Digitization, Retouching and Printing
Looking for an additional way to preserve your own film negatives, slides, prints, or other paper and 2D ephemera? Want an easier way of sharing captured memories with family and friends? Or are you interested in exploring the creative possibilities of collaging digital images made from your familiar photos? Bring these items to PMM and let the experienced staff of the Photo Archives capture them using our professional equipment and software.
We use Epson Perfection V750 Pro scanners to digitize large negatives, and Nikon D800 full-frame DSLR cameras for 35mm and 120mm film, slides, photo prints, and other 2D work. Either way, we’ll produce crisp high-resolution image files in either TIFF or jpeg format, or both (ask us about the difference between the two).
Digital Files Only
Bring your own flash drive with a minimum capacity of 8GB; these can be purchased inexpensively at any retail store that sells consumer electronics or computer accessories (Best Buy, Walmart, Walgreen’s, Radio Shack, etc.). A smaller capacity drive may work for a smaller number of originals; please check with us first. Alternatively, if you have a Google account (you have one automatically if you use a Gmail address), we can share the image files with you through Google Drive.
Important note: Please copy the Google folder to your computer as soon as you receive the email link from us, then notify us right away; we’ll delete the files from G Drive to free up our storage space.
Retouching
We can digitally remove blemishes, dust, tears and scratches from damaged photographs, enhance the contrast, and add toning, often making an old image look like new.
Printing
Starting with our digital images of your materials, we can produce high-quality archival inkjet prints suitable for framing; they’re a wonderful addition to your home and also make great gifts. Please note that the print quality will vary based on what type of originals we’re working with; in general, film and slides are better than prints, and large formats are better than small (for example, a digital image from a well-exposed, well-focused 4×5” glass plate will yield a large print with breathtaking detail and tonal depth). We print on buffered, heavyweight cotton rag papers in your choice of matte or semi-gloss finishes.
Pricing
Labor Charge: $50/ hour
We bill from setup to job completion for all services listed above. We’re happy to make a non-binding estimate when we’ve looked over your materials. After starting the job, we’ll call you as soon as we can anticipate overages.
We are museum professionals; we’ll handle your photographs, ephemera or artwork with the same care we use in handling our collections.
The additional materials costs for prints are listed below.
Print Pricing (from your images)
Please note: The sizes listed here are approximate and correspond to starting paper size. To preserve the original length and width ratio of an image, finished sizes often won’t match standard frame sizes. Your print may need custom matting and framing.
Size / Price
| 5″x7″ | $7.50 |
| 8″x10″ | $12 |
| 11″x14″ | $20 |
| 16″x20″ | $38 |
| 20″x24″ | $50 |
| 24″x30″ | $62 |
Discounts for Nonprofits
Historical societies, libraries, fellow museums, and other 501 c3 nonprofits receive a 25% discount on services and prints. Don’t forget to ask us!
Inquire About Digital Services
Send us a note about your project, and we’ll get back to you with pricing and suggestions.