Introduction to Imaging

by Howard Besser
89 pp., illus. Paper, $14.95
ISBN: 0-89-236-733-4

Reviewed by George Shortess,
3505 Hecktown Road,
Bethlehem, PA 18020,U.S.A.

george.shortess@lehigh.edu

This book, in its second edition, was published by the Getty Foundation. It is a basic source to guide those involved with museums and other collections, in the uses and pitfalls of digital imagery. For this purpose it is an invaluable guide and is highly recommenced. The fact that it is in its second edition speaks to its acceptance and usefulness. It covers digital imagery as an archival tool, as a way to increase collection accessibility, and as part of a management system.

In addition, I would recommend the book to anyone who is involved or plans to be involved with digital images, since all involvement involves some sort of storage process. While some of the material is specific to large museum collections, much of the material is relevant to users of digital imagery generally. The book gives a very good overview of digital imagery with an excellent Glossary in the back of the book. It minimizes jargon and presents the basics in clear and concise ways. The emphasis is at the strategic or planning level. It tells you what to look for in a program, rather than a detailed analysis of any given program. This makes it much more useful, since programs are always changing and developing.

I was particularly impressed with its down to earth treatment of issues that are often hyped in a misleading fashion by the imagery industry. Topics such as image resolution, color, file formats, metadata, scanning, etc. are treated in a straightforward and clear manner. It does an excellent job of pointing out the pluses and the minuses of the available choices. The authors emphasize the need for a clear understanding of the specific purposes that digital imagery will serve and why it is important to you. Issues such as obsolete technology, data integrity, security and resource management are treated realistically. Its concluding advice reflects much of the rest of the book: "In reality, no one knows what the best preservation strategy or combination of strategies will be." (p 62) It goes on to recommend an open approach and regular reviews as the best ways to maintain useful digital files. The book provides an excellent basis for carrying out that strategy.