Why AI Photo Restoration Could Erase the Very History You’re Trying to Save
AI photo restoration tools are powerful — but may alter irreplaceable historical details. Learn why archival digitization should come first.
Preservation Science & Techniques
Preserving Tintypes: Protecting a 19th Century Legacy
Tintypes hold a special place in the history of photography. These iron-based portraits were durable, affordable, and beloved throughout the 19th century. Yet despite their rugged reputation, tintypes today are surprisingly vulnerable. Without proper care, these one-of-a-kind images can deteriorate and be lost forever. For many families, these are the only surviving portraits of ancestors—making … Read more
Tintypes—The Affordable Portraits of the 19th Century
In the history of photography, few formats capture the imagination quite like the tintype. From bustling Civil War camps to traveling fairs and frontier towns, tintypes were once the most accessible way for everyday people to capture their likeness. Affordable, durable, and quick to produce, tintypes democratized photography in the 19th century and left behind … Read more
Dry Plate Negatives: Everyday Photography Begins
Dry Plate Negatives – The Birth of Everyday Photography If you’ve discovered a box of glass negatives from grandparents or great-grandparents, chances are many are dry plate negatives—the format that brought photography into everyday family life. By the 1870s, a new photographic technology revolutionized the way people captured their lives: the dry plate negative, a … Read more
Wet Plate Negatives: Beauty, Fragility & Care
When we think of 19th-century photography, the wet plate collodion process often comes to mind. These glass plate negatives, produced between the 1850s and 1880s, captured some of the most detailed and enduring photographs in history. Yet while these negatives are extraordinary in quality, they are also among the most fragile materials families and institutions … Read more
What Are Glass Plate Negatives?
A Window into Early Photography Photography has always been about more than just images—it’s about preserving stories, legacies, and history. For those exploring old family archives or institutional collections, one of the most intriguing discoveries you might encounter is the glass plate negative. These fascinating artifacts are both delicate and powerful, offering a direct window … Read more
What Is Sticky-Shed Syndrome—and Why It Could Destroy Your Tape Archive
Sticky-Shed Syndrome: The Silent Killer of Your Tape Archive If you’ve ever pulled out an old video or audio tape only to find it squealing, jamming, or shedding white dust into your playback machine, you may have encountered sticky-shed syndrome—a common and destructive form of magnetic tape degradation. At Scanthology, we’ve seen firsthand how devastating … Read more
DPI vs Resolution: What to Know Before Scanning Photos
Have you ever looked at a digital photo and wondered why it looks sharp on your phone but blurry when printed? Or puzzled over why a high-resolution file still looks fuzzy when zoomed in? Chances are, you’re dealing with a classic confusion between DPI and resolution—two concepts that sound similar but play very different roles … Read more
