IMPORTANT: the iPhone 3G is not able to take clear pictures of small text at close range. A close-up lens accessory is required to use ScanBizCards with the iPhone 3G, such as the Griffin Clarifi Case. The iPod Touch 4 is also not suitable for taking photos of business cards because of the camera resolution (unlike the iPhone 3G, no accessory exists to remedy this issue)
Have the relevant text fill as much of the camera frame as possible, so that the text is larger in the image and easier to recognize. You don't need to include graphical elements in the picture since these will not be recognized as text anyway.
Light: try to take pictures with excellent lighting. Natural light is best. Having the light source sideways helps avoid shadows
Avoid casting shadows at all cost! This may not be easy if the light source is behind or above you, in which case try to move the card a bit sideways.
Avoid reflections: if reflections are unavoidable, try to move the phone so that reflexions hit empty areas on the card.
Steady your hand: at close range, any slight movement will cause blurriness. Try to have your elbows resting on a table or lean against something. The best way to take a picture of a business card is lying on a flat surface (unless of course the light source is straight overhead, in which case holding the card at a 45 degree angle in front of you works best).
Make sure the focus is right: the iPhone camera will try to automatically focus on the card but often misses. Touching the blue square in the middle of the camera view will help ensure best focus.
UPDATE: a truly amazing solution to most of the above problems is the Joby Gorillamobile mini-tripod for the iPhone: set it at just the right height (which means having the text as large as possible), make sure the iPhone is perfectly parallel to the desk and you essentially get the very best photo you can take with your iPhone. No more shaking/blurriness. You can now touch the screen to help the iPhone focus without fear of making the camera shake. I have a Gorillapod tripod myself and I highly recommend it: this is what it looks like in action. Note: the iPhone 4 version has just been released, if you have the iPhone 3G/3GS make sure to select the older model of the Gorillapod.
If you feel we failed to scan a card image taken in good conditions, please email it to us! We will keep the information on the card strictly confidential of course.
Please take a look at the sample cards at the bottom of this page for examples of decent biz card images as well as problem cards showing common mistakes. We also included 4 sample cards you can scan right within the application: you can also access these images from From the startup screen, touch "Select Existing Photo" and look for the "Sample Cards" folder.
NOTE: whenever you use email to move card images between devices, it's important not to let the iPhone mail application reduce image size as this will render images unscannable. Simply opt for "Original Size" when prompted by the mail application.
