Amazing results in digitising maps from colonial times

The image quality of Phase One’s medium-format cameras is unrivalled, and thus offers a solution for digitising our cultural heritage. It is no coincidence that NZMS (New Zealand Micrographic Services) also works with Phase One cameras on projects requiring such high resolution as “Land Information New Zealand, Archives New Zealand, Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu, and Environment Canterbury”, the aim of which is to digitise the maps that survive from colonial times. For the project launched in 2016, and for the always challenging digitisation of several hundred maps (in only one month), Phase One was always the solution.

The maps in the collection are important sources of information that carry both the geography and the history of New Zealand. The maps were drawn by surveyors who had set themselves the goal of mapping New Zealand, with the help of Māori companions. The surveyors used theodolites and other instruments for measuring and noted down their observations. The maps were later produced from this data. They contain valuable information about the islands before European expansion, and show the original courses of rivers and streams, the position and extent of forests, the locations of potential farmland and pastures, forgotten place names, land boundaries and property rights during colonisation. These maps were generally used for a long time, which meant that annotations, corrections, new roads, railway lines built in the meantime, etc. were added to them later. Most of the digitised maps are generally in worn condition, often paper glued to canvas, which has been in service since the mid-19th century, and for this reason digitisation is not simple, but thanks to Phase One there were months when as many as 366 maps were captured in digital form. Many maps were stored rolled up for decades and were badly damaged during that time, so very worn, barely visible details are often encountered, which pose a great challenge but whose deciphering is essential for full interpretation.

At the start of the project NZMS designed a special mount tailored specifically to Phase One, on which the maps can be stored and easily moved during the digitisation process. On top of the digitising table there is a glass plate, which helps to smooth, flatten and fix the map, and in addition any torn-off pieces can also be fixed back into place.

The size of the maps varies greatly, from 30 centimetres up to 4 metres in width, but for most of them it can be said that they cannot be digitised by taking just a single photo, since they do not fit within the field of view. Generally several photos are taken, which are merged into a single image in the process using Capture One and Photoshop. The photos are taken with a Phase One camera, which makes it possible to produce a 1:1 digital replica at a resolution of 300ppi. Several such maps can be found on the Archives New Zealand’s Archway website or the NZMS’s Heritage Maps web platform.

The Phase One digitisation camera is fitted with an IQ3 (100MP) back and a Schneider Kreuznach (80mm 2.8 LS Blue). This camera was chosen for the project because at high resolution it produces clear photos with great detail, which is perfect for cultural heritage digitisation. The photos are so detailed that they preserve the texture of the maps and even the marks drawn in graphite pencil. Such a level of detail can result in prints so true to life that at a glance they are almost indistinguishable from the original.

NZMS is, incidentally, a full-fledged Phase One representative and reseller of the Phase One iXG system, which was developed specifically for the needs of the cultural heritage digitisation sector. The system works integrated with the Capture One Cultural Heritage software. This integration means full control of the camera system, which, with the help of automatic editing functions, greatly speeds up the cropping and alignment of the images, thereby contributing to the rapid progress of the project.

Digitisation projects of this volume place heavy demands on the cameras and photographic equipment used for them, so it is important that they are designed for such loads. The Phase One camera is designed precisely for industrial-volume use, which is why it is a perfect choice for a similar project. Phase One equipment is very durable, since it is made of aluminium, which is also used as a raw material for aircraft, and of the most resistant mechanical and electronic components currently available. In addition to the above, the mirrorless system naturally eliminates the risk of wear from too many moving parts, abrasion and vibration.

NZMS chose the Phase One system because we provide the newest and most innovative technology in the industry for this kind of activity. This ensures that we can carry out the digitisation of our cultural heritage as widely as possible, be it a large map, a diary or a tiny photographic negative. Phase One continuously invests in developing its products so that it can offer high-quality photographs with customised solutions, without the risk of damage to the original object. The Capture One editing software is another very useful tool that the NZMS team uses when digitising the maps. The software allows easy organisation, editing and management among thousands of photographs. The maps can be photographed one by one, and then arranged by a separate identifier, preserving order among the multitude of files. With the fixed camera, images reliably go straight to the computer with the help of the software, and the quality of the result is immediately visible. This is very useful when photographing historical relics or documents, where handling the objects is a delicate process. The “Live View” function with a fixed camera can also be a very useful function, for the reasons mentioned earlier.

The Phase One iXG system also has Capture One’s Camera Focus Tool and PPI Assist functions. With these, even people without photographic experience or knowledge may be able to do full-fledged digitisation work. Once you select the resolution, field of view and magnification ratio, PPI Assist makes suggestions on how to position the camera for the best quality.

Digitisation is a growing industry in the cultural heritage sector. Digitisation is becoming ever more interwoven into the life of libraries, museums and other organisations safeguarding cultural heritage because of collection management as well, but it also brings countless other advantages. Through digitisation these objects can be delivered to a much larger audience, researchers also find it much easier to investigate the origin of a given object or to carry out online collaborative study, and we could even mention that digitisation helps in producing even more accurate, higher-quality replicas. Digitisation can mean preserving an object for the future.