The closest thing to time travel

There is an amazing digital revolution going on in the world of
photography. Digital cameras get most of the attention, but they are
only half of the story.

The closest thing to time travel that I have ever experienced was the
scanning of old film images from almost-forgotten periods of my life.
This was especially true for slides that had until now only been held
up to light to look at, and B&W negatives from a college photo class
that were not among the handful that were printed.

There is something emotionally-riveting about seeing an old image come
to life on a modern-day CRT. It gives you no choice but to confront
the past and evaluate where you have gone since then.

Before we spend all our time re-taking everything with our new digital
cameras, have we given thought to old work that is worthy of new life?

I worry that there is an incalculable amount of precious film images
fading away that would be of great value today if scanned. This every
bit as much includes the work of casual snapshooters as well as
photographers. I have learned that even the most mundane old images
are fascinating today, such as insides of stores or parking lots full
of cars. Imagine the value of an old Kodachrome slide from the 50's
showing a parking area full of new-looking classic cars. After a good
scanning and a little Photoshop, it could be a work of art. The
possibilites are endless.

It often seems to me that companies like Kodak have missed the boat by
not educating the public about this and using their resources to offer
good scanning at a fair price.



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Some people claim that there's a woman to blame, but I think it's all...

Richard's fault!

Visit the Sounds of the cul-de-sac at www.richardsfault.com

"richardsfault" wrote in message
...

There is an amazing digital revolution going on in the world of
photography. Digital cameras get most of the attention, but they are
only half of the story.

great stuff snipped

I worry that there is an incalculable amount of precious film images
fading away that would be of great value today if scanned. This every
bit as much includes the work of casual snapshooters as well as
photographers. I have learned that even the most mundane old images
are fascinating today, such as insides of stores or parking lots full
of cars. Imagine the value of an old Kodachrome slide from the 50's
showing a parking area full of new-looking classic cars. After a good
scanning and a little Photoshop, it could be a work of art. The
possibilites are endless.

Great post, Richard, and I agree with you 100%.
I have come into the posession of thousands of old slides taken by my late
grandfather. He never made a single print from any of them, and most have
not been viewed by any family member for over 50 years. It has been
absolutely fascinating to go through them.
Unfortunately, my film scanner seems to be on the blink, so I'm looking
forward to another solution.

"richardsfault" wrote in message
...

There is an amazing digital revolution going on in the world of
photography. Digital cameras get most of the attention, but they are
only half of the story.

great stuff snipped

I worry that there is an incalculable amount of precious film images
fading away that would be of great value today if scanned. This every
bit as much includes the work of casual snapshooters as well as
photographers. I have learned that even the most mundane old images
are fascinating today, such as insides of stores or parking lots full
of cars. Imagine the value of an old Kodachrome slide from the 50's
showing a parking area full of new-looking classic cars. After a good
scanning and a little Photoshop, it could be a work of art. The
possibilites are endless.

Great post, Richard, and I agree with you 100%.
I have come into the posession of thousands of old slides taken by my late
grandfather. He never made a single print from any of them, and most have
not been viewed by any family member for over 50 years. It has been
absolutely fascinating to go through them.
Unfortunately, my film scanner seems to be on the blink, so I'm looking
forward to another solution.