Appraisal Issues

Appraisal of photographic prints has many similarities with appraisal methods for other archival records and documents. As with other archival materials, repositories should develop a collecting policy that guides what the institution acquisitions. They should also seek to develop good relations with potential donors and implement donor agreements that give the repository intellectual control over the collection or photographs reproduction rights. Also, as with other formats, archivists need to consider certain aspects of the photograph itself when appraising it for acquisition. For example, who is the creator or photographer? What is the subject of the photograph and is it rare or pertinent to the repository’s collection policy? Who is the intended audience and does it fit with the repository’s users? What is the condition of the photograph? Does the photograph have any contextual information?

However, photographs have many unique characteristics that warrant special consideration when appraising a potential acquisition. First, photographs convey visual information rather than textual information. The value of this type of information is often hard to determine. While it may be easy to recognize that a portrait of Abraham Lincoln or an image from an historically significant event such as the bombing of Pearl Harbor is valuable, other images such as a collection of survey photographs from the American West may not have such clear value. In this case, I think that appraisal of photographic prints may sometimes require archivists to think outside the box. Photographs are not just useful for their depiction of historically significant persons or events, they can also be useful for documenting and graphically illustrating change over time. In the case of the survey photographs, these photographs do not have important historical subjects or creators, but they are scientifically valuable in demonstrating climate change since the 1870s, especially the decline of glaciers. Therefore, when appraising photographs, I think that archivists need to take a very broad approach in determining the potential value of a photograph and its future use.

In addition to future use, I think that archivists need to take into consideration future care and preservation of photographic prints. In contrast to many paper-based textual documents, photographs can be extremely delicate and highly sensitive to climate change, handling, and light exposure. Photographs often require special – and expensive – preservation measures that do not fit into the “more product, less process” mentality of many archival institutions today. For example, daguerreotypes need to be protected from handling. As was noted in our reading from the December 2012 issue of Scientific American, many rare daguerreotypes suffered irreparable damage when exposed to light during display. Other photographs, such a nitrate film negatives, are highly flammable and degrade easily when exposed to humidity and high temperatures. In addition, many photographic prints come in odd, small sizes – such as the cartes-de-viste – which require special housing. Therefore, when appraising photographs, I think that archivists need to not only assess the current condition of the photographs, but also factor in the future costs of maintaining and preserving the photographs.

Overall, I think that archivists should take a very broad approach when appraising photographs. Rather than determining the value of a photograph based on the condition of said photograph or on how famous the photographer is, archivists should consider potential future uses and costs of photographs. Appraisal of photographs, like appraisal of all archival records, should include some measure of long-term responsibility or archival stewardship on the part of the repository. Can the repository provide proper environmental conditions and housing for photographs? Do they have the means to provide adequate access – through exhibits, descriptive finding aids, and digitization – to their photographic collections?  Finally, while particular photographs may have little historical value, is there any potential value to non-traditional users, such as physicists or environmental scientists?