In September 2013, while rummaging through the Bishop's Office in Cove, I came across two boxes of glass-plate negatives (of various sizes) and lantern slides. I opened one of the boxes and found that a few of the plates had bonded with a piece of paper. It appeared that someone had lined the plates with tissue paper in an effort to protect them from scratching against each other. In the short-term, this may have been the best option for preserving the plates. However, in the long-term, as you will see below, the emulsion had bonded with the paper. If we were ever going to see the content of the images, the plates would have to be separated.
I contacted a colleague, Arthur Babitz, for help. For nearly three years, Arthur and I have worked together on a photo digitization and preservation project for the History Museum of Hood River County. Here is the first phase of our project to separate the glass-plates from the paper. Keep in mind, that in most cases, I would contact a photo conservator for help, but in this case, we decided to tackle the experiment on our own. We determined the best method for separating the plates would be to soak them in distilled water. In part two of the project, I will display the results of our experiment.
Part of the project was to rehouse the glass-plates into acid-free four flap enclosures and archival boxes, purchased from Hollinger Metal Edge. You have to be very careful when handling fragile glass plate negatives. I place the glass-plates onto a foam pad, and develop a plan for how and where to move them. I wear latex-free nitrille gloves when handling any photographs so as not to leave finger prints or to transfer dirt and/or oil from my hands. Many of the plates have started to split from years of poor storage and temperature and humidity conditions; some have broken altogether. When working with broken plates, I think its best to carefully wrap each piece of the negative individually into its own enclosure, but to store the pieces together. As you can see, the partitions in the box ensure that the glass plates remain vertical and protected. Next, Arthur and I will scan the plates, and I will show you some of the best techniques for getting a quality scan and how to avoid interference patterns such as Newton's Rings.
Here's a link to the first scan.
I contacted a colleague, Arthur Babitz, for help. For nearly three years, Arthur and I have worked together on a photo digitization and preservation project for the History Museum of Hood River County. Here is the first phase of our project to separate the glass-plates from the paper. Keep in mind, that in most cases, I would contact a photo conservator for help, but in this case, we decided to tackle the experiment on our own. We determined the best method for separating the plates would be to soak them in distilled water. In part two of the project, I will display the results of our experiment.
Part of the project was to rehouse the glass-plates into acid-free four flap enclosures and archival boxes, purchased from Hollinger Metal Edge. You have to be very careful when handling fragile glass plate negatives. I place the glass-plates onto a foam pad, and develop a plan for how and where to move them. I wear latex-free nitrille gloves when handling any photographs so as not to leave finger prints or to transfer dirt and/or oil from my hands. Many of the plates have started to split from years of poor storage and temperature and humidity conditions; some have broken altogether. When working with broken plates, I think its best to carefully wrap each piece of the negative individually into its own enclosure, but to store the pieces together. As you can see, the partitions in the box ensure that the glass plates remain vertical and protected. Next, Arthur and I will scan the plates, and I will show you some of the best techniques for getting a quality scan and how to avoid interference patterns such as Newton's Rings.
Here's a link to the first scan.