Natoinal Library of Australia - Gateways

Workshop on Duplication by Traditional Photographic and Digital Methods

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Participants at the recent international workshop on duplicating photographic collections, with Dr Franzeska Frey and Mr Doug Munson from the USA
Pictorial Collection, NLA-INT-nl39361-gp2

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In mid June, over 70 participants from Australia and New Zealand braved the Canberra cold to attend an intensive six day symposium on ‘Duplication by Traditional Photographic and Digital Methods’. This workshop, held at the National Library, was the final in a four-part series of workshops and symposiums, held over the last three years in various Australian venues, on current directions, methods and theory on the preservation, conservation and reformatting of analogue and digital photographic materials.

These advanced training sessions were funded by a special Getty Foundation training grant and were organised by the photographic special interest group (PHOTON) of the Australian Institute of Conservation of Cultural Materials (AICCM), with support from a number of cultural heritage institutions.

This most recent workshop featured two photographic conservation experts from the USA, Dr Franziska Frey, a specialist in digital imaging from the Rochester Institute of Technology, and Mr Doug Munson, a photographic duplication expert from the Chicago Albumen Works, a private firm specialising in preservation copying of photographic collections.

Initially, the workshop went back to fundamentals giving an overview of analogue photography and duplication methods. Later it presented much helpful information for participants in digitisation programs, giving guidance on standards, workflow issues, the calibration of equipment, colour management, and the importance and management of metadata.

The workshop series has been extremely timely as over the three-year period many institutions have moved their imaging focus from traditional photography to digital images and many have set up digital reformatting projects. Therefore the gathering served as a forum for a lively and informed exchange of viewpoints and experiences, and comparisons of digitisation approaches. Down the track there are now possibilities for collaboration on equipment purchase and the development of user discussion groups.

Though six days of concentrated time together seemed daunting at first, by the end of the workshop all participants happily agreed that they had learned much and were better equipped to lead effective photographic duplication programs in their various organisations.
— Colin Webb, Director, Preservation Services Branch

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