This came in at http://www.honeybeeworld.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=224 and I thoght it worth sending along:

--- quote ---

I'm not a subscriber to Bee-L, but read it occasionally. There is a topic concerning photographing frames.

A conventional camera is not a very good solution if you want to see down into all the cells. The way to take a picture like that is to use a scanner, which operates on the same principle as a Xerox photocopier. 

You can get large 17 or 18 inch flatbed scanners for about a thousand bucks. You would likely want to remove the scanner lid. I would not lay frames on the scanner, as the glass would quickly get covered in honey or propolis. I would build a jig to hold the frame, and the scanner would be placed face down over the frame so that it was close enough to get a good picture, but far enough away that the glass wouldn't be getting dirty constantly.

You would need a power source, such as using an inverter with your truck battery, and you would need a laptop to save the scans as they are made. The laptop would also allow you to make quick notes about each frame. I would recommend having one person handle frames, and a helper with clean hands operating all the electronics.

A normal size photo scanner is considerably cheaper, but it would require two scans per frame side to photograph the entire frame. The two halves would need photoshopped later.

--- end quote ---

--- begin my comments ---

Interesting suggestion.  I'm thinking that a person would have to be very committed to go to that expense and to lug that thing around, but it does sound like the best solution.

Now, as in the case of lining up the frame for illumination by sunlight, would the light kill the larvae?  I understand that it happens all the time when beekeepers remove frames and lean them against the hive without noticing the sun shining directly into cells.

--- end my comments ---

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