Two Pots

Two Pots, 5 x 7,  watercolor on paper. © 2021 Sheila Delgado.
Two Pots, 5 x 7, watercolor on paper. © 2021 Sheila Delgado.

My new scanner arrived. Yipee! I had to wait about a month for it. I played with the settings to get a true to life image. I used a piece that I had scanned on the older machine.

There are over a dozen combinations of settings, the interface is very easy to use. I do like that it is powered by USB. So I just need to connect it to the laptop, and it is ready to go. No need to wait for it to warm up. Nice! It was recommended by a couple of artists I follow.

I need to get used to having to preview first. It really is useful, as you can change the settings if the image is off, and then scan for the final saved image.

Two Pots was painted on a spiral-bound pad. I didn’t realize the scanner lid is removable, it expands to hold books. On the left of the image, I can see that it is blurry. Where the rings are. I will need to be more aware of that.

Below are some of the different settings. You might not be able to see much of a difference in some of them. The first one is an illustration setting. That was interesting. It simplifies the image to color “blocks”. More like a vector image. Or cartoon.

Scanner Settings
Scanner Settings

Below you can see the Epson scan and the scan from the old machine. The Epson is more true. Haha. Well, the blooms are. The vase and the background in the original are closer to real life. I’m fine with that. I know I will need to make adjustments in Photoshop as usual. It is just how the different colors reflect the light. I will work with the settings and see how close I can get them. But I’m sure they will be different for each piece. I have scanned about a dozen photos, and they came out true to life.

Epson True
Day 30, 4 x 6 Watercolor and pen on paper. © 2021 Sheila Delgado.
Day 30, 4 x 6 Watercolor and pen on paper. © 2021 Sheila Delgado.
Scanner Tucked Away

This scanner is so slim. About an inch and a half. And it is so lightweight! About 3 pounds. It has a kickstand and you can scan while it is standing on its side. I love that I can tuck it away, and pull it out when needed. I don’t need to sacrifice valuable desk space.

It is so light and easy to connect. It will be perfect for travel. Visiting family, and sharing old photos. Oh, did I say? It is an Epson Perfection V39.

Epson Scanner

Happy week everyone!

12 thoughts on “Two Pots

  1. laurelle

    I like very much your rendering of the two pots. I immediately felt comfort and friendship. I have a tendency to anthropomorphise plants and flowers because I paint them and see their little portraits, and this composition is no exception. It’s as if two old friends who live close to each other are showing their support. Am I being silly? Perhaps. As to the scanner, I have never thought of using a scanner for anything but scanning a document that I need to send or copy or hopefully one day scan all my photos, but you are opening my eyes that there are other uses;) xoxo
    As a p.s.: I always check to save my name and email for next time I comment, but it never works:(

    Reply
    1. Sheila Post author

      I love that Laurelle! And I can see it, now that you have said it. Maybe because I just had a long phone convo with a good friend who needed support. She is like a big sister to me. (And the other day I called her when I needed a pep talk. LOL ) I will be looking at your floral portraits differently from now on. 🙂
      I finally scanned all of my old photos. It was not as daunting as I thought. You can scan three or four at a time, and if you place them far apart, the scanner will crop them individually. I have also scanned my old cards and letters. Now THAT was a huge task LOL. Haha. Now I scan postcards and documents about once a month, or every other month to keep up with it. I know, I am a geek. But after seeing my good friend and her family (three houses in total.) lose just about everything to the 2008 fires in So. Cal., I feel more secure knowing that all of my records and photos are safe, and easy to grab if evacuation is necessary. ;o)
      Surface designers very often use scanners to transfer hand-drawn elements for patterns. Guess that is where I learned it from.

      Thanks for letting me know about that issue. I will see if I can figure it out. That plug-in probably needs to be updated. (Could it be that easy? LOL)

      Thanks, Laurelle! 🙂

      Reply
  2. Dotty Seiter

    Well, don’t you just have a fun new toy, Sheila!

    The southwestern colors of Two Pots are magnetic, pulling me right in, and I like the juxtaposition of the electric yellow-green contrasted with the soothing blue-green.

    More, more, more!

    Reply
  3. Val van der Poel

    Nice addition to your art space Sheila. You are so good with all the tech stuff – it is not something I do or plan to learn – I have a husband for that – lol

    Reply

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