Scottish Mining Museum in Edinburgh has added a new photographic exhibition to its collections.

Called Behind the Shutter, the exhibition highlights a selection of the museum's collection of more than 18,000 photographs.

The opening of the exhibition has been timed to mark the completion of the final phase of a three-year project to convert the museum's complete collection of photographic prints into digital form.

The photographs include images of underground workings, trade unions and the 1984/5 miners' strike.

Each image is now recorded on a database and can be viewed on a touch screen computer in the main reception area of the museum, meaning visitors can view the entire collection without the need for staff assistance or supervision.

A selection of over 2000 photographs is also available on the Scottish Mining Museum's website, enabling those who cannot visit the museum in person to search for and view photographs online.

Fergus Waters, director of the Scottish Mining Museum, said: "This is an exciting project, which means that the museum's photographic collection is now more usable and more accessible by staff and visitors alike.

"Digitisation of the photographs not only makes research easier to carry out, it also makes it easier for us to meet requests from the general public for copies of the photographs - many of which will bring back poignant memories to people with a past connection to coal mining."