Collection Digitisation - Post Production
Collection digitisation aims to capture a complete and accurate representation of the collection item depicted. It is a process from capture of images to their post-production which includes quality control, importing, editing and exporting of the files.
The post-production process includes quality control, import, edit and export the images at specific standards to obtain an archival master file for preservation and an access file. You can check the quality on the camera display using the zooming tool or on your computer screen. Check that your images are focused and that the exposure is correct. It is best to take another photograph if there is any issue. Editing should be at a minimum so make sure to have the best photography possible in terms of composition and composition.
If you discover that your photographs have not captured your collection items as accurately as possible, post editing can often remove the need to re-shoot by adjusting and refining minor errors.
BEFORE YOU BEGIN
When photographing, it is important to set your camera to RAW files and not JPEG; this type of file encapsulates the maximum information and can be edited easily in case of wrong exposure.
You will need software which is able to import and edit RAW files. Some software is more complex than others. For example:
- Industry standard paid software, e.g. Adobe Lightroom + Photoshop, Capture One
- Free image editing software, e.g. RawTherapee
- Note that your computer’s built-in image editing programs such as Microsoft Windows Paint and Photos or Apple Mac Photos only offer basic image editing functions.
QUALITY CONTROL - EXPOSURE
A photograph is ‘underexposed’ when the light level is too low. The resulting image may be dark, with white backdrops appearing grey, and colours appearing dull and lacking in intensity.
By contrast, an ‘overexposed’ photograph, where the light level is too high, may appear unnaturally bright, with the colours appearing pale and washed out. You can use the exposure tool to adjust an under or overexposed photograph so that the colours more accurately reflect the true colours of the item depicted.
QUALITY CONTROL - COLOUR CORRECTION AND WHITE BALANCE
Colour correction involves adjusting the colours of an image to accurately reflect the true colours of the item depicted. If the item appears discoloured or the white of your backdrop appears blue or yellow, you will need to colour correct the image.
Ensure that your object is on hand for comparison, as post-editing from memory is not reliable or recommended. Click the grey patch of your colour target with the colour picker tool of the white balance. You can then copy the new setting and apply it to the images where the colour target is not included.
Ensure that your object is on hand for comparison, as post-editing from memory is not reliable or recommended. Click the grey patch of your colour target with the colour picker tool of the white balance. You can then copy the new setting and apply it to the images where the colour target is not included.
EDIT - STRAIGHTENING AND ROTATION
It is important that your photographs are straight, so that any vertical or horizontal elements of the item depicted line up with the sides of the image. If your photograph is slightly crooked, you can use the straightening or rotation tool to adjust it.
EDIT - CROPPING
Cropping involves adjusting or removing the outside edges of an image. It can be helpful for improving framing and composition, or removing unwanted details from an image. You can use your mouse to drag the crop handle to exclude
unwanted areas of the image. Cropping reduces the dimensions therefore the size of an image.
EXPORT - USE THE STANDARDS
Once you’ve edited your files, it’s time to export them.
For preservation, you can export a Master file to be uploaded to the Media section of the Victorian Collections CMS.
- File format: TIFF
- Resolution: 300 ppi and over
- No compression
- Bit depth: 8 or 16 bit per channel
- Colour space: Adobe 1998 or Profoto
You can also export an Access file at a lower resolution.
- File format: JPEG
- Resolution: 300 ppi or lower
- Compressed
- Bit depth: 8 bit per channel
- Colour space: sRGB or Adobe 1998 (Profoto is not supported by screen monitors)
MORE LIKE THIS
- Collection Digitisation - Project Planning
- Collection Digitisation - Workflow
- Collection Digitisation - Capturing Images
GLOSSARY
Access file: a lower resolution file which is created as a derivative copy of the master file (see below). Access files are generally created as an additional product when digitising for preservation, and are used for sharing via email and social media, or for web-based applications.
Access file: a lower resolution file which is created as a derivative copy of the master file (see below). Access files are generally created as an additional product when digitising for preservation, and are used for sharing via email and social media, or for web-based applications.
Bit depth: the number of unique colours that are available
in an image's colour palette. The higher the bit depth, the more colours used
in the image and the larger the file size.
Colour space: a specific, measurable, and fixed range of
possible colours that can be interpreted and displayed on a visual plane. In
photography, specific colour spaces serve to describe the capabilities of a
capture or display device to reproduce colour information.
File format: a standardised way that is encoded for storage
in a computer file. Common file formats include image files (.jpeg), Adobe
Acrobat files (.pdf), Word documents (.doc) and multimedia files (.wav).
Master file: a high quality digital file created for
preservation purposes. Master files are created at the highest suitable
resolution and bit depth, in a preservation file format.
Resolution: the level of detail a digital image contains,
More specifically, it refers to the number of pixels that exist within that
image. The higher the resolution is, the more or finer the detail in the image;
the more grainy it appears, the lower the resolution is.
Preservation File Format:
File formats which are appropriate for long-term preservation of
digitised content. Preservation file formats include Image files (.tiff), and
Adobe Acrobat files (.pdf/a).
FURTHER RESOURCES
- Image Capture Standards, National Library of Australia - https://www.library.gov.au/visit/about-us/corporate-information/library-services-policies-and-plans/standards#heading--1
- Just Digitise It, Public Record Office Victoria - https://prov.vic.gov.au/sites/default/files/files/Just-Digitise-It%20booklet.pdf
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