Smart idea on what to do with your scanned photos

Once your pictures, slides and film are digitally scanned, you can now order personalize M&M candy from your jpeg files.

Mars Inc., McLean, Va., maker of M&M chocolate candy, has long offered a personalization service for the treat, which lets customers pick colors and have texts and logos printed on M&M’s. The new offering, M&M’s Faces, allows customers to upload one or two photos, pick their colors and add up to two different texts to be printed on separate M&Ms.Using a simple interface, users can zoom in or out to select which part of a photo they want to use. A graphic specialist then tweaks the photo file, creating a sketch-like rendition that looks good on small pieces of candy. M&M’s Faces are available in 7-ounce bags at $14.95 per bag, with a minimum order of 3 bags; a 5-or 10-pound bulk box for $162.50 or $312.50; or a variety of 1.6- to 1.75-ounce party favors for $4.99 to $6.19 per bag, with a minimum order of 20 bags, says the company.

Here are some helpful hints to make your photo come out right.

File Format: Please submit your photo as either a .jpeg, .raw, .bmp or .tiff file.

Use High Resolution: “Resolution” refers to a measure of detail that can be seen in an image; the higher the resolution, the finer the detail that can be seen.

Tips:

Place your digital camera on the highest resolution setting possible.
Most photos taken with a 2.0 megapixel camera (or greater) are acceptable.
Lighting: Adjust your lighting to avoid shadows on the face or background
For Individual or Couple Photos: We recommend that the photo be captured from slightly above the top of the head to the middle of the chest. For a photo of two people, faces must be cheek to cheek or very close together to fit on your M&M’Sยฎ.

Composition: Please ensure that all of the face(s) are in the picture and not cropped
Background: For best results, the background should be plain white or off-white. The priority is that hair should be a contrast to the background. It is preferable that photos do not include glasses or hats. Not all photos will print correctly. Remember, we are only printing food coloring on a centimeter of space (about half the width of a dime). Photos that are complex may print illegibly. All photos are printed in BLACK food-grade ink. We can convert your photos from color to BLACK if necessary.