If there is one thing Appletini Photography is passionate about – it’s the printed photograph. In the digital age we are living in, everything is online, including our photo albums. Remember how much fun it was to look through the old family photo box with hundreds of printed pictures in piles, or to peruse childhood photo albums? Sadly, if we continue down the digital route we are on, printed family photographs will not exist.
For all of the time that we spend taking pictures and then fawning over them, imagine not having these as printed memories to look at down the road. Looking at a computer screen or Facebook’s TimeHop is just not the same. Therefore, each month, I’m going to share a tip with you for keeping the family photo box alive. These tips will include little things that place an importance on the printed photograph. This week, I’m going to share a tip on file organization that can help you keep your pictures organized and print-ready.
Rather than keeping all of your pictures on your phone, use a program that automatically uploads your images to the Cloud. I personally love DropBox, as it enables me to save my photos (and other documents) to a folder that I can easily access from any of my devices. I can even share folders of my choice with family members and friends. In addition to DropBox, there is also Google Drive, both free downloads, along with quite a few others.
How do these programs work? It’s very simple – these programs automatically upload your phone images. Once your images are uploaded, you can then organize them accordingly. For example, DropBox uploads all of my phone pictures to a folder called “Phone Photos” on my personal DropBox (that I can access from my laptop, ipad, and phone). Then, within this folder, I have subfolders, like “Spring,” “Winter,” “Vacation,” “Summer Birthdays,” etc. Every so often, I manually drop the images into these subfolders. This keeps the photos organized and easy-to-locate.
Then, when I want to print my pictures, they are all organized into folders, so I’m not searching for particular photos or events. I can simply choose my favorite images in the folders and print them. As an added bonus, you can then keep less photos on your phone, which means you’ll never get that dreaded “out-of-space” message on your device. With your images neatly organized into easily accessible folders, you can easily print them by the stack – thus, you are on your way to keeping the family photo box alive.
Although it is hard to find the time to create photo albums, you can simply place your images in a photo box. You can label and date the box and that can be your photographs’ home. Or, when you have the time to create an album, you can do this at your leisure, knowing you already have the photos printed and organized into a stack.
Putting your photos into albums can also be a fun family activity. Different family members can work on different albums, as you laugh and reminisce over your memories.
Just the other day, I was at my parents’ house looking at our family photo albums, comparing my baby pictures to my son’s pictures. In doing so, my sisters and I were doubled over laughing at some of the pictures – the outfits, the faces, and the poses. As the years go on, I can’t imagine my family not doing the same. So this week, take a few minutes to organize your photos and maybe even print a stack for your photo box. I promise you won’t regret it 🙂
Looking to fill your family photo box this fall? A set of 4×6 prints are included with every session, let me help you! For more details on Bucks County, PA Fall Portrait sessions, click here.
