Positioning: From the camera, your mouse and keyboard should be within easy reach, and your monitor should be easily visible. The camera should be mounted on a tripod or equivalent stable support to ensure a clear picture. To (front, profile etc.) close as possible to the height of the image being photographed.
When capturing live images, the distance between the camera and the image subject should be between 8 and 12 feet. When capturing images of photographs, the distance between the camera lens and the subject is dependent on the close-up (macro) lenses being used; try experimenting to find the best lens configuration.
Lighting: Should be bright enough to eliminate shadowing. While very little light is required to get a reasonable image on the Workstation monitor, bright light is needed for high quality printed images. A typical capture station uses 3 point track lighting with 300 watt halogen bulbs. You can also improve resolution by adjusting the aperture on the zoom lens to reduce light intensity.
Best procedure:
Set the image properly in the screen.
Zoom.
Focus.
Open or close the aperture to adjust for light intensity “hot spots”.
If you are capturing images of existing photographs (whether 35 mm, Polaroid photos, or slides), use supplemental lighting such as a mini-halogen light.
Background: Best results come with an 18% gray background on a smooth surface. This can be achieved with cardboard and paint.