The National Institute for Genealogical Studies

LEADERS IN ONLINE GENEALOGY EDUCATION

The National Institute for Genealogical Studies - LEADERS IN ONLINE GENEALOGY EDUCATION

Brief History of Photography 

Brief History of Photography

The “idea” of photography dates back to the 10th century “camera obscura” and “pinhole camera” described by the Arab scientist, Abu Ali al-Hasan (or Alhzaen), author of The Book of Optics. The camera obscura was a large dark box with a hole in one end which could produce an inverted image opposite it. It is the forerunner of today’s cameras. All it lacked was a lens and means of fixing the image chemically.  

It wasn’t until 1816 that a Frenchman, Joseph Nicéphore Niépce, began experimenting with chemically fixing mages. His first success was in 1822, and in 1826 he created the first photograph. That photograph required an 8-hour exposure time. He called the process “heliography.” After his death in 1833 his partner, Louis Jacques Mandé Daguerre continued working on the photograph process. In 1837 Daguerre succeeded in reducing the exposure time to 30 minutes. He dubbed his photographs “Daguerreotypes,” and in 1839 he introduced them in Paris and New York City. 

Photography: Clues Pictures Hold, Editing, digitizing and Various Projects

  The Daguerreotype photographic process was in widespread use from 1839 through the 1920s, and 21st century Daguerreian hobbyists still use it. It was at the height of its popularity from 1839 to 1858.  

Daguerreotypes or “dags” are laterally-reversed high-contrast images with very fine, crisp details. They are always case-mounted and sealed with paper tape. The image area is mirrored, so it is necessary to hold it at an angle to see the image clearly.  

Identifying antique photographs is just one of the many things you will learn in the “Photography: Clues Picture Hold, Editing, Digitizing and Various Projects” course with The National Institute for Genealogical Studies.  

Social Security Records

Social Security Death Index  

You can view the Social Security Death Index (SSDI) online via many genealogy websites including Ancestry.com, FamilySearch, GenealogyBank, Fold3, and Findmypast.  A person who died before 1962 is not likely to be on the SSDI.  If the date of a person’s death is known, and that person is not on the SSDI, it is likely the family never filed for the death benefit.  

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From the SSDI, you can glean information such as dates of birth and death; place of last benefit; Social Security number; and what state the Social Security number was issued in.  Getting a copy of the application can be most helpful. These documents list the person’s date of birth, place of birth, parents’ names, address at the time of application and as a bonus, you get an original signature!  

Once you find the information for the person you are searching you can request a copy of the Social Security record from the Social Security website. Our “United States: Vital Records” course will teach you more about using the Social Security Death Index for your research.  

Marketing

Marketing Management  

Constantly be on the lookout for great marketing strategies, even if the businesses are not within the realm of genealogy.  Some of the major elements of marketing are: 

  • Promotion/Displays 
  • Public Relations 
  • Pricing 
  • Newsletters/Surveys 
  • Advertising  
  • Networking  
  • Social Media 

Hopefully, your business plan includes a marketing plan.  But that is just a start.  As time goes on, it is important to re-evaluate your marketing strategies as part of your overall strategic planning process.  Depending on what sort of major business strategy you are planning, you may have to revise your marketing efforts.  You may decide as part of your strategic plan for the next five years to focus on a different target market than you had before.  You may decide to narrow down your target market on owners of family business.

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Whenever you initiate a marketing strategy, set up a document that describes the ad, event, promotion-whatever it is- along with what it cost you.  Then add to your document any results that you experience from this effort. 

In the course, “Business Skills: Business Administration” you will discover ways of managing the process of turning a prospect into a client while evaluating the success of your marketing management.  

January 2019 Virtual Meetings

Have any questions about your courses or your research? Virtual Meetings are a way for you to communicate with an instructor. These are NOT mandatory, but a fun & interactive way to ask questions about courses/research. Below are the January scheduled sessions.

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Tuesday, January 15th at 10:00 AM EST – American Record courses with Gena Philibert-Ortega
Time zones:
Tuesday, January 15th – 10:00 AM Eastern; 9:00 AM Central; 7:00 AM Pacific; 3:00 PM in London, England;
Wednesday, January 16th – 2:00 AM in Sydney, Australia
MEETING LOCATION: http://genealogicalstudies.adobeconnect.com/american/
(Note: “Enter as a Guest”)

Tuesday, January 15th at 11:30 AM EST – Methodology courses with Gena Philibert-Ortega
Time zones:
Tuesday, January 15th – 11:30 AM Eastern; 10:30 AM Central; 8:30 AM Pacific; 4:30 PM in London, England;
Wednesday, January 16th – 3:30 AM in Sydney, Australia
MEETING LOCATION: http://genealogicalstudies.adobeconnect.com/methodology/
(Note: “Enter as a Guest”)

Tuesday, January 15th at 6:00 PM EST – Australian Record courses with Kerry Farmer
Time zones:
Tuesday, January 15th – 6:00 PM Eastern; 5:00 PM Central; 3:00 PM Pacific; 11:00 PM in London, England;
Wednesday, January 16th – 10:00 AM in Sydney, Australia
MEETING LOCATION: http://genealogicalstudies.adobeconnect.com/australian/
(Note: “Enter as a Guest”)

Thursday, January 17th at 1:30 PM EST – Internet Tools with Gena Philibert-Ortega
Time zones:
Thursday, January 17th – 1:30 PM Eastern; 12:30 PM Central; 10:30 AM Pacific; 6:30 PM in London, England;
Friday, January 18th – 5:30 AM in Sydney, Australia
MEETING LOCATION: http://genealogicalstudies.adobeconnect.com/internettools/
(Note: “Enter as a Guest”)

Thursday, January 17th at 3:00 PM EST – Analysis and Skills Mentoring Program – GENERAL with Gena Philibert-Ortega
Time zones:
Thursday, January 17th – 3:00 PM Eastern; 2:00 PM Central; Noon Pacific; 8:00 PM in London, England;
Friday, January 18th – 7:00 AM in Sydney, Australia
MEETING LOCATION: http://genealogicalstudies.adobeconnect.com/asgeneral/
(Note: “Enter as a Guest”)

Thursday, January 17th at 4:30 PM EST – Analysis and Skills Mentoring Program-Part 1 – ARTICLE REVIEW with Gena Philibert-Ortega
Time zones:
Thursday, January 17th – 4:30 PM Eastern; 3:30 PM Central; 1:30 PM Pacific; 9:30 PM in London, England;
Friday, January 18th – 8:30 AM in Sydney, Australia
MEETING LOCATION: http://genealogicalstudies.adobeconnect.com/asarticle1/
(Note: “Enter as a Guest”)

Saturday, January 19th at 10:00 AM EST – Eastern European courses with Lisa Alzo
Time zones:
Saturday, January 19th – 10:00 AM Eastern; 9:00 AM Central; 7:00 AM Pacific; 3:00 PM in London, England;
Sunday, January 20th – 2:00 AM in Sydney, Australia
MEETING LOCATION: http://genealogicalstudies.adobeconnect.com/easteuro/
(Note: “Enter as a Guest”)

Saturday, January 19th at 2:00 PM EST – Canadian courses with Kathryn Lake Hogan
Time zones:
Saturday, January 19th – 2:00 PM Eastern; 1:00 PM Central; 11:00 AM Pacific; 7:00 PM in London, England;
Sunday, January 20th – 6:00 AM in Sydney, Australia
MEETING LOCATION: http://genealogicalstudies.adobeconnect.com/canadian/
(Note: “Enter as a Guest”)

Sunday, January 20th at 4:30 PM EST – Irish Record courses with Brenda Wheeler
Time zones:
Sunday, January 20th – 4:30 PM Eastern; 3:30 PM Central; 1:30 PM Pacific; 9:30 PM in London, England;
Monday, January 21st – 8:30 AM in Sydney, Australia
MEETING LOCATION: http://genealogicalstudies.adobeconnect.com/irish/
(Note: “Enter as a Guest”)

Monday, January 21st at 4:00 PM EST – Analysis and Skills Mentoring Program-Part 2 – ARTICLE REVIEW with Brenda Wheeler
Time zones:
Monday, January 21st – 4:00 PM Eastern; 3:00 PM Central; 1:00 PM Pacific; 9:00 PM in London, England;
Tuesday, January 22nd – 8:00 AM in Sydney, Australia
MEETING LOCATION: http://genealogicalstudies.adobeconnect.com/asarticle2/
(Note: “Enter as a Guest”)

Monday, January 21st at 7:00 PM EST – DNA Record courses with Shannon Combs Bennett
Time zones:
Monday, January 21st – 7:00 PM Eastern; 6:00 PM Central; 4:00 PM Pacific;
Tuesday, January 22nd – Midnight in London, England; 11:00 AM in Sydney, Australia
MEETING LOCATION: http://genealogicalstudies.adobeconnect.com/dna/
(Note: “Enter as a Guest”)

Friday, January 25th at 6:00 PM EST – Methodology courses with Brenda Wheeler
Note: For the convenience of Australasia students; however, all welcome.
Time zones:
Friday, January 25th – 6:00 PM Eastern; 5:00 PM Central; 3:00 PM Pacific; 11:00 PM in London, England;
Saturday, January 26th – 10:00 AM in Sydney, Australia
MEETING LOCATION: http://genealogicalstudies.adobeconnect.com/methodology/
(Note: “Enter as a Guest”)

Friday, January 25th at 7:30 PM EST – English Record courses with Brenda Wheeler
Time zones:
Friday, January 25th – 7:30 PM Eastern; 6:30 PM Central; 4:30 PM Pacific;
Saturday, January 26th – 12:30 AM in London, England; 11:30 AM in Sydney, Australia
MEETING LOCATION: http://genealogicalstudies.adobeconnect.com/english/
(Note: “Enter as a Guest”)

Saturday, January 26th at 10:00 AM EST – Professional Development courses with Gena Philibert-Ortega
Time zones:
Sunday, December 16th – 10:00 AM Eastern; 9:00 AM Central; 7:00 AM Pacific; 3:00 PM in London, England;
Sunday, January 27th – 2:00 AM in Sydney, Australia
MEETING LOCATION: http://genealogicalstudies.adobeconnect.com/ professional/
(Note: “Enter as a Guest”)

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Calendar of Virtual Meetings is at www.genealogicalstudies.com; top menu > INFORMATION > VIRTUAL LEARNING ROOM.

If you have not attended a Virtual Meeting before, read the Instructions at www.genealogicalstudies.com/instructions.pdf.

Your Family Photographs

Handling and Storing   

Older photographs are fragile and easily damaged. The best way to reduce damage is to not handle photographs at all. Since that is not always practical, gloves should be worn when they are handled. Gloves prevent transferring dirt and skin oils on the delicate images. When handling images, put on the gloves and hold the prints by their edges.  

If the photo is a cabinet card or a carte de visite, do not remove the photo from the cardstock on which they are mounted. Those vintage images were printed on very thin paper that will not survive removal from their cardstock backing.  

Photography: Clues Pictures Hold, Editing, Digitizing & Various Projects

Storage 

Photographs should be stored using archival safe products such as archival sleeves, envelopes, unbuffered tissue paper, and boxes that are available online from archival supply stores. Some examples of archival storage include:  

  • Store case-mounted photographs such as daguerreotypes, ambrotypes, tintypes, or domed glass frames in their original cases/frames. Wrap them individually in unbuffered archival tissue paper and then place in an archival safe box.  
  • Store black-and-white prints, black-and-white negatives, color prints and negatives in their own individual sleeves. The sleeves can be stored together in the same archival box.  
  • Store negatives in polypropylene or polyester sleeves. 
  • Store original albums separately in their own archival boxes.   

Most archival safe storage boxes come in different sizes and their metal corners allow for stacking and prevent the corners and contents from being crushed. 

Photographs are an important part of telling a family history. Learning how to handle and care for those photos is just one of the topics taught in our Photography: Clues Pictures Hold, Editing, Digitizing and Various Projects course.

 

Death Indexes Online

US Death Indexes 

There are many different death indexes online. Please note that most indexes do not include every year. Remember that a name in an index is not proof that this is the researcher’s person! Often the person you are seeking is not the first to have this name and won’t be the last! Never assume the indexed name is your person and stop your research at that point.  

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Always be creative in finding various ways to search for what you might be seeking. Go to the FamilySearch website and choose Catalog from the Search drop-down menu. Another way to search is to conduct a Place search and then enter the name of the county and state.  

One other place to check for online death indexes is Google. Conduct a Google search on the phrase, free “death index.”  

Research Plan 

Go beyond the index. Creating a research plan for more documents is necessary. The first item on the research plan should be finding an obituary. Next, would be checking with the cemetery where the individual was interred. Personalize a research plan to your needs. If you do not have the exact date of death, then the research continues. With our United States: Vital Records course you will learn more about researching and locating a death index.  

Marketing and Sales Management

Sales Management 

Marketing goes hand in hand with sales, as it provides a way to get the word out about your services and products, and a way to attract prospective clients. In a small business, however, the owner is often the only salesperson, marketing director, and grunt, along with everything else!  

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Many small businesses lack a sales strategy. Periodically, you should review your sales strategy. Here is a list of some sales activities: 

  • identify prospects 
  • prioritize leads   
  • make sales calls 
  • close sales   
  • determine the average dollar size per sale 

Sales management means keeping track of these activities and how well you have done. Just like a budget, you should be projecting these figures and comparing them to actual results, ideally on a monthly basis. If you are not meeting your targets, look for reasons. Maybe you are not getting enough face-to-face meetings with prospects and need to learn to follow through on more leads.  

The lifeblood of any business is sales and sales management which is why we offer our Business Skills: Business Administration course to help you evaluate your sales strategies.   

Using Research Logs

Research Logs 101  

Are you using a research log? The first step in reviewing the research you have completed to-date is to refer to your research log. Unfortunately, when many of us start our genealogy journey, keeping track of our findings is likely the last thing on our mind.   

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Typically, a research log is created for each family group, but depending on how you prefer to work, you may want to create one for each person. A research log can help you to quickly see what sources you have already consulted that may answer the current question related to the person/family you are researching.  

Research logs are usually in a table format, allowing us to record specific pieces of information related to sources we have searched. You can use pre-printed forms/templets or create your own. At a minimum, a research log should contain the following categories: date, source, repository, objective and results.  

Remember, this log not only helps you track everything you have found but also what you did not find. In some cases, such as a search for online family trees, you may want to repeat a previously-performed search since new information is published online every day.  

While it may seem time-consuming, creating research logs is an important tool for your research.  Our course, Skill Building: Breaking Down Brick Walls will help, saving you precious time in the long run.   

 

Last Gift of 2018

Did you hear we extended the end date for our “One More Gift” event? If not don’t worry you still have until midnight tonight, 31st of December 2018, to take advantage of it.

One More GiftCountdown

 

 

 

 

 

You will receive a 10% discount on ALL of our genealogy package. Use coupon code: last10 at the time of your purchase to get your 10% discount. Visit the following link to learn more about all of the genealogy packages we have.  https://www.genealogicalstudies.com/eng/packages.asp

Are you having problems registering for your package? We’re here to help! Give us a call at 1-800-580-0165 ext. 3. You may email us at media@genealogicalstudies.com

Please note: Once you register and pay for your package, it will show up in the future course area of your student briefcase immediately after the payment is processed. If it does not show up, please call or email us right away.

If finances are a little tight, call the number above and ask about The National Institute payment plan. The Institute does not charge interest, nor service fees, and you can spread the payments over several months.

Have a Happy New Year!

One More Gift

We understand the holidays are over but you’re still missing that one gift.

What better way to end the year than with a gift for the genealogist in you. Starting today, December 26th thru December 28th we have that gift. You will receive 10% off EVERY package you purchase. Use coupon code: last10 at the time of your purchase to get your 10% discount.

Visit us at https://www.genealogicalstudies.com/

Contact Angela at 1-800-580-0165 ext. 3 or by email at media@genealogicalstudies.com with any questions or assistance.

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