Alex Hayes

04Archiving

[04]  Chapter

Archiving

Digitization of VHS, audio cassette, reel-to-reel, 8mm film and photographs for families, libraries and historical societies, through Local Memory LLC.

  1. 04.1Seneca Falls
  2. 04.2Locust Valley Library
  3. 04.3What I digitize
  4. 04.4Contact
A faded childhood snapshot from the family collection: Alex in a plaid shirt and cap, holding a toy guitar.
Family snapshot
A frame of 8mm film from 1971: a high school football game, players in light jerseys on a grey field, a crowd behind.
LV vs Oyster Bay, 1971
Locust Valley Library Films and tapes, 1971–2005Internet Archive (opens in a new tab)
The Seneca Falls Historical Society archive on Local Historian: the heading “Where the Movement Began.” over a dark photograph of the river.
Seneca Falls, 1980–89
Seneca Falls Historical Society Cassette recordings, 1980–89localhistorian.ai (opens in a new tab)

04.1  Seneca Falls

Seneca Falls.

I digitized the Society’s cassette collection, restored it, and published it with transcripts on a portal I built.

Switch while it plays.

Raw tapeTape hiss and hum about 7 dB below the voice

Roughly a third of the songs in this collection are gifts to Stanton from one Elisha Foote, who at the time was one of Judge Cady’s law clerks, who was later to become a signer of the Declaration of Sentiments.

Stanton Music · Lecture · 22 August 1985Tape 18 Seneca Falls Historical Society · 5:16–5:33 of the published recording · both versions at the same loudnesslocalhistorian.ai/seneca-falls (opens in a new tab)

04.2Locust Valley Library

  1. A frame of 8mm film from 1971: a high school football game, players in light jerseys on a grey field, a crowd behind.
    1971 · Locust Valley vs Oyster Bay Football · 8mm film Label: “L.V. FOOTBALL - 8MM FILM TRANSFER (7 game collection)”
  2. A videotape frame from 1986: players in green jerseys on a lit field, seen from the stands.
    1986 · Locust Valley vs East Rockaway Football, Conference IV championship at Hofstra · Videotape Label: “11-29-86 Conf 4 Championships at Hofstra LV - 20 E Rockaway 6”
  3. A videotape frame from 1987: the two teams lined up on the field, a crowd in the stands behind.
    1987 · Locust Valley vs Malverne Football, Conference IV championship · Videotape Label: “LV vs MALVERNE Conf IV Championship 9-0 11-26-87”
  4. A videotape frame from 1999: a basketball game in a school gym, with the VCR’s counter in the corner.
    1999 · Locust Valley vs Carle Place Basketball · Videotape Label: “1/5/99 CARLE PLACE LV CP 60-58”
  5. A videotape frame from 2003: a tackle near the goalposts, seen from the sideline.
    2003 · Falcon Football Highlights reel by the high school’s A/V group · Videotape Label: “Falcon Football 2003”

Locust Valley Library.

56 high school sports films and videotapes from 1971 to 2005, digitized for the Locust Valley Library. The 1971 games are 8mm film; the rest are videotape.

The collection on the Internet Archive (opens in a new tab)

04.3  What I digitize

What I digitize.

  1. 04.3a

    VHS & Betamax

    Home movies, camcorder tapes and anything recorded off TV.

  2. 04.3b

    Audio cassette

    Mixtapes, voice letters, interviews and demos.

  3. 04.3c

    Reel-to-reel

    Open-reel tape, from family recordings to old sessions.

  4. 04.3d

    8mm film

    Home-movie reels from the projector years.

  5. 04.3e

    Photographs

    Loose prints, shoeboxes and whole albums.

  6. 04.3f

    Documents & ephemera

    Letters, programs, clippings and flyers.

How it works.

  1. 01Received

    You reach out

    Tell me what you have and how you’d like it back. I’ll reply, usually within 24 hours.

  2. 02Assessed

    I assess your media

    I check each item’s format and condition and tell you what to expect.

  3. 03Transferred

    I digitize everything

    Careful handling and professional equipment, one item at a time.

  4. 04Returned

    You get your files

    Your originals come back with the files, on a drive, in the cloud, or both.

How you get it back.

  • Hard drive

    Your files on a drive you keep.

  • Cloud

    A cloud folder you can share with family.

  • Both

    A drive for the shelf and a link for everyone else.

Local Memory LLC is my preservation practice in Glen Cove, on Long Island. For larger institutional projects, see atreyu-project.com (opens in a new tab).

04.4  Contact

Contact

For lessons, sessions or projects, write to me through the contact form. I usually reply within a day.

Contact