How to Scan Artwork for Prints | Flatbed Setup That Works

Scan artwork for prints on a flatbed scanner in reflective mode at 300 dpi or higher, saving a TIFF master for editing.

Getting a good print from a painting or drawing starts at the scanner, not in Photoshop. The right settings and a clean glass surface make the difference between a muddy reproduction and one that holds the original’s color and detail. The process takes about ten minutes once you know the steps.

Whether you’re scanning a watercolor for a small run of art prints or a pencil drawing you want to enlarge, the same core workflow applies. A flatbed scanner in reflective mode handles opaque originals like paper and photos — not slides or negatives, which need a transparency unit. Before you start, check that your scanner glass is free of dust and smudges; a clean surface is half the battle.

What Scanner Settings Matter Most for Print

Resolution and color depth decide how much detail your master file captures. For printed color artwork, 300 dpi is the minimum; 600 dpi gives you room to enlarge without visible pixelation. For grayscale or black-and-white line art, 600 dpi is the safer starting point.

Color depth deserves equal attention. University lab guidance for Epson flatbeds recommends 24-bit color as a baseline for artwork. A practical art-scan reference goes further, suggesting 48-bit color for master scans. The higher bit depth preserves smooth gradients in skies or shaded areas, which posterizes — bands into visible stripes — at lower depths.

One more setting matters before you scan: turn off the auto-corrections. Sharpening, color restore, and dust removal all alter your image, and none of them belong in a master file. Leave that cleanup for editing software where you control the result.

Step-By-Step Scan Workflow for Artwork

Follow this order and you’ll get a clean master file on the first pass.

1. Clean the glass. A microfiber cloth removes dust and fingerprints that show up as spots in the scan.
2. Place the art face down. Align it square to the edge of the platen — a crooked scan wastes time in post.
3. Set the software correctly. In Epson Scan 2, choose Photo Mode, set Document Source to Scanner Glass, and set Document Type to Reflective.
4. Preview and crop. Scan a quick preview, then use the marquee tool to select only the artwork, not the scanner bed around it.
5. Scan and save. Save your master as a TIFF file in your chosen folder. Make JPEG exports later from that TIFF.

When the scan completes, zoom in on the file to check for dust spots or missed areas. You want to catch problems now, not after you’ve printed.

Handling Large Artwork and Multi-Piece Scans

Artwork bigger than your platen needs a stitching approach. Scan the piece in overlapping sections — one art-scan reference recommends a 30% to 40% overlap between passes — then stitch them in editing software. Rotating or misaligning those sections is a common mistake; small overlaps give the stitching tool enough matching area to line things up correctly.

For multiple smaller originals, Epson’s guidance for photos and paintings says you can scan them together on the platen if you space them at least 20 mm apart. You can then split the files after scanning. This works well for a batch of postcard-sized works.

If you’re shopping for a scanner that handles your artwork sizes well, our tested roundup of the best art scanner options compares models across price and capability.

Which File Format Saves Best for Printing

TIFF is the file format that art workflows consistently favor for masters, with sRGB JPEG exports for web use. A TIFF master is lossless, meaning every scan saves without the compression artifacts that JPEG introduces. That matters when you’re editing levels or color balance, because each round of editing a JPEG degrades it further.

One compatibility note: Epson Scan 2 instructions and feature pages are model-specific. Supported settings vary by scanner model and software version, so check your device’s documentation if a listed option doesn’t appear. And remember — reflective scanning is only for opaque originals. Transparent media needs a different setup entirely.