Challenge

Develop a solution that could quickly capture large quantities of high-resolution digital images of print and direct mail creative and import the captured media into an existing image management system.

Design Constraints

The solution would have to meet the following criteria:

It must:

1. be able to capture high-resolution images up to full-page newspaper size.
2. integrate with existing image management system.
3. be easy to use by part-time staff.

Solution

We developed a system that would use a modified document photography stand to capture digital stills of print creative. In addition to specifying hardware, a software interface was built to control the camera and import captured images into a database built in Filemaker Pro, where further editing operations (cropping, rotating and exporting) could be easily executed by employees.

A six-week development effort was followed up by two rounds of iterative testing and streamlining. Built in 2004, this system is still the client’s primary method of capturing and cataloging creative, having captured over 20,000 images of creative in approximately 1/12 the time it would take with a flatbed scanner.