This article examines archival methods for digitizing film assets and potential miscommunications of expectations when using third-party digitization vendors. In the course of outlining our department’s archival practices as they relate to film scanning, we provide a schema for communicating expectations with labs, ensuring the efforts of the lab best conform to an individual’s/institution’s expectations. By better understanding the process and the decisions that need to be made at each step, archivists will have surer footing in conversations with digitization labs and a better understanding of the cost-benefit trade-offs for certain services
