Question about organizing scanned photos.

[Sonesta]

I have PSE 4 and I'm just getting started using the Organizer. I am wondering, when I scan photos, should I scan them right into my Organizer or first put them into folders on my harddrive and then incorporate them into Organizer? I hope this makes sense. Thanks.

[Samara]

I actually keep all my photos in folders by year. I then attempt to sort them further into months (easy for new photos.)

If I have no idea when the picture was taken, I create folders called "Heritage" and then divide them further by family name.

Hope that makes sense.

[Sonesta]

Samara...
So you scan them right to folders then?

Also, when I back up my photos onto CD...the Organizer has a backup system, but then do I also need to back up my files on my harddrive? This seems kind of redundant, but I'm not sure if the Organizer back up saves everything the way I need it to?

[Samara]

Sonesta-
I don't really use Organizer too much because I had a serious problem with it when I used PSE3. When I upgraded to PSE4, I had no problems.

I TRY (I am behind) to back up my photos and kits once a month. I back up to CD or DVD and an external drive.

[Sonesta]

Another scanning question...at what image style should I save the scanned photos? I'm saving at 300ppi. Is that adequate?

[weddell]

Are you scanning photo prints (I assume so from what you have said so far)? 300ppi is probably good for prints. I certainly wouldn't go lower than that. You could go higher, but if you did I'm not sure you'd be getting more actual information from the print. Many times people recommend scanning using a resolution based on how big you plan on printing the picture later. That works up to a point, but just because you scan a 3x5 print at 600ppi doesn't mean you are going to get a good 8x10 (or whatever) if you print later. A 3x5 or 4x6 only contains a certain amount of information and just isn't ever going to look good if it is enlarged much beyond that. When I scan prints I often use 300ppi and get good results. I usually try and scan the negatives if possible because you can get better enlargements from them.