# Talk | Paperbase: from Darkroom to Database ![multiple colorful rectangular boxes and envelopes with logos and labels of photography companies. ](/sites/g/files/omnuum2761/files/styles/hwp_5_4__480x385/public/2025-04/lensmedia_40-60.png?itok=1luz2wb9) #### calendar\_today Date and Time **April 29, 2025** 11:00AM - 11:45AM EDT #### pin\_drop Location **Pratt Conference Room, Perkins Building, Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian** [60 Garden Street Cambridge, MA 02138 United States ]() Located down the stairs of the CfA's main lobby. [ Reserve a free spot! arrow\_circle\_right ](https://events.humanitix.com/paperbase-from-darkroom-to-data/tickets) Join the Harvard Plate Stacks for a presentation and walkthrough of *Paperbase*, a groundbreaking public database developed by Yale’s Lens Media Lab. Damon Crockett, Senior AI Engineer at the Lab, will share the story behind its creation and demonstrate how scholars and researchers can use it. [*Paperbase*](https://paperbase.xyz/) provides access to over 7,500 historic examples of analog photographic paper, drawn from the world’s most extensive collection compiled by photo conservator Paul Messier, Pritzker Director of the Lens Media Lab. The database allows users to explore samples using four standardized metrics—thickness, gloss, roughness, and warmth—to help identify manufacturers, production dates, materials, and factory origins of photographic prints. Whether you're a historian, conservator, photographer, or simply curious, this dynamic tool makes complex data accessible and practical for research and discovery. **Learn how** ***Paperbase*** **can support your work and open new avenues in photographic scholarship.** Share on:- [ Facebook ](#) - [ Twitter ](#) - [ Linkedin ](#) Save: [ Add to calendar calendar\_today ](https://platestacks.cfa.harvard.edu/node/1785126/event-feed.ics) Copy link link