RIT American Museums Survey on Digital Imaging for Direct Capture of Artwork

Franziska Frey, Rochester Institute of Technology, USA
Mitchell R. Rosen, Rochester Institute of Technology, USA
http://www.cis.rit.edu/museumSurvey/

Mini-Workshop: Direct Digital Capture

More than 50 cultural heritage institutions from throughout the United States participated in the American Museums Digital Imaging Benchmark Survey, part of a Rochester Institute of Technology research program investigating the use of digital photography for direct capture of artwork within the nation's museums, libraries and archives. The survey was available online for a year. Facts and opinions were sought from those responsible for photography departments to learn the history, current status and future of digital imaging within the institutions. Composed of 77 questions, the survey carefully built a comprehensive picture of the staff, equipment, software and workflow of the organizations and captured the attitudes of the respondents. An additional component of the project consisted in developing and testing a method to characterize high-end digital cameras. The Mellon Foundation sponsored the project as part of an effort to assist the cultural heritage community in implementing and updating its use of digital imaging and digital images.

Fur further background, see http://www.art-si.org/PDFs/Metric/Archive05_Rosen.pdf