Archive for the ‘photos’ Category

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USC Libraries Amass World’s Largest Collection Of Digital Images Documenting SoCal History

Wednesday, January 11th, 2012

USC Digital Library Represents Collaboration Among Historical Societies,

Newspapers, And More

Organizations Work Together For Preservation And Accessibility

The photo seen here was taken at the 1951 tree lighting ceremony at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, and scanned to digital for inclusion in the University of Southern California’s vast Digital Library. The USC library system has set out to “select, collect, preserve, and make accessible” an enormous collection of unique materials, including high resolution digital photographs, oral histories and sound recordings, moving images, maps, documents, physical objects, and more. This wealth of media is organized within the USC Digital Library, which includes metadata to support research. The digital collection helps fulfill the university’s mission to provide an online gateway to research resources about Los Angeles and Southern California.

Some of the high quality digital images accessible from the USC Digital Library website are “on loan” from collaborating institutions that have agreed to share their collections. Together these institutions have contributed to the creation of the largest and most valuable archival collection of digital media related to the history and culture of Los Angeles and the surrounding areas. The USC Digital Library provides a powerful infrastructure to create the host environment for these collaborators, all of which benefit from working toward the common goals of preservation and accessibility. The digital collections comprise a host of materials from the USC Libraries, as well as from various historical societies, other libraries, newspapers, and other organizations with rich collections of historical artifacts relating to the Southern California, the Western United States, and the Pacific Rim. Particular emphasis has been placed on artifacts from these regions, though the collections are by no means limited to this part of the country.

The USC Digital Library spans a wide range of media, including audio and video recordings, but visual media compose the bulk of the collection. The digital archive includes thousands of photographs, drawings, illuminated manuscripts, posters, prints, maps, rare illustrated books, and more – all scanned to digital at high resolution to capture every detail. The USC Digital Library continues to grow as navigation is enhanced and the collections evolve.

Visit the USC Digital Library to explore this amazing collection.

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Posted in Photo Scanning, Photography History, digital photography, photos | No Comments »

Manhattan Beach Historical Society Hopes To Digitize Historical Newspaper Archive

Monday, January 9th, 2012

Local Historians Hope Digitization Will Make Newspaper Archive

Accessible To All

Archive Documents A Century Of Local History

Meet Gary McAulay. As a board member of the Manhattan Beach Historical Society, Gary is one of the lucky few who currently have access to the Society’s small storage space, which is nestled between the men and women’s restrooms at Polliwog Park and filled with a century’s worth of Manhattan Beach history. The newspapers are kept in bound archives on three small bookshelves, each one four rows tall. The old papers document Manhattan Beach history, starting with the city’s founding in the year 1912.

In the photo seen here, McAulay sifts through the papers, stopping at the headline “Rain storm of week un-paralleled in beach history,” on the front page of the March 1, 1913 publication of the Manhattan Beach News. Another day’s top story simple led with ““Popular girl will soon be married.” McAulay and his colleagues at the Manhattan Beach Historical Society hope that the collection of historical newspapers will soon find a new home, as plans for the new Manhattan Beach library continue to develop. Local historians recently met with representatives from the Los Angeles County library to discuss the feasibility of bringing the collection to the new library, and digitizing it via a type of photo scanning technology.

The collection was moved about two years ago from its former home in the Historical Society’s cottage museum to its current, less prestigious and less accessible spot in the park bathroom storage space. This move was decided upon by the members of the society, who feared that a fire or other natural disaster affecting the cottage museum might destroy these precious articles of history. The papers have been “sadly inaccessible for some time,” said McAulay. “We have a history in this town. When you put it out there, people say, ‘Hey, that’s pretty cool,’ and become more interested.” Even when the papers were in the Historical Society’s museum, they were only accessible to regular folks during the museum’s six hours of public access each week.

Ultimately, the Historical Society would like to use digital photo scanning technology to preserve the papers and make them available to the public on a website, but the funding just isn’t there, McAulay said. Each of the historical society’s 150 members pays $20 each year in dues. Scholars at Cal State Dominguez Hills have expressed interest in obtaining the archives to keep in the university’s regional history collection. But local historians are hesitant to let go of the collection, fearing that that they would be too far away for Manhattan Beach citizens to see and enjoy. “I’m concerned that once it goes away from town, the only people who would ever go out there are the most dedicated of historians,” said McAulay.

Some have suggested that the collection could be housed in a glass case in the new Manhattan Beach library. Visitors could sift through photocopies, or view the actual collection with assistance from a librarian. County librarian Margaret Todd said she’d ask her staff to look into grant opportunities to fund digitization of the archives. “I’d rather digitize them and have them available that way,” said Todd. “Newspaper is fragile, once it’s gone, it’s gone.”

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Posted in Historic Photos, Photo Scanning, Photography History, photos | No Comments »

Salem Public Library Revamps Technology Learning Center

Friday, January 6th, 2012

Oregon Library Offers Free Service To Help Patrons Digitize Photos

And Video

Salem Public Library’s Technology Learning Center Includes Equipment For Preserving Old Photos, Video, And Audio

Preserving your family’s priceless photos, videos, and audio is a terrific idea for a holiday gift. These precious moments can’t be bought at any department store, and they don’t have to cost much if you have some time to spare. There are a few ways to go about digitizing your memories. If you have lots of photos and a bit of money to spend on the project, you’ll get the best results using a fast and professional photo scanning service. But what if you just want to digitize a few photos, or few clips of video, or an old audio recording? If you have the tools and the know-how, you can do it yourself. And if you live in Salem, Oregon, you can get the job done even if you aren’t a computer whiz with a bunch of gadgets at your disposal. Just in time for the holidays, the Salem Public Library has revamped its Technology Learning Center with equipment to copy photos, slides, documents, records and audio and video tapes onto a DVD, CD, or thumb drive. You’ll have to pay for the blank discs or storage devices (or bring your own) but use of the equipment is free.

Reference librarian Janet Baker is one of the staffers available to help visitors use the equipment. She has step-by-step instructions for each machine, so that anyone can use them without difficulty. “A lot of people have photos at home that are lying in boxes,” she said. “It’s a great way to get library patrons involved so they can stay current with the fast-changing technology world.” The library’s adult and youth services manager Karen Fischer calls the Technology Learning Center “a great equalizer.” First and foremost, the library is a community center, said Fischer. “We try to reach out and provide what our community needs,” she said. Fischer pointed out that professional photo scanning services are a great options for those who can afford them, and who don’t have the time to scan each photo by hand. “But others can come here, learn about the technology, and gain new skills for a future job or hobby. We level the playing field.”

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Posted in Photo Scanning, photos, technology | No Comments »

New Service Uses Meta-Data On Images To Track Stolen Camera

Tuesday, January 3rd, 2012

CameraTrace by GadgetTrak Lets You Search The Web For

Images Taken On Your Digital Camera

Benefits From The Digital Age Yet Again

Last summer, photographer John Heller made headlines when he recovered his stolen camera and lenses using a new technology from GadgetTrak, a company based in Portland, Oregon that specializes in theft recovery and data protection solutions for mobile devices such as laptops and cell phones. While on assignment for Getty Images, Heller had lost his prized Nikon D3 digital camera and several lenses (valued at over $9,000) to a thief at the Egyptian Theater in Hollywood. Using GadgetTrak’s new CameraTrace service, then in a beta testing phase called Camera Serial Search, Heller searched the web for images embedded with a digital serial number that matched his stolen camera. He found several digital images that had been recently posted to the online photo-sharing site Flickr, and gave this information to the police. The police tracked the images via Facebook, to another professional photographer who had unwittingly purchased the stolen gear. The gear had actually been sold twice, first on Craigslist and later on e-Bay.

GadgetTrak has recently announced that CameraTrace is now available to consumers who want to safeguard their digital cameras. The service uses the meta-data attached to digital images to tag the photos with the camera’s serial number. By creating a digital “identity” for your camera, CameraTrace allows you to search the worldwide Web for any image captured on the device. If your camera has been stolen, you can even use the system to file a police report. The GadgetTrak service even includes individual help throughout the process of finding and reclaiming your equipment. The company will even speak with local law enforcement to plead your case and explain the use of its technology.

CameraTrace users pay a one-time fee of $10 per camera for registration in the service. All Web searches and subsequent services are free, including an image-monitoring service which scans photos Facebook, Flickr, etc. to see if anyone is using your copyrighted images without permission. For serious photographers, this added bonus might easily be worth the price of admission for CameraTrace. But even if your camera cost only a few hundred dollars, CameraTrace may be a cost-effective form of insurance against loss and theft.

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Posted in Photography History, digital photography, photos | No Comments »

Broadway Photographer Leo Friedman Dies

Thursday, December 15th, 2011

Leo Friedman Dies At 92

Broadway Photographer Was Known For Capturing Movement In Still Photos

Photographer Leo Friedman, who made his career capturing Broadway stars in action during the golden age of the 1950s and 1960s, has died. He was 92. The photo seen here, which was scanned to digital by the New York Times, is one of Friedman’s most famous snapshots. It depicts the effervescent Carol Lawrence and Larry Kert as lovebirds Tony and Maria in “West Side Story.” Taken on a street near Friedman’s New York studio, the photo became the enduring emblem of the musical after having been chosen to appear on the covers of the playbill and original cast recording. It remains a signature image of Friedman’s impressive career.

Friedman’s career was at its height during the peak period of Broadway glamour. The 1950s and 1960s were also significant in the history of photography, as the expanded professional use of 35 millimeter photography allowed photographers to capture a sense of motion in their still pictures. Friedman was a ubiquitous presence in and around New York theaters during this time, photographing more than 800 shows including “Fiddler on the Roof,” “Cabaret,” “My Fair Lady,” and more. His photos show Lucille Ball marching with a bass drum in “Wildcat,” Laurence Olivier hoofing in “The Entertainer,” and Barbra Streisand making her Broadway debut in “I Can Get It for You Wholesale.” Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton, Bob Fosse, Sammy Davis Jr., and Lena Horne were just a few of the stars immortalized on stage by Friedman’s uniquely in-the-moment photographs.

As a freelance photographer, Friedman made it his specialty to capture actors in motion, both in rehearsal and during performance. He was hired by all the top magazines and newspapers, press agents, and producers, all of whom appreciated his ability to depict the movement of acting. When hired by a producer to take official photographs of a show, he would photograph a show scene by scene, but going backward from the end after a full performance. Friedman often attributed his success to his ability to work with high-maintenance stars. Many stars, such as Katharine Hepburn, developed personal friendships with Friedman after working with him professionally.

To see a gallery of Leo Friedman’s photos that have been scanned to digital by the New York Times, go to LA Times.

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Posted in Photography History, photos | No Comments »

Photo Memories: Hawaii Vacation

Tuesday, July 14th, 2009

Taking photos is the best way to remember a trip for years. Just by looking at a picture it can help you remember so much more than what is captured in that single shot. It can help you remember little things such as how the weather was that day, where the picture was taken, what you did that day before and after the picture was taken, why you choose to take this picture or it can even spark your memory about anything else that happened during that trip.

 

Just from looking at this one photo from a year ago so many memories go through my mind.  I spent two weeks in Hawaii for a study abroad program through my university. This photo was taken that last night of my trip in Kauai.  From looking at this picture I can remember how beautiful of a day it was. The sun was shining all day and temperature was perfect. This picture was taken right around sunset. You can tell this just from looking at the picture because the sun is going behind the clouds and is getting lower.

 

Looking at this picture it reminds me of that evening when my classmates and I walked down the road from our condo to these lava rocks. We walked on to the lava rocks to throw a lei into the ocean; it is a traditional way to say goodbye to the islands. I remember exactly how I was feeling- I was sad because we were leaving and I was happy because it helped me reflect on all the good times throughout the trip.

 

Before this picture I remember how hard we were working on our final presentation. Walking down to the lava rocks helped me relax before we had to present. We took a moment of silence to reflect on our trip and I can still remember the sound of the waves crashing against the lava rocks.

 

This picture gives me a visual memory of my trip that I will have forever. Every time I look at this picture it takes me back to the day that I took it. Behind just this one picture there are many memories, imagine a whole photo album!

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Creating Your Own Masterpiece with ScanDigital

Friday, June 5th, 2009

 
When we started ScanDigital more than two years ago, part of our fundamental purpose was to not only provide an easy, user-friendly way to have analog materials converted to digital, but also to provide tools to enhance our customers memory keeping experiences and abilities.  We have worked hard to create a wonderful customer experience and I am pleased to extend that even further today with the release of our Canvas Print Console.
 
When we decided to offer canvas prints, I knew that the only way to do this would be to place our brand and name alongside someone who is known for a comparable level of detail and quality.  I spoke with a number of potential canvas print partners before ultimately settling with Harvest Productions.  After looking at numerous sample canvases from a spectrum of sources, I can honestly say that Harvest is the hands down leader in the canvas print industry.

Check out the video below that gives insight into the Harvest process: 

Harvest Productions has traditionally serviced the fine art market by working with world-renowned artists and publishers to reproduce their art in a way that sets them apart from their competitors. As Harvest has begun to branch out into the Commercial and Décor printing markets they have found that these markets share many of the same requirements as the fine art market. And now, due to developments precipitated by the incredible demands of fine art market, ScanDigital is in a unique position to bring Harvest’s technology and quality to the consumer market.
 
Now, I know what you’re thinking…  I admit I was skeptical too and thought to myself: “This sounds great, but it must cost a fortune!”  But that is not the case.  Through a 50,000 square foot facility, Harvest has optimized its workflow, leveraging expertise, capacity, material sourcing, and volume discounts to offer a superior product at a competitive price.  Amazing, really. (For more insights into how they do this, please see the video below)
 
How can this extra quality be free?  Using Iris, Roland, Mimaki, flatbed UV and Vutek technologies, Harvest delivers the highest quality on demand printing available anywhere. The unparalleled quality of the products produced by Harvest Productions is achieved by strict adherence to the their quality standards throughout the digital reproduction process. From image capture to artistic enhancements, no detail is overlooked nor flaw accepted.
 

Creating the ability for our customers to take a photo from its newly digitized form into a physical product and then have that product in their hands in a matter of days, not weeks was also important.  With that in mind we’ve built an incredibly easy system. Simply log into your account, select a photo or series of photos and check out within a couple of minutes. About a week later, an incredible canvas print will arrive at your door.
 
I am truly excited about this product offering and I hope you’ll take advantage of the opportunity to create something new for your home or office from something old.  We continue to be proud of the service and products we offer and this latest integration with Harvest Productions is yet another extension of our core philosophies.
 
Please check out our new console.  As always, our friendly customer service representatives are standing by to help should you need any help.

 

 

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Posted in ScanDigital, business, photos | 1 Comment »

Take a Peek into Our Process: How We Check-In Orders

Thursday, May 28th, 2009

 

 

Hi, I’m Kiley. One of the many hats I wear at work is that of the inventory/check-in person. I’m actually the first person to see your cherished memories when they arrive here. Thousands of ScanDigital orders arrive at our facility in El Segundo, California each year and it’s my job to make sure everything in these boxes are inventoried and accounted for. See below for a detailed peek into our check-in process.

 

First, check out the video of me checking in an order here:

 

 

Step 1- UPS delivers your order to our facility.

 

Before we get to the actual inventory process, let me explain our shipping process. It starts with our ScanDigital website, which is fully integrated with UPS. When you place your order, a UPS shipping label is generated. You can then print out and use the label when you’re ready to ship. This provides you with a tracking number for the package, which is also cataloged in our system to fully track your package while on route to our facility.

 

Step 2- Open each package and put in separate sealed containers.

 

Similarly, the first thing I do when packages arrive is to grab plenty of plastic containers. When I open a package, I instantly empty the contents into a separate container, which ensures each order is properly inventoried separately.

 

The packages we receive at ScanDigital come in different shapes and sizes. Whether it is a large box, a round tube, or a padded envelope, I always make sure to open it very carefully. I’ve seen photos get stuck in the corner of large manila envelopes and slides jammed under the box flap, so it’s very important to take great care in ensuring the materials remain unharmed and nothing is left behind. Also, if a customer has arranged their photos in a certain way, I am careful to keep that organization when lifting the entire package into the container.

 

 

Step 3- Put a name tag on the container for easy tracking.

 

Then, I put a name tag on the container, allowing for easier tracking within our facility. The name tag includes all the order information including the customer name, the order ID, the date received and the date due.

 

Once checked in, is trackable on our site. To view the current status of an order, customers can login to their ScanDigital account at anytime. Our EssentialTracker System allows you to see exactly what stage your order is in through all of our 13 steps including check-in, scanning, editing, finalizing, and shipping stages.

 

Step 4- Inventory the material in each package and enter information into our system.

 

Once I complete double-checking the box the materials arrived in, I begin the process of entering the order’s details in our system. First, I search by the customer’s last name on the box, or by the order ID provided in the order confirmation sheet included inside the package. Then I fill out the form with the exact count and format of the materials, as well as enter any additional instructions written by the customer. An accurate form is most important, as everyone from the scanners to the editors will use it as a reference while they work.

 

While customers don’t have to include notes or a set of instructions, they are welcome to in order to make sure we process the order exactly how the customer intended. While checking in each order, I also copy any specific instructions in our system to assure every request is noted.

 

Step 5- Print order details to include within the container.

 

The very last step of the process is to print out a hard copy of the form. This will be included in the container with the materials for the scanners to fill out and refer to. As soon as the container is properly inventoried and tagged, all that’s left is to deposit the container into the backroom, ready for the scanners to start work.

 

 

If you have any questions, you can contact me personally at 310.773.3970 or find me on Twitter at @KileySD. Hope you hear from you soon!

Posted in Organizational, Photo Scanning, Photo Tips, ScanDigital, business, photos | 1 Comment »

Spring Cleaning Tips for Your Photos and Home Movies

Thursday, April 9th, 2009

With Spring Cleaning season upon us, we asked friend Chantale Bordonaro for some tips on how to best organize your photos and home movies.  Chantale, Certified Professional Organizer, founder of Simplicity Source and LA’s Incoming Chapter President of the National Association of Professional Organizers knows her stuff – see what she suggests below.

 

But first, let me remind you about ScanDigital’s Spring Cleaning Special that gives you 15% off all orders placed before April 14th. Let us help you organize your photos, slides, negatives and home movies effortlessly! Use the coupon code : SpringClean09

 

 

Easy Ways to Organize Your Photos and Home Movies

By Chantale Bordonaro

 

 

Organizing digital photos and movies can rapidly become a very daunting task if you are like many of my clients and just keep them on the memory card forever! Off course, you can click away and just purchase a new memory card once the first one is full…. But remember that the idea is to enjoy those memories and to share them, right?

 

 

 

Here are some easy tips on how to start organizing your digital special moments:

 

 

First Step:

1-   Temporary holding folder:

Every couple of weeks, download your memory card onto your computer in a temporary holding folder name “photos to sort “ on your desktop.  If you have time now, start picking your favorites. 

2-     Keep the best ones!

Eliminate the clutter; delete the ones too dark, the ones where mom is missing her smile; be tough just like you were when you delete the papers ones. Even though digital does not take as much space, you still want to control the flow.

3-     Rename your photos and movies:

Be descriptive and consistent!

4-     Tag your photos with key words (or names of people in them)

 

Second Step:

Initial purge done! Now you want to move the photos and videos to their permanent home in My Pictures.  But wait!  That’s where the system really becomes important for future retrieval.

1-     Create detailed subfolders:

The easiest way is to create subfolders under My Pictures.  Decide on the structure based on how you would usually look for them. Would you try to look by year, by event, by location, etc? For me, I like to create names like 2009-11 Luca 3rd birthday party or 2009-01 New Year Celebrations

2-     Use numbers to replace actual month

Notice the number after the month? It makes it easier then actually writing January or November, as now the folders will actually be sorted chronologically.

3-     Moving time!

Once the folders are created, just moved the pictures or movies in the right one. Voila!

 

 

Couple more top tips:

1-     Use Tags to mark photos that will need some touch-ups (those can be done later)

2-     Don’t be afraid of using software to help you stay organize. You have plenty of free options out there from Adobe Photoshop Album, Picasa from Google, IPhoto, or IView.

3-     Archive, archive, active!

Burn CD or DVD of your photos and video once you downloaded them. Schedule weekly back-up of your files on an external hard-drive. Also, you can back up your photos online on websites such as ScanDigital.com.

 

With couple of easy steps, you will be able to go back down memory lane with only couple of keys to push and a lot less frustration! Who knows, next, you might even start creating albums online to share with friends and family!

 

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Posted in Organizational, Photo Tips, ScanDigital, ScanDigital Affiliates, photos | No Comments »

ScanDigital Takes Manhattan

Wednesday, December 10th, 2008

I’ve been meaning to write this post for some time, but I wanted to share with everyone our experience from NYC at the end of October.  I spent a week in New York with Pamela Weiss our head of marketing/PR and Matt Stone our VP, Operations.  The original impetus for the trip was the PhotoPlus Expo trade show and then we extended the trip a bit to accomplish other meetings as well.

It was an exciting and fast paced trip, but we returned with new ideas, new customers and new connections.  We also had a ton of fun and enjoyed being in the city along the way.  Just an all around successful week.

We decided to take a red-eye in order to not lose a day with the West to East coast.  We had enjoyed a comfortable flight on the new VirginAmerica airline (I’d recommend giving them a try) and arrived in NYC’s JFK airport at 5:30 AM, grabbed our bags and headed off to our hotel.  After dropping off our bags, we went to the Javits Center to set up our booth for the show.  We completed set up by 8:30 AM and had about 3 hours to kill before we could access our hotel rooms.

Quick thinking, I decided we’d all go to my favorite breakfast spot from my NYC days, the Crooked Tree Creperie on St. Marks between 1st Avenue and Avenue A.  We arrived to learn they were closed which became a theme of the trip – three attempts, three strikes.

So we grabbed breakfast and a diner close by and headed back to the hotel.  Then we waited…and waited…and waited some more for our rooms to open up.

We were all pretty worn out, Matt and I decided to hang out in the lobby and Pamela decided to fight the drowsiness with caffeine.  Which resulted in a highly caffeinated Pamela snapping photos of an exhausted Matt and I in the lobby.  Here is some of her finer work:

Finally we checked in and settled in.  A great businessman once told me success is all about shoe leather, meaning you just have to get out and work those leather soles for revenues.  Matt and I agree, but only wanted to work the bottom leather if the top leather was looking great.  So we hit Grand Central Station for a shine:

With newly shined shoes, during the first evening in NYC, I had the pleasure of attending the Inc. Magazine reception for their 30 under 30 list, due to our July feature in their Start Up issue.  It was great to meet the Inc. team in person and I met so many great young entrepreneurs.

The next day we began the PhotoPlus Expo show.  Our booth turned out great and we had an opportunity to speak with a meet many existing customers and reach so many potential customers.  We always gain so much be being on the tradeshow floor speaking directly with our customers.  Running an online business, it is so easy to be trapped behind the computer, but so important to be out greeting customers and talking about our business.  The show lasted three days and was well attended.

Here is a great shot of our booth:

After our first day at the show, I wanted Matt and Pamela to experience Duke’s – a terrific BBQ restaurant on the east side.  It was a staple of my diet for more than two years in NYC and I was thrilled to return.  Matt didn’t hold back ordering their Sampler Platter, which basically was five kinds of meat on one plate.  Sides were served on a second plate and everything is washed down with the house beer – Pabst Blue Ribbon (which is elegantly served in a bucket).  This photo says it all:

After three days on our feet, we celebrated another successful ScanDigital tradeshow at my favorite restaurant – Blue Water Grill:

Pamela and I stayed in NYC for two more days after the show to meet with members of the press and tell the ScanDigital story.  The highlight for me was the afternoon we spent at the Hearst Tower.  The Tower was completed in 2005 after I had moved to Los Angeles, so I had never seen the building.  I must say it is now in my top 5 buildings in the world.  I was amazed and Pamela quickly was tired of hearing me rave about the buildings outstanding architecture.  The building was designed by Sir Norman Foster, was the first Gold LEED certified skyscraper in NYC.  I’ll let you read about it here if you’re interested, but one quick fact – using an exoskeloton design they saved the use of over 2,000 tons of steel…Amazing!

Overall it was a fun, exciting and successful NYC trip for the ScanDigital team!

Check out a 30 second slideshow here:

Posted in ScanDigital, business, digital photography, negative scanning, photos | No Comments »

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