St. Louis, MO Augusta, GA Alexandria, VA

Veterans, working as lab technicians, process and photograph artifacts and scan documents. Each lab technician receives individual hands-on training on every aspect of the digital imaging system. Simplified procedural guides are available to support the training while using the equipment. Technical equipment is configured so that veterans with physical limitations are able to operate it with ease.

The camera and lighting system is designed to support a drop-out lighting technique and utilizes a plexiglas-surface illuminated table along with diffused light sources. The camera is mounted on a counter weighted mono stand and tethered directly to a computer, which operates all of the controls. A secondary monitor is mounted directly behind the illuminated table, providing the technicians with a real time view of the artifact as they compose the image beneath the camera lens. Artifacts are elevated from the plexiglas surface to ensure that no surface scratches or dust appear in the final image and to ensure a floating, shadowless image in perfect focus.
For archives, documents, maps, photographs, and film negatives, two scanners are included in the system; one capable of scanning large format documents and maps, and another with the capability of scanning film negatives and slides.