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ancestor-search.info > Organise Yourself > Photographing Documents |
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Courses for Experienced Family Historians Photographing Documents
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PHOTOGRAPHING
DOCUMENTS |
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Why Photograph ? |
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| Most record offices and other archive repositories do not permit photocopying of: | ||||
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| However 5 out of 6 record offices will allow you to take photographs of such documents, often at no charge. Many record offices also provide a professional photographing service, although this can prove costly. | ||||
| What Type of Camera is Best Suited ? | ||||
| Without question a digital camera that can take pictures indoors without flashing. Many record offices do not allow use of electronic flash. In the case of some record offices this is in the mistaken belief that an electronic flash can harm a document - see Peter Amsden's web site page (www.btinternet.com/~amsden/archives/camerasinarchives.html) dispelling this myth. Other record offices however have a much more legitimate reason for banning the use of electronic flashing and that is simply that it disturbs the concentration of other users of the searchroom. Since a significant number of record offices also ban the use of tripods or charge extra for their use it is worth seeking out a digital camera that can readily be held in a steady position (i.e. have a facility such as Sony's 'super steady shot' which compensates for hand shake). | ||||
| Record Office Rules on Photographing their Documents | ||||
| These vary considerably from record office to record office. A significant minority (roughly 1 in 6) do not permit DIY photography at all. As already stated, many do not allow use of electronic flash and several do not permit the use of tripods. Many only allow DIY photography at the discretion of senior staff. Several require prior booking. A few only allow DIY photographing of documents on days when the record office is normally closed to the public. There is an equally wide variation in charges. Two in three record offices impose no charge at all. Others charge per photograph taken (varying from 50p to £2 per click), per session (£2 to £20), or for the hire of a room to take the photographs in (£20 to £25 per hour). See this web site's entry for the record office you are interested in to check out what its rules and charges are on DIY photography. | ||||
| Further Guidance | ||||
| For guidance on the selection and preservation of photographic and electronic images for personal archives, the authors of this web site recommend you consider obtaining "Images for the Future" - a booklet written by Peter Amsden on the subject. You can find details of this helpful booklet at www.btinternet.com/~amsden | ||||
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This
page last updated: 29 December 2007 |
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