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Help Topics and Frequently Asked Questions
Overview
Getting Started
Updating your account
How Do I...
Contacting Us
Ordering
The web site
Technical Stuff
What technology do you use to scan my slides/negatives/photos?
I am just going to buy a scanner and do it myself. They are not expensive anymore...
How big are the digital image files? How many images fit on a DVD? CD?
Other Services
Policies
Questions and Answers
Overview
How does this work?
Please go to the overview page to learn more about how our services work.
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Getting Started
Creating an account
Creating an account is easy. When you place an order with Pixmonix, your account is automatically created Please go to the order form page to create an account.
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Deciding what you need
Please see our detailed scanning explanation page. Feel free to contact us if you have questions.
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Scanning Technology and Process Details
Please go to our detailed scanning explanation page.
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Scanning Resources on the Internet
There are a great number of websites devoted to scanning and digital photography and video. Please see our links page for a sampling.
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Updating your account
Go to my account
You may access your account information on your account page. You must first create an account and sign in before you can access your account information.
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Forgot my password
Please go to the forgotten password page.
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Changing your password
You may change your password on your account page. You must first create an account and sign in before you can access your account information.
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Updating personal information
You may modify your personal information and preferences on your account page. You must first create an account and sign in before you can access your account information.
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How Do I...
How do I ship my slides and negatives to you?
Please see our packing guidelines page for a guide to packing your slides or negatives for shipment to Pixmonix.
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How do I view the completed scans?
Go to your orders page. You must first place an order and sign in before you can access your order information. This gallery option is only available to customers who select the Online Gallery feature when placing their order. Back to top
How do I pay for an order?
Go to your orders page. You must first create an account and sign in before you can access your order information. Once an order has been completed, Pixmonix will process payment to the credit card saved in your account. Your charges will be based on the quantity of materials scanned or transferred and the posted price of specific materials listed on the Pixmonix website. Receipt of all charges will be available through your account once processed.
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How do I get shipping and tracking information?
Go to your orders page. You must first create an account and sign in before you can access your order information. On your orders pages, click the "track" link for the order you wish to track.
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How do I get prints of my digital images?
There are many places that will create prints from your digital images. We provide a few examples on our links page.
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Contacting Us
Questions or comments? Please ask us!
Please go to this page to ask us questions, offer suggestions or provide us feedback. We would love to hear from you!
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Contacting us
Please go to this page to find all the different ways to contact us.
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Website issues
Please go to this page to ask us questions, point out problems or give us comments on the website.
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Account maintenance issues
Please go to this page to ask us questions about your account.
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I never received my order.
You can track the shipment of your order from your orders page. You must first create an account and sign in before you can access your order information. If this does not answer your question, please go to this page to ask us questions about an order.
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Can I talk to a human being or do you just work via email?
Talk to a human? Certainly! There really are people at Pixmonix! We would love to speak with you. Please see our contact information to find out how.
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Ordering
Is there a minimum order size?
No. Ship us one slide or 1000. You receive the same service from Pixmonix!
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How much is shipping?
The flat return shipping rate is $10 via UPS Ground. You can choose from a variety of shipping options on the Pixmonix order form, all through UPS.
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How long does it take?
The time required to process an order depends on the size of the order and how busy we are processing other orders. Generally, we scan and return images within a 10-20 business days after receiving your materials. Once your order payment has been processed, we ship the same day (or the next business day for weekend or evening payments).
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I need fast turnaround. Can you do a rush job?
Every job is a rush order for us. At this time, we will not take additional payment or provide anyone with a rush order. We service our customers in the order in which we receive their slides or negatives. Our goal is to service every order as if you paid extra to have it handled quickly, accurately and flawlessly (even though you do not have to pay extra!). If you have a particular deadline in mind, please let us know so that we can schedule appropriately.
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How are scanned images delivered to me?
We return your original materials and the scanned images stored on CD or DVD. We ship using UPS, shipping the materials insured and requiring a signature for delivery.
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Can you ship my order COD?
No. We require payment in full before shipping.
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Can I have scanned images shipped to someone else?
No. At this time, we will ship your order only to you.
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Do you use secure ordering and payment mechanisms?
We process all payments through secure credit card processing methods. When we ask you for personal information (e.g., mail address and phone numbers) we transmit this information only over secure channels (i.e., using SSL / https). We make every attempt to safeguard your personal information and personal property (your film, videos, photos, slides and negatives).
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Can I pay by check or money order?
Although we do accept checks or money orders, it can slow the process in getting your order completed. We also require a credit card to be saved on file to place your order. If you only want to place your order with a credit card, but have the bulk of the total paid for by check or money order, please write make it payable to Pixmonix and send it to the address you can find on our contact page. We will not ship your order until the check clears appropriately with our bank. If you prefer, you may include a check when you send us your slides and negatives for the estimated amount presented on the order page. If the estimate turns out to be high, we will include a check for the difference when we return your materials and finished scans. If the estimate was low, we will let you know. As long as the prepaid amount is close to the final cost, there will not be a delay in shipping your order back to you.
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What is your return/refund policy?
If you are not happy with the quality of your scans, we will attempt to resolve your issues. However, once an order is processed, it is final. We will not provide any refunds on processed orders and we require full payment before returning your materials. If you tell us to cancel an order before scanning has started, we will happily return your material after you have paid for any shipping charges we may have incurred in conjunction with the order.
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How do I know how many scan credits are in my account?
Log into your account. Click on the "My Account" link at the top of the page. You must first create an account and sign in before you can access your order information. Your scan credit summary is listed on the page, along with the expiration date for the credits and your scan credit usage history.
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Do you scan APS film?
Yes, we do. Please see a description of our APS scanning services here.
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Do you scan medium or large format film?
Yes, we do. Details of our medium format scanning services can be found here and 4x5 and large format services here. Please see our pricing here.
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Do you scan 35mm negative film in roll form?
Yes we scan 35mm slides, cut 35mm negatives and 35mm slides or negatives in roll form.
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Will you scan a single image from a negative strip?
Yes. We are happy to scan less than the full negative strip. Note, however, we charge an additional fee for single negative frames because of the additional work and attention it requires.
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Do I need to remove my slides from the carousels?
No. Feel free to ship your slides in the carousels. We will be happy to remove them before scanning.
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Will you ship orders outside of the United States?
Yes. You will be responsible for actual UPS or USPS shipping charges as well as any and all customs, duty or brokerage fees. Please contact us for more information.
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The web site
Can I invite guests to view my scanned images?
Yes, if you have selected to pay for the Online Gallery feature, you will be able to share your scanned images with friends and family.
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Does the website use cookies?
Yes. Please see our privacy policy for a description of our usage of cookies.
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Does Pixmonix support FTP download of scanned images?
No. Not at this time.
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There is a problem with the website.
Please go to this page to ask us questions, point out problems or give us comments on the website.
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Technical Stuff
What is cropping and why should I care?
Cropping is the process of trimming the outer portions of an image (1) to remove the portions of the scan which cover the slide/negative/photo edge/mount and/or (2) to size resulting image to a specific aspect ratio (e.g., 4"X6"). By default, we do not crop the full resolution TIFF images we provide to you. By default, we crop the slide/negative/photo edges from JPEG images, however. Please let us know if you would prefer a different treatment. See our detailed scanning explanation page for some examples.
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Tell me about image file formats.
This is a big topic... There are many different image file formats and many tradeoffs in using one over another. Image files that we provide for your scans may be in two formats: JPEG and TIFF. JPEG is a standard format used on the web. JPEG files can encode images of any pixel dimension (i.e., number of pixels). JPEG files compress well and provide good quality, even at fairly high compression levels. JPEG files we provide are saved at high quality settings (i.e., low compression settings) for a given image size. Hence they are not as small as they could be, but they do not lose as much quality in the transformation to JPEG format. TIFF files are significantly larger but represent the most complete image data. We recommend using these TIFF files for long-term archival storage or if you are doing extensive manipulation of your photos. We provide these multiple resolutions of JPEG files (for email, slide shows and prints) or TIFF files upon request. See our detailed scanning explanation page for more discussion.
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What are color profiles and color spaces?
This is a big topic... A color profile describes a color space, which provides color-aware applications information about what colors the numbers in a digital image represent so that they can be displayed accurately on a variety of output devices such as printers and monitors. Not all imaging applications are color profile/ color space aware. The "standard" profile used on the web and by consumers (including most photo printing services) is called sRGB; this profile will be handled correctly by all applications. The images we provide to you in JPEG format use this profile. The images we provide in TIFF form, however, use the Adobe RGB color profile, which allows for the representation of a wider range of colors (i.e., a larger color gamut). For more information, we suggest that you explore the links on our links page.
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What is color calibration? How do I calibrate my monitor?
Calibration is the process of adjusting your video or printer hardware and software (graphics card, graphics/printer driver software, operating system and monitor/printer) so that the colors of images displayed on the monitor match the intended values. For most people and for most use of digital images, this is not critical. If you are interested in performing calibration of your video hardware, we suggest that you explore some of the links on our links page.
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What technology do you use to scan my slides/negatives/photos?
We use state-of-the-art dedicated film scanners from Nikon to process your slides and negatives. These scanners provide the latest scratch and dust removal, color restoration and grain reduction technologies and scan at very high resolutions (up to 4000 PPI, producing very large image files which generally are capable of maintaining more detail than is available in average slide or negative images). For prints, we use high-end scanners from Epson (not automated sheet-fed scanners that produce poor results).
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What is ICE?
"ICE" stands for Image Correction and Enhancement. Basically, this is the technology in our scanners that automatically and effectively removes the effects of minor scratches and dust contamination on your slides or negatives. Please read our introductory tutorial on this technology. "Digital ICE4" is the brand name of the product from Applied Science Fiction (now a Kodak company). Please see their website* for more details.
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What is GEM?
"GEM" is the technology in our scanners that automatically reduces the perceived effect of film grain during the scanning process. Please read our introductory tutorial on this technology. "Digital GEM" is the brand name of the product from Applied Science Fiction (now a Kodak company). Please see their website* for more details.
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What is ROC?
"ROC" is the technology in our scanners that automatically and effectively restores the color of your faded or damaged slides or negatives. Please read our introductory tutorial on this technology. "Digital ROC" is the brand name of the product from Applied Science Fiction (now a Kodak company). Please see their website* for more details.
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I am just going to buy a scanner and do it myself. They are not expensive anymore...
Scanning is not too time consuming for a few images. If you only have a few images to scan, why buy another piece of hardware and software that you will not use much? If you have lots of slides or negatives to scan, the effort and time required to scan them is tremendous. We can scan more efficiently than an average person because we do it a lot. We have lots of computers and scanners working together and skilled technicians that know what they are doing and do it every day. If you like to tinker and you understand the significant effort involved, then by all means, buy the scanner! It is fun! We discuss this question in great detail here.
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How will the files in my order be named?
All scans have a simple base name (i.e., scan001). Full resolution images simply have this name with an appropriate extension determined by the file type (e.g., scan001.jpg, scan001.tif). We separate the different image file types and resolutions into different subdirectories on the CD or DVD media.
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How big are the digital image files? How many images fit on a DVD? CD?
Please see our slide and negative scanning details page for a complete description of file sizes and storage requirements.
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Do you do 16-bit scans?
Though our equipment, software and workflows are fully capable of scanning to 16-bit images, at this time, we scan only 8-bit images. For most users and for most negatives and slides, the difference between 8- and 16-bit scans is not noticeable and the increase in file size and processing time makes 16-bit files unworkable for most people. Additionally, most printing services will not work with 16-bit images. Unless you are quite picky, have excellent quality slides or negatives (i.e., low ISO, high quality, well maintained, shot on high quality camera gear, etc.) and you are interested in doing extensive post-scan manipulation of your images, 16-bit is not worth the effort.
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Can I get black and white versions of my images?
At this time, we do not offer the option to receive black and white versions of your digital images taken from color slides or negatives. However, we may offer this service in the future. Please contact us if you are interested in this service.
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Other Services
Can I get prints of my scanned images from you?
No. When you have your digital images from us, you can use your local photo processing center to make prints for you, or use one of the many quality processing centers available on line. We give pointers to some of these services on our links page. Getting prints is easy and inexpensive (e.g., about $0.20-$0.50 per 4"x6" print, depending on the service used).
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Do you sell digital cameras, scanners, software, etc?
No. We do not sell any hardware or software.
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Do you sell DVD slide shows?
Yes we do. Information on our DVD creation services can be found here.
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Policies
Terms of service
Our terms of service are detailed here.
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Privacy Policy
Our privacy policy is detailed here.
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Copyright Policy
Our copyright policy is detailed here.
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