As an archivist, I would refuse to allow anyone to scan materials
themselves. Although the scanning light is bright, I think the handling of
the photograph by an untrained person is where real damage will
occur.
I can scan photographs on demand. The photographs are immediately
saved as a .TIF file using the same ID number we use for our photograph
collection. A second copy is saved as a .JPG file and attached to a
catalog record I create in our PastPerfect database. I don't have the
time to set up a full-scale cataloging effort, so this seems like a good way to
get the project going. I bought PastPerfect in part because it handles
photographs pretty well, and has a module that should allow us to take the
photographs online eventually. In addition, having a scanned copy stored
inhouse means you never have to scan the image twice (barring a major computer
disaster), and should cut down on handling the original.
The copies are usually provided using a color laser printer on regular
paper, although photographic paper is available. This allows a copyright
notice to be affixed to the back of the image. The patrons are very
impressed with the quality of the printed images. If a digital copy is
required, I use the .TIF image to produce a low resolution copy that is
small enough for me to e-mail and is not very useful outside of printing in
newspapers. I can also produce a CD-Rom if higher quality is necessary. We
charge fees for use of the images ($50 per image used per format).
After a similar discussion on the Archivists' listserve, I was persuaded by
the following argument: If you are providing photographic copies of
images, you are not really opening yourself up to more copyright problems by
providing digitized copies. Any copy photo can be scanned very
easily. If a person is going to misuse your photograph, it doesn't really
matter what format you provide the copy in. Making sure you have a form
signed by the user as to what use the photograph will be put to is about all you
can do if your agency has a mission to provide images to the public. I
have actually seen very little misuse of our images in the 2 1/2 years I have
been working here.
Erin Foley
Archivist
Circus World Museum
550 Water
Street
Baraboo, WI 53913
----- Original Message -----
Sent: Thursday, January 25, 2001 11:59
AM
Subject: Re: Requesting Historic Photos
in Digital Formats
Renee, I would hesitate to allow people to scan
photos, especially if they are historic photos. The light used in scanning is
incredibly bright, and could damage the photo, especially if it is scanned
multiple times.
Alissa Acker
Curator of Education
Lake Superior Railroad
Museum
At our medium sized historical society we
receive many photograph requests every month. Over the past year
there have been many requests to receive the images in digital form instead
of standard photo reprints. Some people are so bold as to offer
to bring in their own laptops and scanners. So far we have denied all
of these requests. There are many issues at hand: number one being the
preservation of the historic images; how much should be charged and how do
you argue that the fee helps to preserve the collection (although scanning
costs virtually nothing); how do we protect copyright of a digital
image? Any suggestions of what has worked for others out there would
be greatly appreciated!
Thanks!!!!!!!
Renee Kurtzweil, Director of Collections
Northern Indiana Center for History