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HEFCE Funded Projects 2005/2006

 

Project Title: London Architecture Online


Completion Date: December 2006
Project Manager: Rodger Sykes (Head of Visual Image Service)
Department: Visual Image Service - Birkbeck Library

Project Description Summary

The aim of the London Architecture Online project is to create a searchable, high quality collection of c.2000 digital images on architectural developments in London during the 17th and 18th centuries. This subject area was chosen for its multi-disciplinary appeal and expansion potential, as well as its geographical significance to Birkbeck and reduced problems of copyright. The project’s core source material comes from the Central Slide Library’s extensive 35mm slide collection on the subject, which is used to support many art, architecture and history courses of varying academic levels, both within Birkbeck and beyond. The project will further the eLearning aims of the Birkbeck Library Visual Image Service by allowing College staff and students online access to these visual materials for teaching and learning. It is hoped that the conversion of existing analogue materials will generate an ongoing parallel digital image provision, which in turn will encourage digital image usage for teaching within the College. In this way, the project will potentially offer students an enhanced and enriched learning experience.

Birkbeck Library

Visual Image Service

HEFCE funded digital image project: London Architecture Online (LAO)

Project Team

  • Liz Drew Visual Resources Manager, School of HAFVM, FA
  • David Flanders Multi Media Developer, Library
  • Karyn Gowlett Visual Image Service Officer, Library
  • Yanitsa Hristova LAO Digital Imaging Assistant, Visual Image Service, Library
  • Rodger Sykes Head of Visual Image Service, Library (Project Manager)
  • Dr. Leslie Topp Senior Lecturer, History of Art & Architecture, FCE

With additional advice and support from:

  • Martin Draper Library Systems Administrator
  • Tim Fletcher Library Systems Manager
  • Nick Lambert Cache Team Research Fellow, School of HAFVM
  • Adrian Tribe CCS Web Manager

LAO project update - 20th June 2006

During April and May priority was given to a number of technical issues relating to set-up, i.e. the acquisition and installation of computer hardware and software, and attempting to resolve networking obstacles arising out of the fact that the Visual Image Service (VIS) is sited in Gordon House, which is a UCL building. The relevant analogue slides were organised in preparation for the image capture process. Yanitsa Hristova carried out slide scan tests, optimised the image capture process and assisted with research on image management systems.

The management of this pilot project is described in the original HEFCE submission document as being broken down into three stages or components:

  1. Image capture workflow - digital scanning and restoring image quality
  2. Image Management System (IMS) and metadata standards
  3. Web-based image access, user management and authentication

The above broad analysis will be developed as a theoretical methodology and as a working method based on experience, appropriate standards and good practice. Data storage and preservation is a vital but separate, over-arching element which drives the whole three-stage digital image management process. Estimated at 70GB for the pilot project, data storage and preservation for the image files and metadata will be via an LAO network drive on the CCS server.

The necessary processes and procedures for stage 1, Image Capture Workflow, are now in place and the LAO photo-slides are systematically being scanned and stored locally. For stage 2, an IMS (Luna Insight) is being tested on a 60 day free trial. Yanitsa Hristova and Rodger Sykes are developing a cataloguing template based on VRA core categories and metadata standards.

Progress on setting up the project

There were unexpected delays during February, March and April in the delivery of hardware and software for setting up the project. During this time work was carried out on identifying and sequencing a large quantity of relevant ‘backlog’ slides that will form a significant part of the source material. A chronological account of progress on the practicalities of setting up the project are itemised mainly under the first of the above three stages of management:

1.   Image capture workflow - digital scanning and image quality

• Staff: Melena Hope started on 22nd March as the replacement Slide Library Assistant (0.4 FTE); Yanitsa Hristova started on 5th April as the LAO Digital Imaging Assistant (0.6 FTE).

• Hardware: the project PC (2 GHz / 250 GB HD) was installed in Room 210 on 2nd May and a Nikon LS 5000 ED slide scanner was installed on 8th May, by Tim and Martin of the Library Systems Team.

• Software: Adobe Creative Suite 2 (including Photoshop CS2) was installed and activated on the LAO PC on 4th May - thanks again to Tim and Martin.

• Adobe activation: Adobe allow two activations of their software discs - one activation has now been used; a second activation of the Adobe software will be kept for future use when the LAO and other digital image developments will require input from other staff members of the Visual Image Service.

• File formats: slide scans were made in TIFF, JPEG2000 & JPEG file formats following David’s advice on integrated metadata advantages of JPEG 2000.

• Image resolution: between 10th & 19th May Yanitsa methodically tested repeat image scans at 35 different resolution settings in each of TIFF, JPEG 2000, & JPEG formats; the optimum resolution to be adopted was 3,000 dpi/ppi, using a measurement of 3,200 pixels on the long side of the image.

• File size: using the standard adopted, a digital scan of a high quality colour slide (Greenwich: Queen’s House) required a TIFF file of 19.2 MB and a JPEG 2000 file of 9.28 MB - a total of 29MB for one image. However, many of the slides are black & white and will need only about half this file size.

• Data storage: on 26th May Rodger requested an LAO network drive on the CCS server; information on storage requirement, i.e. 70 GB for 2,000 images, was provided to Dave Willcox in CCS. On 30th May it was agreed that an LAO network drive would be available for storing images. However, the drive is not yet available and images are currently being stored on the D-drive of the PC and temporarily backed-up on Rodger’s N drive.

• Workflow: since 24th May, with the image capture procedure finally in place, good progress has been made on systematically scanning and editing 35 mm slides in Photoshop. Yanitsa has done an excellent job of transforming some of the older, more faded photographs into professionally restored architectural images in TIFF and JPEG 2000, and storing them on the D-drive of the PC.

• Authorised users: on 31st May, Rodger provided CCS and Library Systems with the authorised usernames of the VIS staff members who will need permission to work on the LAO network drive as digitisation plans develop within the Visual Image Service.

2.   Image Management System (IMS) and metadata standards

Choosing an appropriate IMS is  the next major step for the project in order to ensure controlled, authenticated access to digital image collections. Three IMS were currently being considered: Content DM, Luna Insight, and MDID - Madison Digital Image Database.

Luna Insight: Edinburgh University Library, Manchester University John Rylands Library, and Sheffield Hallam University are subscribers to Luna Insight, as is evident on their web sites. On 18th May a webex demonstration of Luna Insight was arranged and attended by members of the LAO team plus Adrian Tribe and Philip Payne. It was agreed that this IMS would be useful for the LAO project and that it had potential for further expansion at Birkbeck. Features noted were:

• It’s flexibility with different metadata systems was a strong feature, with a development of VRA core being planned for the descriptive metadata.

• It provides integrated support for user authentication and access management at different levels.

• Luna subscription provides access to an impressive range of important and relevant images and art collections:

  • ARTstor: over 350,000 images of world art and architecture,
  • AMICA: 115,000 images of fine and applied art in museums in USA,
  • Visual Collections: over 350,000 images of art, history and culture,
  • HAIL: the History of Art Image Library,
  • Archivision: 16,000 architectural images.

• Client image collections hosted by Luna are derivatives that live in file folders on a client server. Therefore, data can be migrated to an alternative database at some future date if necessary.

It was arranged that the Luna demo server would host a free 60 day trial for the LAO project from 11th June.

Rodger Sykes

20/06/06