Microfilm Scanning Services

Microfilm can be submitted to Northern New York Library Network for full-service digitizing.  Please contact digitization@nnyln.org for a quote.

Newspapers on Microfilm

For reels containing newspaper content and for contributions to New York State Historic Newspapers, services include:

  • Scanning: We scan the microfilm producing 300 DPI bitonal TIFs or grayscale JPGs. The file format used varies on client’s requirements and quality of the film.
  • Image Correction: We perform image manipulation to produce the most clear and legible 1-up newspaper page image possible. This may include cropping, deskewing, noise reduction, and contrast adjustment.
  • Optical Character Recognition: This process converts an image of text into a machine- readable text format. The accuracy of the OCR text is highly dependent on the quality of the microfilm’s photography, physical media and quality of the images used.
  • Date-naming: This is the process of identifying the newspaper issue date and page number from the image and labeling the image with that information in a machine readable fashion.
  • Creation of the layered PDFs: We create files in the Portable Document Format (PDF) with the newspaper page image visible on top and the OCR text on a layer beneath. The intent is to produce a PDF that can be searched and the approximate location of the results mapped to the page image.
  • Hosting on nyshistoricnewspapers.org: We offer hosting of the PDFs on our website without recurring annual fees. We’ll attribute PDFs to the client’s organization and provide a landing page for the organization to allow easy searches through their collection. If the newspaper title runs are not in the public domain, clients must secure permission to publish the pages on nyshistoricnewspapers.org. We have a form that can be used: (https://nnyln.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/NYSHN-Permission-Agreement.pdf) In the case that the current owner/publisher can not be located, the client may sign the form. If the title is ever disputed, it will be pulled offline and the client and disputant will be put in touch with each other for further resolution.
  • Returning resultant files: We return to the client copies of the PDFs we produce, the Quantum process files, and the original source files non-dated. There’s no limitation on the client’s use of those files.

View further specifications and fees on the Newspapers’ Contributor webpage.

 

Non-Newspaper Microfilm

Full-service scanning is available for reels containing non-newspaper content. The service includes scanning, processing, and OCRing.

Fees

  • ESLN Library Council Member: starting at $132 per reel
  • Non-Member: starting at $165 per microfilm reel

    Resultant files could include:

    • High resolution color or grey scale TIFFs and/or JPGs
    • OCR PDFs (if relevant)
    • Other specifications as required by the project