Calum Dow Thurs 12 th November 2015

Our Partners…

1. Start with formal Goals 2. Communication 3. What to Digitise 4. Image Outputs & Resolutions 5. Plan for Access Digitisation Planning - 5 Key Points

Start with Formal Goals  Specify the desired outcomes for the project  Why are you digitising?  Who will be the core users of your digitised archive?  Ideal timescale for completion?  These goals will guide & inform all other planning decisions

 Vital to clearly communicate your project goals to your digitisation supplier  Including the end purpose of the digitised images and project deadlines  Ensure the supplier is happy to update you at each stage of the project Communication

 Collections in greatest demand? At greatest risk? Most unique?  Likely a compromise of one of the above and what available budget allows  Good start point - “What if the building was on fire?”  Assess if items are suitable for digitisation – is any conservation needed? What to Digitise

 Selection depends on:  Analogue media being digitised  End goals of the project  Capture master images in open-source non-proprietary format  We recommend initially capturing to uncompressed RGB Baseline TIFF Image Output Formats & Resolutions

 Creating a digital archive for preservation is great: BUT must be accessible to users  These could be internal staff or external – such as general public  Internal: archive management system? External: online archive website?  Tag metadata to enable effective keyword and category searching  Ensure you own the copyright if publishing digital archive online Plan for Access

1. Start with formal Goals 2. Communication 3. What to Digitise 4. Image Outputs & Resolutions 5. Plan for Access Digitisation Planning. Remember…

 Look beyond just price per scan  Ensure any quotes being compared are like-for-like  Consider:  Type of digitisation equipment used  Image output quality and interpolation  Location of digitisation: UK based? Digitisation - Cost vs Value

 Preparing for Scanning  On Location or Off-site  The Digitisation Process Practical Considerations

 Info about the collection  Condition report?  Organised/catalogued?  Fold outs or inserts?  Professional digitisation suppliers will want to send someone to assess the collection first Preparing for Scanning

 On Location digitisation  Extremely rare/fragile collections  Unsafe to move or unacceptable risk  Not always suitable for larger materials (A2+ size)  Off-site digitisation  At suppliers imaging studio/lab  Better imaging due to controlled lighting  More efficient: avoids set up/calibration  *Usually* more cost effective option On Location or Off-site

 Bound Books  Gutter Shadowing – Managed lighting  Page Curvature – Book cradles  Bindings, foldouts and inserts  Microfilm  Quality of original images  Film degradation  Newspaper/Magazines  Creases & folds  Paper degradation Digitising the Materials

Thank You – Questions?

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