Photographs

Museums, libraries, galleries and archives collect and preserve all manner of photographic materials, such as black and white or colour prints as well as digital images. Personal collections generally also contain a broad range of photographic print and negative materials. All are subject to deterioration from inappropriate storage, handling and display conditions. For example, high humidity and temperature, air pollution and light exposure can all cause photographs to deteriorate. Though many are inherently chemically unstable and deteriorate readily, there are many things that can be done to ensure the long-term preservation of these images. The following resources provide information and advice on how to care for photographs.

Preventive conservation guidelines for collections

• Caring for photographic materials

Canadian Conservation Institute (CCI) Notes

• N16/1 Care of Encased Photographic Images (2007)
• N16/2 Care of Black-and-White Photographic Glass Plate Negatives (2007)
• N16/3 Care of Black-and-White Photographic Negatives on Film (2007)
• N16/4 Care of Black-and-White Photographic Prints (2007)
• N16/5 Care of Colour Photographic Materials (2007)
• N16/6 Processing Contemporary Black-and-White Photographic Films and Papers for Maximum Permanence (2007)

Related CCI resources

• Agents of deterioration
• Basic requirements of preventive conservation
• Handling heritage objects
• Light damage calculator

External links

• Making Mounting Corners for Photographs and Paper Objects (PDF format) (Conserve O Gram 14/1, 1993)
• Storage Enclosures for Photographic Prints and Negatives (PDF format) (Conserve O Gram 14/2, 1993)
• Chronology of Photographic Processes (PDF format) (Conserve O Gram 14/3, 1993)
• Caring for Photographs: General Guidelines (PDF format) (Conserve O Gram 14/4, 1997)
• Caring for Photographs: Special Formats (PDF format) (Conserve O Gram 14/5, 1997)
• Caring for Color Photographs (PDF format) (Conserve O Gram 14/6, 1998)
• Caring for Photographs: Special Monochrome Processes (PDF format) (Conserve O Gram 14/7, 1998)
• Caring for Cellulose Nitrate Film (PDF format) (Conserve O Gram 14/8, 2004)
• Identification of Film-Base Photographic Materials (PDF format) (Conserve O Gram 14/9, 1999)
• Cold Storage for Photograph Collections – An Overview (PDF format) (Conserve O Gram 14/10, 2009)
• Cold Storage for Photograph Collections – Using Individual Freezer Units (PDF format) (Conserve O Gram 14/11, 2009)
• Cold Storage for Photograph Collections – Vapor-Proof Packaging (PDF format) (Conserve O Gram 14/12, 2009)
• Contracting for Reformatting of Photographs (PDF format) (Conserve O Gram 19/12, 1995)
• Preservation Reformatting: Inspection of Copy Photographs (PDF format) (Conserve O Gram 19/13, 1995)
• Caring for Blueprints and Cyanotypes (PDF format) (Conserve O Gram 19/9, 1995)
• Salvage at a Glance, Part I: Paper Based Collections (PDF format) (Conserve O Gram 21/4, 2002)
• Salvage at a Glance, Part II: Non-Paper Based Archival Collections (PDF format) (Conserve O Gram 21/5, 2002)