I was searching the web for interesting stories and found an article in Ancestry.com that sparked my imagination. I have always been interested in photography since I got my first Brownie camera when I was ten years old. The article talked about building a digital camera that could capture images in all sorts of light – infrared, ultraviolet, incandescent and more.
The inventor, Jack Reese, used the camera to look at the 1851 Manchester England census. The census was badly damaged – the ink had faded, water damage had left mold on the pages, and many pages were just blank. His new camera brought out many details that previously were considered lost forever. The article even included before and after images that clearly showed the census records the way they were originally written. It was marvellous.
Other readers had left comments about the process and success of the camera. They indicated that they had similar documents and hoped they could get access to the camera to uncover their lost information. That intrigued me. It got me thinking of documents that I have found that contained only the odd scribble or hash marks. Maybe I shouldn't give up so easily. Not that I have the expertise to build my own camera, but that the technology might be available to the lay person someday to use on our own documents.
Take a few minutes to read the article at Ancestry Magazine and actually see pictures of the before and after shots. You'll be amazed at the difference!
If you have documents that could use this process – take a moment to tell us or just add your comment about the article. If you are already a member of All-About-Family-Trees.com, simply click on the "Add new comment" button and add your comments. If you are not a member yet, take a few minutes and join our growing community and tell us what databases you have used. Simply click on the link at the top right of the page, create a username and be sure to signup for our weekly newsletter. If you signup for the newsletter I'll send you a free copy of my e-book '10 "Must Know" Tips to Uncover Your Heritage'.
We all look forward to hearing from you soon.
