Posts: 29
Threads: 9
Joined: May 2021
Reputation:
0
My process for scanning sheet music has been to use the iPhone Files app, save to Google Drive, import to MS.
Today I scanned all the Christmas music for our ensemble. It all looked good on the phone. None of it was usable where it was saved. Something about the builtin iPhone scanning has changed, or the save function.
Any recommendation for a commercial phone app? It does not have to be free, but I would like it to have decent resolution and be able to save multiple pages as one file, both of which were true for the old iPhone Files app.
Posts: 13,243
Threads: 301
Joined: Apr 2012
Reputation:
234
I'm planning on releasing an iPhone version of MobileSheets very soon, so if you've tried the new picture taking functionality, you could use that on your phone once it's available. Otherwise, try out Genius Scan - PDF Scanner to see if that will work for you.
Mike
Posts: 29
Threads: 9
Joined: May 2021
Reputation:
0
Thanks. I have heard a couple other recommendations for Genius Scan.
But since I posted I've done a good bit of experimenting, trying to duplicate a few scans that did turn out very clear with the iPhone and the Files command.
It turns out that light is critical, but more is not better. In fact more is worse, if not extremely even and from the right distance.
I've been using a pole lamp with a combination of 2700 and 5000 K LED bulbs. That turns out to be too uneven (though it doesn't look that way), too bright, and too close. With grayscale scans I get blacks that are not quite dark enough gray, and whites that are not quite light enough gray. With B&W I get missing spots where lines are thin and extra note spots where there shouldn't be. Gray scale is workable with MS but sometimes not ideal.
Long story short, what works is an overhead 4 foot fluorescent converted to LED, or an existing uncoverted fluorescent, and the music on the floor. The music stand or the table is too close. The distance is important and more is much better, because the light is more even I guess. The very best scans are in a gym with very bright LED lighting on a very high ceiling, I wish I had a room with a higher ceiling. And finally, the distance and the choice of light is not the same for different paper sheets. In particular notation vs script music, and original copies vs photocopies all make a difference.
The multiscanner printer takes light out of the equation, but has its own learning curve.
Posts: 29
Threads: 9
Joined: May 2021
Reputation:
0
Just tested my normal multifunction printer, a Brother MFC.
It gave me scans at good resolution, but file size was 10% of the iPhone scans. I have no idea why.
Posts: 29
Threads: 9
Joined: May 2021
Reputation:
0
That's an interesting idea. I've had some problems doing Zoom or Skype, and a setup like that would have been an improvement. I now have an external camera for those sessions and that pretty much solves the problems.
I've finished scanning all the holiday parts for one of my ensembles, and here is my current thought.
Try very hard to avoid gray scale. That means scan on a flatbed when convenient or when doing large volumes. Scanning B&W with the phone camera is much faster and gives decent quality BUT ONLY if the lightiing is just right. If the lighting in rehearsal is uncertain, scan both ways but assume you'll probably end up doing it over later.
Genius Scan looked promising but is pricey. Adobe Scan worked but made it very hard to access the proprietary storage. The iPhone File command gives less control but is still adequate most of the time.
I have been told I should upgrade my printer scanning software to one of the commercial offerings, VueScan, and might consider that.
