When the page is already a file
Typical inputs: a contract JPEG that arrived by email, a worksheet PNG exported from a chat, a copier that saved a JPG to a USB stick, a screenshot of a form. Those files still contain a table edge, a keystone tilt, or a lamp hotspot. The image scanner works on that file in place. You do not open the camera and you do not re-photograph the paper.
JPG, JPEG, and PNG are different files, same page-find
JPG and JPEG are the same lossy family — the usual download from a phone, a mail client, or a copier. PNG is lossless and is what you get from many screenshots and some scanners. The image scanner does not treat “convert PNG to JPG” as the job. It looks for the sheet inside whichever file you upload, then rebuilds a square, high-contrast page. If the PNG is already a cropped, evenly lit scan, a plain converter is enough. If the file still shows furniture or a trapezoid, use this.
An image scanner vs wrapping the file in a PDF
“JPG to PDF” tools usually put the original pixels into a PDF envelope. Reviewers still see a snapshot. This image scanner changes the pixels first: detect the outline, warp it back to a rectangle, even out lighting, crop the desk. The PDF (or PNG) you download is that rebuilt page. Use a wrapper only when the image is already a scan and you just need a different extension.
PDF, PNG, or ZIP from the same image file
PDF for portals, LMS uploads, and expense systems. PNG when a form field wants one flattened picture. ZIP when you uploaded several files and need each page as its own image. Free use is 1 file per day with a watermark; Pro removes the cap and the watermark and can stack up to 15 image files into one PDF, in the order you set.
Laptop files vs a phone photo of paper
If the paper is only in the camera roll and was never saved as a named file, use photo to scanned document. If you still have the sheet in front of you and want to shoot it now, go back to scan documents online. This image scanner is the disk path: drag from Downloads, an attachments folder, or a USB stick.
Related
Image scanner questions
Does the image scanner wrap my JPG in a PDF?
No. It finds the page, flattens it, then exports. A JPG-to-PDF converter that only changes the container leaves desk, tilt, and shadows in the file.
Should I upload JPG or PNG?
Whichever file you already have. JPG/JPEG from cameras and email, PNG from screenshots. The image scanner looks for the sheet in the pixels either way. Do not convert PNG to JPG first just to use this page.
Can I run the image scanner on a screenshot?
Yes, if the screenshot still shows a full page with edges. A tightly cropped screenshot of text only has nothing left to detect; export that as-is. A screenshot of a whole tilted worksheet is a normal image-scanner job.
I already used a PNG to PDF converter. Why use an image scanner?
If the PNG was already a square, evenly lit page, the converter was enough. If the PDF still looks like a photo — desk, lamp, trapezoid — the wrapper did not scan it. Upload the original image file here and export after flattening.
Does the image scanner accept a folder of files?
Select multiple JPG or PNG files in the picker. Free jobs are one image. Pro stacks up to 15 files into one PDF; reorder them before you start.
What happens to the photos I upload?
Any photos you upload and any scans we generate are deleted automatically within 24 hours. Please download your scanned files before then. We do not sell your documents or use them for ads.
Scan this image file
Drop a JPG or PNG from disk, then download a flattened PDF or PNG.
Scan this image file