This scrapbook project has a key component that sets itself apart from others: the content that needs to be used has not been uploaded online. This project has set aside notes that are dedicated towards the entire process as well as each steps that has been taken in order to be successful and have the resulting photos of the scrapbooks utilized throughout this website.
The first aspect of the digitization process is to definitively decide what to digitize. At the UMW Special Collections and Archives, there are a myriad of different collections that have yet to be digitized. Getting familiar with the physical texts is important to make sure that align with the project. The scrapbook group looked through the dozens of scrapbooks within the Special Collections, with explicit instructions to choose more than just one to digitize. At the end of our endeavors, we ended up only choosing one scrapbook within the UMW Special Collections, Catherine Ficklin Stephens. Our group had the fortune of having one other scrapbook for this project, Mary Ayers Farmer, owned by one of our project partners, Jacob Martin, who graciously let the group utilize Mary’s scrapbook for this project.
The second part of this project was to ensure before any of these scrapbooks were utilized by this group that we had the legal rights to be able to use these scrapbooks without any ramifications. Because Ficklin’s scrapbook was already donated to the University by the previous owners, there was no need to worry much about legal permissions to use and upload the scrapbook. Ayers’s scrapbook, however, was not already previously within the UMW Archives collection. As a result UMW, as well as this scrapbook project group, did not have the explicit right to be able to use this content. While it was low risk considering that, the owner, and creator of the scrapbook, has already passed away, we thought that it would be in our best interest to do anything that would grant us legal access to use this scrapbook. Jacob went to the last surviving member of Ayers’s family to ask verbally and in writing for permission to use the content that Ayers provided. Jacob made a document to sign over the copyright to himself, so that in the future, if one were to want to utilize this scrapbook for any future project, one would have to reach out to Jacob Martin for explicit permission. Once that got successfully signed and submitted, we could finally begin the process of the two scrapbooks.
The first part of the digitization process was to create a schedule to be able to digitize. With the help of Ms. Angie Kemp of the Special Collections Department, the scrapbook group was able to set up a weekly meeting time to be able to digitize the scrapbooks. Our groups split the process into two weeks, focusing on each their own session of digitization.
The group utilized the Digital Archives Lab that UMW offers, particularly utilizing the Book2Net V-Scan Cobra rare book scanner. This scanner was instrumental to the process of getting these physical books into digital files. This scanner is specifically utilized to photograph bound books, sitting at a tilted angle for books to be placed directly under the cameras. We began the first session dedicated to Catherine’s scrapbook. The second was dedicated to Mary.
The first part is to situate the scrapbook just below the cameras, lining the spine up so that both cameras can get a clear picture of both sides. The software that is utilized in conjunction to the scanner is set up to get a quick picture of the photo from the desktop. Once the picture is taken, the software allows the user to maneuver the crop for the image, orienting the crop. Once you change the crop, you must take the same photo to ensure that the photo is taken with the new crop. This is a repeated process throughout the entire scrapbook. One issue that the group ran into as we were taking photos was that some of the pages would not stay open on account of the spine’s age. The scanner has a glass top that can be lowered to keep the pages open, but the group was advised against using the glass. The glass is known to smudge graphite or other materials on the pages, so the group had to figure out other ways to keep the page open. The group utilized other tools, such as a bone stick to hold open the page, or other times used a weighted string. You can see some of these methods in the photos.
Scrapbooks are very unique and at times hard to figure out how to approach digitizing them. Some of these scrapbooks have pamphlets or other materials. Both scrapbooks contained these contents, to which our group had to have in-depth conversations as to what to do with these materials. After multiple conversations with Special Collections, we have come to a decision that the group would only digitize the materials that had around two pages. A future group will expand on this project and digitize the interior pamphlets and loose pages to add to the total collection for both scrapbooks.
Once all of these pages were completed, it was now important to properly save these files. The Book2Net V-Scan Cobra rare book scanner takes photographs in TIFF files, which makes visualization of the photo as clear as possible as you zoom in. However, TIFF files are incredibly large, especially for WordPress to be able to handle the files. The group needed to save the files as TIFF, and later, Ms. Kemp went back to create a special process in Adobe to batch convert all the TIFF files into JPGS. The TIFF files are then saved for the library’s use and will later be used to create a database for the scrapbook. After the conversion, all of these images were put into a special SharePoint that was shared with all of the members of this project.
The final component of the digitization process was successfully applying the images to the website. This took the original form of using the Twenty-Twenty Four theme through WordPress, which proved to not have the sort of design that would aide in the site’s construction. After this setback, the group headed to the UMW Digital Knowledge Center to have some professional consultation. The recommendation from the UMW Digital Knowledge Center was to change the theme to the Twenty Ten theme. After changing to this theme, the group focused on the process of adjusting the site and uploading the images in order to present the media within WordPress properly. After many different discussions, with a multitude of different ways to present the media, our group has concluded that the best way for media presentation was to utilize a media and text format within WordPress.
Digitizing content, and in particular scrapbooks, is overall a long process. Not only it is it important to ensure that there is proper copyright to be able to utilize and present the material, but as well to give space to understand new technologies and how to properly function said machinery. Thanks to the guidance of the UMW Special Collections Staff, we were able to not only coordinate space to be able to use these technologies, but we were also able to build our project through ongoing discourse and discussion throughout the entirety of this project. Overall, the partnership with the UMW Special Collections Staff as well as the UMW Digital Knowledge Center has been essential to the success of our digitization project. Their support, guidance, and expertise have enabled this project to navigate the complexities of digitizing scrapbooks effectively, ensuring that the resulting digital collection was able to be uploaded with minimal issues.