Digital analysis and restoration of Daguerreotypes

George Eastman House International Museum of Photography Conservation Laboratory and the University of Rochester Department of Computer Science are researching image analysis techniques to distinguish daguerreotype plate and image features from deterioration, contaminant particulates, and optical imaging error occurring in high resolution photomicrography system. The images are captured at up to 30 times magnification and composited, including the ravages of age and reactivity of the highly polished surface that obscures and reduces the readability of the image. The University of Rochester computer scientists have developed and applied novel techniques for the seamless correction of a variety of problems. The final output is threefold: an analysis of regular artifacting resulting from imaging conditions and equipment; a fast automatic identification of problem areas in the original artifact; and an approximate digital restoration. In addition to the discussion of novel classification and restorative methods for digital daguerreotype restoration, this work highlights the effective use of large-scale parallelism for restoration (made available through the University of Rochester Center for Research Computing). This paper will show the application of analytical techniques to the Cincinnati Waterfront Panorama Daguerreotype, with the intent of making the results publically available through high resolution web image navigation tools.