Digital, infrared, UV, X-ray
The practical uses of photographing works of art
MúzeumCafé 34.
The basic role of photographing works of art did not change with the introduction of digital cameras, but the work of photographers has been extended with creative tasks not technically possible before. Today, creating reproduced images is much simpler. The analogue world’s adventurous but time-consuming techniques of photography have been replaced by a digital system offering many varieties of use. The question thus arises as to what purposes the new possibilities can be used, and in what way does the professional practice differ from what was customary with film photography. New dimensions have opened up in the work of researchers, since so many details of hidden information in a work can be recorded, which was not possible before. Furthermore, data can be stored in a much more accessible manner, thus research no longer requires looking for works held in different collections, or obtaining large-format, delicate slides. Over and above scientific and educational purposes, digital documentation also helps the protection of works of art. Otherwise, digital images are excellent for use in new marketing strategies or as promotional materials. Communication has become unambiguously visual. It has to be re-thought how high art can be made more accessible with the image of a work, how its values and points of interest can be presented apart from on the walls of museums. Currently in Hungary it is only the Fine Arts Museum which has a workshop fully equipped for the professional photographing of works of art. Besides the fields of science and education, therefore, images of works of art have reached a new level in the Museum of Fine Arts which previously didn’t exist in Hungary. This, however, raises serious criteria in relation to images. The other area of museums and photography relates to the work of restoration.