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Digital Imaging Experience of Hellmuth and F.L.A.A.R.
In 1995 Professor Hellmuth was asked by the Japanese National Museum of Ethnology (Osaka) to do a feasibility study of digital imaging for their collection of color slides of Maya art. Since this museum has no actual artifacts, access to photographs in digital format was important for their research and educational departments. Japan's Ministry of Education provided funding for Dr Hellmuth in Osaka. Earlier Hellmuth served as a consultantfor this museum.
 While at our Florida facility, staff and associates included Linda Ryan and Bill Ryan, with extensive background in military digital imagery analysis. The digital imaging and computer staff of Brevard Community College assisted the development of our programs with their considerable experience as well. The training we received during 1998 was considerable.
F.L.A.A.R. has now established an office for testing equipment for the European digital imaging and graphics market in Essen-Werden, Germany, and is moving its Florida office to St Louis. At the right, a corner of our recent 2,200 square foot facility in Florida. |
In 1996 Dr Hellmuth and F.L.A.A.R. received $100,000 from anAmerican foundation for a feasibility study to develop digitalimaging capability for the extensive F.L.A.A.R. Photo Archive.
Our digital imaging equipment at present consists of an AppleMacintosh 9600 computer with over 800 MB RAM, a PowerTowerPro225 MHz computer with adequate RAM to handle digital images, a Macintosh PowerBook 3400c 240MHz portable computer with 144 MBRAM (its maximum), plus a Dell Optiplex Pentium Pro 200, as wellas several miscellaneous office computers for word processingand basic digital imaging. Upgrades to Mac G3 processors are in progress.
Our digital printing equipment consists of an Encad wide-format NovaJetPro 36" with an EFI Fiery RIP, a QMS oversize model2060FX laser printer, a Lexmark color laser, plus normal office printers (two additional Lexmark laser printers; two additional HP laser printers). Our wide-format printing is supported by RexamGraphics and American Ink Jet Corporation, among others. Our laserprinting program is supported by Weyerhaeuser Paper.
Our digital scanning equipment is a Dicomed Field Pro for 4x5format, modified by Better Light for seamless panoramas and turntable rollout modes. For scanners we use the Nikon LS-2000, Umax PowerLookII, and Umax PowerLook III. We are preparing to upgrade our entire flatbed scanner system this year. As part of this upgrade we are expanding www.cameras-scanners-flaar.org with additional reviewsof scanning equipment.
Our image file storage systems consist of a 36 GB RAID level0, another 30 GB in miscellaneous Seagate Cheetah and Barracuda storage capability, 100 GB storage on MO disks, and an estimated 200 GB stored on CDs or Panasonic PD dual phasewriter disks (which can be read on DVD-RAM systems). We have our own CD burner and overall have a wide range of equipment to handle digital imaging.
For software we have virtually everything that is needed oravailable, including all four photo imaging softwares (LivePicture,Adobe Photoshop, Macromedia Xres, Micrografx, etc).
Hellmuth uses Mac OS 8.1, PC, Windows 95 and Windows NT operating systems. We thank the Advanced Technology Group of Apple Computer for donating the Mac 9600 to our digital imaging program.
Our portable studio in the Museo Popol Vuh, Universidad Francisco Marroquin, Guatemala. Two different turntable rollout systems at work, a 70mm Swiss (Seitz) at the left and the digital equivalent at the right (Better Light Dicomed). Most of the equipment in this studio was provided by the companies in recognition of the achievements of the F.L.A.A.R. facility and staff in promoting advances in digital imaging technology. |
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