Project Research
The project spans June 2003 through August 2005. It uses questionnaires, case studies, workshops, and laboratory and on-site experiments. A final report and meeting will be used to define future needs.

The project is subdivided into four components:

I. Document current imaging practices,
II. Develop a testing procedure to quantify image quality,
III. Perform the test at the representative museums,
IV. Hold workshop and disseminate results.

Document Current Imaging Practices
An online questionnaire was developed to benchmark current practices. The survey inquires about hardware and software, calibration and verification practices, visual editing, viewing environment, image processing, file format, image storage, data backup, rendering intent, types of color management and output devices. It attempts to be comprehensive although our main interest is image quality for the capture of 2D and 3D objects. After the data are analyzed, a summary report will be written.

A half-dozen representative institutions, five museums and one library, were chosen for more in-depth study. Exceptional access to observe the museums' direct digital capture workflows were granted as well as interviews with various personnel from the photography departments and related sections of the museums.

These case studies will be compiled and summarized into a single document.

Develop a Testing Procedure to Quantify Image Quality
In our experience, an image archive’s quality is often based on its pixels per inch and bits per pixel. During 2000, an issue of Spectra was devoted to digital imaging and digital image archives. There was a clear lack of quantitative metrics to define image quality. Lists of issues omitted key topics such as spatial resolution, spectral sensitivity, and relating the digital data back to physical features of the art.

An extensive literature review of currently defined testing procedures for digital cameras has been completed. A descriptive document is available here. Following this review, a set of experimental procedures to quantify image quality has been drafted. The testing procedure uses commercially available test targets to the greatest extent possible.

The draft procedures are undergoing testing at RIT’s Munsell Color Science Laboratory using camera systems representative of those in use at the various museums.

Survey discussion

More than 50 American institutions completed the online survey. The survey can be found here.

The following chart shows how survey respondants are spread across the nation:

Contact: Mitchell Rosen, Munsell Color Science Laboratory 54 Lomb Memorial Drive, Rochester, NY 14623 rosen@cis.rit.edu 585-475-7691

Project Sponsor :

© 2005 Munsell Color Science Laboratory