Launch the Epson Scan application.
• The Epson Scan control panel should launch. If it generates an error message, please close the application, unplug the scanner's power plug and USB cable, and start over from the beginning.
• If you see the "Full Auto Mode" view, we recommend that you switch the mode to Professional Mode in the dropdown menu. 
• You should now see the the Professional Mode control panel.
• For regular documents, you can experiment with these settings:
  • Document Type: Reflective
  • Document Source: Document Table
  • Auto Exposure Type: Photo
  • Image Type: 24-bit Color
  • Resolution: 300 dpi
  •  Unsharp Mask: Checked

• If you are scanning multiple images at once, click the Thumbnail checkbox to scan items as separate documents in Photoshop.
• Click the Preview button to generate a quick preview of what the scanner sees.
•  If you get the error message "Unable to write file," click OK and then click the Configuration button at the bottom of the Epson Scan control panel. Under the Other tab, select Work Area > TempStorage. Click OK and try to Preview again. In the resulting Preview pane, you can click and drag a box around the document resting on the scanner.
• When you are ready, click the Scan button.

Tips

• If you can't seem to get to the Epson Scan control panel, please quit all programs, power cycle the scanner, reseat the USB cable, and try the steps again.
• Try these resolutions for various document types. You can of course always adjust the resolution as you have need.
  • For the Web: 72 dpi
  • Text documents: 180 dpi
  • Photos: 300 dpi
  • Documents to be enlarged: 1200 dpi
  • Film scans: 3200 dpi (see the Film Scanning article)

• You can also try the Epson Scan Home Mode:

Additional Resources

• The Epson V200 allows for flatbed film scanning, and the Epson 1680 allows for multi-sheet scanning via an Auto Document Feeder (ADF).
• The Epson V200 User's Guide is available online.