Adapting to born-digital photographs : a case study of the Canadian Centre for Architecture

As born-digital photography collections grow, so grows the need for a more defined set of guidelines on the best practices of how to acquire, describe and preserve said photographs. This paper is the result of a practical project conducted at the Canadian Centre for Architecture. The project uses the CCA as a case study and asks the question: how is the Centre adapting to the collection of born-digital photographs? During a six-month residency, the author, developed and implemented a description guideline, workflow, and donor guideline for the collection and cataloguing of born-digital photographs. These guidelines are the result of the steady growth in the volume of born-digital photographs coupled with the need for ensuring long term preservation for existing and potential collections. The aim of this paper is to help improve the usefulness and clarity of the guidelines. The case study and paper was conducted in conjunction with the requirements of Film and Photography Preservation and Collections Management (FPPCM) master’s at Ryerson University. The title of the guideline is Guidelines for Describing Born-Digital Photograph.