ImgArchive: Preserving Photographic Collections
I am a photographer and software engineer. Over the years, I have built a large collection of film photographs—mainly slides—as well as digital images. Many are personally valuable, and some are irreplaceable. ImgArchive was created to help preserve and manage collections like these with confidence.
Image Archive began as a simple archiving tool. While developing it, I found a book called The DAM Book: Digital Asset Management for Photographers by Peter Krogh, which outlines typical management processes photographers with large image collections follow to manage their images effectively. However, Image Archive went further with the concept of vault and user spaces. This concept enabled storing images separately from viewing and manipulating them, making it easier to safeguard the archive. Users only need access to the vault when copying or adding images.
Why ImgArchive
Photographic collections deserve more than simple storage. ImgArchive is designed to help photographers maintain, safeguard and access their images easily, without losing sight of the importance of long-term preservation.
What ImgArchive Is — and Isn’t
ImgArchive is not an image-manipulation tool. Its purpose is to organise, protect and make image collections accessible, supporting photographers who need a reliable way to look after both film (scanned) and digital archives.
Licensing and Goals
The project is nearing completion, and I want to share it with the photographic community. The software will be free to access, but it is not public domain. My aim is to build a sustainable product supported by a small one-time licence fee.
Seeking Sponsors and Partners
I am looking for sponsors and partners to help expand ImgArchive and make the project a success. The software has been designed so third parties can build on its core, creating opportunities for collaboration and future development.