Vintage Media Lab
Preserve your old photographs, home movies, records and cassettes.
How to Access
- Please use the booking link below for a two-hour appointment slot.
- Each appointment includes a skilled volunteer to assist you. Appointments are limited to a single two-hour appointment per week per person.
- Because space and time in the Vintage Media Lab is limited, we appreciate your cooperation in regard to equipment, storage and cleanliness.
What to Bring
- Laptop
- SD Card, Memory Card
- USB Drive, Flash Drive or Memory Stick
- External Hard Drive
- Your Vintage Media!
Project Guides & Resources
Frequently Asked Questions
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Please send us an eHelp ticket or cancel through the calendar invite sent by our booking system. This invite is sent to the email address you used to book the appointment, not your library account.
Emails about your appointment include a Reschedule link pictured below:
In the following webpage there is an option to cancel or reschedule your appointment.
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There are several things you can do to make digitizing easier before visiting our library, the number one thing is to organize (and sometimes clean) your scans. Read more tips and tricks here on NicheAcademy. We also publish tutorials for many of our scanners that may help you plan.
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Our lab schedule is very busy and it make take several weeks or months to complete your scanning project. While you wait, check out other public libraries around us with similar equipment and other personal archiving services across the country:
- Santa Clara City Library
- San Jose Public Library
- Los Gatos Library
- San Francisco Public Library
- San Leandro Public Library
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San Mateo County Library
- Atherton Library
- Millbrae Library
- Brisbane Library
- Half Moon Bay
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Everything in the Vintage Media Lab is free to use and was purchased through a Pacific Library Partnership grant in 2019! In other words, the only direct cost to you is the amount of time it takes to finish your digitization project.
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Photos slides: 30 slides per minute, or about 1 slide every 2 seconds. Your pre-sorted 80 slide carousel filled to the brim with photos can take as little as 3 minutes from start to finish.
Photo prints: Our Epson FastFoto scanner can batch scan 35 photos at a time and takes about 1 second per photo.
VHS and 8mm Video (Video8/Hi8/Handycam): This happens in real-time. 2 hours of video will take 2 hours to digitized.
Super 8 or 8mm Movie Film: Approximately 35 minutes for a small reel of film (~50ft).
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We have an automated slide scanner and DSLR camera rig that makes this a fast and easy process. Follow these 4 steps before visiting the library with your vintage photos to make it even faster and easier.
- Make sure your slides are clean. Dust is the enemy of a good scan, and this is especially true with cardboard slides that have been sitting idle for many years.
- Preload your slide carousels. We recommend 80 slot slide carousel versus 140 slot carousels, which tend to jam our machine.
- Turn your slides so they're horizontal or "landscape" oriented. This is a small extra step but will make sure our camera captures the full image.
- Flip your slides so the "shiny" side of the slide is facing forward. Like #3 before, this is possible to fix later in photo editing software, but getting it right the first time can save you time.
Book An Appointment
By scheduling a Vintage Media Lab appointment, you acknowledge the following:
I understand that appointments are 2 hours long and I will not be able to digitize a large amount of items. I can schedule another appointment to come back.
I understand that I cannot leave my items at the library to be digitized by the staff/volunteers. I will be present while my items are being digitized, and I will take all my items with me when I leave. The library is not responsible for the loss or damage to my items.
I understand that my items must be organized. Photos need to have been sorted through, VHS tapes and other items need to be clean and dusted. Volunteers will not help you with organizing, sorting, or cleaning.
I understand that some equipment may be harder on some formats, and that my items can be susceptible to damage. The library is not responsible for any damage incurred on my items.
BOOK AN APPOINTMENT ONLINE*Our lab schedule is very busy and appointments are booked up to 100 days in advance. If you need your project completed sooner, please view the FAQ above for other places to digitize vintage media.
Location
This library services is part of the new ReBoot Room located on the 2nd floor of Mitchell Park Library. We thank the Pacific Library Partnership for their grant which made purchasing this equipment possible.
Hours & Information
