Suggested Readings for Students
Dalton, Susan. “Moving Images: Conservation and Preservation.” In Conserving and Preserving Materials in Non-book Formats, edited by Kathryn L. Henderson and William T. Henderson. Papers presented at the Allerton Park Institute, Urbana-Champaign, Ill.: Board of Trustees, 1991, pp. 61–72.
This essay provides a valuable introduction to the topic of moving image preservation. The author offers a general overview of both film and video formats, including brief descriptions of how these technologies emerged, and relates their development to the preservation problems inherent in commercially driven product development.
Gracy, Karen F., and Michèle Valerie Cloonan. “The Preservation of Moving Images.” In Advances in Librarianship 27 (2004): 49–95.
The challenge of moving image preservation for libraries, archives, and other cultural institutions is astutely presented by these authors and provides a context for the emergence of moving image preservation as a profession. Long-term and short-term preservation strategies are discussed as well the potential conflicts that arise when access to moving image materials is needed. The authors include both motion picture film and video in their discussion and provide a solid overview of the issues involved in their preservation.
Stewart, Eleanore, and Paul N. Banks. “Preservation of Information in Nonpaper Formats.” In Preservation: Issues and Planning, edited by Paul N. Banks and Roberta Pilette. Chicago: American Library Association, 2000, pp. 323–41.
A basic introduction to the preservation challenges posed by the wide range of newer media found in libraries and archives, and to the preservation issues resulting from the rapid move toward digitization in recent years. Environmental control, handling, use, copying, migration, refreshment, and management issues for media collections are discussed in general. Separate sections on still photographs, motion pictures, sound recordings, video recordings, computer data media, and computer output media provide a brief description of formats and basic recommendations for storage, handling, use, and reformatting.
For Further Study
Photographic Film — Still Images and Motion Picture Film
Albright, Gary. “Storage Enclosures for Photographic Materials.” In Preservation of Library and Archival Materials. Andover, Mass.: Northeast Document Conservation Center, 2008.
The Film Preservation Guide: The Basics for Archives, Libraries, and Museums. San Francisco: National Film Preservation Foundation, 2004.
Gracy, Karen. “Documenting the Process of Film Preservation.” The Moving Image 3, no. 1 (Spring 2003): 1–41.
Hendricks, Klaus B. “The Preservation, Storage, and Handling of Black-and-White Photographic Records.” In Conserving and Preserving Materials in Non-book Formats, edited by Kathryn L. Henderson and William T. Henderson. Papers presented at the Allerton Park Institute, Urbana-Champaign, Ill.: Board of Trustees, 1991, pp. 91–104.
Mann, Sarah Ziebell. “The Evolution of American Moving Image Preservation: Defining the Preservation Landscape (1967–1977). Moving Image 1, no. 2 (Fall 2001): 1–20.
Read, Paul, and Mark-Paul Meyer, eds. Restoration of Motion Picture Film. Oxford: Butterworth/Heinemann, 2000.
Reilly, James. Care and Identification of 19th Century Photographic Prints. Rochester, N.Y.: Eastman Kodak, 1986.
Wilhelm, Henry, and Carol Brower. The Permanence and Care of Color Photographs: Traditional and Digital Color Prints, Color Negatives, Slides, and Motion Pictures. Grinnell, Iowa: Preservation Publishing Company, 1993.
Sound Recordings
Brylawski, Samuel. “Preservation of Digitally Recorded Sound.” In Building a National Strategy for Preservation: Issues in Digital Media Archiving. Washington, D.C.: Council on Library and Information Resources, April 2002.
Gibson, Gerald D. “Preservation and Conservation of Sound Recordings.” In Conserving and Preserving Materials in Non-book Formats, edited by Kathryn L. Henderson and William T. Henderson. Papers presented at the Allerton Park Institute, Urbana-Champaign, Ill.: Board of Trustees, 1991, pp. 27–44.
Library of Congress. Cylinder, Disc and Tape Care in a Nutshell. Washington, D.C.: Library of Congress, 2002.
St-Laurent, Gilles. The Care and Handling of Recorded Sound Materials. Washington, D.C.: Commission on Preservation and Access, September 1991.
Audio and Video Magnetic Media
Davidson, Steven, and Gregory Lukow, eds. The Administration of Television Newsfilm and Videotape Collections: A Curatorial Manual. Los Angeles: American Film Institute, 1997.
Edmondson, Ray. Audiovisual Archiving: Philosophy and Principles. Paris: UNESCO, April 30, 2004 (CI/2004/WS/2).
Stauderman, Sarah. Pictorial Guide to Sound Recording Media. In Proceedings from the Sound Savings: Preserving Audio Collections Symposium. Association of Research Libraries, July 24–26, 2003.
Van Bogart, Dr. John W. C. Magnetic Tape Storage and Handling: A Guide for Libraries and Archives. Washington, D.C.: Commission on Preservation and Access, June 1995, 34 pp.
Videotape Identification and Assessment Guide, sponsored by the Texas Commission on the Arts.
Optical Media
Iraci, Joe. “The Relative Stabilities of Optical Disc Formats.” Restaurator 26 (2005): 134–50.