Colorado Photo Savers, LLC
Helping clients scan and organize photos.
Thanks for joining us for Save Your Photos Month 2021 — we hope you were inspired! These activities are a great start towards creating and sharing your photo legacy. Tell us how you did! Tag @thephotomanagers on Facebook or @thephotomanagersofficial on Instagram.
You can access all the free classes offered during Save Your Photos Month until October 31, 2021, at SaveYourPhotos.org.
Did you know that September is Save Your Photos Month? Join us for a month-long quest to protect and preserve your family’s lifetime of photos, film, and memorabilia. #SaveYourPhotosMonth
Week 4: Bring Your Photos Back to Life
You’ve found your photos, have a plan, and know the stories. Now it’s time to share. The options for printing photos are endless, from framed prints and photo gifts to photo books. Online galleries make it easy to share digitally. This week, look for ideas to bring your photos back to life by getting them into your everyday life.
Even without starting to organize your whole collection, it’s easy to bring photos back into your life…choose recent favorites from your phone and get creative!
Tip #22: The holidays are coming. Who do you know that would love a personalized photo gift? Get a head start on your gift planning.
Tip #23: Make a list of ten different photo gift ideas. Traditional calendars are great, but what about playing cards, fleece blankets, puzzles, or phone cases?
Tip #24: Choose a theme for a photo book project, such as Favorite Vacations or Family History, and plan how you’ll complete the project. Click here for some photo book ideas!
Tip #25: Make a video slideshow to music from 25 photos and share with friends and family.
Tip #26: Find a place to create a photo gallery — either a wall or a tabletop — and choose five photos to frame and enjoy in your home. Find step-by-step instructions for creating a gallery wall here!
Tip #27: Create albums on your phone and place your favorite photos into them so they’re easy to find for your next photo gift project.
Tip #28: Pre-order the second edition of Photo Organizing Made Easy. It’s a great reference to have on hand as you work through your photo projects, and makes a great gift for others wanting to do the same.
Tip #29: Enlarge a favorite photo and have it printed on canvas, or a unique substrate like metal, acrylic, or wood. Now you’ll be able to enjoy it more!
Tip #30: We hope you were inspired during Save Your Photos Month. These activities are a great start towards creating and sharing your photo legacy. Tell us how you did! Tag @thephotomanagers on Facebook or @thephotomanagersofficial on Instagram.
Did you know that September is Save Your Photos Month? Join us for a month-long quest to protect and preserve your family’s lifetime of photos, film, and memorabilia. #SaveYourPhotosMonth
Week 3: Capturing Your Family Stories
You’ve found your photos, you have a plan, and now comes the best part! Capturing the stories that go along with your family’s photos and videos and make your photo legacy complete. This week, focus on saving the stories behind the photos you care most about.
You can do this storytelling work before, during, or after your photo organizing project. It’s never too late to record your memories, a family story, or even just names & dates. Embed the details in the metadata, or keep digital/handwritten notes with the JPGs/prints.
Tip #15: Choose 5 favorite photos and ask family members to tell you what they remember about the event or the people depicted. Write down or record the stories with your phone.
Tip #16: Choose a series of photos that represent a challenging time in your life. A move, job change, the pandemic… Write a few sentences about that time and include it with your photos.
Tip #17: Select 10 photos that make you happy: a selfie, your family, the garden, sunsets, your last vacation… Why do they make you happy? Take notes on your phone or write them down to save with the photos.
Tip #18: Research companies that can digitize your home movies or contact a professional photo manager who can help. Plan a family movie night when they are returned.
Tip #19: Select a mystery photo and ask others in your family if they know who the people are, or where it was taken and when. Don’t forget to write down the information!
Tip #20: How many pictures are you in?! Too often the family photo takers stay hidden behind the lens. Find 20 photos of yourself and write down why you chose them. Then plan to be in more!
Tip #21: Interview your children or small relatives about a favorite toy, outfit, activity, or artwork and record the story.
Did you know that September is Save Your Photos Month? Join us for a month-long quest to protect and preserve your family’s lifetime of photos, film, and memorabilia. #SaveYourPhotosMonth
Week 2: Making a Photo Plan
You’ve found your photos, but now what? You need a plan. This week, we’ll explore creating a photo legacy by understanding what’s most important to you. What are your photo goals and what would success look like? Then strategize a plan to digitize and back up your photos.
Even if you’re not ready to do the actual organizing, thinking through these decisions about your photo legacy means you’ll be prepared whenever the time is right to start.
Tip #8: How would you feel if you could easily find and share the photos you care most about? Write down five reasons these photos are important to you.
Tip #9: If you could only save 100 photos, which ones would you choose? What’s special about these 100 photos?
Tip #10: Write a “will” for your family photo collection. Specify what you’d want to be included in your family photo legacy and what should happen to it after you are gone.
Tip #11: The best backup for your printed photos is to scan them. Research doing it yourself or sending them to a trusted scanning service.
Tip #12: After you edit and digitize photos, you’ll need to store the original prints and the digital files. Do you have enough space on your computer and a shelf in the main part of your house for prints?
Tip #13: Have you seen all the free mini-course options offered as part of Save Your Photos Month? Make a list of the ones that interest you the most and schedule time to watch them.
Tip #14: If you have more than you can handle, set up a call with a professional photo manager to review your plan and determine if you need additional support or resources.
Did you know that September is Save Your Photos Month? Join us for a month-long quest to protect and preserve your family’s lifetime of photos, film, and memorabilia. #SaveYourPhotosMonth
Week 1: My Photos are Everywhere
Does this sound familiar? “I have photos on a bunch of old CDs, thumb drives, external hard drives, in albums and then there is my Dropbox, Google Photos, and maybe I’ve backed up to iCloud…help, I am overwhelmed!” Before you can start to organize your photos, you have to get them ALL into one place. During week one we will focus on gathering your photos.
Even if you aren’t ready to physically gather them, making a list is a useful first step, and you’ll be more prepared when the time is right to embark on the organizing.
Tip #1: Let’s start with a list of all the places you are storing your printed photos and slides. Include photo albums, framed photos, photos in drawers or boxes or closets, or even storage units. A written list of locations will serve as a checklist when you gather them.
Tip #2: Make a list of all the places you have digital photos. Include old phones, computers, memory cards, and CDs/DVDs. Add usernames and passwords to photo websites where you’ve uploaded pictures.
Tip #3: Get the family involved in tracking down your photos. Ask relatives where their photos are and make a plan to include them in your photo organizing project.
Tip #4: Home movies should be part of what you’re saving! Make a list of the types you have (Super 8, VHS tapes, camcorder tapes, etc.) so you can make a plan for converting them to digital.
Tip #5: Create a family timeline of important events like birthdays, graduations, weddings, moves, retirements. This will help you determine the dates of photos.
Tip #6: How many photos do you have: 10,000 or 100,000? Knowing the number helps you plan the scope of the project. A shoebox = 600 – 800 photos; 1 GB = about 560 JPGS; the average photo album = 200 photos.
Tip #7: Are you finding lots of duplicates as you go through your photos? Toss or delete doubles, blurry shots, and most scenery-only photos. Edit your collection down to a manageable size! You may end up getting rid of 50% or more.
