How do you suggest I scan my own maps?

I think general use is where this topic belongs. I have been struggling on how to get my oversized poster-sized maps into digital format. Seems that some of my rare maps can't be found by extensive google searches, so I'm forced to scan them in somehow. Staples, Office Depot, and similar Kinkos printing shops can either do black and white only or charge an outrageous $4 per square foot! I can't afford each poster scan costing $25 or more. Option B was to fold the maps into 8.5x11" section and combine them. After some attempts, the maps have worn new creases on the edges which ruins the posters, and even with some persistence in photoshop, they never line up properly. I don;t want to ruin any more maps and have poor-quality images. Any know of other options to scan posters?

Pin the map to a flat surface such as a wall and photograph it with a camera on a tripod. You should find most modern digital cameras have more than enough resolution to be able to do this. Alternatively you can use an old fashioned camera that uses real film and photograph the map. You should then be able to take the film to a photography shop who will be able to develop the film for you, and convert the images into hires digital pictures.

I echo the suggestion to photograph the maps, and extra-loudly agree with the tripod.

If photographing using tripod, turn on a large amount of light (but avoid glare on the map surface). Move back a few feet and Zoom slightly on the camera (not full zoom, but a little more than the widest angle). Many cameras and phones have such a wide angle lens that it creates some bending/distortion at the edges if you are near to a flat edge (rectangular) subject. Being slightly zoomed can help eliminate curvature.

Keep in mind the size limit of the file for loading purposes. You may find it easier to adapt existing maps to your need...

Ajax said: Keep in mind the size limit of the file for loading purposes. You may find it easier to adapt existing maps to your need... Though you can (and should) post process your image to get the colors right at which time you can down-sample the image to a reasonable size or split it into sub-images (or both).

As another aspect of post processing you should be able to use transformation tools to correct for the angle of the camera, etc - if it's not something you're confident doing then there are tools that will do it for you automatically (CamScanner is one I use quite frequently, it's Android based but as a phone camera may not be good enough you can take your photo with a better device and just process that image using the software).

I always just scanned large sheets in segments on my scanner. Then arrange in photoshop. Unless you are a good photographer and know how to light things and reduce shadows, it is really hard to take photos of glossy maps. As aaron stated size is an issue with uploads so if you scan them in sections, you can lay individual sections on your map space and just align them in roll20.

You might consider something like Campaign Cartographer 3+ with Dungeon Designer if you have the time to recreate or make your own. Once you learn the software (which isn't too hard) the results can be really top-notch. Took me about 2 hours to fully recreate a 200'x300' dungeon (40 square x 60 square) map from a campaign book. I could have copied and pasted the map from the PDF source I have, but the end result comes out a bit pixelated.