We were asked by Banff Preservation and Heritage Society and Museum of Banff to create a new
website and to photograph (including 360 degree photography) the objects on display within the museum to give
website visitors a taste of the museum while it was closed through
the Covid-19 pandemic. "In March 2020, just as we were opening up the Museum of
Banff fully for the summer season, the world changed. Instead of opening extra
days during the week, the museum was closed. At first we thought for a few weeks
or a month or two – as we know, in 2021, returning to normality is taking time. As the year progressed, along
with other institutions worldwide we looked at ways of moving our collection
online, to allow people to access it, to promote the museum and publicise
the work of Banff Preservation and Heritage Society. Around this time Museums
Galleries Scotland launched their Recovery and Resilience fund and we
explored the idea of developing a new website which would promote our museum
and history, keep our work in the public eye, allow a new audience to
interact with us and hopefully attract new members. We applied for a grant and
looked around for a suitable website developer. After some consideration, we
decided to ask Perspectives of Ellon to develop our digital project. We had
seen great examples of their work and
were impressed with the features offered. After discussions about the
aims, structure and content needed, we embarked on the project. Weekly
meetings with Niall gave us opportunities to develop the website and make
the most of the opportunity provided. Updates were shared and any
adjustments needed were made. The most exciting part of the
project was the collection going online. Niall photographed the collection
and where appropriate, objects were photographed to give 360 degree
rotations. A zoom feature allows website users to examine features that are
not visible to the eye, even when actually visiting the museum. The website was completed and
fully online by mid-July and officially launched on 29th July.
The results are amazing. We have a fully functioning website, offering the
visitor a huge amount of detail about the Society and contact details for a
number of platforms that we interact with. Most amazing has been the
rediscovery of details of our museum collection. Fine detail such as makers’
marks or fine map details and carvings on objects can be seen in perfect
clarity. 360 degree rotation of objects allow us to view, previously unseen
aspects of objects. Feedback from the public has
been great – the number of people contacting us through the website has
increased our reach and visitors to the museum, which has now reopened, have
commented on how they had seen a particular object on the website and wanted
to view it in real life".
The website was designed to incorporate a search facility, object description cataloguing, 360 degree viewer and a zoom facility. The website is content-rich combining the history and activities of
the society and museum with a fresh, modern visual aesthetic.
View the BPHSMOB website here.
Mhairi McKean
Banff Preservation and Heritage Society and Museum of Banff
