 I’ve been a bit distracted here not only with the new camera, Christmas preparations, and planning for next year, but also with a project I have undertaken – scanning slides.
Most of our early childhood and family photos are in the form of slides rather than prints, and I figured it was definitely time to save and share them before they deteriorate further. So I borrowed a slide scanner and got to work. Hundreds of photos on CD will be a good Christmas present for everybody in the family.
There are some beauties among them – above is my brother Sean on his first birthday, working on his sweet tooth in preparation for life as an ice cream man.
On the right is myself (left) and my sister (right) outside the family homestead in Cork with our cousins by marriage, the O’Learys…
Sadly, I still haven’t found one of me with ice cream!
I love it! That looks like a little mini Ivan in the Cork photo!
Hope you are all well. Hope to see you over Christmas.
Katy
First of all, I love your blog, even though it’s embarrassing when I drool on the keyboard. Your video of the chocolate cake almost made me cry. Such torture to see it and not be able to taste it. And the ice cream headache? Hilarious!
What has transformed me from lurker to commenter is your scanning project. What a marvelous gift for you family.
As an archivist, though, I sincerely hope you plan to print out your favorite photos (or at the very least hold on to the original slides).
Digital is fantastic for sharing, but it’s not the best long term storage choice. That doesn’t mean that you need to print *all* of them, of course.
My website has free articles on this topic: http://www.jacobsarchival.com
Thanks again and I promise to stop by the shop next time I’m in Ireland!
-Sally
Thanks Katy! And Sally, thanks for your appreciation. We’d never throw away the old slides, and we do believe in prints. It’s just they are growing mold and dust and getting faded…
Kieran,
Watch out for the mold! It’s nearly impossible to eradicate. Inactive spores will re-bloom once conditions are warm and moist enough.
Here’s a link to my favorite article about the problem, entitled “Invasion of the Giant Mold Spore.” Yes, that’s the real title, and it’s written by conservation experts.
http://palimpsest.stanford.edu/byauth/nyberg/spore.html