Photograph a form or a letter

Turn a piece of paper into a tidy, readable file that you can send to anybody who asks for one.

When an insurer or a county office asks you to "send a photo of the form", what they want is a scan. There is a difference, and your phone can do both.

Key points

• Find the document scanner hidden inside Notes, or Drive on Android
• Scan a page so it comes out square, trimmed and readable
• Add several pages into one document
• Send the finished scan as a PDF by email, with a copy kept in Sent

What to remember

• The scanner finds the edges of the page by itself. You hold the phone roughly over it and it does the rest.
• Multiple pages scanned in one go become one PDF, which is exactly what offices expect to receive.
• Share is the same button everywhere on a phone, and it always offers the same list.

Try this

Scan one page of something harmless on your own phone — a recipe, a flyer — and look at the result. Seeing how well it squares the page up is what makes people reach for it next time a form arrives.

Practice: Photograph a form or a letter. Your first lesson is free, with no account or card; the rest are part of a Lantern plan. Interactive lessons require JavaScript.

Related guides

• Photographing a form, a letter or the meter
• Scan a document with your phone
• Scan a letter with the phone in your pocket
• Sign and return a document with no printer
• Write something and save it where you can find it