Hobart Botanical Gardens. Date unknown. By Harold Burgess.
As 2016 draws to a close I thought I might take the opportunity for a quick reflection on the year that was and consider my goals for 2017. 

I started this blog in August this year with the best intentions to post regularly, but found myself lacking time and motivation due to full time work and part time study commitments. Now that I have completed my studies, I plan to make use of this space to continue research and writing in my areas of interest, document personal projects in digitisation and digital preservation and write general reflections on other topics including travel/art/photography etc.

My studies have taken up the better part of the last three years, so I am glad to have finished my last subject in November. Despite being busy with work and studies I also managed to spend some time on my art this year and was involved in two group exhibitions with my digital illustrations. I am looking forward to having more time for both digital illustrations as well as photography in the new year and will hopefully begin some projects I have had in the back of my mind for the last year or so.

My goals for 2017 include:
  • Create regular blog posts (topics I am drafting at the moment include RAW vs DNG file formats, how to digitise your family photographs and preserving social media - always open for suggestions!)
  • Digitise small collection of family photographs, both negatives and prints, using a DIY setup at home (the above image is from my paternal grandparents' negative collection, digitised using a test setup - blog post to come!)
  • Produce a small zine with a combination of digital illustrations and photography
  • Organise my personal digital photographic archive, looking at whether the LOC BagIt standard is suitable to ensure fixity
  • Capture and backup some of my old social media content such as Livejournal
  • Continue to research and keep up to date on digital preservation
  • Engage more on Twitter