The Library of Congress (LOC) sets a lot of standards in the library world. One of the most important is their subject headings. Subject headings attempt to list all possible subjects for which there is content so it can be organized and accessed. LOC controls the terms and phrases used to identify the subjects in order to standardize them across all platforms and libraries. The lists are vast and confusing despite their design for organization and access. The pdf for subjects starting with S is 824 pages in small font. Suffice to say, assigned subjects can be time consuming and downright annoying.
However, photographs have a different set of subjects provided by LOC. It's called the Thesaurus for Graphic Materials. It's less stuffy and formal. It also provides a website that can be easily searched to assign subjects to graphic materials such as photographs. For this post, I'll use the example of the subject heading for a farm, as many of the photographs I've recently created metadata for pertain to farms including the photograph below.
Image 1 - A mother and father sit with their son in a wagon attached to a horse. The wagon is faced down a dirt road next to a fence. A white duck appears behind the wagon, partially out of frame.
There are a few things to know about searching for subjects. First, all terms should be plural. So instead of searching for "farm", search for "farms". Second, the subject terms are hierarchical. The "farms" search returns 59 results, the first of which is the overarching term "Farms" followed by "Horse Farms", "Abandoned Farms" and "Collective Farms". Finally, the terms come with a wide range of information.
When you click on "Farms" it opens a page that lists the following:
Term with a link for pictures of that term
Facet Note to indicate how the term can be narrowed down with chronological period, place, and form.
Scope Note to define the term.
Used For to show how the term should be applied.
Broader Term(s) to move up the hierarchy.
Narrower Term(s) to move down the hierarchy.
Related Term(s) to explore other options similar to the term.
Notes about former usage and control numbers.
Below is the example of farm from the TGM website.
Image 2 - An example of a search result in LOC's Thesaurus for Graphic Materials. It includes the term farm; facet note for geographic additions; scope note for tracts of land or water devoted to agricultural purposes; used for farmsteads, farmyards, and pastures; broader term agricultural facilities; narrower terms abandoned farms, collective farms, fish hatcheries, horse farms, orchards, and plantations; and related terms croplands, farmers' groups, farmhouses, farming, livestock, outbuildings, ranches, and scarecrows.
There's a lot of fun to be had searching for terms and exploring all the connections. It's also helpful to look at the linked photographs on the subject to get an idea of what type of photographs and images should have the subject heading. But in the end, you have to LOC it up and pick a few specific subjects that will help people find useful information about the terms they're searching.
Comments