Before we examine how to use PhotoScore Lite in detail, let’s run through the process quickly to introduce the four stages.
The first step is either to scan some music, or to open a page you have already scanned, or to open a PDF file:
* To scan a page, choose File > Scan pages (shortcut Ctrl+W or XW); your scanner interface will load. Scan a page and it is added to PhotoScore’s list of scanned pages.
* To open a graphics file, choose File > Open; when prompted for the resolution the image was scanned at, choose the appropriate setting and click OK. The graphics file is then added to the list of scanned pages.
* To open a PDF file, choose File > Open PDFs. You will be prompted to choose the resolution;
normally you can leave this at the default of 300 dpi and click OK. If the PDF is password pro-tected, you will then be prompted to provide the password.
As soon as you scan a page or open a PDF or graphics file, each page appears in the Pages pane, which is at the left hand of the main PhotoScore Lite window. Each page first appears under Pend-ing Pages, and PhotoScore Lite immediately proceeds to read the pages you have added, ReadPend-ing each page will take a little while (depending on the speed of your computer) and a green progress bar fills up behind the name of the page in the Pending Pages list. As PhotoScore Lite completes reading each page, it moves to the list below, Read Pages.
When PhotoScore Lite has finished reading the pages, the main editing window will appear:
From this window you can edit any errors in the music.
When you are satisfied with the corrections you have made, choose File > Send to > Sibelius (shortcut Ctrl+D or XD) to send the music to Sibelius First.
If Sibelius First is not already running, it will start up, and the Open PhotoScore File dialog will appear, which allows you to choose various options concerning which instruments will be used in the Sibelius First score. Don’t worry about these now – just click OK. Moments later, the Sibelius First score will appear, ready for editing, just as if you had inputted it yourself.
1. SCANNING OR OPENING A PDF
Before you scan, choose File > Scanner Setup to choose whether you want to use PhotoScore’s own scanning interface – in which case choose PhotoScore – or your scanner’s own interface – in which case choose TWAIN (scanner default) – and click OK. By default, PhotoScore Lite will use your scanner’s own interface, which is fine, since you are presumably familiar with the way your scanner’s software works.
Next, measure the size (height) of staves in the page you want to scan and choose a resolution using the following table, and scan in black & white or gray – not color:
Staff size Resolution
0.25”/6mm or more 200 dpi
0.15-0.25”/4–6mm 300 dpi
Scanning
Reference
Reading accuracy and speed will be considerably reduced if you scan at too low or too high a reso-lution. So, for example, do not scan at 400 dpi unless the staves really are small.
Usually, you can choose whether to scan in black & white or grayscale (shades of gray). Scanning in gray produce significantly more accurate results – if the option is not available in your scanning dialog, consult your scanner’s documentation.
Now you can scan your first page – try a page or two of simple keyboard music or something simi-lar:
* Put the page of music (the “original”) into your scanner, face-down and with the top of the page pointing away from you.
Put one edge of the original flush against the raised edge of the glass.
You can put the page on its side if it fits better. PhotoScore Lite will automatically rotate the page by 90 degrees if necessary. However you should normally align the top of the page with the left edge of the scanner to ensure it does not turn out upside down. Don’t worry though if it is scanned upside down, as it is easy to correct later on.
If you are scanning in gray, then the page does not need to be completely straight, providing that it is not more than 8 degrees off – PhotoScore Lite will automatically make the page level (to within 0.1 degrees) without loss of detail. It will still be rotated if scanning in black & white, but there will be loss of detail, and thus less accurate results.
* Choose File > Scan Pages, or click the Scan Pages button on PhotoScore Lite’s toolbar.
* After a moment, the scanner will whir into life and transfer the page to your computer. (If this doesn’t happen, see POSSIBLE PROBLEMS below.)
* If you are scanning from a fairly thick book, gently press down the lid (or the book if easier) dur-ing scanndur-ing to keep the page flat on the glass.
* A window will appear for you to enter a name for the page, which will be something like Score 1, Page 1 by default. You can change this to any name you like (although to avoid any unex-pected results it should end with a number) – something like Piano p1 would do – then click OK. Subsequent pages you scan will be automatically numbered e.g. Piano p2, and a dialog will not appear.
* Wait a few seconds while PhotoScore Lite makes the image level, chooses the best brightness, and locates the staves.
* PhotoScore will now be ready to scan the next page, so put the page of music in the scanner, then click the button that tells your scanner to start scanning again, and proceed as for the first page.
If the scanning interface does not reappear, simply click the Scan Pages button again.
* Continue until you have scanned all the pages that you want to scan.
* A scan of the first page will then appear. The buff paper color indicates that you are looking at a scanned image (a “scan”) of the original page.
Check that all the staves are highlighted in blue – this shows that PhotoScore Lite has detected where they are.
If the page has systems of two or more staves, check also that the staves within each system are joined at the left-hand end by a thick vertical (or near-vertical) red line.
If not all staves are blue, or not all staves within systems are joined with a red line, you can man-ually tell PhotoScore Lite where they are (see ADVANCED FEATURES below).
(Ignore the other buttons at the top of this window, which are also explained in ADVANCED FEATURES below.)