How to Organize Your Digitized Film!

You have completed the task of sending all your precious photos, negatives, and other film types to be converted to digital.  You decided not to organize your film before they were digitized, and you elected not to organize your images through our IOS post scanning.  Now all you are left with is jumbled up files.

It is so nice having organized files and images to easily be able to call back to.  If you have a good organizational system in place, you should know exactly where to find that photo of Johnny blowing out the candles of his 8th birthday cake.  It can be extremely overwhelming though!  Where do you start?  Well we are here to help you get on your way to a more orderly set of visual memories.  Starting.... NOW!

Step 1-  Decide how you want to store them.  Are you going to upload them to the cloud for storage?  We highly suggest it due to the safety and convenience it offers your files.  Have you decided to forego a cloud service and just want to store it locally?  Determining where you will keep your images may affect how you organize them, as you may want your method to be easily understood by others, should you choose to share your legacy or images.  Again, we will state this because we want to help you keep your digital past as secure as possible.  We recommend saving your images to as many places as possible, including in the cloud!  This includes storing it locally, on external hard drives, Discs, etc.

Step 2- Decide how you want your digital files to be organized.  Would you like to organize them chronologically by year?  This is probably the most common method.  Then, if you decide, within each year you can have sub folders for events, such as Christmas, or Matt's Wedding.  You can also choose to organize them by person, but with this method you will most likely want one picture in more than one folder, so you will be copying and pasting a lot - which makes for easily passing on images to your kids or grandchildren, but it does require some extra work.

Step 3- Get all your photos in one place!  It will make your life so much easier if you copy all your digitized film in one place, saving you the time of going back and forth.  Save them all to the place you have decided to store them locally.  Then, after you have organized them locally, you can upload them to the cloud, and transfer copies onto an external hard drive, and your organization will transfer along with it.

Step 4- Get to Work!  What we recommend doing, if you are a Windows user, is to create all your folders FIRST.  At least all the folders you think you will want.  Then afterwards you can look at your leftover images and see what more you need.  To create a new folder, simply click on the folder or drive where you would like your photos stored on, and select "New Folder"at the top.  You should probably call this first folder "Photos" or "My Picture Perfect Past" or whatever you would like, to indicate that all your digital images are stored there, and then repeat the new folder steps to create the rest of your folders.

After you have completed the roots to your organization, stay in Windows Explorer, and open the folder containing all your pictures.  Make sure you are viewing thumbnails of your pictures for easier organizing.  After all your images have loaded and are view-able, make sure you can see all your newly created folders on the right hand side.  Now, here is the fun part!  Start with the first photo, determine what folder it goes it, and simply drag and drop it to the designated folder.  Repeat this process until you are officially organized!

It is SO easy!

Step 5- After you have completed all your digital image organization, upload them to the cloud!  Unfortunately, computers can crash, and if they do you risk losing all your digitized film AND all your hard work.  You can avoid this!  Like we said before, store your images in as many places as you can, including the cloud!

Step 6- SHARE THEM!  What good are your memories if you don't share them with your family and friends?  Email them photos, upload them to your favorite social media site, whatever floats your boat.

We hope this has been helpful in helping make the most of your digitized memories.

If your film has not yet been converted to digital, let us help you!  We are the most trusted name in the film conversion industry, and do everything we can to make sure your priceless memories get the respect they deserve in the digitization process.  You film will NEVER be shipped overseas, but will be completed here in the United States.  

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Have Fun With Your Digital Images!

At Larsen Digital, we are all about helping you preserve your memories and to make them better!  That is why we are researching the best iOS photo apps, personally using them, and reviewing them for your reference.  From apps that focus on core editing functions, to programs that aim to let you get creative with your images, we are rating them all!

The apps we have rated so far:

Color Splash

8mm Vintage Camera

iCorrect

Splice

PhotoSync

Handy Photo

As you can see, a lot of the images used in these reviews are pictures from the past!  It is never too late to have fun with your legacy and past moments.

Don't have your old film converted to digital yet?  Send it in to Larsen Digital!  At Larsen Digital, we make sure that our prices and wide array of services are the best in the business, and our quality assurances will bring your memories back to life.  Nothing says "I'm proud of who I am" more than being proud of your past, and preserving it!

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Tips on Preparing Your Slides for Film Conversion

It can be an overwhelming task getting your film ready to send in to Larsen Digital for conversion.  Where do you start?  How do you organize it?  Well we are here to help put your mind at ease.  Preparing your slides for digitization is EASY!  Check out these tips to organize your slides and send them in.

1. If you don't know what order you want your slides scanned in- just send them in anyway!  You will want to make sure you order our On-line Organization System at checkout, which will allow you to organize your images AFTER they have been scanned, saving you lots of time and squinted eyes.
2. If your slides are in carousels, you can leave them as they are.  We will scan your carousel starting at #1 in case they are organized.  Just note that if you do decide to leave them in their carousels, that the shipping costs will increase due to the weight.
3. If they are not in carousels, or you choose to take them out, the easiest way to keep the slides in order is to bundle them in groups of no more than 50 slides.  If you have placed them in order, simply put a post-it, or write on the cardboard mount which slide in the bundle should be scanned first.
4. Make sure all your slides and carousels are labeled for the best organization.  If you simply want to number them in chronological order that works great, or you can even label them by person or event.
5. Every customer is allotted 1 group for every 50 slides that are sent in, so you will want to make sure you organize your slides appropriately.  If you have 200 slides, you will get 4 groups at no charge (1 group could have 80, the next could contain 20, etc).  If you would like to group your film in smaller increments, go ahead!  Just know that it will be an extra $2 per group.  *This does not include groups formed in our On-line Image Organization System!
6. There are some handling fees that can occur with converting your slides to digital.  These situation include: metal clips attached to the slide - 15¢/slide and 110 format slide in 1" mounts - 30¢/slide.  Check out our full list of handling fees
7. If you have different sizes of film in your slides intermixed, they will need to be separated out.  Our scanners will need to be manually set to accommodate different sizes, but you are more than welcome to organize them back with our On-line Organizing tool. 

After getting your actual slides ready, all you need to do is fill out our order form, and ship them to us!  We recommend that you ship your slides via a carrier that offers tracking services to help give you peace of mind.  We do not recommend shipping your memories through the Post Office.

Hopefully these tips and suggestions have helped aid you in getting your slides ready for film conversion.  If you have any other question related to getting your order prepared, feel free to call our customer service line at any time, where our representatives are always happy to help!.

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Tuesday Tip: Traveler's Guide to Photographing Your Trip

The most common photos we digitize are those from our customers' travels. Here are some tips fromPhotographyTips.com on how to prepare and make the most out of your vacation pictures!

• Take plenty of pictures. You don't want to return home and try to describe a wonderful scene that you could have photographed if you had planned to shoot generously.
• If you are planning to share your adventures while you're on the road, send your most representative pictures to friends and family by email or upload them to a photo-sharing website. Be selective, though, and don't overdo it. People will enjoy seeing two or three great pictures much more than 30 or 40 shots of everything you encountered.
• If you are traveling in a group, each member should bring their own camera, even when one person has agreed to take on the role of principal photographer. You would be surprised at how individuals see photographic subjects in different ways.
• When photographing an exciting or funny event, take the time every now and then to shoot behind you or beside you to show the reaction of others.
• When using a digital camera, take the time to review the shots you took that day, and delete those that are unsuitable.
• Be sure to take along plenty of film or several digital media cards. It's frustrating to come upon amust-photograph scene, and discover that you're out of film or your cards are all full.
• Bring your battery charger along on your trip. Although you can usually charge batteries while they are in your camera, a separate charger permits you to use a second set of batteries while the first is being recharged.
• If you are undecided about whether to take a picture of an interesting scene that has caught your attention, just take it. You can always toss it out later if you don't like it. But, it's usually difficult to return at a later time to find the same circumstances.
• The same principle applies to photographs that you think may not turn out. It may seem too dark or too cloudy, for instance, or your subject may be in deep shade or moving quickly. But, go ahead and take the shot anyway. You will sometimes amaze yourself by how a tricky shot turns out better than you expected. Also, many photographs that have minor problems can be saved using digital editing software or in the darkroom. And, if it simply doesn't work, you know what to do...toss it out.

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Digital Photo Restoration

We've all had them.  Photos that have been written on.  Maybe mustaches drawn on faces.  Extreme fading due to unfavorable storing circumstances.  Whatever the damage may be, Larsen Digital Services offers Digital Photo Restoration services to help repair and preserve your favorite photos.  What you thought was a lost cause is now a great opportunity to give your memories a face lift!

Here in this example, we have taken the photo with writing and fading and we have not only removed any evidences of those markings, but we have sharpened and brightened the photo to make it look crisp, clean and new.

Your memories and your legacy deserve the best.  They deserve Larsen Digital.

Did you know... Larsen Digital not only offers Digital Photo Restoration for photos that have been damaged, but we also include free automatic color and fade corrections to your negative, slide, and photo scans?  That's right, FREE!  You can also upgrade to receive more personalized corrections to be made to your film, or get a quote for your custom Digital Photo Restoration.  Not only can we remove writing, but we can repair ripped photos, remove persons, or add color to your black and white photos.

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Beginners Guide to Color Correction Using Curves

Have you ever looked at a photo and though, "That looks a little blue...?"  Thankfully with digital photo editing, when your digital photo colors are not balanced you can quickly and easily fix it!

For this tutorial we are using Pixlr, which is a free photo editing software.

Step 1:

If you have old film that has been scanned and converted to digital you are probably wondering why the color doesn't seem balanced.  There are two reasons for this.  First, the dyes in the film fade over time, so if the film itself is already faded, the only way to fix or adjust it is digitally.  Second, some films scan better than others, so some films will need to be balanced after they have been digitized.  If you have a newly taken digital photos and the colors are not balanced, you can easily fix it using the curves tool in Pixlr.

After you open Pixlr and load your photos, simply go to the tool bar at the top and select "Adjustment."  A drop down menu will appear after which you will scroll down to "Curves."

Step 2:

At first sight Curves can appear intimidating, but don't fret- it's extremely easy and the results are dramatic!

If you look to the right side there are three droppers.  The top is white, the middle is gray, and the bottom is black.  What you need to do is select a dropper based off the color.  Then, you will take your cursor (which will now look like a dropper itself), and select a part of the picture that is supposed to be the color you selected.  For example, if there is a silver watch in the photo you are editing, you will want to select the middle gray dropper, and click on the watch.  The color will automatically adjust for the entire photo.  If you are not happy with the results, just click on a different spot until you get the right balance.

Step 3:

After you have clicked on a spot within your digital image, you will notice that the lines in the curves box will have adjusted and moved according to the changes it just made.  Once you really get the hang of curves, you can use your mouse to grab the gray line and move it up or down. If you move the gray line up/left it will lighten the photo.  If you move it down/right, it will darken the photo.  We don't necessarily recommend doing this, but wanted to let you know that it is indeed an option.  We personally recommend using the dropper tool until you get the right balance.

Step 4:

Now, while you are clicking around trying to get the right balance for your photo, don't panic if your image goes a bit discolored or outright crazy!  It happens, just click on a different spot and it will adjust itself again.

Step 5:

Here is our finished product.  It was super simple and it looks supremely better.

Stay tuned for more tutorials on how to make your digital images perfect!  

Larsen Digital Services specializes in converting your old film to a digital format.  After digitizing your photos, slides, movie film or negatives, we also offer color correction services to bring your memories back to life.  Don't have your film converted to digital yet?  Have no fear- Larsen Digital offers the best quality along with the best price. 

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What Was Your Favorite Childhood Summer Activity?

Doesn't summer just make you want to get up and do something?  It is the season of being outside and active- especially if you live in areas where summer is the only time it's warm!

Take a moment and think back to when you were a young child, and try and remember the activities you used to participate in, and the people you used to associate with.  Did you enjoy playing a sport such as baseball?  Were you gone every weekend fishing or camping?  Was it just a daily walk to the park that made up your summers?

What was your favorite summer activity as a child?  Tell us!

Have pictures of you doing your favorite summer activity, but they aren't digital yet?  Do not worry- Larsen Digital Services converts your photos, negatives, slides, movie film, video tapes, audio tapes and more to a digital format!  Re-live those childhood memories over and over again, and allow them to last lifetimes to come, truly making your legacy a visual blessing for future generations.

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Thursday Thought: Family

There is never a better time to show how much your family means to you than right now!  Make sure you preserve all the memories that you've shared with your loved ones whether they are letters you have written, photos you have taken, or crafts you have made.  Those mere moments last a short while, but preserving them will help them stay alive for generations to come.

Keeping your memories locked up in a film format shortens the life of those glimpses in time, but when you convert them to digital, the files will not degrade nor experience discoloration as days, months, or years pass.  When your life's photo memories are held in a digital file, you have the freedom to look upon them whenever you want, wherever you want.  You can also share them with all those loved ones and family members via email, private online albums, social media, and more!

Larsen Digital Services is a family run business, and has been since they opened in 1995.  What started out as a hobby for the company's present CEO has turned into a international business helping families around the world to preserve their memories.  Larsen Digital knows what it takes to make those memories last a lifetime, and will do it the the respect and quality your priceless film deserves.

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JPEG Vs TIFF - What Format You Should Scan Your Film As

Did you know that when scanning your negatives, slides and photos that you have a choice what output it comes out in?  There are many file format types to scan your film at, so it's important to know the difference.  The most common file outputs for digitizing your old film at are JPEG and TIFF.

JPEG and TIFF file formats are both considered to be standard file formats that can be read in Windows, Macintosh, and Linux systems.

TIFF files are very large in file size when compared to JPEGs and are commonly used in professional print design.  They require more data space to store the images, so before selecting to have your film scanned as a TIFF file, you will want to make sure that your computer and hard drive can handle the size.

JPEG files are "compressed" images, meaning that the information contained in the file is more efficiently stored, reducing the amount of space the image takes up.  While JPEG image files are becoming the most common format for storage, repeated editing and saving of the JPEG will reduce the quality of the said image.  While it will reduce the image quality, it is pretty much impossible to notice the difference with the naked eye.  Check out this video showing just how slight the difference can be.

When converting your film to digital, you will want to make sure you choose the best file output for you.  There is no cost difference specifically associated with choosing TIFF or JPEG, however, choosing TIFF will most likely cause you to need more DVD's or CD's to store your memories on, resulting in an increased cost.  If wanting the most pure scan, then TIFF would be the best option for you- just make sure you have the space for it!

Larsen Digital Services can take all your old format film and convert it to a digital form.  With many scanning options such as JPEG and TIFF for images, and SD and HD for videos, the choice is truly yours.  Having been in business since 1995, and being continually trained and educated on the latest technology and trends, Larsen Digital provides the most professional service along with the best quality.

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Never Thought of Using Ebay This Way...

Would you dare?

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Caption this Old Photo!

Happy Monday to You!  We are looking for a caption to this photo.  And.... GO!

Have you ever gotten together with your family and looked at old photos and videos?  I'm st ure you have.  Have you looked at certain memories and pondered, "Now what were you thinking here?"  "What was going on in your head?"  I know in my family we have!

It is so fun to try and guess what was happening in photos.  Sometimes we can remember exactly the day and precisely what was going on, but others can be harder, especially the younger you are.  Make it a game at your next family function to come up with the best caption for certain photos.  It will be full of laughs as you each reveal your thoughts, I'm sure.  What makes it better is that you know the personalities of those in the photos, and can better guess what type of phrases or expressions would have been likely to come out of their mouths, or what actions they might have been portraying.

Take is a step further into "Game Night" territory and keep track of points.  After everyone reveals their caption for a photo, all members vote on which on was their favorite, and the winner gets point.  After all is said and done, and all the captions are played, the winner gets a prize!  Maybe make a corny trophy for them to place on their desk at work to show off, or a copy of all your digitized photos and videos.

Don't have all your photos and videos converted to digital yet?  Larsen Digital is the most trusted name in the industry where all work is done in the USA.  Your memories are priceless, which is why every precaution is taken to ensure that the best care and practices are used on each and every piece of film.  Don't wait another day to preserve your memories, take care of it today!

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There's A Story To Every Photo

This photo was taken around 1995-96.  I know what you are thinking.  Awesome jumper, right?  I could go on and on about the styles from the past I get to see working in this field.  I love it.

Anyway, I was eight years old in this picture on a camping trip.  While growing up my family, along with several others, would get together every year and go camping for a week.  So many photos and memories from those summers of hanging out with friends, singing songs, and enjoying nature.  Every year we would have a theme to the camping trip...  No, stop your train of thought.  That is NOT corny whatsoever.  Not to us at least.  The theme the year this photo was taken was an animal theme, and each family's name included an animal.  For example- the last name "Hubbard" would probably have been considered "Hub'bird'".  Haha, get it?  Well my family's name did in fact include the word "bird" in it.

To go along with our theme we were given a bunch of bird feathers, and I really wanted my mom to put them in my hair because I thought it would be oh so cool.  This very moment looking back, I'm thinking that it was oh so gross, but then again I'm pretty sure they were from the store.  That makes it less gross.  Well my mom happily put bird feathers in my hair, and I was so excited.

I really thought I was the cream of the crop that day, and I'm so happy that my mom took a picture of it.  Looking at this photo of me from my past puts a smile on my face, and joy in my heart.

Every piece of film has a story behind it.  Whether it is good or bad, it has helped shape who we are.  Don't let those moments from your past be forgotten.  Put them back in the limelight by converting them to digital.

-Christa, Marketing
Team Member for 6 Years

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Throw a "Memory Lane" Party With Your Converted Film!

Download the invitation HERE!

Don't have your old film converted to digital yet?  Larsen Digital Services is the most experienced film conversion company in the industry.  With nearly 18 years to back us up, we know what it takes to truly make your memories last lifetimes to come.  Whether you have movie film, photos, or even scrapbook pages and jaz drives- let us help you preserve your legacy by converting your film to digital.

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Independence Day Super Sale

To order your movie film, visit our order form.  To learn more about our professional grade equipment and our awesome practices, check out our Movie Film information page!

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Leaving A Legacy of Imagery

Death is a part of life.  It can bring Sadness.  Tragedy.

"For some life lasts a short while, but the memories it holds last forever." -Laura Swenson

We have the opportunity to help thousand of individuals around the world preserve their memories, aiding a legacy of imagery to live on for those who will miss them dearly one day.  Recently we were able to convert numerous videos and photos for one of our customers, who would send in a little bit at a time, working on her project in pieces.  We came to learn that this patron had been diagnosed with cancer, and was given two to five months to live.  She was preparing so that she could leave her children and family a better way to remember her by converting her film to digital- allowing them to easily see her face and hear her voice for days, years, and generations to come.

This sweet customer has since passed away, and we are so sorry for the loss their family has experienced, as with all who lose a loved one.  We may not be able to control when we die, but we can control the legacy we leave behind.  As has been said repeatedly through the years, a picture says a thousand words... imagine what hundreds of photos and videos can say about one's life.

We are here to help you prepare your legacy of imagery, whether you are young or old.  We have an excellent customer service team and an unmatched love of the industry.  We are a family business and we know the importance of your priceless memories.  We will treat them, and you, with the respect and quality deserved.

Film and photos won't last forever.  They are degrading as we speak, but you can preserve your physical film by converting it to digital, allowing your images and videos to last lifetimes to come.  It was be a legacy of imagery well cherished.

Larsen Digital transfers slides, movie film, video tapes, photos, negatives, vinyl records, audio tapes, and more to digital.  Complete with online organization for images and online editing for videos, our services and prices can't be beat.

 

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Vintage Harlem Globetrotters 8mm Film

After watching the 2013 NBA Basketball Draft we caught the fever of looking up past and WAY past basketball games.  Check out this 8mm movie film shot of the Harlem Globetrotters most likely in the 1950's.

Larsen Digital Services can preserve all your sport memories and the other timeless events of your life by converting them to a digital format.  When you have your film and audio digitized, you have all the freedom you want to post it on your favorite social outlets, share them with your friends and family, and much more.

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What is The Cloud?

Larsen Digital Services can take your physical film and audio memories and convert it to digital,

but we go one step further where we can upload your very images and videos to The Cloud through your Google Drive account.  Check out our Cloud Services and preserve your precious film today.

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Larsen Digital helps you hold on to those memories by converting all your old film to digital.  Whether it's movie film, slides, video tapes, negatives, photos, audio tapes, vinyl records, or any other film format, we can preserve them to last lifetimes to come.

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Five Reasons to Include Photos in a Memoir or Personal History Book

Everyone has a story to tell! And if you have been thinking about writing or recording your life stories, here are some reasons why adding pictures is a must.

1. Let ‘em out!

You’ve diligently collected and digitized your boxes of photos, home movies, and other memorabilia. Good for you! Now what? Are they in a format that can be easily used and enjoyed, or will they remain buried on a hard drive somewhere, forgotten and alone?

Incorporating your best photos with your best life stories in a memoir book is a great way to make sure those pictures are viewed often and cherished, perhaps especially by those who are not technically inclined or don’t hang out on Facebook. Anyone can read a book, no special equipment required.

2. What is essential becomes more special.

Because our ancestors’ access to photography was often limited, we cherish the one or two photos of our great-great grandmother. Today we have the opposite problem—too many photos! When you sift through your digitized photos and select the best or most relevant ones to include in your personal history project, you are in effect creating “scarcity,” which makes each chosen photo more special.

3. Pictures add emotional impact.

The touching story of how your dog Butch once saved your life will become a three-hanky tale when your reader can actually behold Butch’s droopy eyes and see his missing leg.

4. Pictures make your book more inviting.

Which one of these books would you rather read?

 

5. Photos help your book compete for attention.

Reports of the death of books are greatly exaggerated, despite the explosion of social media, e-readers, and online content in our technology-driven society. “People don’t read any more,” is the daily lament. We disagree (especially after trying to get a parking space at Barnes & Noble last holiday season—they weren’t all there to buy Nooks.) While it’s true that the way people read has changed, books are alive and well.

One interesting result of the technical revolution: printed books are getting more beautiful. The printed book has been elevated to an art form. We think this is a most positive trend. But it has also raised the bar of expectations. In order to capture the attention of your readers, you will want to make sure that your book can “compete” in our visually driven society. It needn’t be fancy or expensive, but it should be attractive and engaging. Adding photos will bump up the “wow” factor in your stories.

Tom and Alison Taylor of Pictures and Stories, Inc. have helped hundreds of people record their life stories in books and video. Their step-by-step memoir kit “How to Save Your Life—One Chapter at a Time” is available from Larsen Digital.

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Technology Is Changing - Why Your Photo Memories Should Too

Isn't is amazing how much technology has changed in just the past 10 years?  Forget the paper and the pen, forget the store, forget viewing your memories in film format!  You can take notes, shop, and reminisce all from the convenience of your computer, tablet, or smartphone.

It's not just about convenience that you should convert your old film to digital though.  Every day that your movie film, negatives, video tapes, photographs, and other memory media sits it degrades and suffers.  Once you digitize your priceless past the deterioration and degradation stops!  But back to convenience...  having your film in digital form makes sharing your memories infinitely easier.

To stop the damage being done to your film, and to move it to today's technologies, order today!  Larsen Digital is the most trusted name in the film conversion industry.  We will respect your film and give it the new life it deserves.

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Father's Day Photo Gifts: Office Slideshow

"I will always remember how much my father played with me.  He was never afraid to be goofy or awkward in public as long as he was making us happy." -Christa, Marketing

"If there was a problem in our house, my dad was always there to take care of it and solve it.  I knew I could always depend on him to be there when I needed him." -Mike, IT

We all have memories like these of our fathers, and photos and videos only expound on the emotions felt  when pondering out past.  Father's Day is fast approaching, so give him a gift that we will never forget by converting all his film to digital.

One thing you could do with the digitized film to put the cherry on top of it all, is to give him a gift that will constantly remind him of the great life he's lived and the people who love him.  A SLIDESHOW!  First, you need to convert all your dad's videos, photos, and film to digital.  Then, pick the most iconic or favorite image and videos from your past, compile them, and you've got magic on your hands!  One thing we love the slideshows for is for dad's work computer screen saver!

You could also create a slideshow with his favorite songs in the background and have a "movie premier" party with your family where the laughter, the tears, and the smiles will keep rolling in.

Haven't converted your video tapes, photos, slides, negatives, movie film feels, audio tapes, an other film to digital yet?  Well it's time to bring the into the digital world!  Digitizing your old film gives you the freedom to do whatever you want with your memories, whenever you want, wherever you want.

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Father's Day Photo Gifts: Classic Mousepad

Our fathers work extremely hard for us, and more often than not, they are sitting for many hours in front of a computer.  The great idea we have for you today is a personalized mouse pad customized with images from your past.  That way, your dad can be reminded of precious memories on a daily basis.

        

We ordered this mouse pad from Personalization Mall.  Their website was extremely easy to use, and they had a lot of templates to choose from.  Their production and shipping time was impressive, as it took less than a week to receive the product.  The mouse pad is of very high quality, and we like how thick it is.  The print job was really decent as well, considering the images were printed on a fabric mousepad!  Overall, we wold recommend getting a mouse pad from Personalization Mall.

Your dad deserves a great gift with a lot of meaning and emotion behind it.  Giving him the gift of memories and a piece of your past will top any gift from the past or future.  To create a photo gift for your father, you will need to make sure you convert your film to digital, giving you the freedom to do what you want for you dad.  The possibilities are endless when you digitize your photos, movie film, photos, negatives, video tapes, slides, and other film to a digital form.

Need to convert your film to digital?  Larsen Digital specializes in preserving memories and making them last forever.  With our prices and the level of quality we output, you can be assured that your priceless past is in good hands.

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Father's Day Week of Photo Gift Ideas!

Most father's were behind the camera when it came to taking pictures and videos of the family.  Even though he may not be in all the images and photos, your dad loves to show his kids off!  Go into any man's office, and we will bet you there is something in there that represents his family.

Most people save the photo and memory driven gifts for mom, but dad loves them too!  That is why this week we are highlighting gifts that are perfect for your dad featuring YOU and your FAMILY!

From slides, negatives and photos to movie film reels, video tapes, audio tapes and more, Larsen Digital is the most experiences film conversion company in the industry to help you take care of your memory preservation needs.  Film will degrade, so show the man in your life how much you care about him and the way he raised you by helping him re-live what a great life he's helped you have!

Check out our Father's Day Sale Prices and save today!

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Larsen Digital Being Featured on Fox 13 News Business Now!

If you didn't have time to catch our segment this afternoon have no fear!  We will be back on Fox after the 12:00 news for their Business Now segment to talk about the importance of converting your old film to digital, as well as to give you some specials for Father's Day!

We had the opportunity to have the Fox 13 Business Now crew at our office to interview our very own Kristin Harding about what we do and why it's important!  We love spreading the message of preserving your memories before they are literally gone.  Film is so prone to being damaged, destroyed, discolored, etc.  When those problems occur on your film it can ruin it!  

"Over time all of our old memories will degrade.  In our movie film, the dyes in the film will degrade, video tapes will degrade over time, slides, negatives, and photos- Everything degrades over time.  It’s not meant to stay in its original format, which is why it’s so important to convert it to digital so it stops degrading." -Kristin Harding

Our memories help keep us entertained, happy, and close with our loved ones.  If those memories get lost or are destroyed while still in physical film form, there is no way to re-create them. The best thing to do is to gather up all your movie film, slides, video tapes, negatives, photographs, and all your other film and send them in to be converted to digital.  Not only does the degradation and discoloration stop when your memories are in digital form, but you are able to create lots of back-ups of your memories to ensure they that they will be around for lifetimes to come.

Need a great gift idea for Father's Day?  Skip the tie this year and convert your father's old film to digital.  It's a gift that will keep on giving, and that he will never forget!  Check out our Father's Day specials today!

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Memories Are Like a Box of Chocolates...

Whether it was in times of good or times of bad, we fall back on our memories to smile, to cry, and to grow better as a person.  Our past has shaped who we are today, and while some moments may not be ones we look back on fondly, they taught us lessons and made us stronger.

Have you ever been sitting in a room with family or friends and thought of a past moment you've shared with them, followed by laughter or tears?  Immediately afterwards, another memory usually follows, and another, until you are immersed in a "remember when" hour.  

To top it off you bring out old photos or videos of you together, which brings the nostalgia to a whole new level.  The mind has a pretty good memory, but seeing the visual or hearing the audio just puts the last piece of the puzzle together.  Smile at the past.  Look towards the future.  With one life to live there is no better choice than to take what's happened in our lives and learn from it!

Have old photos and videos that you reminisce upon often still in film form?  Larsen Digital Services converts movie film, slides, negatives, photographs, video tapes, audio tapes, and much more to digital so you can easily call upon those memories anytime, anywhere.  Don't let your film fade into the past- bring into the present and into the digital age.

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All About Scanning Your Film: What You Need to Know About Resolution

What is Resolution?  No, it has nothing to do with the New Year or making goals.  Resolution is one of the biggest factors determining the quality of your end result when scanning your old film to digital.  The higher the resolution you choose to digitize your film with, the higher the quality.  

The resolution amount is stated numerically.  For example: 400 DPI, 2000 DPI, etc.  Notice, the number is followed by three letters.  D. P. I.  This stands for Dots Per Inch, which makes up the resolution.  Think about a mosaic made up of little squares all over the image.  Each square is one color, and the more little squares of color you have to make up the art, the easier it is to tell what it's of.  It's exactly the same concept with DPI.  The more dots you have in your image, the clearer the picture will be, the clearer it will be, and the more detailed it will be.

You can also relate resolution to the megapixels of a camera.  Here are some comparables to help aid you in your decision of which resolution to scan your film at:

2000 DPI - A 2000 DPI scan is equivalent to 4.6 Megapixels. This is a medium resolution scan that we recommend for customers who only want to create printed photographs of up to 5"x7", post online, e-mail to friends or view on their TV. If you want to make larger printed photographs, crop out portions of the image, or have a higher quality image, we would recommend a higher resolution.

3000 DPI- A 3000 DPI scan is equivalent to 9 Megapixels. This is a high resolution scan that we recommend for customers who want to create larger photograph prints up to 11"x14", post online, e-mail to friends or view on their TV. If you plan to make larger printed photographs, use in a professional capacity such as publishing, or want a higher quality image, we would recommend the 4000 DPI.

4000 DPI- A 4000 DPI scan is equivalent to 18 Megapixels. It is the highest scan resolution scan for transparent film. This will allow you to crop out portions of your image, create large photograph prints, upload online, use professionally, pretty much whatever you want. If it fits within your budget we always recommend going with the highest resolution, because you are capturing more data, which means you are getting a higher quality image.

As with most things, the higher you go, the better.  While you may not need the highest resolution to accomplish your photo needs, make sure you take into account the information given in this article to make sure you get what you need!

Larsen Digital Services offers the best quality scans with several resolutions to choose from when converting your precious family memories to digital.  We scan photos, slides, negatives, and we transfer video tapes, movie film, audio tapes and more to digital so you can enjoy and share them for the rest of your life, and even pass it on to your posterity.

Don't have the time to scan your own film?  Send it in to Larsen Digital where your memories come first!  Take advantage of a special going on right now where you can get your slides scanned at ANY resolution for just 35¢ each!  Use coupon code SOCIAL35 and save your memories today!

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Why You Should Scan Your Film to Digital

<Scene> Your daughter brings home a young gentleman to meet the family.  The relationship is getting serious.  You had always dreamed of the day when your little girl would bring someone home for the mere fact that you could embarrass her with a photo from her past.  It was a photo from her childhood when she had a style and opinion of her own.  You couldn't wait any longer to show the photo off, so you run to the basement to grab the photo album that holds this treasure.  As you run downstairs you hear a drip dripping of water.  Upon nearing the location of the album, the sound of water drops gets louder.  You find that the box containing the photo album sits nicely below a water leak, and has slowly been storing inches of water for who knows how long.  You grab the album to find the pages soaking.  <End Scene>

This is a story we hear all too often.  People store their precious film in places where they don't think any harm could occur.  Then... one of the four D's occur.  Damage.  Disaster.  Deterioration.  Discoloration These are the reasons it is so important to get your film converted to digital format!  Once your memories are in digital form, the D's stop, as digital images and videos will not degrade or deteriorate over time. 

Damage:  Over time, our favorite photos can take a beating; leaving us with partial photos or badly damaged ones. Luckily, we can digitally repair the damage.  With our digital photo restoration services, we can take your damaged photos, whether your pictures are torn, colored on, bent, wrinkled, or other scenario, our talented graphic artists will make that photo look new again!  

Disaster: One of the hidden dangers of leaving your photos & film boxed up in a closet, the attic or basement is that you forget about them. Not only is that sad because you are not enjoying a lifetime of memories, but it's terrifying when you realize they have been lost due to flooding, fire, mold or mildew damage.

When a person's home is on fire, obviously getting the family out of the house is the first priority- but what do people run back for next? 
THEIR PHOTOS & VIDEOS.

Clothing, electronics, and furniture can be replaced, memories can not. Not only do we recommend scanning all your photos, slides, negatives and movie film and converting them to digital, but we also recommend getting an extra copy and keeping it in a safety deposit box or at a family members house. This way, in times of tragedy, you can know that not all has been lost.

The majority of all homeowner claims are due to flooding, and the potential of having your photos, slides, negatives and movie film damaged in that flood is pretty high. Once those items are damaged by water, some, if not all, may be damaged beyond repair. Don't take the risk of losing a lifetime of memories to a faulty pipe. Once your family memories are scanned and saved digitally, you know they will be preserved.

Deterioration: We all have them - home movies from our childhood.

Some people have boxes full of them, but don't actually own a VCR to watch them. The unfortunate part about video tapes is that they were never intended to last forever.

Over time, video tapes lose their magnetism, which causes deterioration in the picture you see.

Other things that cause damage to video tapes is humidity in the air, the number of times you have watched your video tape, the number of times you recorded over a specific section and general damage of the tape. All these things will result in the loss of video quality and it will eventually lead your tape to be un-playable.

Luckily, you can convert your video tape to digital and stop the natural deterioration.

Discoloration: 

Don't lose your family memories to the effects of time, convert your film and photos to digital.

Over time, the dyes in your film and photos will begin to fade. This fading will essentially make it appear as if your photographs, slide film and negatives are slowly disappearing. Making matters worse, light speeds up the fading process. We have all seen photos that are prominently displayed in someone's home that has faded over the years. Eventually, the picture will fade away to the point it is no longer usable.

The most common discoloration you will experience is film that turns red or has a yellow hue to it.

Luckily, with today's digital technology, you can convert all your photos, slides, and negatives to digital and repair the years of fading.

Movie film is similar to slide film, as the film ages, the dyes will begin to deteriorate leaving the film discolored or faded. We have had great success in converting your old 8mm, Super8 and 16mm movie film to digital. We even offer color correction to help correct the years aging.

Beat the clock on your old movie film, slides, negatives, photos, video tapes, audio tapes, and other formats!  Convert them to digital today and sleep soundly knowing that the new D: DIGITAL is the best way to store your life's many stories!  Order today and make sure to take advantage of our Mother's Day Sale ending May 15th!

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What's Your Favorite Photo of Your Mother?

Mother's Day is coming up, so we're asking you to think back on your family photos, videos, slides, etc, and recall which one of your mom is your favorite!

Now look or think about the photo and ask yourself a few questions:

What were you doing the day this photo or video was taken?

What moment was captured by the picture?

How did you feel?

How did this photo of your mom affect your life?

Photos can do a great deal of journaling for you, as you look back on a photo or home video and remember things you've done and places you've been with your mother.  Remembering past times is also therapeutic, especially in those cases where our mothers are no longer with us.

We celebrate mothers this month and appreciate the role they play in society.  We would like to wish all the mother's out there a Happy Mother's Day.

Have photos of your mother still in film or paper form?  Larsen Digital Services converts all your film, photos, and audio to digital so that you don't have to forget the moments you've shared with the ones you love.  As a family run business, Larsen Digital knows and appreciates the memories that your film holds, and will provide film conversion services with the respect that your precious belongings deserve.  Order today and preserve those memories forever!

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Slide Scanning Special- ANY Resolution is Just 35¢!

Got Slides?

Get your slides scanned at ANY resolution for just 35¢ ea.!

Use coupon code: SOCIAL35 at checkout to take advantage of these savings.

Slide formats include:

-35mm Slides

-126 Format Slides

-110 Format Slides

-Super 35mm Slides

-35mm Half Frame Slides

Find out what slide formats YOU have!

Resolution Choices:

-2000 DPI

-3000 DPI

-4000 DPI

Learn more about resolution and how it affects your scans.

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Dream For The Future, But Don't Forget The Past!

Dream for the future but don't forget the past!  

Convert your old film and photo memories to digital and always remember the good times so you can make the future bright!

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