Sunday, August 16, 2009

Scanning for Posterity is WORK

So I finally began to scan old pictures that I have, and by old I mean pre-digital. I kept putting if off because I wanted to do it RIGHT, and I'm nothing if not a procrastinating perfectionist (thanks SO much Dad [for the perfectionist part, not the procrastinating part, that's all me]).

So I picked up a pile of pics that my Aunt Becky took on a trip to the finger lakes region back in 1995. We took my grandmother up there and took pictures of all the houses she lived in as a child, her first apartment with my grandfather, stuff like that. I have my own set of pics somewhere, these just happened to be nearby. My grandmother did not live in an insignificant number of houses. She grew up during the depression and they rented and moved constantly from place to place, probably wherever there was work for her father. She refers to the different houses by the name of the landlord, so for instance, in 1929, they lived in "the Tucker house".

So, 70 pictures.

Scanned at 600 dpi, saved in TIF format.

Final folder size is 2.84 GB.

So I guess I'll be buying an external drive sooner rather than later, huh?

Plus, it took HOURS and HOURS of time, because not only could I scan them, but I had to put a bit of white at the bottom of each picture and label it. So now, when I win the lottery and head off to live in BoraBora, someone can come behind me and actually know what each picture is.

I have to admit, it sorta felt like work a little bit, but I kept telling myself it was for a Good Cause and Future Generations of Genealogists.

Probably it would have been faster if I didn't have the tv on, for instance, now I have Body Double on and I keep getting distracted. It was on On Demand and I was curious, Melanie Griffith is so YOUNG, I wonder if this was her first film? I'm not the biggest Brian DePalma fan, I like Carrie, but that's probably it.

Sorry, see, I got distracted. So there's my first scanning project, complete.

And here's a few pics for your viewing pleasure:

5 comments:

  1. Marvelous job! Congratulations. And there's nothing wrong with being a perfectionist. ABSOLUTELY nothing. And, yes, Melanie Griffith was pretty hot when she was about eighteen, but that was sixty years ago.

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  2. AWESOME idea about adding the text to the bottom. I've been creating absolutely ridiculous file names to get the relevant information on them, but this is better. Now I have to go through the 100+ scans I did this weekend and add this feature. Yay. I'm scanning in my grandfather's photo albums and I'm sure this will be a decades-long project.

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  3. A "procrastinating perfectionist" ~ wow, I can relate to that. I'm always worried about starting something if I don't have all the facts and a great plan....sometimes I just need to START.

    I really like the idea of adding the white space and text to the bottom. Thanks for sharing!!

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  4. Loved going to my grandmother's farm when I was a kid!!

    I am sorry it feels like 'work.' :(

    Anyone that says they are not a procrasinator, don't believe them, everyone, and I mean everyone has something they procrasinate about!!

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