Scan "images from device" missing from import

[kirrwed]

I recently switched from a Mac to a PC.  I hooked up canon printer/scanner.  I've printed to the printer, so I know the computer is connected.  Yet, when I go to File-Import I do not see "Images from Device" like I used to see on Mac.  Is this feature missing in Photoshop for windows?  How do I get it back?

[Jeff Arola]

On windows it's usually File>Import>WIA Support

[Diane5CF0]

Jeff, 

There do not seem to be as many options in WIA Support as there were in Import Images from Device. Any advice?

Thank you,

Diane

[Jeff Arola]

Yeah usually the WIA interface is sorely lacking as compared to the vendors scanner/printer software, so if there are options you want to have, use Canons software for scanning.

[Diane5CF0]

Just to make sure I am understanding - I should scan to computer and import to PS? I came across this problem when photomerging. I did manage it to work with WIA but it is clumsy.Thanks DianeSent from my Galaxy

[Conrad_C]

Just a little more background to add to Jeff’s accurate answer…both File > Import from device (macOS) and File > Import > WIA Support (Windows) are not Adobe code, they are standard but basic scanning services provided by macOS or Windows. All Photoshop does is provide a place for those OS services to plug in. The scanning options of either feature are outside of the control of Photoshop, so if they are lacking in any way that’s important to you, that’s when you fire up more specialized software (like a scanning application provided by the scanner maker), scan with that, and open the scan in Photoshop.

The main advantage of Import from Device/WIA is that they scan directly into Photoshop, saving you the step of manually opening the file. What I do that gets close to that is to have Adobe Bridge view the folder where I have the scanning software save each scan. As I use separate scanning software to scan image after image, they accumulate in that folder and Adobe Bridge shows all of them, so I can quickly look through them to make sure they are all turning out OK. At any time, I can double-click any scan in that folder and it opens in Photoshop. Because I tend to scan many at one time, I find this more efficient and safer than having scanning software send a lot of unsaved scans directly into Photoshop. But of course you may feel differently depending on the way you work.

[Diane5CF0]

Thank you for replying Conrad. You are a wealth of information and I now understand the system better. There is also a IJ Scan Utility that I will look at more closely. Best, Diane

[Trevor.Dennis]

Jeff, I thought WIA support had been removed from Photoshop from way back when Chris Cox used to post here.  Chris said something about it being so unreliable device to device, it was much safer to scan to a local drive and open in Photoshop from the saved file.  (Which is what you have already suggested)

[D Fosse]

That was the TWAIN plugin, which dropped out of Photoshop around CS6 or so, for those reasons. Not only was it unreliable, it was also 32 bit only. A 64 bit version was never developed and the whole operation just died.

TWAIN basically opened the scanner software inside Photoshop, with the same interface. While it was running (which could take a long time depending), Photoshop was inaccessible. You just had to wait.

Most of us found that scanning outside Photoshop was more efficient and reliable.

[Test Screen Name]

You also need to make sure you installed the scanner drivers in Windows. The printer part may work without that, but the scanner part cannot.