An album preserves order, captions and associations as well as images. Document the whole before removing a print or rearranging pages.
The method, step by step
- Assign identifiers to the album and pages. Photograph covers, full pages and writing; record provenance, holder and when the information was received.
- Transcribe captions exactly and distinguish old writing from recent identification. When someone recognises a face, record their name, words and reasons.
- Compare sequences, places and groups with records and timelines. A page may combine photographs from different dates; mounting order need not be chronological.
- Prepare a viewing copy and inventory. Keep unknown people unidentified, with separate sourced hypotheses; do not replace original captions with interpretations.
Record in your research log
- Album
- page order
- original captions
- inserts
- provenance.
Frequently asked questions
May I remove photographs from an old album?
Avoid forcing glued prints. Capture whole pages to preserve order and captions. Seek advice for fragile or damaged materials.