This is an "Ask Slashdot" on how to digitise large, fragile old maps that are too fragile to just put on a scanner:
http://ask.slashdot.org/story/10/03/10/2041245/Digitizing-and-Geocoding-Old-...
Anyone want to go there and help?
How would you approach this problem? Say you've gotten your hands on a serious ancient map collection and want to scan them and put them on Commons before they turn into dust.
- d.
On 10 March 2010 22:15, David Gerard dgerard@gmail.com wrote:
This is an "Ask Slashdot" on how to digitise large, fragile old maps that are too fragile to just put on a scanner:
http://ask.slashdot.org/story/10/03/10/2041245/Digitizing-and-Geocoding-Old-...
Anyone want to go there and help?
How would you approach this problem? Say you've gotten your hands on a serious ancient map collection and want to scan them and put them on Commons before they turn into dust.
While very large flatbed scanners do exist the only way to do it with a reasonable budget is to place on a flat surface and photograph straight down. Getting the lighting right is an absolute pain though. That can be kept good enough for rough and ready results by moving the camera further back and relying on distance to diffuse the flash. Alternatively long exposure times and rely on natural light. Post processing can help a lot with B&W maps. Colour would present a major challenge.
Heh problem those on a budget are more likely to face is how to do this with maps in a library where tripods and the like are unlikely to be an option.
On Thu, Mar 11, 2010 at 9:35 AM, geni geniice@gmail.com wrote:
While very large flatbed scanners do exist the only way to do it with a reasonable budget is to place on a flat surface and photograph straight down.
A handheld scanner would do the job (or, as someone suggested at Slashdot, remove the lid from a regular-sized flatbed scanner, and move either it or the map around to scan sections of it that can be stitched together with software).
Getting the lighting right is an absolute pain though. That can be kept good enough for rough and ready results by moving the camera further back and relying on distance to diffuse the flash.
Most GLAMs that allow people to do their own photography of materials don't allow the use of flashes, for fear of damaging any light-sensitive inks or papers; direct sunlight is out for the same reason. I have been to several GLAMs, however, that will let people bring in tripods for their cameras with permission, and that have stands available for photography. I guess, check with your local institution to see what services they can offer.
Doing this at home, a room with plenty of diffuse natural light - such as one with a skylight - would be good.
One thing I would stress when handling old maps is that carefulness is key. Whatever approach you use, be sure to support the entire map and not cause anymore damage to it.
If I were a GLAM, I'd be a bit hesitant about allowing volunteers to do this without training. Maybe it would be a good idea to intern at a GLAM doing conservation and archival stuff before trying to scan in their maps?
________________________________ From: Stephen Bain stephen.bain@gmail.com To: Wikimedia Commons Discussion List commons-l@lists.wikimedia.org Sent: Wed, March 10, 2010 10:22:08 PM Subject: Re: [Commons-l] Digitising large, fragile old maps?
On Thu, Mar 11, 2010 at 9:35 AM, geni geniice@gmail.com wrote:
While very large flatbed scanners do exist the only way to do it with a reasonable budget is to place on a flat surface and photograph straight down.
A handheld scanner would do the job (or, as someone suggested at Slashdot, remove the lid from a regular-sized flatbed scanner, and move either it or the map around to scan sections of it that can be stitched together with software).
Getting the lighting right is an absolute pain though. That can be kept good enough for rough and ready results by moving the camera further back and relying on distance to diffuse the flash.
Most GLAMs that allow people to do their own photography of materials don't allow the use of flashes, for fear of damaging any light-sensitive inks or papers; direct sunlight is out for the same reason. I have been to several GLAMs, however, that will let people bring in tripods for their cameras with permission, and that have stands available for photography. I guess, check with your local institution to see what services they can offer.
Doing this at home, a room with plenty of diffuse natural light - such as one with a skylight - would be good.
On 11 March 2010 08:24, Geoffrey Plourde geo.plrd@yahoo.com wrote:
One thing I would stress when handling old maps is that carefulness is key. Whatever approach you use, be sure to support the entire map and not cause anymore damage to it. If I were a GLAM, I'd be a bit hesitant about allowing volunteers to do this without training. Maybe it would be a good idea to intern at a GLAM doing conservation and archival stuff before trying to scan in their maps?
The use case here is someone who has the old maps in his personal collection and is wondering how to deal with them.
Suggestions I liked on Slashdot included (a) ask your local museum for advice (b) ask local art shops for advice - where do local artists get paintings scanned at a reasonable price?
- d.