Feb 062014
 

Two new images have been added to our restored Salem prints on-line listing. “Abandoned” is a photo of a building that was already old when the image was shot around the turn of the century. Light, shadows and textures enhance the effects of New England weather on this structure. “Champions” is a 1922 photograph of the Naumkeag baseball team with their championship trophy.

A whole new page has been added to the Restored Print tab for our Swampscott images. Most of these are restored from glass plate negatives dating to around 1850. The larger format and fine grain of these plates make them excellent original image sources. The images are captured on a high resolution flatbed scanner, retouched to balance exposure, repair damaged and missing areas (sometimes piecing together broken segments), and then reproduced as digital archival prints.

Two images were posted today, two of my favorites. “Puritan Elms” is a restored glass plate of the graceful Elms that once lined Puritan Lane. Most were destroyed by storms. This image hearkens back to a more leisurely road and a simpler time. The “Blaney Beach Fish House” print is a photo of Swampscott’s iconic Fish House when it was a lot newer. It’s a great example of how much things have changed and how much they look the same. Even a quick glance and you know the image: the Fish House. But look closer… no dock, no parking field, no benches; horse and buggy parked in foreground…the same, only quite different.

This print is also one that features “ghosts” on the beach. The long exposures required on these glass plates usually failed to capture people and things moving quickly but sometimes created these “ghosts” of people walking very slowly, or boats being pulled out by the tide. Actual prints are clear enough to see details of structures all along the beach.

 

 

Jan 162014
 

It’s been a while since I’ve been able to update this site, and we have come a long way. Starting this week, we’ll be adding new images regularly to our site. These images will be available for sale as museum-quality digital archival prints (giclée).

While the images on the site will necessarily be a rather low resolution, prints from their high resolution files can be enlarged substantially with no loss of quality. You can read the price tags in the shop windows, count the buttons on the fireman’s jacket, and find candid vignettes of turn-of-the-century life everywhere.

There are photos, post cards, maps and print ads ranging from the mid 1800s to the early 1900s. Sometimes, we’ll have a lot of information about the image, sometimes all we have is a picture. We scan them on a high resolution scanner, retouch scratches and missing pieces, balance density and reprint on a high resolution printer. We have sold these prints over the last several years strictly on a referral basis but now want to offer them to a wider audience.

Our Salem listing is already growing; it will soon be followed by our Swampscott images. We’ve created a new email account just for print ordering: digitalarchivalprint@verizon.net. All prints can be on semi-gloss photo paper, watercolor paper or canvas and can also be produced as note cards.

FreaksOur latest addition is called “Freaks.” It is one of several images connected with the 1926 Fourth of July Celebration in Salem. The celebration that year in Salem was special… it also celebrated the 300th anniversary of Salem’s founding by Roger Conant. Juniper Point (Salem Willows) sent a huge contingent (100) to the “Antiques, Horrible and Grotesque Parade.” The parade was an annual competition with the winner getting the prodigious sum of $100. With the theme of “Under the Big Top,” this was one of the floats they entered… and won first prize. There are several other images of some of the other floats I’ll be posting in the future.

 

Notes from “the other side”

 Posted by at 11:01 AM
Oct 182012
 

Digital Imaging has completed its physical move. For those of you who were unable to reach us last week, we apologize. Our phones and internet service were interrupted while we switched to a more powerful fiber optic system. While we are not fully operational just yet, we have our computers, phones, and internet services back on line.

We anticipate a return to “normal” by early next week as we unpack, regroup, and get organized. We appreciate you patience as we work out the bugs and find a place to put everything.

Just to reiterate our new market position, we will continue to create digital archival prints from both electronic files and artist’s originals as we have in the past. We will also continue to scan and electronically restore legacy images as well as historic photos of local sites, which will be available through this web site. We are also continuing to produce commercial large format graphics for interior and exterior applications. Please feel free to request a quote on your next project. And finally, we will continue to offer copywriting, typesetting, and graphic design services.

Watch this site for updates. And thanks for staying in touch!

 

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