Hi all, I'm grateful to read all the feedback on this topic! I wanted to expand the conversation a little and ask whether anyone has experience digitizing documents via a copy stand set up? The flatbed scanner approach is just painfully slow.
We're working our way through a planning grant to develop a plan to digitize about 34K pieces of documentation related to the museum's collection (I know this crosses over into archival work, but for the sake of looking at digitization only, just go with me). The oldest documents in the set are about 100 years old, though the oldest documents account for a very small percentage of the whole. There are some handling issues, but again, marginal overall. Any thoughts on flatbed vs. copy stand for digitizing documents? Thanks! Kate Blanch Administrator, Museum Databases 410.547.9000 x.266 | kbla...@thewalters.org The Walters Art Museum 600 North Charles Street, Baltimore, MD 21201-5185 thewalters.org -----Original Message----- From: mcn-l-boun...@mcn.edu [mailto:mcn-l-boun...@mcn.edu] On Behalf Of mcn-l-requ...@mcn.edu Sent: Saturday, January 24, 2015 7:00 AM To: mcn-l@mcn.edu Subject: mcn-l Digest, Vol 113, Issue 13 Send mcn-l mailing list submissions to mcn-l@mcn.edu To subscribe or unsubscribe via the World Wide Web, visit http://mcn.edu/mailman/listinfo/mcn-l or, via email, send a message with subject or body 'help' to mcn-l-requ...@mcn.edu You can reach the person managing the list at mcn-l-ow...@mcn.edu When replying, please edit your Subject line so it is more specific than "Re: Contents of mcn-l digest..." Today's Topics: 1. Re: mcn-l Digest, Vol 113, Issue 12 Digitizing Photographs (Marianne Weldon) 2. Re: Digitizing Photographs (Joseph Hoover) 3. Re: Digitizing Photographs (Frank Kennedy) 4. Re: Digitizing Photographs (Sarah Stierch) 5. Re: Digitizing Photographs (Tanner, Simon) 6. Re: Digitizing Photographs (Landsberg, Erik) 7. Register for 2015! Simmons LIS Continuing Education - Online Classes (SLIS Continuing Education) ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Message: 1 Date: Fri, 23 Jan 2015 09:17:50 -0500 (EST) From: Marianne Weldon <mwel...@brynmawr.edu> To: mcn-l@mcn.edu Subject: Re: [MCN-L] mcn-l Digest, Vol 113, Issue 12 Digitizing Photographs Message-ID: <916244135.57346367.1422022670414.JavaMail.root@zimbra-mailbox> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8" Here is a relevant article regarding the light levels used in modern flatbed scanners https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v1/url?u=http://www.city-gallery.com/learning/guide/light-levels.php&k=Zn6W9g0QMlyJSNRckEnWug%3D%3D%0A&r=gHnaDWocvuQXhwjmuMBP9g%3D%3D%0A&m=KuiQOv77OIOx2NO0VEOvzsrces5LCw8rQDDb0KJVKW0%3D%0A&s=45572c6a984ea1325062e61a711830de73ff0e4b370486dafe77969651b7f69e There was another at: https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v1/url?u=http://www.analyticalphilately.org/images/ScanningCCP.pdf&k=Zn6W9g0QMlyJSNRckEnWug%3D%3D%0A&r=gHnaDWocvuQXhwjmuMBP9g%3D%3D%0A&m=KuiQOv77OIOx2NO0VEOvzsrces5LCw8rQDDb0KJVKW0%3D%0A&s=0d11bb29708dbcc8f07b76aaaf41b669a256e4c9d65d5ed1a8f1c5a311d7846b but the link is no longer active. I have contacted them asking if I could still obtain it. If it do, I will post it also. Marianne Weldon Collections Manager for Special Collections 202 Canaday Bryn Mawr College 101 North Merion Avenue Bryn Mawr, PA 19010 office 610-526-5022 mwel...@brynmawr.edu Fellow, The American Institute for Conservation See our collection online at: Triarte.brynmawr.edu and at emuseum.net ------------------------------ Message: 2 Date: Fri, 23 Jan 2015 09:46:19 -0600 From: Joseph Hoover <joe.hoo...@mnhs.org> To: Museum Computer Network Listserv <mcn-l@mcn.edu> Subject: Re: [MCN-L] Digitizing Photographs Message-ID: <CA+7Fg=n2-bJGH1=ftdFmTudT-uGNzzaQE-gcLuZW9AZ=tkr...@mail.gmail.com> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8" In a case of a small museum with limited resources, I would go ahead and use the flatbed scanner. Using a copy stand is a good approach, however, unless your organization has the resources and money to hire (or find a volunteer) a professional photographer who is experienced and can accurately measure and balance light and tone, you are more than likely to wind up with a poor quality reproduction and you may find that you will do more physical and light damage to the photo than on a scanner. I have seen inexperienced museums professionals use camera stands with terrible results. You have to know what you are doing with a camera stand to get good light, exposure balance and tone, with a scanner, while you may have other technical issues, lighting issues are not one of them. It really comes down to using conservator common sense with the resources you have. Are you dealing with a one-of-a-kind photograph of Abraham Lincoln or a black and white snap shots of a church picnic? However, if the photo is fragile from damage or is over-sized, I would set those aside and have them photographed later. -- *Joe Hoover* | Digital Technology Outreach Specialist Minnesota Historical Society | Historic Preservation Department 345 W. Kellogg Blvd., Saint Paul, MN 55102 (651) 259-3461 joe.hoo...@mnhs.org | www.mnhs.org/lhs On Thu, Jan 22, 2015 at 3:05 PM, Matt Wheeler <mwhee...@pmm-maine.org> wrote: > Good afternoon. We have a collection which consists mostly of black > and white photographic prints and are beginning to digitize them using > flatbed scanners. However, I spoke to a conservator who advised that > they be rephotographed with a digital camera instead due to the > intense light exposure on a flatbed. Is this a legitimate concern? > Will the scanners cause degradation of the originals, and would this > degradation be considerable? Thanks in advance. > ______________________ > > Matt Wheeler, > Photography Archives, > Penobscot Marine Museum > Archives (207) 548-2529 ext. 211 > 5 Church Street, PO Box 498 > Searsport, Maine 04974 > ------------------------------ Message: 3 Date: Fri, 23 Jan 2015 16:50:37 +0000 From: Frank Kennedy <fkenn...@nrm.org> To: "mcn-l@mcn.edu" <mcn-l@mcn.edu> Subject: Re: [MCN-L] Digitizing Photographs Message-ID: <8bec32d79947d046a6770ab52a0fe68a38ba8...@srv-mail.nrm.org> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" As was passed on to me by the NEDCC, the light exposure from a flatbed scanner is similar to having the original object on exhibit for one day. With that in mind, you can decide. A camera copy stand will likely use powerful incandescent lights which are highly damaging, but for such a brief time that the result is the same - like one day on exhibit. LED lit type scanners produce very little UV light and the scanning can be considered harmless. As others have pointed out, be careful with handling and the forced flattening of any curled prints which will crack the gelatin. We've scanned many thousands of old B&W prints this way. Personally, I find the results from a flatbed visually superior to the results from high-end photography, with the added benefit of no skew or fisheye.. Frank Kennedy, IT Manager Norman Rockwell Museum 9 Glendale Rd., PO BOX 308 Stockbridge, MA 01262 413-931-2216, fax 413-931-2316 http://www.nrm.org ------------------------------ Message: 4 Date: Fri, 23 Jan 2015 08:59:47 -0800 From: Sarah Stierch <sa...@sarahstierch.com> To: Museum Computer Network Listserv <mcn-l@mcn.edu> Subject: Re: [MCN-L] Digitizing Photographs Message-ID: <2ddea9ed-6e3c-4903-ae8b-3f0187fd3...@sarahstierch.com> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8 Yes, I?ve used flatbed scanners everywhere from the National Archives to medium sized art museums in the Midwest. As Joseph stated - it all depends on the type of image - super uber fragile or not. I?m not a conservator - but, I figure using a flatbed scanner and the fear of light damaging the image?wouldn?t it only damage it noticeably if you use the scanner light repeatedly? (sort of like taking multiple flash images of a painting for 100 years over time..). And yeah, I?d just hire a consultant/contractor to photograph delicate images. So you don?t have to invest financially in fancy pants camera equipment. -Sarah > On Jan 23, 2015, at 7:46 AM, Joseph Hoover <joe.hoo...@mnhs.org> wrote: > > In a case of a small museum with limited resources, I would go ahead > and use the flatbed scanner. Using a copy stand is a good approach, > however, unless your organization has the resources and money to hire > (or find a > volunteer) a professional photographer who is experienced and can > accurately measure and balance light and tone, you are more than > likely to wind up with a poor quality reproduction and you may find > that you will do more physical and light damage to the photo than on a > scanner. I have seen inexperienced museums professionals use camera > stands with terrible results. You have to know what you are doing with > a camera stand to get good light, exposure balance and tone, with a > scanner, while you may have other technical issues, lighting issues are not > one of them. > > It really comes down to using conservator common sense with the > resources you have. Are you dealing with a one-of-a-kind photograph of > Abraham Lincoln or a black and white snap shots of a church picnic? > > However, if the photo is fragile from damage or is over-sized, I would > set those aside and have them photographed later. > > -- > > *Joe Hoover* | Digital Technology Outreach Specialist Minnesota > Historical Society | Historic Preservation Department > 345 W. Kellogg Blvd., Saint Paul, MN 55102 > (651) 259-3461 > joe.hoo...@mnhs.org | www.mnhs.org/lhs > > On Thu, Jan 22, 2015 at 3:05 PM, Matt Wheeler <mwhee...@pmm-maine.org> > wrote: > >> Good afternoon. We have a collection which consists mostly of black >> and white photographic prints and are beginning to digitize them >> using flatbed scanners. However, I spoke to a conservator who advised >> that they be rephotographed with a digital camera instead due to the >> intense light exposure on a flatbed. Is this a legitimate concern? >> Will the scanners cause degradation of the originals, and would this >> degradation be considerable? Thanks in advance. >> ______________________ >> >> Matt Wheeler, >> Photography Archives, >> Penobscot Marine Museum >> Archives (207) 548-2529 ext. 211 >> 5 Church Street, PO Box 498 >> Searsport, Maine 04974 >> > _______________________________________________ > You are currently subscribed to mcn-l, the listserv of the Museum > Computer Network (http://www.mcn.edu) > > To post to this list, send messages to: mcn-l@mcn.edu > > To unsubscribe or change mcn-l delivery options visit: > http://mcn.edu/mailman/listinfo/mcn-l > > The MCN-L archives can be found at: > http://www.mail-archive.com/mcn-l@mcn.edu/ ------------------------------ Message: 5 Date: Fri, 23 Jan 2015 16:57:32 +0000 From: "Tanner, Simon" <simon.tan...@kcl.ac.uk> To: Museum Computer Network Listserv <mcn-l@mcn.edu> Subject: Re: [MCN-L] Digitizing Photographs Message-ID: <db3pr03mb0651c13f8416b78c15b08b07d8...@db3pr03mb0651.eurprd03.prod.outlook.com> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" I would say that I would be much more concerned about the heat on the glass bed of the flatbed scanner than the light exposure. Those beds get pretty hot after multiple scans and this can do an awful lots of damage by activating dirt on the surface of the photograph or causing chemical reactions within the substrates. This can easily be alleviated by running two imaging rigs so that one is cooling as the other is imaging so the bed stays relatively safe heatwise but this comes with obvious added workflow complications plus space and hardware implications. Best, Simon ____________________________________________ Simon Tanner Department of Digital Humanities Room 219, 2nd Floor Drury Lane King's College London Email: simon.tan...@kcl.ac.uk Twitter: @SimonTanner -----Original Message----- From: mcn-l-boun...@mcn.edu [mailto:mcn-l-boun...@mcn.edu] On Behalf Of Frank Kennedy Sent: 23 January 2015 16:51 To: mcn-l@mcn.edu Subject: Re: [MCN-L] Digitizing Photographs As was passed on to me by the NEDCC, the light exposure from a flatbed scanner is similar to having the original object on exhibit for one day. With that in mind, you can decide. A camera copy stand will likely use powerful incandescent lights which are highly damaging, but for such a brief time that the result is the same - like one day on exhibit. LED lit type scanners produce very little UV light and the scanning can be considered harmless. As others have pointed out, be careful with handling and the forced flattening of any curled prints which will crack the gelatin. We've scanned many thousands of old B&W prints this way. Personally, I find the results from a flatbed visually superior to the results from high-end photography, with the added benefit of no skew or fisheye.. Frank Kennedy, IT Manager Norman Rockwell Museum 9 Glendale Rd., PO BOX 308 Stockbridge, MA 01262 413-931-2216, fax 413-931-2316 http://www.nrm.org _______________________________________________ You are currently subscribed to mcn-l, the listserv of the Museum Computer Network (http://www.mcn.edu) To post to this list, send messages to: mcn-l@mcn.edu To unsubscribe or change mcn-l delivery options visit: http://mcn.edu/mailman/listinfo/mcn-l The MCN-L archives can be found at: http://www.mail-archive.com/mcn-l@mcn.edu/ ------------------------------ Message: 6 Date: Fri, 23 Jan 2015 12:09:02 -0500 From: "Landsberg, Erik" <erik_landsb...@moma.org> To: Museum Computer Network Listserv <mcn-l@mcn.edu> Subject: Re: [MCN-L] Digitizing Photographs Message-ID: <cahms092+ancb_pnkbpuuqzzzspasxp1mzfkm2bwh2vups1n...@mail.gmail.com> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8" There are many considerations to be taken into account, and the best solution will be particular to each institution and project. I've noticed a few references to the heat produced by incandescent lights on a copystand. For the record, flash is highly preferrable to incandescent in most copystand setups. Flash generates almost no IR and it's UV can easily be filtered. In greater sharpness (compared to incandescent, which commonly requres slow shutter speeds -- subject to vibration, etc.) frequently results. The sharpness advantage is due to exposures that use 1 extremely brief pulse of flash light, which can be as short as ~ 1/5,000 sec., depending on equipment. Of course the camera/strobe approach requires additional expertise. But the lighting setup can often be done once and "locked down" for use by less imaging-experienced staff. Erik MoMA On Fri, Jan 23, 2015 at 11:50 AM, Frank Kennedy <fkenn...@nrm.org> wrote: > As was passed on to me by the NEDCC, the light exposure from a flatbed > scanner is similar to having the original object on exhibit for one day. > With that in mind, you can decide. A camera copy stand will likely use > powerful incandescent lights which are highly damaging, but for such a > brief time that the result is the same - like one day on exhibit. LED > lit type scanners produce very little UV light and the scanning can be > considered harmless. As others have pointed out, be careful with > handling and the forced flattening of any curled prints which will > crack the gelatin. We've scanned many thousands of old B&W prints this way. > Personally, I find the results from a flatbed visually superior to the > results from high-end photography, with the added benefit of no skew > or fisheye.. > > Frank Kennedy, IT Manager > Norman Rockwell Museum > 9 Glendale Rd., PO BOX 308 > Stockbridge, MA 01262 > 413-931-2216, fax 413-931-2316 > http://www.nrm.org > > _______________________________________________ > You are currently subscribed to mcn-l, the listserv of the Museum > Computer Network (http://www.mcn.edu) > > To post to this list, send messages to: mcn-l@mcn.edu > > To unsubscribe or change mcn-l delivery options visit: > http://mcn.edu/mailman/listinfo/mcn-l > > The MCN-L archives can be found at: > http://www.mail-archive.com/mcn-l@mcn.edu/ > -- *Erik Landsberg* *Director, Imaging and Visual Resources* *The Museum of Modern Art* 11 West 53rd Street, New York, NY 10019 212-708-9489 erik_landsb...@moma.org www.moma.org ------------------------------ Message: 7 Date: Fri, 23 Jan 2015 15:23:11 -0500 From: SLIS Continuing Education <slis...@simmons.edu> To: mcn-l@mcn.edu Subject: [MCN-L] Register for 2015! Simmons LIS Continuing Education - Online Classes Message-ID: <cakp2knzeiejxrhva9dxj_p+zzvbtecue5kdgo7vy0t5uwe2...@mail.gmail.com> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8" (please excuse cross-postings) *Simmons SLIS Continuing Education ? 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