> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.abbyy.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Scan images

> Pick a scanner source, start and stop scans, and load images from a folder.

To acquire images, pick a scanner source and start scanning. You can monitor image quality during the scan and stop mid-session if pages come out defective.

## Select a scanner source

Before you can scan, pick a source — either a hardware scanner or a virtual scanner that imports images from a folder.

1. Choose **Tools > Options...** and click the **Scanning** tab in the [Options](/vantage/documentation/scanning-station/interface/options-dialog-box) dialog box.
2. Select the scanner source and configure the settings.

<Note>
  The scanner must be connected to your computer. If no scanner is connected, you can still use a virtual scanner to import images from a folder. See the scanner's documentation for connection instructions.
</Note>

If you're scanning into a batch of a specific type, the scanner source lives on the batch type itself:

* When creating the batch type — in the [Batch Type Wizard](/vantage/documentation/scanning-station/interface/batch-type-wizard).
* After creation — on the **Scanning** tab of the [Batch Type Properties](/vantage/documentation/scanning-station/interface/batch-type-properties-dbox) dialog box.

## Start scanning

Once a source is selected, start scanning in any of these ways:

* Click **Scan Pages** on the [main window toolbar](/vantage/documentation/scanning-station/interface/main-window-toolbars).
* Choose **File > Scan Pages** from the [main menu](/vantage/documentation/scanning-station/interface/main-window-menus).
* Press **Ctrl+S**.

## Pick a scanner and scan in one step

To choose a scanner and immediately scan with it, open the **Select and Scan** dialog in any of these ways:

* Click the arrow next to **Scan Pages** on the toolbar and choose **Select and Scan...**
* Choose **File > Select and Scan...**
* Press **Ctrl+Shift+S**.

In the [Select and Scan](/vantage/documentation/scanning-station/interface/select-and-scan) dialog box, pick a scanner, configure the settings, and click **Scan**.

## Load images from a folder

To import from a folder instead of scanning, select the target batch or document in the [Batches](/vantage/documentation/scanning-station/interface/batches-window) or [Image](/vantage/documentation/scanning-station/interface/image-window) window, then do one of:

* Right-click and choose **Load Images...**
* Choose **File > Load Images...**
* Press **Ctrl+O**.

Pick the images to load in the dialog that opens.

## Stop a scan

Stop scanning at any time by clicking **Stop Scanning** on the main window toolbar, or by choosing **File > Stop**.

## Insert pages into a batch

To insert scanned images after a specific page, select that page in the [Batches](/vantage/documentation/scanning-station/interface/batches-window) window before scanning, then choose **File > Insert Pages**.

## Scanning tips

Configure scanning options in the built-in scanning dialog or the scanner driver dialog. For details, see [Select and Scan dialog box](/vantage/documentation/scanning-station/interface/select-and-scan).

Place documents face down on the scanner and align them properly — skewed images may be processed incorrectly.

Output quality depends on the original's quality and the scanning parameters. Poor image quality reduces recognition accuracy. Pick parameters suited to your document.

### Tuning brightness

Scanning Station warns you during scanning if the brightness is off. You may also need to adjust brightness when scanning in black-and-white mode.

If the output has too many "torn" or "glued" letters, adjust brightness as follows:

| Symptom                                             | Recommendations                                                                                                     |
| :-------------------------------------------------- | :------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ |
| Characters are "torn" or very light                 | • Lower the brightness to make the image darker.<br />• Scan in grayscale — brightness is tuned automatically.      |
| Characters are distorted, glued together, or filled | • Increase the brightness to make the image brighter.<br />• Scan in grayscale — brightness is tuned automatically. |

### Selecting the optimal resolution

Recognition quality depends on scanning resolution. Low resolution hurts recognition quality.

Use grayscale mode at **300 dpi** for all printed documents. Keep vertical and horizontal resolutions the same.

Resolution higher than 600 dpi increases processing time without improving recognition much. Resolution under 150 dpi hurts recognition quality.

Guidelines by font size:

* **300 dpi** — typical text (10 pt or larger).
* **400–600 dpi** — small fonts (9 pt or smaller) and images with barcodes.

## Related topics

* [Select and Scan dialog box](/vantage/documentation/scanning-station/interface/select-and-scan)
* [Scanner settings](/vantage/documentation/scanning-station/interface/scanner-settings)
* [Select scanner source](/vantage/documentation/scanning-station/interface/select-scanner-source)
* [Editing images](/vantage/documentation/scanning-station/operator/editing-images)
* [Operator mode](/vantage/documentation/scanning-station/operator/operator-mode)