Scan a Document from a Photo to PDF

1. Start with the original photo

Open ScanDocument on the device that holds the image and choose Upload files. Supported inputs are JPEG, PNG and WebP, up to 20 MiB per photo. Prefer the original file over a screenshot or a compressed copy from a messaging app.

If your photo is HEIC, convert it to JPEG or PNG first. Renaming its extension does not convert the image. On a Mac, Preview can export an image in another format; see the alternative below.

2. Put each corner on the paper’s edge

The crop review opens after import. Check the four corner handles against the paper. Drag a handle to adjust it, or select a corner and use the arrow buttons for fine adjustment. Keep dates, signatures and notes near the margins inside the boundary. Choose Apply crop when all four edges look right.

If detection cuts off content, choose Use full image to retain the whole photo, or reopen Crop from the editor and correct the corners. Skip review is not the same as keeping the full image. Always inspect the result.

3. Keep important colors and small text

Use Rotate if the page is sideways. Open the full-size page preview to read small text; the editor thumbnail is too small to judge fine detail. Compare Original and Clean color before choosing a look.

Our synthetic page has a blue heading and footer. We chose Clean color and checked that both remained visible in the downloaded PDF. Grayscale and Black & white remove color information. If a stamp, highlight or colored annotation matters, keep a color version and check it against the original.

On a small screen, tap Appearance, choose Clean color and tap Close. If faint writing disappears, return to Original or use a better photo. A cleaner background does not necessarily mean a more useful document.

For several sheets, use Add photos within the same document, then check their order. Follow the tested multi-page PDF walkthrough. Preview: up to 3 pages per PDF. No account needed.

4. Name the file and generate the PDF

Choose the pencil beside the document title to rename it. We used photo-document-example. Choose Save PDF, set the quality and page size, then choose Generate PDF.

If an upload form specifies a size limit, check the actual byte count after generation. Reducing quality may lose fine detail. The PDF size-limit guide explains how to check the result before uploading.

5. Download, open and check the actual file

When the PDF is ready, check its filename and choose Download PDF. Draft saved in this browser means the editable draft is here; it does not mean a PDF has already been downloaded.

Find the file in your browser’s downloads list. On a computer, show it in Finder or File Explorer; it is usually in Downloads unless you selected another folder. Open the downloaded PDF and zoom in to check names, numbers, margins and any colored marks before sharing it.

Open the actual one-page example PDF. It contains synthetic paperwork with no personal information. The blue heading, all 14 numbered lines and the small footer are retained. A thin dark edge remains around the page; preserving the content mattered more than trimming every trace of background.

When a built-in alternative is enough

On a Mac, if the photo is already straight and readable, open it in Preview, choose File → Export, choose PDF from Format, and save it. Preview can also convert HEIC to JPEG or PNG. Follow Apple’s image-conversion instructions for the available formats.

Adobe Scan also supports importing existing photos; its official iOS import guide describes photo selection and editing. Check its account and cloud-storage behavior before using it for sensitive documents. These alternatives are documented options, not native-app tests performed for this article.

If you still have the paper and want to capture it directly, use the iPhone scanning guide or the phone-to-computer walkthrough.