2011 47th Head of the Charles Regatta

By David on October 22, 2011 1:52 PM | No Comments | No TrackBacks






47th Head of the Charles Regatta
Head Race Results
Event: 13
Club Singles Men
Date: 10/22/2011
Time: 11:38:00 AM
Race Status: Official
Entry Bow Age Penalty Place Time Handicap Adj Time Delta %

1 Unaffiliated 64 19:37.34 19:37.34 8 - David Judah 0.00%
2 Sydney Rowing Club 18 19:37.56 19:37.56 0:00.22 Dean Robinson 0.02%
3 Atlanta Rowing Club, Inc. 48 19:41.48 19:41.48 0:04.14 2 - Richard Rhodes 0.35%
4 Riverside/Cascadilla 4 19:47.65 19:47.65 0:10.31 Steven Zimmerman 0.88%
5 Unaffiliated 8 19:51.29 19:51.29 0:13.95 10 - Brendan Mulvey 1.18%
6 Unaffiliated 60 20:03.40 20:03.40 0:26.06 7 - Jacopo Stifani 2.21%
7 Fredericton Rowing Club 61 20:09.69 20:09.69 0:32.35 Adam Bliss 2.75%
8 Ottawa Rowing Club 67 20:10.75 20:10.75 0:33.41 2 - Joshua King 2.84%
9 University Of Massachusetts Crew 37 20:11.35 20:11.35 0:34.01 Zachary Depace 2.89%
10 Union Boat Club 1 20:13.73 20:13.73 0:36.39 1 - Aleks Zosuls 3.09%
11 Minneapolis Rowing Club 6 20:15.17 20:15.17 0:37.83 Jon Olson 3.21%
12 Unaffiliated 44 20:15.43 20:15.43 0:38.09 5 - Nicholas Goode3.24%
13 Ridley Graduate Boat Club 43 20:18.20 20:18.20 0:40.86 Drew Scobir 3.47%
14 The Newman School 26 20:19.17 20:19.17 0:41.83 Matyas Zetek (Y) 3.55%
15 Riverfront Recapture, Inc. 42 0:10.00 20:14.98 20:24.98 0:47.64 Paul Fitzgerald 1-BR 4.05%
16 Nereid Boat Club, Inc. 58 20:40.05 20:40.05 1:02.71 Christopher Buesser 5.33%
17 Community Rowing Inc. 3 20:40.32 20:40.32 1:02.98 Ken Itrato 5.35%
18 Rose City Rowing Club 9 20:44.40 20:44.40 1:07.06 Daniel Ellis 5.70%
19 Palm Beach Rowing Association, Inc. 5 20:46.33 20:46.33 1:08.99 Cameron Fraser 5.86%
20 Riverside Boat Club 23 20:47.21 20:47.21 1:09.87 2 - Brian Klein 5.93%
21 Unaffiliated 51 20:48.29 20:48.29 1:10.95 6 - Sean Clarke 6.03%
22 Potomac Boat Club 2 20:49.45 20:49.45 1:12.11 1 - Rob Rasmussen (Y) 6.12%
23 Friends Academy Crew 31 20:49.70 20:49.70 1:12.36 Matthew Kuczmarsk(Y) 6.15%
24 San Diego Rowing Club 62 0:10.00 20:42.89 20:52.89 1:15.55 Phil Bresnahan 12-BR 6.42%
25 Unaffiliated 65 20:55.51 20:55.51 1:18.17 9 - Nick Firmani (Y) 6.64%
26 Rowing Club Port-Marly 32 20:56.67 20:56.67 1:19.33 Henri Hicks (Y) 6.74%
27 Albany Rowing Center 7 0:10.00 20:46.90 20:56.90 1:19.56 Nicholas Timmons (Y) 2-BG 6.76%
28 Stanton-River Bank Rowing 45 21:01.44 21:01.44 1:24.10 Kevin Coyle (Y) 7.14%
29 Riverside Boat Club 22 21:09.88 21:09.88 1:32.54 1 - Alex Caruthers 7.86%
30 Fairmount Rowing Association 27 0:30.00 20:39.89 21:09.89 1:32.55 Matthew Henwood 3-BG, 4-BG(2) 7.86%
31 Lake Washington Rowing Club 49 21:14.07 21:14.07 1:36.73 Jacob Huntington 8.22%
32 Thames River Sculls 10 21:16.20 21:16.20 1:38.86 Thomas Quigley 8.40%
33 Hudson River Rowing Association, Inc. 53 0:10.00 21:08.61 21:18.61 1:41.27 Kyle Mabry (Y) 4-BG 8.60%
34 Rowing Association Of Naples 19 21:19.63 21:19.63 1:42.29 George Hiller (Y) 8.69%
35 Riverside Boat Club 46 21:22.31 21:22.31 1:44.97 3 - David Wiedaseck 8.92%
36 Cork Boat Club Ireland 38 21:22.75 21:22.75 1:45.41 Dan Murphy 8.95%
37 Sagamore Rowing Association 66 21:28.90 21:28.90 1:51.56 Rudy Eberle 9.48%
38 Western Reserve Rowing Association 55 21:29.10 21:29.10 1:51.76 Craig Gates 9.49%
39 Baltimore Rowing Club 47 21:34.48 21:34.48 1:57.14 Andrew Crabb 9.95% 40 Bantam Boat Club 35 0:20.00 21:15.50 21:35.50 1:58.16 Edward Slater 8-BG(2) 10.04%
41 Atlanta Rowing Club, Inc. 41 21:37.14 21:37.14 1:59.80 1 - Peter Smith10.18% 42 Sono Rowing 63 0:20.00 21:17.78 21:37.78 2:00.44 2 - Bill Senst 9-BR(2) 10.23%
43 Washington Street Sculling Camp 17 21:39.71 21:39.71 2:02.37 1 - James McManus (Y) 10.39%
44 Lake Quinsigamond Community Rowing 20 21:42.80 21:42.80 2:05.46 Nicholas Wright 10.66%
45 Ottawa Rowing Club 52 21:46.34 21:46.34 2:09.00 1 - Joshua Weissbock 10.96%
46 Notre Dame Rowing Club 151:00.00 21:00.24 22:00.24 2:22.90 Znak Ovenden 9-IN 12.14%
47 Potomac Boat Club 30 22:00.71 22:00.71 2:23.37 2 - Rick Trimble 12.18%
48 Union Boat Club 11 22:05.08 22:05.08 2:27.74 2 - Bob Mannino 12.55%
49 Austin Rowing Club 39 22:09.08 22:09.08 2:31.74 Andrew Magill 12.89%
50 Guelph Rowing Club 12 22:09.10 22:09.10 2:31.76 Alexander Upeniek(Y) 12.89%
51 Leander Boat Club 34 22:12.43 22:12.43 2:35.09 Eben Prevec (Y) 13.17%
52 Rockford Crew 14 22:19.44 22:19.44 2:42.10 Bryce Vanderberg (Y) 13.77%
53 Rocky Mountain Rowing Club 54 22:19.68 22:19.68 2:42.34 Gregory Kip 13.79%
54 City Of Cambridge Rowing Club 21 22:28.85 22:28.85 2:51.51 Tim Daines 14.57%
55 Navesink River Rowing 33 22:32.10 22:32.10 2:54.76 John Crilly 14.84%
56 Unaffiliated 36 22:38.66 22:38.66 3:01.32 3 - James Whelen 15.40%
57 Sono Rowing 56 1:00.00 21:38.88 22:38.88 3:01.54 1 - Carson West 9-IN 15.42%
58 Unaffiliated 24 0:10.00 22:35.22 22:45.22 3:07.88 1 - Patrick Kielty 4-BG 15.96%
59 Xavier University Crew 13 0:10.00 23:03.25 23:13.25 3:35.91 Andrew Hess 13-BG 18.34%
60 Miami University Rowing Club 16 23:33.07 23:33.07 3:55.73 Evan Balch 20.02%
61 Washington Street Sculling Camp 50 23:47.80 23:47.80 4:10.46 2 - Eric Kaufman (Y) 21.27%
62 Unaffiliated 40 24:30.88 24:30.88 4:53.54 4 - Brandon Milardo 24.93%
63 Cambridge Rindge And Latin School 59 24:58.81 24:58.81 5:21.47 Dale Wickenheiser 27.30%
64 Cambridge Boat Club 28 25:30.98 25:30.98 5:53.64  Gregory Krom 30.04%
Status: Scratch
0 Unaffiliated 29 00:00.00 2 - Derek Rubin 0.00%
0 Thames Rowing Club 25 00:00.00 Thomas Simonds-Goodi 0.00%
0 Alexandria Community Rowing 57 00:00.00 Lang Hoyt 0.00%



 

2011 Head of the Passaic #winning

By David on October 15, 2011 1:44 PM | No Comments | No TrackBacks
#Winning

This is officially my first winning race at a regatta.  The conditions were exceptionally rough and I'm surprised, but happy the regatta wasn't cancelled.  The heavy winds blowing up the course created white caps and 1-2' swells for most of the race. The weather also created challenges launching and retrieving boats resulting in a queue of over an hour to launch boats from the docks.  The races were held until the boats arrived at the start.  I attribute my winning of this race to my ability to keep it together in what were just awful survival conditions in a 1x. The tops of the waves occasionally reached both sides of my wing rigger. 

2011 Head of the Passaic Hosted by PRRA / Nereid October 15th, 2011

Race 6a: 10:04 AM Mens Open 1x
Final

Place Bow Organization Net Time % Delta Raw Handicap Penalty Start Finish
1st 60 New York RA (D. Wiedaseck) 19:16.03 19:16.03 03:43:04.84 04:02:20.87
2nd 62 Carnegie Lake (T. Atrous) 19:49.62 2.9% 00:33.59 19:49.62 03:43:34.35 04:03:23.97
61 Nereid BC (J. Fernandez) Scratch

     


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Head of the Housatonic 2011

By David on October 8, 2011 1:40 PM | No Comments | No TrackBacks
Great conditions. Light headwind, and some current. Mostly flat water.  A brght sunny fall day.


Head Race: Head of the Housatonic
October 8, 2011; Shelton, CT

Event 11: Mens Open 1x (No Jr.)
Rank    Bow    Boat    Raw Time    Age    HCap    Penalty    Final Time     
1    108    GMS Rowing (M. Sivigny)    18:24.6    0:00.0    0:00.0    18:24.6     
2    107    Union BC (C. Storm)    19:03.8    0:00.0    0:00.0    19:03.8     
3    121    Vassar (J. Dietz)    19:25.4    0:00.0    0:00.0    19:25.4     
4    117    Ridley Graduate (D. Klassen)    19:29.9    0:00.0    0:00.0    19:29.9     
5    115    Riverfront Recapture (P. Fitzgerald)    19:34.8    0:00.0    0:00.0    19:34.8     
6    119    Unaffiliated (USA) (P. Henson)    19:38.3    0:00.0    0:00.0    19:38.3     
7    109    New York AC (A. Leonardi)    19:48.8    0:00.0    0:00.0    19:48.8     
8    111    New York AC (T. McGee)    19:53.6    0:00.0    0:00.0    19:53.6     
9    113    New Haven (J. Medioli)    20:06.1    0:00.0    0:00.0    20:06.1     
10    116    New York AC (D. Walton)    20:34.6    0:00.0    0:00.0    20:34.6     
11    114    New York AC (S. Marsico)    20:43.2    0:00.0    0:00.0    20:43.2     
12    112    Nereid BC (J. Fernandez)    20:59.5    0:00.0    0:00.0    20:59.5     
13    110    New York RA (D. Wiedaseck)    21:14.2    0:00.0    0:00.0    21:14.2     
14    118    Sagamore (R. Eberle)    21:29.5    0:00.0    0:00.0    21:29.5     
15    120    Vassar (S. Tbd)    22:08.4    0:00.0    0:00.0    22:08.4     

Candian Henley 2011

By David on July 31, 2011 12:56 PM | No Comments | No TrackBacks


Event   Description                    Race           Number   Progression Rules      
8         Mens A Single 11:20 AM Final Only   30           Final Official       
Prefix Dist
D       1000      
Lane 3                             Lane 4                    Lane 5                  Lane 6
Ottawa                        New York RA              Leichhardt             London      
1 - T. Ensom (A)     1 - D. Wiedaseck (A)     1 -M. Terry (C)     1 - A. Kaszowski (A)      
1         30                        2         30                 3         44            4         29      
3:44.30                        3:47.30 (+ 3.00)        3:50.97 (+ 6.67)     4:26.77 (+ 42.47)      
Ensom, Tim                  Wiedaseck, David     Terry, Michael          Kaszowski, Andre      


Time          Event                                               Race    Number Prefix Progression Rules Status
1:05 PM     21     Mens AA Single -[Exhibition]     Final     64     L     Final Only 1000     Official      
Lane 4                      Lane 5
Three Rivers              New York RA      
1 - B. Disalle (AA)     1 - D. Wiedaseck (A)      
1         26                 2         30      
3:53.04                    5:38.51 (+ 1:45.47)      
Disalle, Brian            Wiedaseck, David      



Cromwell Cup 2011

By David on July 11, 2011 10:16 AM | No Comments | No TrackBacks






Race results:
     
Race 30: Mens Masters A 1x Final @ 05:22 PM 
Place Lane Organization Net Time % Raw Handicap Split Pts
1st     3     Riverside B (S. Zimmerman)     04:00.00         04:00.00          
2nd     4     Riverside A (D. Wiedaseck)     04:06.20     2.6%     04:06.20     00:00:06.20      
3rd     1     Unaffiliated (USA) (S. Clarke)     04:09.80     4.1%     04:09.80     00:00:09.80      
    2     Riverfront Recapture (P. Fitzgerald)     Did Not                  
            Finish                  
                             
Race 31c: Mens Open 2x Heat 3 @ 12:52 PM 
Place Lane Organization Net Time % Raw Handicap Split Pts   
1st     3     Unaffiliated (USA) (B. Mulvey)     03:30.00         03:30.00         
2nd     4     NYRA- New York (R. Saurez)     03:33.42     1.6%     03:33.42     00:00:03.42     
3rd     2     Riverside C (P. Ross)                  04:19.08     23.4%     04:19.08     00:00:49.08     
                      
Race 2: Mens Open 1x 500m Dash Final @ 06:42 PM
Place Lane Organization                   Net Time %     Raw       Handicap Split Pts
1st    1       Union BC (B. Werntz)      02:10.00         02:10.00
2nd    2      Riverside (D. Wiedaseck) 02:14.90 3.8% 02:14.90 00:00:04.90
3rd     4      Riverside K (Z. Segal)      02:19.20 7.1% 02:19.20 00:00:09.20

Race 39c: Mens Open 1x (Cash Prize) Heat 3 @ 02:10 PM      
Place Lane Organization Net Time % Raw Handicap Split Pts
1st     4     Union BC (J. Novak)                    03:36.00         03:36.00          
2nd     1     Riverside (S. Zimmerman)           03:41.97     2.8%     03:41.97     00:00:05.97      
3rd     3     Riverside A (S. Wolf)                   03:44.07     3.7%     03:44.07     00:00:08.07      
4th     2     Community Rowing (A. Porter)     04:20.05     20.4%     04:20.05     00:00:44.05      

Race 39d: Mens Open 1x (Cash Prize) Heat 4 @ 02:14 PM                  
Place Lane Organization Net Time % Raw Handicap Split Pts
1st     2     Riverside (J. McGaffigan)     03:34.00         03:34.00          
2nd     1     Narragansett (D. Mercante)     03:45.12     5.2%     03:45.12     00:00:11.12      
3rd     3     Riverside (D. Wiedaseck)     03:46.52     5.9%     03:46.52     00:00:12.52      
4th     4     Merrimac (B. DiCrescenzo)     04:17.38     20.3%     04:17.38     00:00:43.38

Race 39a: Mens Open 1x (Cash Prize) Heat 1 @ 02:02 PM     
1st     3     Unaffiliated (USA) A (R. Iuliano)     04:00.00         04:00.00         
2nd     2     Great Bay (E. Frid)     04:08.64     3.6%     04:08.64     00:00:08.64     
3rd     4     Lake Quinsigamond (N. Wright)     04:14.61     6.1%     04:14.61     00:00:14.61     
    1     Riverside (Z. Segal)     Scratch                 

Race 39b: Mens Open 1x (Cash Prize) Heat 2 @ 02:06 PM                 
1st     4     Riverfront Recapture (P. Fitzgerald)     03:54.00         03:54.00         
2nd     1     Unaffiliated (USA) (B. Mulvey)            03:57.84     1.6%     03:57.84     00:00:03.84     
3rd     2     Northampton (K. Maurer)                    03:58.36     1.9%     03:58.36     00:00:04.36     
4th     3     Riverside D (T. Villabona)                    04:24.44     13.0%     04:24.44     00:00:30.44     
     

Independednce Day Regatta 2011

By David on July 3, 2011 12:49 PM | No Comments | No TrackBacks




Place Lane Organization Net Time % Delta Raw Handicap Penalty Winning Split
Race 59a: Mens Masters Light 1x Flight 1 @ 11:51 AM



1st 2 Malta (J.Cutler) 03:48.20     03:55.40
00:07.20   00:03:55.40  

2nd 5 GMS Rowing (M.O'Leary) 03:58.32 4.4% 00:10.12 04:09.32 00:11.00   00:03:55.40 00:00:13.92

3rd 3 New York RA (D.Wiedaseck) 03:58.72 4.6% 00:00.40 03:58.92 00:00.20   00:03:55.40 00:00:03.52

4th 4 Fairmount (j.mcelvenney) 04:15.72 12.1% 00:17.00 04:15.72     00:03:55.40 00:00:20.32
Place Lane Organization Net Time % Delta Raw Handicap Penalty Winning Split
Race 72a: Mens Masters 2x Flight 1 @ 02:00 PM



1st 5 Fairmount  (C.Lenihan, K.Montenegro) 03:43.05     03:43.05     00:03:43.05  

2nd 4 New York RA (M.Broache, D.Wiedaseck) 03:51.06 3.6% 00:08.01 03:51.06     00:03:43.05 00:00:08.01

3rd 1 Carnegie Lake (J.Brand, C.Mills) 03:59.30 7.3% 00:08.24 03:59.30     00:03:43.05 00:00:16.25

4th 6 Penn AC (P.Connolly, D.Yoon) 04:01.93 8.5% 00:02.63 04:04.13 00:02.20   00:03:43.05 00:00:21.08

5th 2 Wilmington (B.Shick, R.Hare) 04:02.36 8.7% 00:00.43 04:02.66 00:00.30   00:03:43.05 00:00:19.61





Catch the Cooper Regatta 2011

By David on June 28, 2011 1:37 PM | No Comments | No TrackBacks
Friday evening I had an odd sense of Zen.  I was calmly going about packing my duffel bag for the regatta the following day and eating my chicken parmigiana.  It felt strange to be anything but frantic and stressed out the night before a race.  But this time was different. The van had been loaded with all but two singles the evening before.  I'd be waking up at 4am to meet the rest of my crew at 5am for the drive to Philly.  I somehow forced myself to get to sleep at a reasonable hour and sure enough 4am rolled around awfully quick.  For the past week, I've been wondering if the winter training I've done will pay off, or if it's been enough, or if it's been effective at all. I'm wondering am i really ready to race.

The NJ turnpike was detoured onto Route 3.  Route 3 was reduced from about 4 lanes to 1 in the middle of the detour which caused me to be late rather than early.  Construction on the NJ turnpike further south caused some additional traffic and we ended up getting there an hour later then I expected.  I didn't have as much time as I would have liked to stretch and worm up.  Which had me a little nervouse about my 1st race.  Still my 1,000 meter paddle to the start seemed to calm me down.  the boat felt just like it had when I practiced in it for several weeks. The foot stretchers and oars and everything were right where they should have been and gave the boat a reassuring familiarity.  I continued to paddle into the queue for the start of my race.  After I latched onto the stake boat I felt calm even as i felt the adrenaline building up inside me. 

Soon enough I hear that they have alignment, and the adrenaline kicks up another notch.  My oars are squared and buried and I'm sitting at half slide. Then I hear "attention row" and on queue I jump off the foot stretcher pulling my oars with me.  A few short strokes, and then a quick burst of quick stroked and my boat is moving down the course with speed. I continue with about 10 power strokes at about 32 strokes a minute and check my course.  Their is one boat in the lead but not by much. I'm only slightly ahead of the boat to my left and the other two are behind.  I settle briefly at a 28 and then stroke the rest of the race at about a 30.  As I go down the course i put on some power to try and catch the lead but but it just isn't quite happening.  I'm determined to put some more distance between the boat on my left and I watch the trailing two fall behind.  By the 500 I have a solid lead on the #3 boat and the rush of my adrenaline continues as I push down the course. I've tried to catch the number 1 boat but I'm just not sure I can hold that pace all the way to the end and I don't want to run out of gas with the #3 boat so close.  So I hold my rate and keep the pressure on.  I finish gasping for breath as I watch the 33 boat catch up and while I wait catching my breath over a half minute later the last to boats arrive at the finish. 

I could make excuses. the guy who won was clearly a heavy weight around 6'6". Certainly in better shape, but who's fault is that?  The truth is I think I've rowed my best race in the 1x to date.  At 3:51 it is a personal best for me.  I'm now confident that winter training has paid off.  That yes I am ready.  I placed a solid second in both events.  Finishing only 4 seconds out of first in the 2x.  18 seconds from first in the 1x.



Place Lane Organization Net Time % Delta Raw Handicap Penalty Winning Split

Race 2a: Mens Masters 1x Flight 1 @ 09:06 AM



1st 2 Fairmount A (K.Montenegro) 03:50.71     03:50.71     00:03:50.71  

2nd 4 Fairmount B (j.mcelvenney) 04:05.32 6.3% 00:14.61 04:05.32     00:03:50.71 00:00:14.61

3rd 3 New York B (R.Buesing) 04:19.53 12.5% 00:14.21 04:19.53     00:03:50.71 00:00:28.82





Race 2b: Mens Masters 1x Flight 2 @ 09:12 AM



1st 1 Fairmount A (M.Dolson) 03:32.38     03:32.38     00:03:32.38  

2nd 5 New York A (D.Wiedaseck) 03:51.35 8.9% 00:18.97 03:51.35     00:03:32.38 00:00:18.97

3rd 2 Three Rivers F (J.Bowlby) 04:03.13 14.5% 00:11.78 04:03.13     00:03:32.38 00:00:30.75

4th 4 Carnegie Lake D (R.LaFauci) 04:39.36 31.5% 00:36.23 04:39.36     00:03:32.38 00:01:06.98

5th 3 Passaic River (J.TuchInda) 04:43.30

Race 10a: Mens Masters 2- Flight @ 10:42 AM



1st 2 New York (I.Gomez, F.Perez) 03:30.55     03:30.55     00:03:30.55  

2nd 3 Fairmount (J.Hankee, G.Boras) 03:43.79 6.3% 00:13.24 03:47.79 00:04.00   00:03:30.55 00:00:17.24

3rd 5 Carnegie Lake (F.Hoffmann, Y.Kuban) 03:46.46 7.6% 00:02.67 03:55.56 00:09.10   00:03:30.55 00:00:25.01

4th 4 Three Rivers (S.Carr, C.Ryan) 03:48.36 8.5% 00:01.90 04:18.06 00:29.70   00:03:30.55 00:00:47.51
Race 11a: Mens Masters 2x Flight 1 @ 10:48 AM



1st 2 New York A (I.Gomez, F.Perez) 03:27.81     03:27.81     00:03:27.81  

2nd 3 New York B (R.Buesing, D.Wiedaseck) 03:31.86 1.9% 00:04.05 03:31.86     00:03:27.81 00:00:04.05

3rd 5 Wilmington (R.Hare, J.Dernbach) 03:40.53 6.1% 00:08.67 03:40.53     00:03:27.81 00:00:12.72

4th 4 Three Rivers A (J.Bowlby, S.Martino) 03:47.33 9.4% 00:06.80 03:47.33     00:03:27.81 00:00:19.52





 



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Scanning Fool - How this got going

By David on January 13, 2011 7:15 PM | No Comments | No TrackBacks
In my previous blog entry I discussed my motivations for starting a project to scan a bunch of old photographs from a bunch of old photo albums covering the last 30 years. In this entry I'm going to discuss how I chose the scanner for scanning old photograph prints.  So far in less then a week I have scanned over 560 prints and generated over 12 GB of TIFF files. 

To begin digitizing the photographs I needed a scanner. I looked at several services that would scan the photos for you, but at $0.30 a photo this could be come cost prohibitive very quickly.  Additionally all of the albums would have to be completely disassembled and sent off and them reassembled from scratch. Also there was soem feedback about photos getting scratched etc..  

In selecting the scanner I would have preferred to automate the process somewhat or be able to scan several photos at once without having to scan them one at a time.  To facilitate this I looked into scanners with a auto sheet feeder, However I found that these were primarily scanners targeted at scanning documents.  I proceeded to test a scanner with a document feeder to see how it worked with photographs and came to the conclusion that auto sheet feeders do not work well for photographs.  Even using a series of prints of the same size the document feeder easily became jammed.  The photos also noticeably showed signs of wear after being put through the auto sheet feeder. I also noticed the image quality was much worse when the same print was scanned on the same scanner using both the sheet feeder and laying the print on the glass.  Using the feeder the image lost much of it's sharpness and resulted in streaking lines across the image.   Also worth noting scanners intended for documents seem to result in poorer image quality when scanning photos. 

As a result of the test it was a choice between a film scanner, a hybrid film/ print scanner, and a Flatbad scanner (with a built in film adapter).  Film and slide scanners or adapters have a second light built into them which shines through the film or slide and is captured by the sensor on the other end. Unlike a regular scanner which shines a light ont he surface as the sensor passes along with it.  After my mom tried to digitize some old negatives, we found out that the image quality of many of the old negatives had deteriorated to the point that the image was unrecognizable.  Based on this and knowing that for many photos I would have the prints, but not necessarily the negatives or that the negatives might be unusable, I ruled out the film only scanner.  I looked at the hybrid which allows you to insert film or slides into it to scan the images, but also has a fram you can slide a 4x6" print into.  My concerns around the hybrid were how well the print holder would accept prints of different sizes.  Also you would only be able to scan a single photo at a time.  So I wen with a flat bed scanner.

Eventually i settled on the Epson V600 Photo scanner.  I haven't tried the built in film adapter on the flatbed scanner yet, because for all the pictures I've scanned so far, I don't have them negatives.  The scans so far have coem out very well including many faded black and white pictures and faded color prints.  The color prints have gone back as far as the 1970's and some of the black and whites to the 1940's.  The software the Epson V600 came with is simple enough to use, but has a few key features that make it very useful.  It incorporates Digital ICE, image color restoration, and it automatically sprits up multiple images into separate image files as long as there is space between them on the glass.  So you can load it up with a few prints each time.  it also sequentially auto numbers each file. 

The color restoration feature has proven to be very effective at undoing years of fading on many of both the color and Black and white prints.  In many cases revealing just how much the colors had changed over time.  Scanning a file as a TIFF with 48 bits of color depth at 720-800 DPI takes about 2 minutes a picture. The resulting fiel is about 50MB

After having started this now, I'm glad I didn't try to do it years ago.  Remembering that when I was in High school how much time it took to scan a picture and how much lower the resolutions was. it would have taken so much longer and it would be work that now would probably have to be redone now that technology has improved.  

I've also gotten to watch quite a bit of the BBC show Top Gear as I wait for the image scans to complete.

Scanning Fool - How this got started

By David on January 13, 2011 4:28 PM | No Comments | No TrackBacks
During my winter hibernation I have taken on a project I wouldn't normally have time for. But colder temperatures and lack of daylight have forced me to spend a lot more time indoors.  I also notice even with winter training I spend a lot more time watching TV or idling doing less.  I know I should be using this time to study for profesional exams, the GMAt or something academic, but after working all day  I am lacking focus and concentration. 

A few years ago one of my parents had a fire in a shed, while fortunately not much of value was lost except for a very sturdy wagon hand built by my dad.  The wagon at some point I have plans to rebuild.  Not because I need it, but because it would be a cool project to get my dad to help me with.  And I can give it to my kid(s) to play with some day.  I'm also toying with the idea of making a copy to give to my nephew.  

Last year my other parent had a flood in their basement. MI'm nto using names because my parents hate when I mention them in my blog. Fortunately again not much of value was destroyed.  Sure some carpet and an old couch was thrown out, but most things survived. Again all of these things and what was destroyed are just that, things.  However, among the boxes of stuff quickly being relocated to higher ground was a cardboard box full of photos.  These cover at least the past several decades.  Some of them are of vacations and other events, others are most likely not important at all. Their not organized or put into photo albums so their is no easy way to tell whats there. 

This caused me to realize that I have all of my photos from the past decade stored digitally.  And I have the originals and the negatives from the days I had a film camera achieved in box in my parents basement as well as a backup digital copy.  At least I used a plastic box.   However, everything from before 1999  is still in analogue form .  

The reason is that in 1999 it became really easy and inexpensive to get a CD with a copy of all your photos returned when you developed them.  The downside to the analogue is that is stored only in one location and the prints and negatives steadily deteriorate over time.  The effect is actually quite rapid and quickly noticeable as colors become distorted.  Black and whites seem to age more gracefully into a yellow and gray.  However color photos become darker and the yellows start to disappear.  Further the analog form takes up space that i don't have so their likely to be stored away somewhere where I can't easily get them. And their fragile so their not likely to be handled readily.  Much of how I interact with personal media is now digital.  I'm more likely to flip through photos on my laptop or on an iPad then to dig a book out of the attic.  

This may beg the question, why are these pictures so important or why take the effort to preserve them.  People place varying degrees of importance on photos, some are happy with a grainy horribly lit self taken photo from a cell phone in a bar that is rapidly uploaded and spread across the vast internet.  Others would favor a carefully posed, and possibly heavily doctored photo taked with meticulous quality. I sometimes thing the later group would prefer the picture not taken of them, but instead taken of the person they think they look like.  

My recent interest in photography has led to an interest in preserving the pictures of that which I can not possibly photograph, and that is what has already happened.  For example I can't for any amount of photographic genius photograph my own childhood.  Instead I have to rely on what was already taken.  In this their is an intrinsic value in these pictures, even the less then perfect ones,  in that they are the raw unadulterated, but thoroughly honest image of the past.  Combined these are the illustrations to the narrative that is my life.  Even less then perfect they are extremely provocative in stirring up old memories or explaining stories told. Reminding me just how rustic the farm I grew up on was as a small child.   Instead of the more yuppie golf course looking estate it became.  I also recognize certain toys and other things long ago forgotten.  

As part fo this project to retrieve, digitize and store these images I've also gon through one of my Moms old photo albums from the 1970's. I don't know many of the people or understand why many of them where selected to be remembered.   All the photos here are before my time, but they are loaded with the illustrations from stories I have heard, which makes the intriguing to see. Pictures of my Grandfathers old Mustang, my Dads Triumph motorcycle, a row boat, the horse my Mom used to ride, and even a boat lift and a flag pole I have heard referred to many times but have never seen.  

Perhaps I must be getting a bit older to appreciate such nostalgia.  But the images of my life add color and perhaps even a 3-D (3-D is supper trendy right now) effect to my memory.  

 


Scanning Fool

By David on January 13, 2011 4:28 PM | No Comments | No TrackBacks
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