Add File-Specific Descriptions to Omeka S Photo Media
By ImgHeal · Updated
A photo item's general description cannot always explain every attached file. Add media-level descriptions for the back scan, detail crop, and restoration when their roles differ. Omeka S initially accepts a media title during attachment; inspect the media record afterward for fuller description.
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Identify the question each file answers
Start with an item that has several representations. Record which file documents the front, which captures the inscription, and which exists mainly for convenient viewing. A detail crop may need a parent-image reference, while a restoration needs an editing disclosure. Keep the physical photograph's facts on the object record and file-specific claims with the representation. Review current upload-derived titles so a visitor does not have to interpret a camera filename to understand what they are seeing.
Edit a representative media record
Follow the media-description workflow documented for the installed Omeka S version. Use a concise title and a description explaining the file role, source relationship, and any meaningful transformation. Retain the stable object ID rather than making a generated upload filename your archival identifier. If the source is a back inscription, state that it belongs to the same print rather than supplying a speculative person's name. Inspect whether rights or source information needs a file-specific qualification instead of assuming the item's general wording covers every representation.
Read the result outside the edit screen
Open the public item and the media view as an ordinary visitor. Check whether the theme actually displays the added fields and whether their wording remains clear when only one file is visible. Supply a visible explanation elsewhere if necessary; metadata hidden in an administrative panel does not inform a family reader. Test one permitted download and keep its accompanying caption connected to the source. If the media is an ImgHeal output, disclose that it is a generated viewing derivative and retain the untouched scan in the archive.
Check this workflow
- Assign a clear role to each file.
- Describe transformations at media level.
- Verify the theme displays the explanation.
Sources and further reading
- Omeka S: MediaExplains attached files, descriptions, primary media, ordering, thumbnails, and media ownership.
Questions about this restoration task
Is the original filename enough to describe a restoration?
Usually not. A reader needs a plain explanation of the file's relationship to the source and the changes made.
Continue with a related guide
Try a restoration on a copy of your photo
Keep the original scan. Upload a separate digital copy, review ImgHeal’s generated result, and decide whether it suits your needs.
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