What we worked on in October 2026
In October, we continued working on two of our ongoing projects, The Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo and the Country Houses Foundation. I have been focusing on scanning a variety of different-sized negatives for The Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo, while our other digitisation technician, Toby, has been scanning loose-page documents for the Country Houses Foundation.
Project Spotlight
This month, we have been continuing our work with the Country Houses Foundation. Toby has been digitising a batch of loose-page documents, including administrative records, conservation reports and financial records.
For this project, Toby has been using a new setup to digitise the documents and manage the scans. Using dedicated software, he can organise the scans into folders and name the files, helping to keep everything organised and easy to locate. This new addition has been a great improvement to our workflow, allowing us to process loose-page documents more efficiently.
Interesting items scanned
Recently, I have been scanning negatives from The Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo. I have worked with a variety of different sizes, including 35mm, 6x6 medium format, 10x8 medium format, and even A4 negatives!
I have been scanning the medium format and A4 negatives using a light box placed on top of a flat cradle on the Vanguard board. I can adjust the height of the cradle, which has been really useful as it allows me to change the height depending on the size of the negative I am scanning.
I have found the 10x8 medium format and A4 negatives particularly interesting, as the images appear much clearer and show so much more detail of the performances and Edinburgh Castle.
Challenges, & How We Solved Them
The particular box I am working on for The Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo contains many 35mm negatives. I considered using the light box to scan these negatives, as this method would be faster than using the Epson scanner. However, I would struggle to achieve the required resolution. To scan the 35mm negatives using the light box, I would need to raise the cradle so much that it would be almost touching the camera lens. This would leave very little space to work with and make the scanning process less efficient.
To solve this issue, I have been scanning the 35mm negatives using the Epson scanner while scanning the larger negatives on the Vanguard. Being able to use both methods at the same time has helped make my workflow more efficient.
This video shows how we use the Epson scanner to digitise these 35mm negatives, along with the final scans.
Additionally, I’d like to share some of my favourite images that I’ve scanned recently, these images are of various performances at Edinburgh Castle!
Team Member Spotlight
What do you enjoy most about working at TownsWeb?
The opportunity to innovate. We don't just follow standard templates; we often have to build new workflows and indexing structures. I love the collaborative problem-solving. When a client brings in a particularly fragile or oddly shaped archive, sitting down together to figure out a safe, custom capture method is incredibly rewarding.
What is your favourite thing you have scanned?
My Favourite thing I have scanned is the project I have recently started: The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple. It consists of lots of old photos from during and just after World War II, including when it was bombed. It's really cool to see the Damage and then the extensive reconstruction after the war ended.
What is something new you have learned since working here?
I've learned a lot about the technical side of high-resolution digital preservation and how much meticulous care goes into handling fragile, historic documents.
What do you enjoy doing outside of work?
Outside of work, I stay entirely focused on my own creative ventures. I do a lot of songwriting for my band, Capsized, and we stay active playing live gigs almost every weekend. The rest of my time is dedicated to building and running my freelance wedding photography business and spending time with my other half :)
Guess the Year Challenge
Can you guess the year of this image scanned from The Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo? The answer will be in the next monthly blog!
New services and Improvements
This month, we have introduced a new addition to our digitisation studio that has significantly improved our workflow. It allows us to process loose-page documents much faster than using our Vanguard scanners, with the capacity to scan at least 2,000 pages per day. This is particularly useful when working on large projects with tight deadlines, as it helps us work more efficiently and keep projects on track.
New and Upcoming Projects
Next month, I will be continuing my work on The Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo. I am coming to the end of scanning the negatives and will soon be moving on to larger paper-based material using our Guardian scanner. This includes photobooks, posters and framed photographs. I am particularly excited to scan the framed photos, as they feature some beautiful artwork.
We will also be starting several new projects, including The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, North Northants Council and Scottish Canals.
If you have materials that need digitising, then please reach out to our team for a friendly chat.
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