Suppression of Cracking in Albumen Prints using Fuzzy Filtering

Abstract

Photographs represent one of the oldest visual forms of media used to convey information. Since its inception in the mid 19th century, photographs have been used to document cultural heritage. Many of these historical photographs suffer from the effects some form of degradation, resulting in a deterioration of their visual appearance or physical structure. Albumen prints represent the principal photographic format of the 19th century, and are especially prone to innate processes such as yellowing and cracking. The latter is a mechanical process which diminishes the aesthetic qualities of these prints. In this paper we address the problem of cracking in albumen prints of the 19th century, and investigate the use of fuzzy filtering techniques to suppress cracking in albumen prints.