GB2347761A - Identification of individuals in event photography - Google Patents

Abstract

A database containing the names of people to be photographed is used to create a set of identification cards each bearing the name of a person in a manually readable form and in the form of a barcode or a magnetic strip. The cards are distributed to the respective people at a convenient time before the photographic event. The photograph is then taken and immediately following this the cards are collected in a sequence which corresponds to the position the person occupied in the photographic record. The cards are maintained in sequence prior to generating a database of names which identifies the people in relation to the positions which they occupied in the photographic record. The database can be used to print legends for group photographs, create mailing envelopes, etc. Equipment for use in event photography is also claimed and this comprises a box 10 with an arrowhead pin 17 (Fig.3). On collecting the cards in sequence, the cards are placed on the arrowhead pin 17 and are stored in box 10. The pin 17 maintains the cards in the correct sequence until the cards are removed and read in sequence using eg. a barcode reader to generate the database or names.

Description

PHOTOGRAPHY TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to photography.

The invention is particularly concerne with gatherings of people where a number of people are photographed separately one after another or where a number of people are photographed together in groups. In this specification both forms of photography will be embraced within the term "event photography".

BACKGROUND A photograph of a group such as a school, college, sports team or group of servicemen, provides an enduring record which can be treasured for many years. The number of people in such groups can range from less than ten to well over 1,500. In the case of smaller groups it is quite common to provide a printed legend containing the names of the individuals in the photograph. This is achieved by providing a proof copy of the photograph to the school or other organisation together with a blank grid in which the names of all the individuals must be manually entered. Whilst this is not too onerous a task for relatively small groups, as the size of the groups becomes larger the time required to compile an accurate record becomes prohibitive, and the possibility of errors increases significantly. Similar problems are encountered with events such as graduation ceremonies in which large numbers of individuals are photographed separately, where again, a great amount of time and care is required to ensure that the correct names are attributed to the photographs.

The present invention seeks to provide a new and inventive method of event photography and new and inventive equipment for use therein.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention proposes a method of event photography which comprises: -creating a set of identification elements adapted to identify people to be photographed; -distributing the identification elements to the correct people before they are photographed; -making a photographic record of said people during an event; -collecting the identification elements from the people, in temporal proximity to the making of the photographic record, in a sequence which corresponds to the positions which they occupy in the photographic record and maintaining the elements in said sequence ; and -using the elements to generate name data which individually identifies the people in relation to the positions which they occupy in the photographic record.

The identification elements may be created manually, e. g. by writing names onto tags, but they are preferably machine-produced from digitally-stored data containing, in any order, the names of the people to be photographed.

The photographic record may comprise discreet images of the individual people or a composite image containing a group of people. The image or images may be carried on photographic film or paper or they may be stored in digital form, e. g. on a CD-ROM.

The name data is preferably also stored digitally for ease of processing.

The name data may be used to create legends, name tags or envelopes for example.

The invention further provides a method of event photography which comprises: -compiling digitally-stored data comprising, in any order, the names of the people to be photographed; -gathering said people together and making a photographic record thereof; -using the digitally-stored data to produce a physical record linking said names to the positions which the people occupy in the photographic record ; and -using said physical record to generate name data containing the names arranged in the order in which the people appear in said photograph.

The physical record may take various forms. For example, it could comprise a printout of names, in any convenient order, against which their positions in the photographic record are manually recorded. This can be done at the time the photographic record is made, or at a future date using the photographic record. The spatial information from the physical record can then be added to the digitally-stored data, which is then re-sorted to produce the name data with the names arranged by position.

In another form of the invention a set of physical identification elements is produced from the digitally-stored data. The elements are then distributed to the correct people and the photographic record made. The elements are collecte from the people, in temporal proximity to the making of the photographic record, in a sequence which corresponds to the positions which they occupy in the photographic record and the elements are maintained in sequence. The spatial information from the elements can then be added to the digitally-stored data, which is then re-sorted to produce the name data with the names arranged by position.

The invention further provides equipment for use in event photography, comprising a set of identification elements adapted to identify people to be photographed in an event, and collecting means for collecting the identification elements from the people in a sequence which corresponds to the positions which they occupy in a photographic record made during the event, the collecting means being adapted to retain the elements in a predetermined order.

The collection means preferably incorporates an element-engaging portion which engages and retains the elements in a defined order. The element- engaging portion is preferably mounted within a container for receiving the elements, and is preferably detachably mounted therein.

The equipment preferably includes digital storage and processing means for storing and manipulating data containing, in any order, the names of the people to be photographed. Said storage and processing means is preferably provided with means for creating the identification elements (e. g. a printer).

The identification elements may conveniently be cards, although they could be produced in any material form such as tags or discs.

The name data is preferably carried by the elements in a machine-readable form such as in a barcode or magnetic strip for example.

The elements preferably comprise additional data identifying the position of the respective name in the stored data.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The following description and the accompanying drawings referred to therein are included by way of non-limiting example in order to illustrate how the invention may be put into practice. In the drawings: Figure 1 is a name card for use in the production of a group photograph in accordance with the invention; Figure 2 is a leader card for use with the name cards; Figure 3 is a general perspective view of a box for use with the cards, and Figure 4 is a vertical section through the box.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The first example to be described relates to the production of a school photograph, although it will be appreciated that the same procedure can be used to photograph people in any kind or size of group.

Preparation Prior to the date on which the photograph is to be taken the school is requested to provide the photographers with a full list of staff and pupil names from the schools administration records. In the case of pupils the names will normally be listed in classes (forms) for administrative convenience. The list is preferably copied onto a computer disk from the schools computer records, although it could also be provided initially as a paper record. When the information is received by the photographers the list of names and the classes to which they belong is transferred to a first computer database from which a set of name cards are printed in the same order as the original list. One such card is shown in Fig. 1 by way of example. It will be seen that each card 1 carries a number of fields : A-The name of a person from the list, e. g. Sarah Taylor. Each card bears a different name so that the total number of name cards is equal to the total number of names in the database.

B-A number identifying the position of that person in the database. The illustrated card is no 182 so that Sarah Taylor appears at position 182 in the database. This allows the name record to be quickly located in the database should there be any problems with printing, or if the record should require correction or alteration for example.

C-A barcode incorporating the individual's name to facilitate automatic reading of the name.

D-A Job Number which is used to identify the job throughout the system.

In this case the Job No. is 63362. (The Job Number could also be incorporated into the barcode C if desired).

E-The name of the group to be photographed. In this case the photograph will be of St David's College.

F-For convenience, the name of the photographers.

G-An instruction reading"This side facing down please" (see below).

H-The name of the class to which the pupil belongs. This aids sorting and distribution of the cards, as described below.

The most important items of information are the name A, and the machinereadable form of the name C.

The card also includes a punched hole 2 positioned approximately in the centre of the card, the purpose of which will be explained below. At the same time a number of leader cards are printed corresponding to the number of rows of people which are expected to be included in the photograph. Although only one leader card per row would be sufficient, it is generally preferred to print two leader cards per row, for reasons which will soon become clear. It is convenient to print a fixed number of leader cards in excess of the maximum number of rows which are likely to be encountered, although if desired, the maximum number of rows could be determined automatically by the computer according to the size of the group. An example leader card is shown in Fig. 2. The illustrated card bears the following information: I-A row identifier unique to the card, in this case row F. (For convention the front row can be designated row A, the second row B, and so on.) The row identifier is printed twice for convenience.

II-A numerical code which identifies the group in the photographers records. This will be the same as code D, in this case the Group No. is 63362.

III-The name of the group to be photographed, again St David's College.

IV-An instruction reading"This side face down please", or similar.

Again, the leader card includes a punched hole 4 of a similar size and position to the hole 2 in the name cards 1.

Prior to the date of the event at which the photography takes place the name cards are despatched back to the school which are then distributed to the pupils and staff members so that each person has a card bearing their own name. The incorporation of the class name H aids distribution of the cards. Such distribution can take place at a time to be determined by the school, but will normally be best carried out on the day of the photograph. The leader cards are retained by the photographer.

On the day of the photograph When the photographer visits the school to take the photograph on the appointed day, he takes along a number of collection boxes such as that shown in Fig. s 3 and 4. Each box inclues a container 10 of a lightweight material such as aluminium or plastics with four sides 11-14, a base 15 and an open top 16. A pin 17 is upstanding centrally from the base 15 removably secured on a screw-threaded stud 18 or the like. It will be noted that the free end of the pin 17 is provided with a non-return arrow-head-like tip 19 which at its widest part is slightly wider than the holes 2 and 4 in the cards 1 and 3. Also, the base of the pin has a cylindrical boss 20 which, again, is of slightly larger diameter than the holes 2 and 4.

The number of boxes required corresponds to the number of rows to be included in the photograph. The photographer pre-loads each box with an appropriate leader card 3 by pushing it printed-face down onto the pin 17 so that the arrow head 19 enters the hole 4.

The pupils and staff are assemble in rows on suitable staging in the usual manner and the photograph is taken. When the photograph has been taken it is very important that everyone in the photograph must stay in position.

The relevant box, identified by the letter which is printed on the card, is then issued to the first person at the left hand end of each row (for convention) as viewed by the photographer. This person then presses his/her name card onto the pin 17, face down, so that the non-return head 19 passes through the hole 2. The boxes are then passed from person-to-person along the rows as directed, with each person pressing their card onto the pin 17 in turn. This is normally accomplished very quickly so that there is no delay in the proceedings.

The loaded boxes are collecte from the right hand end of the rows, and to assist later identification of the rows the second leader card is then added to the pin, face-up. The pins 17 can now be unscrewed from the studs 18 with the cards retained thereon by the heads 17 and bosses 20. The pins/cards are then placed in a bag with the exposed film, which is sealed and returned to the photographers office. New blank pins can be mounted in the boxes ready for re-use at the next site.

Processing When the bag is re-opened the film is processed and the cards are sorted into row order according to the leader cards, which are the first cards visible on the pins. Then, commencing with the first row, the cards are individually removed from the pins and read by a high-speed barcode reader in the order in which they are carried on the pins. The names read by the barcode reader are stored by the computer in the order in which the cards are read, thereby producing a second database containing the names arranged in the order in which they appear in the photograph, i. e. from left to right, row after row.

Using this second database, a legend strip is printed containing the names arranged from left to right in rows in the same order as the pupils and staff appear in the photograph. A draft printout can be obtained and attached to a proof print, which are both sent to the school for approval before printing the final number of copies required.

It will thus be appreciated that the main advantages of the system are: -The possibility of errors is greatly reduced.

-There is very little additional time involved in creating the legend compared with the time required to take the photograph.

-Very little administration is required by the school, being restricted to providing a list of names, distributing the name cards, and checking the proof.

-The legend adds value to the finished photograph at little additional cost, providing an opportunity for increased sales and higher profits.

Further examples will now be given to demonstrate that the invention is applicable to other forms of event photography.

PRESENTATION PHOTOGRAPHY A similar set of cards can be used to identify a series of individual photographs taken at a University or College graduation ceremony for example. Such establishments are often unable to provide an accurate listing of graduands and their order of presentation, so that hitherto, there has been a high risk of the photographers supplying an incorrect photograph to a particular individual or being unable to supply any photograph at all due to a lack of identification.

Prior to the graduation ceremony the establishment provides the photographers with a provisional list of graduands if possible, with addresses if appropriate. The list may not be complete, in which case a number of blank name cards can be printed for manual completion together with the cards printed from the list. In some cases all the cards may need to be completed manually. Leader cards can also be printed according to the ceremonies to be performed (e. g. for History degrees, Economics degrees, etc.). The name cards are distributed to the graduands before the ceremony, and a leader card is placed in a collecting box, as described above. One-by-one the graduands are sent across a stage to be presented with their academic qualifications, and at the point of each presentation a photograph is taken, often discreetly using very high speed film. As each graduand leaves the stage his/her name card is collecte and placed in the appropriate box so that they are retained on the pin in the order of presentation.

When the photographic films are processed the cards are again read by a barcode reader or manually input by keyboard. The resulting name database, which corresponds to the order in which the photographs were taken, is then used to print name labels, with addresses if provided, so that the correct photographs can be sent to the correct individuals.

SCHOOL OR COLLEGE RECORDS The cards and collecting boxed can be used to correct identify individual pupils when they are individually photographed for school administration records. The school provides the photographers with a list of pupils from which name cards are printed. Leader cards can also be printed according to class groups etc. in which the photography is carried out. The name cards are distributed to the pupils and a leader card is placed on the pin in a collecting box in which the cards are collecte as the pupils are photographed. When the films are processed the cards are again read by a barcode reader to produce a name database which corresponds to the order in which the photographs were taken. The photographic images can be transferred in sequence to a CD-ROM and database can be used to print a shootlist"for the school. When the school loads the images from the CD to the schools administration software they can use the shootlist to ensure that the individuals are correct identified.

SCHOOLS PORTRAITURE The same procedures can clearly be adopted in taking individual portrait photographs of pupils. Clearly the school can provide any information on the pupil database from which name cards are printed. The cards are collecte in the boxes as the pupils are photographed so that they can later be used to re-sort the database according to the order in which the photographs were taken. Any required information can be extracted from the database and added to the portrait photographs, e. g. on a label, to aid distribution of the photographs. This is especially useful when schools wish to have an ad hoc approach to having photographs taken.

It will be appreciated that the features disclosed herein may be present in any feasible combination. Whilst the above description lays emphasis on those areas which, in combination, are believed to be new, protection is claimed for any inventive combination of the features disclosed herein.

Claims (34)

1. CLAIMS 1. A method of event photography which comprises: -creating a set of individual identification elements each adapted to identify one person from a number of people to be photographed; -distributing the identification elements to the people identified thereby before said people are photographed; -making a photographic record of said people during an event; -collecting the identification elements from the people, in temporal proximity to the making of the photographic record, in a sequence which corresponds to the positions which they occupy in the photographic record and maintaining the elements in said sequence; and -using the elements to generate name data which identifies the people in relation to the positions which they occupy in the photographic record.
2. 2. A method of event photography according to Claim 1, in which the identification elements are machine-produced from digitally-stored input data containing, in any order, the names of the people to be photographed.
3. 3. A method of event photography according to Claim 2, in which the identification elements comprise additional information identifying the position which the name of the respective person occupies in the stored input data.
4. 4. A method of event photography according to Claim 2 or 3, in which the identification elements each identify a person to be photographed in a machine-readable form.
5. 5. A method of event photography according to Claim 4, in which the identification elements identify the respective person in a barcode.
6. 6. A method of event photography according to Claim 4, in which the identification elements identify the respective person in a magnetic strip.
7. 7. A method of event photography according to any of Claims 4 to 6, in which the identification elements are read by machine in the sequence in which they are collecte.
8. 8. A method of event photography according to any preceding claim, in which the name data is stored digitally.
9. 9. A method of event photography according to Claim 8, in which the stored name data contains names which are arranged according to the position which the people occupy in the photographic record.
10. 10. A method of event photography according to Claim 8 as appended to Claim 2, in which the name data is produced by re-sorting the digital input data.
11. 11. A method of event photography according to Claim 8,9 or 10, in which the name data is used to create a physical record which identifies the people in relation to the positions which they occupy in the photographic record.
12. 12. A method of event photography according to any preceding claim, in which a collective identification element is created with the individual identification elements to collectively identify the people to be photographed, and said collective identification element is kept with the individual identification elements which have been collected following the event.
13. 13. A method of event photography according to Claim 12, in which the collective identification element is associated with a row of people in a composite image containing a number of people.
14. 14. A method of event photography according to any preceding claim, in which the photographic record comprises discreet images of the individual people.
15. 15. A method of event photography according to any of Claims 1 to 13, in which the photographic record comprises a composite image containing a group of people.
16. 16. A method of event photography according to Claim 14 or 15, in which the image or images are reproduced on photographic film or paper.
17. 17. A method of event photography according to Claim 14, in which or the image or images are stored in a digital form.
18. 18. A method of event photography according to Claim 14, in which the image or images are stored on a CD-ROM.
19. 19. Equipment for use in event photography, comprising a set of identification elements adapted to identify people to be photographed in an event, and collecting means for collecting the identification elements from the people in a sequence which corresponds to the positions which they occupy in a photographic record made during the event, the collecting means being adapted to retain the identification elements in a predetermined order.
20. 20. Equipment for use in event photography according to Claim 19, in which the collection means incorporates an element-engaging portion which engages and retains the identification elements in a defined order.
21. 21. Equipment for use in event photography according to Claim 20, in which the element-engaging portion is mounted within a container for receiving the identification elements.
22. 22. Equipment for use in event photography according to Claim 21, in which the element-engaging portion is detachably mounted in the container.
23. 23. Equipment for use in event photography according to Claim 22, in which the element-engaging portion comprises an elongate member with element-retaining means at opposite ends thereof.
24. 24. Equipment for use in event photography according to Claim 23, in which one of said element-engaging means has an arrowhead configuration.
25. 25. Equipment for use in event photography according to any of Claims 19 to 24, in which the identification elements comprise a set of cards.
26. 26. Equipment for use in event photography according to any of Claims 19 to 25, in which the equipment includes digital storage and processing means for storing and manipulating data containing, in any order, the names of the people to be photographed.
27. 27. Equipment for use in event photography according to Claim 26, in which the storage and processing means is provided with means for creating the identification elements.
28. 28. Equipment for use in event photography according to Claim 27, in which said means for creating the identification elements comprises a printer.
29. 29. Equipment for use in event photography according to any of Claims 19 to 28, in which the identification elements each identify a person to be photographed in a machine-readable form.
30. 30. Equipment for use in event photography according to Claim 29, in which the person to be photographed is identified in a barcode.
31. 31. Equipment for use in event photography according to Claim 29, in which the person to be photographed is identified in a magnetic strip.
32. 32. Equipment for use in event photography according to any of Claims 19 to 31, in which the identification elements comprise additional data identifying the position of the respective name in the stored data.
33. 33. A method of event photography substantially as described with reference to the drawings.
34. 34. Equipment for use in event photography substantially as described with reference to the drawings.