Abstract: A system and method in which an image capture device such as a scanner can be automatically switched between a plurality of scanning modes without the need for manual intervention. In the system and method of the present invention, a document scanner can automatically switch or toggle between scanning modes while documents are being scanned. In one implementation of the present invention, the scanner can automatically switch between monochrome scanning and color scanning and vice versa based on a defined pattern on a document to be scanned. The document to be scanned can be in the form of a scanning mode switching document inserted into or associated with a stack of sheets of a jobstream. The scanning mode switching document can include a switching pattern that is detected by a processing system of the scanner.