How you organize your photos will depend on what your goals are. Maybe you hope to get your photos into albums so you can display them. Or, do you want to start a scrapbook project?
Now that you are ready to start, gather all your photos. Start with the latest pictures. Try not to worry about all the past photos right now; start your new system from this point forward. You can then go back and start working on past photos. Make a habit of labeling the pictures and envelopes right after they are developed or printed.
There are many ways to organize your photos and you need to decide what is most logical for you. Do you want to sort them chronologically? Or, does it make more sense to you to sort them by events, or people? If you have many years to go through, you could start by sorting the pictures by decades or periods (college, wedding, children, etc.) in your life.
Use photo boxes with dividers to mark your categories. Toss the blurry, bad, and duplicate photos that you will never use. Consider labeling individual photos with the date and subject, using a photo-safe pen or pencil. An adjustable date stamp is a useful tool that can help save time. Remember to use an acid-free ink pad.
Once all your photos are sorted, think about permanent storage. How accessible do you want your photos? Do you want to display your photos in albums? Will some of your pictures go into scrapbooks? Maybe you want to display only your favorites in frames. If they won't be viewed on a regular basis, keep them in the photo boxes to save room.
Getting and keeping your photos organized and easily accessible enables you and your family to enjoy them. Here's the quick breakdown:
- Determine your goals.
- Gather all your photos into one spot.
- Start with your most current photos and work backwards.
- Sort photos into your categories.
- Label photos if needed.
- Decide how your photos will be stored.
- Pick a date and get started. Do a little at a time.
4 comments:
This was the hardest obstacle for my clients to overcome when had my digital design business. The mere thought of sifting through hundreds, if not thousands, of photos to choose which ones to use in a project. It scared off more than one client, I can tell you.
I pushed "post" too soon! I meant to say that I always used to advise them to take it one bit at a time - such as one month, or one year. Piece by piece was much more do-able then an entire basement filled with photos.
Andy,
You are so right! A little bit at a time--even 30 minutes at a time. It can be an overwhelming project, that's for sure.
I don't even have any of my recent pics printed out. I have them all on CD's. But I have at least 1000 pics from a couple years ago in a closet somewehere....God only knows where...I totally need to get them organized. Thanks for the great tips...again!!
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