This is to outline a 16-bit Photoshop scanning and Camera RAW ACR workflow in general theory.

With a Calibrated monitor (get a Good Screen) gballard.net.
Photoshop Color Management (CMS) not broken gballard.net.

I scan my Nikon 8000 ED and Epson 2450 directly into Photoshop via: File> Import> Scanner Plugin, in the scanner's native Optical Resolution. In the case of the Nikon, that's 4000ppi (pixels per inch), and 2400ppi for the Epson.

NOTE:
Scanning outside of Photoshop, in the scanner's stand-alone application, can free up Photoshop.

• For example, scanning a large file from the scanner's Photoshop plug-in, the scanning process can tie up Photoshop for 10 minutes or more (while the clock ticks away).

• Scanning directly from the scanning application can free up Photoshop during the scanning process and get us back to work in Photoshop.

• In other words, we tie up the stand–alone scanner application, and multi-task in other applications.

• We just need to be sure we ASSIGN the correct ColorSpace gballard.net, if necessary, when Photoshop opens the scan.

With the scanner plug-in application set to 16–bit Adobe RGB, the scanner application plug-in scans directly into Photoshop in 16-bit Adobe RGB (1998). At this point the calibrated monitor is displaying the colour accurate to the scan.

In other words, Photoshop's Adobe ACE CMS is Converting the AdobeRGB SourceFile gballard.net into MonitorRGB, the calibrated custom monitor ICC profile, ColorSpace.

Next, I Save As "nameX.psd" (the X.psd reminds me the file is 16–bit).
Also, Photoshop has Embedded, Tagged the file with AdobeRGB ColorSpace.

There are literally dozens of high-bit editing techniques we can use.
Most notabably Bruce Fraser, the writing genius teaches us all:

• creativepro.com Bruce Fraser's articles page (a must review) for 16–bit WorkFlow.
• HutchColor/Bruce Fraser’s hutchcolor.com direct DOWNLOAD Bruce's scanning (.pdf) guide.
• Bruce Fraser's new book Real World Photoshop CS amazon.com covers all the new 16-bit features available in Photoshop 8.
• See Bruce's PhotoKit™, A Complete Sharpening Workflow for Photoshop® below.

The point being:
PRESERVE as much color information as possible by editing and archiving the file in 16 bit.
Sixteen-bit files can take many edits and still have lots of color information to spare for 8-bit mode, whereas, the same edits in 8 bit will leave big holes in the color information.

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Photoshop's Adjustment Layers:
An Adjustment-Layer WorkFlow gballard.net allows us to save all the edits, in a nonlinear fashion, and reedit them at any time (without ever touching the original scan). This WorkFlow is PROFOUNDLY less destructive than applying each Edit individually....

PS> Image> Image Size
PS> Image> Mode> Convert to Profile: sRGB (the TargetRGB)
Then Jump to ImageReady or Save for the Web...
PS> Filter> Sharpen> Unsharp Mask (sharpen the finished file in its finished output size and resolution)

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Targeting Optimal File Resolution:
HERE gballard.net is an Adobe User Forum excerpt, by Bruce Fraser and Jeff Schewe, on targeting file resolution — ppi pixels per inch, dots per inch dpi, lines per inch lpi — for ink-jet printers like Epsons, including RIPs.