Sean697 work in progress?

[Sean697]

I own both 68 and 69, they weren't high on my scan list (trying to do all the first console war mags pre-1985 first) but I can always bump them up.

no need. It's going to be a long time till I can even think about getting to those.

[Sean697]

EGM issue 8 is available to download. I changed my color correction a tad from previous issues. It's slightly brighter. Let me know what you think. It still looks really good. But I'm not sure if I want to keep this setting yet. Coma pre it against EGM 11 and let me know. I did on two page spread on this issue. I didn't do the ads but in the middle of the magazine there is a map of Castlvania Legends on GB I included as the full two page spread.

Database Entry!

Download Directly!

Next up is the Top Score! Issue dated August 1989. This does not have a database entry I believe. It does not have an EGM issue number like the next Top Score. So this is kind of a one off thing from the makers of EGM (Really predates or is contemporary to EGM #1) I am goin on vacation so it will be a few weeks till I can get to this. Can someone look at getting a database entry for this somewhere?

[RetroDefense]

For the longest time - until I discovered RetroMags - I had that particular Top Score issue categorized as EGM #1 in my collection. Doh.

[miketheratguy]

Thank you so much for the EGM scans Sean697!

[Sean697]

Top Score August 1989 is finished! Until there is a database entry for me to upload to you can grab it here temporarily.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/lghslyhs8de1y1u/Top%20Score%20August%201989.cbz?dl=0

Its a short 36 page issue with tips and a short article on game counselors at third party company's. This came out shortly after or concurrently with EGM 1. But after the 1989 buyers guide (Or EGM 0) I think this was a transition period where EGM was still trying to figure out what they were going to do. Steve Harris had a Top Score Newsletter he did for the American Players Association that this is kind of a continuation of. While EGM kind of was a continuation of the magazine he did after Top Score, Game Players. Both Top Score and Game Players contributed design elements that carried over to EGM. There was one more attempt at a Top Score that was published as issue 7 of EGM. Which I scanned previously. So this magazine is by Sendai and the makers of EGM, but not numbered as an official EGM issue. And kind of sits lonely in the middle of the older Top Score Newsletter and EGM.

[Phillyman]

Top Score August 1989 is finished! Until there is a database entry for me to upload to you can grab it here temporarily.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/lghslyhs8de1y1u/Top%20Score%20August%201989.cbz?dl=0

Its a short 36 page issue with tips and a short article on game counselors at third party company's. This came out shortly after or concurrently with EGM 1. But after the 1989 buyers guide (Or EGM 0) I think this was a transition period where EGM was still trying to figure out what they were going to do. Steve Harris had a Top Score Newsletter he did for the American Players Association that this is kind of a continuation of. While EGM kind of was a continuation of the magazine he did after Top Score, Game Players. Both Top Score and Game Players contributed design elements that carried over to EGM. There was one more attempt at a Top Score that was published as issue 7 of EGM. Which I scanned previously. So this magazine is by Sendai and the makers of EGM, but not numbered as an official EGM issue. And kind of sits lonely in the middle of the older Top Score Newsletter and EGM.

added sections for Top Score

[Sean697]

While I'm still awaiting a database entry for my previous scan, I'm about half way done with EGM9. Maybe I'm spending a little to much time editing. But mostly I just haven't had a lot of time lately. I get in a little editing when I can. Should be done this week. One thing this issue has a lot of black background pages on ads. Which are like the bane of my existence. They tend to show a ton of dust and spots, which I've been taking time to meticulously remove. Maybe I'm going to far but I feel like I need to to it so I am am. I think in the end it looks nicer. When I finish an issue I'll probably show a before and after so you can see what I mean.

[marktrade]

I know exactly what you mean! I try not to worry too much about them, but it's easy to see them and get carried away removing them. When I first started scanning I had the black level turned up so that the very dark grays came in as black. That gave very solid black backgrounds and text, at the expense of slightly darker looking graphics. It's not that bad, really. The first issue of Official Sega Dreamcast Magazine on this site was prepared like that.

Now I figure any editing like that can always be done later. I don't think a scan is ever "done." It can always been improved somehow. There are just a certain level of priorities that need to be addressed before others.

[E-Day]

While I'm still awaiting a database entry for my previous scan.

Sorry for this taking this long. Some threads get lost among others. I went with TheRedEye's suggestion and made a sub category within in EGM called EGM Specials. I created the blank entry for your Top Score so you can add all the info and so forth. I also realized that we have the EGM 3-D issue, but it's not uploaded. It will now have a home.

I've also created the the EGM Specials section in the Downloads area and the Gallery, both as sub-sections of EGM.

[KiwiArcader]

They tend to show a ton of dust and spots, which I've been taking time to meticulously remove. Maybe I'm going to far but I feel like I need to to it so I am am. I think in the end it looks nicer.

I tend to think that they are the side effect of being a printed magazine therefore I don't worry too much about them any more otherwise you just end up like the folks over at OoPA and never really get around to putting out much content because it's never really good enough. Printed mags should look like printed mags in my opinion. Otherwise you may as well just create a replica ....

With marktrade's submissions I note that he has an increased white balance on his scans so I put them through a slight negative filter to reduce it back to where you see the grain in the paper before putting them online over at OGM. The side effect I notice is when viewing the files on my tablet the white isn't so in your face so to speak and it reduces the blacks in images slightly. It's a really small adjustment so most people likely wouldn't notice unless they viewed both files side by side on the same monitor. He's going to download one now and have a look methinks

[Sean697]

I tend to think that they are the side effect of being a printed magazine therefore I don't worry too much about them any more otherwise you just end up like the folks over at OoPA and never really get around to putting out much content because it's never really good enough. Printed mags should look like printed mags in my opinion. Otherwise you may as well just create a replica ....

With marktrade's submissions I note that he has an increased white balance on his scans so I put them through a slight negative filter to reduce it back to where you see the grain in the paper before putting them online over at OGM. The side effect I notice is when viewing the files on my tablet the white isn't so in your face so to speak and it reduces the blacks in images slightly. It's a really small adjustment so most people likely wouldn't notice unless they viewed both files side by side on the same monitor. He's going to download one now and have a look methinks

I'm not like filling them in with a paint tooll or anything, the paper grain is still preserved. Though with black it's harder to see but you can still see the ink process. I'm removing the specks of dust and small ink splatters that you can't really see when reading the real magazine. Or that are obvious priming press errors. (For artwork I leave it alone as I don't want to alter the image.)The overall print texture is preserved. Using a small but not too small clone stamp it basically copy's the texture from a better part of the background.

I guess part of it is I used to work in an aluminum can factory, and the printing on the soda cans I got very accustomed to seeing the different kinds of print defects due to the print rollers. A lot of these older mags exhibit these and I try to remove them to see the page as intended. If you had those errors on a can you'd stop the printers, adjust the rollers and ink trays and throw all those cans in the recycler. On these mags they just let them through. It's possible that many of the issues might not have the same print defects depeinng on the print run.

[Sean697]

I tend to think that they are the side effect of being a printed magazine therefore I don't worry too much about them any more otherwise you just end up like the folks over at OoPA and never really get around to putting out much content because it's never really good enough. Printed mags should look like printed mags in my opinion. Otherwise you may as well just create a replica ....

With marktrade's submissions I note that he has an increased white balance on his scans so I put them through a slight negative filter to reduce it back to where you see the grain in the paper before putting them online over at OGM. The side effect I notice is when viewing the files on my tablet the white isn't so in your face so to speak and it reduces the blacks in images slightly. It's a really small adjustment so most people likely wouldn't notice unless they viewed both files side by side on the same monitor. He's going to download one now and have a look methinks

Also I haven't really gotten over to check out OPM yet, so I don't know the scope of the mags you preserving but it seems like it is generally less American mags. But if you want to use any of my scans over there you have my permission to take them and use them on your site.

http://community.retromags.com/user/18969-sean697/#.VksPA3ppZCk

[marktrade]

With marktrade's submissions I note that he has an increased white balance on his scans so I put them through a slight negative filter to reduce it back to where you see the grain in the paper before putting them online over at OGM. The side effect I notice is when viewing the files on my tablet the white isn't so in your face so to speak and it reduces the blacks in images slightly. It's a really small adjustment so most people likely wouldn't notice unless they viewed both files side by side on the same monitor. He's going to download one now and have a look methinks

I was wondering why your versions looked a little gray! I thought it had something to do with PDF compression or color sync profiles or something.

The white balance drops out the bleed-thru from the other side of the page and I rather like the contrast anyway. Whenever I try to preserve the grain it comes out looking unsatisfactory to me and I wonder why I'm trying to make something that's going to be viewed on a computer look like paper.

[KiwiArcader]

I was wondering why your versions looked a little gray! I thought it had something to do with PDF compression or color sync profiles or something.

The white balance drops out the bleed-thru from the other side of the page and I rather like the contrast anyway. Whenever I try to preserve the grain it comes out looking unsatisfactory to me and I wonder why I'm trying to make something that's going to be viewed on a computer look like paper.

Everyone has their preferences around contrast/colour etc. I used to heighten contrast/brightness on my scans in the early days too but I found them to be exceedingly "bright" for want of a better word when viewed on my tablets which I found distracting so I went and backed it off and found them just that little bit easier on my eyes. I also like the images not being quite so dark. Maybe it's an age thing? I AM pretty old after all .....

Seriously though, the adjustment is pretty minuscule. I like to think of it that there are many places to get the mags from so if they prefer it one way to another they have plenty of options available to them.

[marktrade]

Everyone has their preferences around contrast/colour etc. I used to heighten contrast/brightness on my scans in the early days too but I found them to be exceedingly "bright" for want of a better word when viewed on my tablets which I found distracting so I went and backed it off and found them just that little bit easier on my eyes. I also like the images not being quite so dark. Maybe it's an age thing? I AM pretty old after all .....

Seriously though, the adjustment is pretty minuscule. I like to think of it that there are many places to get the mags from so if they prefer it one way to another they have plenty of options available to them.

I like that you make those adjustments and that people have another option.

[KiwiArcader]

I will categorically state that it is NOT in any way, shape or form, a put-down on your scanning or anyone else's scans that I might make a small adjustment on when putting on OGM for that matter. I think your scans are impeccable and I could easily leave them as-is with no detriment to the site. However, I prefer the PDF format and as I have to convert them anyway I just like to make small adjustments at the same time for the reasons stated earlier.

@Sean697

Thanks for the kind offer of using your scans on OGM. I might take you up on that at some point but I quite like the idea that Retromags are the big guns of USA based content while OGM is the gunner for down-under Australian or UK content so it gives people an incentive to visit both sites for different content. Phillyman has stated previously that he has no issue with my hosting this sites content but I think there are definite benefits to having separate sites hosting their own content. I have been downloading everything however so if something happened for one reason or another I could put a big chunk online pretty quickly if needed. I'm pretty sure some RM users probably have bucket loads of OGM's content on their HDD's too. Long live the internet

[Sean697]

Just a quick update. I've been swamped lately and have had little time to work on EGM 9. But the last few days I've been pounding it out. I'm going to try and finish it up tonight. Once I'm done editing, applying correction and resizing will be quick with macros. I have maybe 10 more pages to edit. And they are easy pages. I want to get it done but if not, it will prob. get pushed back to the weekend or Monday at the latest. Due to the holiday and all. Fate has been working against me tonight as I've had two power outages that negated my current pages work both times. And one corrupted file that luckily I was able to restore. Thank you Windows backup. (Though Imcould have just rescanned it of course.)

I noticed that issues of varying vintage, the color corrections are not suitable to reuse between issues. So I will now make a new levels file and adjustments for each magazine. Seems to give better results. As using a file that looks good on one issue doesn't not look as good as another. So that may take me 20 minutes to tweek to what I like.

Also I've been destaplong these stapled issue to get the full page scans. So I got these issues that are complete but need staples. I've been looking at ways to re staple them. I could buy a stapler I saw at Office Depot today that can staple up to 12 inches. Or I could try to meticulously put the staples back on the existing holes. Which Imkind of tried already, and it didn't work too well as it was extremely difficult to keep the staples in place while placing pages on them. Any advice on the best way to do this? Anyway I've kind of found that issues less than 50 pages or so I can scan without de stapling. Over that I'm removing the staples and scanning the individual pages. And when I get to bound stuff I'm going to remove the binding and call it a loss. These early EGM's I have are just too nice to not put the staples back in.

[KiwiArcader]

Destapling or debinding certainly allows for the best scans available so while the magazine pretty much needs to go in the recycling at least you can read the end result on a tablet in years to come without blurring near the spine which invariably results when you try scanning bound mags.

When you have as many mags as I have anything that reduces the tonnage on the house foundations is appreciated as well ....

[Sean697]

I'll have this up shortly. But I ran into my first real fluorescent orange issue. I just adjusted all kinds of shit till it looked pretty close. It was on a Taito newsletter card. Any advice for the future in adjusting colors to get the fluorescent look would be appreciated. Because what I did was pretty unscientific. Trying all kinds of adjust meant options and sliders with saturation and color till it looked pretty close. I guess my scanner can't handle fluorescent orange. Can any?

[KiwiArcader]

The Fujitsu document scanners like the fi-5650c handle fluoro really well

[Sean697]

EGM issue 9 is uploaded. Sorry it took longer than expected.

Database Entry!

Download Directly!

Next up is EGM issue 13. August 1990.

[Sean697]

So this EGM 13 is pristine. I mean every page is crystal crisp with no faults. I mean it feels like it just got off the newsstand. Has all the cards inside. It doesn't even want to open because it feels like it's never been read. It feels as new as any magazine I've ever gotten new. It should make an outstanding scan. Scanned the insert cards. Now time to de bind this issue and add some wear. I certainly hope I find a good way to re staple issues as it will probably sell for good money.

[E-Day]

If the issue isn't that thick you don't need to debind it. Oh, the horror!

[Sean697]

If the issue isn't that thick you don't need to debind it. Oh, the horror!

100 pages. Staples. It's done already. BTW what's your opinion on using the low setting on dust removal? From your experience has it mad much of a difference in detail? I used it on one page of EGM 9 for the second page of the castlevanis preview. I might start using it for pages that are predominantly black.

[E-Day]

My scanner software doesn't have an option for dust removal. Currently I have Unsharpen Mask, Reduce Show-through, Descreen, and Remove gutter shadow selected. I'll have to dig deeper into the software to see if selecting the scanner driver for scanning gives me the option for dust removal.

But I say use whatever settings you think gives you the best scan results.