Family and community history of the second half of the twentieth century is in danger. We are overwhelmed with legacies of albums and loose photographs. Forgetting who’s who and what they did is losing our collective and family memory. My workshops are designed to give historical societies and residents the tools to organize and store photos for the future and create small projects/albums/exhibits on a topic of interest in readily shareable and digestible formats. I offer planning support in getting control of the photo archive and photography and history workshops for staff, volunteers, and/or residents. . Contact me to discuss your needs and to get information about my rates. PS -- I also offer personal photography tutorials!
PHOTO COLLECTION PLANNING SUPPORT
Setting up a photo archive takes some planning as well as working with staff and volunteers to master complex workflows. What do we scan and don't? How do we store photographs that belong with collections? Shall we invite residents to bring their photos? How do we secure digital files? I will work with you to set up a system, create "how-to" information for staff and/or volunteers, and if desired work with small groups to get started. I am also happy to get you started on planning or creating a project that involves sharing photos, whether it be an online exhibit, a fundraising calendar, or a photo book. Contact me.
Photography and History Workshops
These workshops are suitable for historical groups as well as people interested in preserving, digitizing and storing, and using historical images in family or museum/archival collections.* The introductory workshop covers all the basics and is not only suitable for training staff and/or volunteers, but can be hosted as a service to your town or community, friend-or fundraiser. For rates, and for advanced or specialized workshops that include the creation of a book or exhibit, please contact me.
In four sessions of two hours, all of which include of hands-on practice, participants learn scanning and digitizing, storing, and using or sharing images. The sessions that focus on using photographs are on a choice of topics, for instance on working with digital images, exhibiting photographs, or creating books or calendars with historical photographs. Together, we decide whether to hold these on one or two days, or four.
Prerequisites: Some familiarity with computer usage; access to a computer for those who wish to work along at home.
Maximum number of participants: 12.
* While the physical preservation and storage of photographs will come up, the objective of this workshop is not to teach physical preservation and storage methods.
A. Digital photo files: file formats, explanation of terms, and reproduction requirements; scanning and naming photo files
B. Organizing and storing digital files: naming; storage options compared; best practices to secure longevity and access
C. Sharing images: print-ready products like a postcard or brochure; online: social media and creating a gallery or album
D. Telling a story with photographs: elements of narrative; choosing a topic
E. (Optional) Creating a project: exhibit, book, album, calendar
F. (Optional) Self-Publishing a project
