User`s guide

MP730/MP700
Software Guide (Scanning)
37
The data in the image you have scanned is a collection of dots carrying information about brightness and
color. The density of these dots is called “resolution”, and “dpi” (dots per inch) refers to the number of
dots in one inch. Resolution will determine the amount of detail your image contains. The higher the
resolution (number), the more detail in your image; the lower the resolution (number), the less detail.
As a general rule, you should select a scanning resolution that corresponds to your final output device
such as a monitor or printer.
You can specify a resolution in [Image quality] in the MP Toolbox settings dialog box, or in [Output
Resolution] in ScanGear MP.
Images for display on a monitor
Images for display on a monitor should in general be scanned at a resolution of 75 dpi.
Images for printing
Images to be printed should be scanned at a resolution which corresponds to the resolution of the
printer. For example, if you are using a 600 dpi black and white printer, you should scan your document
at [600] dpi.
With a color printer, the colors are expressed as a certain percentage of ink pigment so scanning your
document at half the resolution of the printer should be fine. For example, if you are using a 600 dpi
color printer, you should scan your document at [300] dpi.
Printing to scale
For example, if you want to print a document which is twice the size both vertically and horizontally, the
resolution of your document will be reduced by half. If the resolution of the original document is 300
dpi, the resolution of the enlarged document will be 150 dpi. If you print the document with a 600 dpi
color printer, the lack of detail in the image may be obvious. In such a case, if you scan at a resolution
of 600 dpi, resolution will be 300 dpi even if you double the size of the document and you can print the
document with sufficient quality. Conversely, if you want to print a document at a reduced size, it should
be sufficient to scan at half the resolution.
Resolution and data size
If you double the resolution, the image data will be four times greater. If the data is too large,
processing speed will slow down significantly, and you may experience malfunctions such as lack of
memory. Make sure the resolution corresponds to the purpose of use of the image and set at the
lowest level possible.
3
Scanning documents Setting preferences and scanning with ScanGear MP
Determining resolution