Publication Date
January 1983
Abstract
A review of current library and archival literature on the cataloging of photographs illustrates the diverse methods of arranging and describing visual records. Photographic collections range in size from a handful of old pictures to collections housing hundreds of thousands of photographs and negatives. As varied as the size of photograph collections, there also seems to be as many different cataloging and arrangement schemes. While most cataloging methods have unique features, they usually can be categorized in three types of retrieval systems: (l) card catalog, (2) image- bearing cards, and (3) self- indexed collections. This is an explanation of the Auburn University Archives' (Alabama) efforts to cope with the sudden influx of a sizable collection of contemporary photographs.