# Is there a better way of uploading old photos on Facebook? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 9, 2014, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-better-way-of-uploading-old-photos-on-facebook/706783 "2014-12-09T19:31:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Erdosain](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/erdosain/32/7284_2.png) [@Erdosain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Erdosain)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2014, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-better-way-of-uploading-old-photos-on-facebook/706783/1 "2014-12-09T19:31:57Z")
This is probably a really dumb question but is there a better way to upload old physical photographs to Facebook than just taking a picture of them with my smartphone? It’s a pain to not get any glare or shadows on them. I feel like I have to create a mini studio with lights and black fabric to cut down on glare. I see a lot of other people’s photos and they don’t have these artifacts (that I notice). Is everyone else better at this than me, or do I not notice their imperfections because I don’t see the original? ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2014, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-better-way-of-uploading-old-photos-on-facebook/706783/2 "2014-12-09T19:33:27Z")
Perhaps they are scanning them and not photographing them? ---
**Author:** ![Pai325](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c68b51/32.png) [@Pai325](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pai325)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2014, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-better-way-of-uploading-old-photos-on-facebook/706783/3 "2014-12-09T19:38:15Z")
I have a lot of old family photos that I share with my cousins on Facebook. I scan them. ---
**Author:** ![jacobsta811](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jacobsta811/32/2893_2.png) [@jacobsta811](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jacobsta811)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2014, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-better-way-of-uploading-old-photos-on-facebook/706783/4 "2014-12-09T19:40:59Z")
IE, using something like this: > **[Amazon.com: Epson Perfection V600 Color Photo, Image, Film, Negative &...](https://www.amazon.com/Epson-Perfection-Negative-Document-Scanner/dp/B002OEBMRU)** > > Amazon.com: Epson Perfection V600 Color Photo, Image, Film, Negative & Document Scanner : Office Products Although many people have all in one scanners that are printer/copier/fax/scanners. You can do even better than the pictures themselves if you have the negatives, the scanner I linked for example can scan those too. ---
**Author:** ![Omar\_Little](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omar_little/32/269_2.png) [@Omar\_Little](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omar_Little)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2014, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-better-way-of-uploading-old-photos-on-facebook/706783/5 "2014-12-11T16:32:34Z")
Yeah, have scanners become obsolete to the current generation already? ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2014, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-better-way-of-uploading-old-photos-on-facebook/706783/6 "2014-12-11T17:29:08Z")
> [@Omar\_Little](#): > > Yeah, have scanners become obsolete to the current generation already? I see a surprising number of images posted on Facebook that are clearly just phone pictures of printed photo albums. People are getting so used to immediate gratification from their phones. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2014, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-better-way-of-uploading-old-photos-on-facebook/706783/7 "2014-12-11T17:39:34Z")
Every so often I go through a picture box and scan a bunch of pictures at once to keep in my “throwback Thursday” folder. Scanning is where it’s at! ---
**Author:** ![UncleRojelio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/unclerojelio/32/3160_2.png) [@UncleRojelio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncleRojelio)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2014, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-better-way-of-uploading-old-photos-on-facebook/706783/8 "2014-12-11T19:36:29Z")
If you just have a few, go to Kinko’s. They have some fairly good scanners there to use for a few cents per scan. ---
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2014, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-better-way-of-uploading-old-photos-on-facebook/706783/9 "2014-12-11T19:40:24Z")
If you don’t want to invest in a scanner or use a scanning service, illuminate the photo from the side (something like 45 degree angle to the photo, preferably from 2 sides), and make sure the camera’s flash is turned off.