Getting fine art (photos) scanned?

[Vbrook]

Hi,

I have a couple of black and white, glossy, fine art photos that I would like to have scanned. They're both 11 X 14. I found a higher-end shop nearby that will do the scanning for $35 each photo "at size".

1) Is "at size" OK? Or, would it be better to go for a larger resolution? What are the advantages and disadvantages (other than cost)? My reason for scanning the photos is just so that I have a 'backup' for piece of mind. The photos are rather old.

My other question is more etiquette. Both of the photos are tasteful nudes. However, I am currently living in an extremely conservative city (Boston, MA).

2) Are there clues that indicate a shop is 'nude friendly'? How can I be sure that my photos won't be confiscated for legal reasons? A lab could happily take my photos, and then destroy them. Or, am I being absolutely silly?

Any advice appreciated!

VB

[kiloIII]

Well kind of an off-key topic but -
The scan options you want to use will depend on the size of the final output you desire. If it's for print, you should scan your photos SIZE AS IS @300dpi.
If you want to, for example, blow that up x2 as bigger, make sure to save it either SIZE AS IS @ 600dpi - OR - x2 THE SIZE @ 300dpi. make sense?

why is someone using your photos? you should tell the person.

[Vbrook]

Thanks. The thing is, I think I need to take them to a store that can scan oversized photos.

Although I have a scanner at home, it will only do letter sized paper---like most of the scanners out there. My photos are too big for it (11x14).

There's a high-end store in town, which is only place I found that can scan 11x14. They want to charge me $50 per image (total $100), plus $15 for the CD. (They want $150 to put two photos in their scanner and press "start"!!!)

Kinko's could do it for cheaper, but they refuse to handle anything with nudity.

I thought maybe I could buy a bigger scanner for home, but anything that scans more than letter-size is very, very expensive, from what I can tell...$1000 or more.

Are there any other options for getting these scanned? I had no idea how difficult it would be to simply get a couple of photographs scanned (!)