Above: A group photograph of all the attendees at the NZPCC Forum in 2022. Photograph by Caroline Williams.
Some of the NZMS team recently attended the New Zealand Photographers of Cultural Collections (NZPCC) forum on the 25th of November. The day was filled with interesting presentations from a range of institutions and organisations – all with a strong passion for cultural heritage imaging. It was a valuable opportunity for our team to connect with colleagues and peers from across Aotearoa.
Jamie Lean (NZMS Operations Manager for the Central Region) and Alex Jago (NZMS Project Lead) presented at the event, explaining how a Fujifilm GFX camera can be used for mass digitisation in a cultural heritage setting. Their presentation described testing the equipment, reviewing its performance, and discussing alternative cameras or scanners. They focused on how the GFX could be used to capture large-format books and newspapers to a very high resolution of 10,000 PLE.
The NZPCC forum is always a highlight of our event calendar because it enables participants to learn new techniques and share ideas relating to the digitisation of cultural heritage collections.
Our team found a presentation by Nicolas Setteducato from Puke Ariki, Learning about 3D Photogrammetry, particularly fascinating and relevant to the current trends in imaging. He spoke with a good sense of humour, explaining the process candidly — revealing not only his successes but the failures that he was able to learn from along the way!
Nicolas acknowledged that while photogrammetry was complex, it could be achievable with a little patience. He described the process that Puke Ariki used to learn photogrammetry and how they were able to capture some of their collections. 3D images of a lemon squeezer hat and “The Cream Can” by Hemi Sundgren from Puki Ariki’s collections are great examples of the kind of images that can be produced with photogrammetry technology. These images could be used to provide access to objects that are too fragile to be put on display, or even help generate online 3D museum tours or exhibitions.
This year’s NZPCC forum was able to go ahead thanks to the partnership between National Services Te Paerangi and Archives New Zealand Te Rua Mahara O Te Kawanatanga. Our team were delighted to attend and have the opportunity to connect with colleges in the cultural heritage sector — we look forward to next year’s event!