I have been offering conversion of client digital images to film for several
years now.  My market is made up of medium to small volume clients  and I
have some comments for you!
 
Tiff images are non degenerative! That is one of the main reasons that
document imaging's preferred format is tiff because there is virtually no
loss of quality in conversions.  However that is not the main quality issue
with digital to film conversion. DPI scan settings are the main quality
issue and I will try to explain why.  Film is a very high resolution medium
and when you convert from film to digital there is virtually no difference
in the digital image quality from film or original document.  However, the
reverse in not true.  The specifications for microfilm are very well
documented for camera masters and duplicate resolution tolerances.  Digital
is a hugely different matter.  
 
Let's make the assumption that you have scanned your tiff images at standard
200 DPI for document imaging or 300 DPI for large format imaging.  When you
write those images to film you can only transfer the original DPI quality to
the film which results in a significantly lower resolution than camera
master microfilm output which technically does not meet Archival standards. 
Is this a huge problem?  Depends on your purpose!  Microfilm lasts 100-500
years and is evidentiary by statute, digital imaging last as long as the
media it resides on and is evidentiary by case law.  Will you be able to get
a "good" image of the digital scan from film - YES! Can the conversion to
film meet the microfilm standards for evidentiary purposes - YES!  The
Archival quality standards of digital images converted to film have not been
established to the best of my nowledge. Personally I would like to see AINSI
set some standards for this new technology conversion to film so that we all
have a benchmark to work with!
 
You also asked about cost.  I have found that there are several issues with
digital conversion costing as well. I offer free samples to my clients. 
Many scanning bureaus don't provide free samples and even go so far as to
charge $50-$100 for a sample which is taken off your invoice if you choose
their service.  

Most service bureaus have established minimum billing levels so that at
least their cost of cutting an invoice is covered for very small projects. 
I have seen minimums of $50-$200 which has  exceeded the size of some of my
projects.  

And the third issue is their "Set up" charges to assure that the images
produced meet your needs.  
I know that the cost of set up is the same for a sample/small job/major
project but then again I guarantee my production work to my client's
satisfaction.  I feel that bearing the potential up front loss of the set up
cost is far outweighed by being able to guarantee an agreed upon quality of
our production projects to my clients.  No one like surprises, especially a
service bureau who has met all state and local archival production standards
and then has a client that says they are not satisfied with the work..
hundreds to thousands of dollars down the line!
 
For the most part, your conversion "rate" will be tied to volume and you
have a small volume by most bureau standards so you  will be paying a
non-volume discounted rate.  The conversion bureaus that I have dealt with
typically discount at either volume or dollar levels - i.e. X% for projects
over 100,000 images or $5000, 2X% over 250,000 images or $10,000  up to a
special negotiated rate for projects over 1 million images or $50,000.

I hope this information helps. I would be happy to work with you on your
project!
 

 
Janie Wait, CRM, MBA
President
Director of Marketing
Intermountain Record Center, Inc
3765 Airport Parkway, Casper, WY 82604
PO Box 2770, Mills, WY 82644
 307-265-9553
 307-237-8225
 [log in to unmask]
 www.intermountainrecords.com

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