Scanners can be great for scanning documents, however you might not always have access to a scanner when you need to scan a document/photo. Did you know that your smartphone also happens to be a great scanner? This is all achieved by using the smartphone camera, just know that it may not be as crisp as an offical scanner.

Using the Camera to scan documents:

Your smartphone camera can be used to scan  documents. Should you want to use the camera, here are some tips on getting the best photo/document scanned.

• Lighting: Make sure the document has good lighting and is placed on a flat surface.

• Placement: Try to take the photo as straight as possible to avoid weird angles, such as directly above.

• Framing: When taking the photo, make sure that it is far enough away to have the full document in view.

Scanner App:

Whilst the camera on the smartphone can get most scenarios done, sometimes you want a more proper looking scan. This is where scanning apps come in handy. 

One of the scanner apps you might already have installed is Google Drive, as it has a scanning aspect built into the app. All you need to do is take the photo of the document, and Google Drive will handle the rest, making it as clear and crisp as possible. This works on both iOS and Android devices.

To start, open Google Drive App (and have signed in) > tap on the + button in the bottom right corner > select scan/use camera. This will open the camera for you (your device may ask for permission to use the camera). position the document show that it shows in full, and take the photo. If you are taking multiple documents, tap on the “Add Page”.  When you are happy with the scanned document, tap on save.  

Source and Further Reading: https://www.howtogeek.com/775603/how-to-scan-photos-and-documents-without-a-scanner/