6 Steps to Organising Your Loose Photos
Are your old pictures stuck in dusty boxes? Here’s how to get them in order – and ready to tell your family’s story
Cathi Nelson
7 February 2017
Do you have boxes of printed photos hiding under your bed, in the attic or tucked away in a cupboard? Here are six tips I’ve perfected during my 23 years as a personal photo organiser that will help you get your photos out of the boxes and back into your life.
Boxes and boxes of pictures have followed many of us into the digital photo era. You may be plagued by the sheer number of prints you are still holding on to, and by the disorganisation of your photos. Without organisation there is no story, and your memories may be lost to the confines of shoeboxes piled up in the attic.
However, there is a way to navigate this chaos, and that is why I offer these six steps to help you organise your photos. They deserve it!
However, there is a way to navigate this chaos, and that is why I offer these six steps to help you organise your photos. They deserve it!
1. Find a work space
Find a place with sufficient lighting. You can set up a table in this area if you prefer, but I don’t recommend using your kitchen table, as this project should be spread out over several days.
Also, don’t forget to be gentle and wear gloves. Your older photos may be delicate, and all your pictures are susceptible to further deterioration from the residue from your fingertips. Wear cotton gloves anytime you handle your photos.
Find space to work from home
Find a place with sufficient lighting. You can set up a table in this area if you prefer, but I don’t recommend using your kitchen table, as this project should be spread out over several days.
Also, don’t forget to be gentle and wear gloves. Your older photos may be delicate, and all your pictures are susceptible to further deterioration from the residue from your fingertips. Wear cotton gloves anytime you handle your photos.
Find space to work from home
2. Identify the keepers
Many professional photo organisers use a simple acronym I developed called the ABCS to organise and identify which photos to keep and which photos to toss.
A is for album: These are the photos that belong in an album, and the memories you would mourn if you lost them. These are the pictures that you’ll want to digitise, back up, share and display. It doesn’t mean you’re going to put all these pictures into albums; it just means they are album-worthy. They are the best of the best!
B is for box: These photos are the extras that support your best. They are the ones you aren’t ready to part with, but want to have access to at some point in the future. These photos will be archived for safekeeping but not necessarily digitised.
C is for can: Yes, you can repurpose these photos – or throw them in the rubbish. Your collection is filled with doubles, triples and really bad photos. If your photo doesn’t fall into one of the above categories, then it’s a ‘C’ photo. I encourage you to be brutal here and set a goal to fill a rubbish bin with these.
S is for story: Does the photo tell a story? These pictures play a significant role because there is something illustrative about the picture, even though it may not be obvious. A picture of a single tree in the backyard may seem meaningless unless it’s the full-grown sapling your great-grandpa planted before he passed away.
Tip: As you sort your photos, resist the urge to reminisce and linger. There will be plenty of time for that later. Don’t hold on to a photo for longer than two seconds, or the time it takes to determine its pile.
Many professional photo organisers use a simple acronym I developed called the ABCS to organise and identify which photos to keep and which photos to toss.
A is for album: These are the photos that belong in an album, and the memories you would mourn if you lost them. These are the pictures that you’ll want to digitise, back up, share and display. It doesn’t mean you’re going to put all these pictures into albums; it just means they are album-worthy. They are the best of the best!
B is for box: These photos are the extras that support your best. They are the ones you aren’t ready to part with, but want to have access to at some point in the future. These photos will be archived for safekeeping but not necessarily digitised.
C is for can: Yes, you can repurpose these photos – or throw them in the rubbish. Your collection is filled with doubles, triples and really bad photos. If your photo doesn’t fall into one of the above categories, then it’s a ‘C’ photo. I encourage you to be brutal here and set a goal to fill a rubbish bin with these.
S is for story: Does the photo tell a story? These pictures play a significant role because there is something illustrative about the picture, even though it may not be obvious. A picture of a single tree in the backyard may seem meaningless unless it’s the full-grown sapling your great-grandpa planted before he passed away.
Tip: As you sort your photos, resist the urge to reminisce and linger. There will be plenty of time for that later. Don’t hold on to a photo for longer than two seconds, or the time it takes to determine its pile.
3. Sort chronologically or thematically
Once you’ve completed the ABCS, you’ll want to decide if you are going to sort your pictures chronologically or by themes. If you already have a somewhat chronological system in place, look for ways to build on that. If your photos are a hot mess, try themes for easy sorting.
Chronological: Keep in mind that printed photos may lack dates and details unless you or your parents took the time to jot that information on the back of photos or in albums. Create a timeline as you begin to compare pictures and time periods for information and clues. If your photos are a mess of disorganised prints with no structure, then I recommend a theme-based approach.
Theme: Your photos most likely have themes already. You have photos of birthdays, holidays, weddings, graduations, babies, sports and so on. Organising by theme has many advantages:
Once you’ve completed the ABCS, you’ll want to decide if you are going to sort your pictures chronologically or by themes. If you already have a somewhat chronological system in place, look for ways to build on that. If your photos are a hot mess, try themes for easy sorting.
Chronological: Keep in mind that printed photos may lack dates and details unless you or your parents took the time to jot that information on the back of photos or in albums. Create a timeline as you begin to compare pictures and time periods for information and clues. If your photos are a mess of disorganised prints with no structure, then I recommend a theme-based approach.
Theme: Your photos most likely have themes already. You have photos of birthdays, holidays, weddings, graduations, babies, sports and so on. Organising by theme has many advantages:
- Themes make it easier to pull together a photo album. Put an entire collection of photos on the theme into one album, such as a holiday album, or take a handful of photos from each theme for a family yearbook.
- Themes are easier to identify than dates. You may not be sure which year a Christmas photo was taken, but you’ll know it was Christmas.
- Themes translate into tags and keywords. Once you digitise your photos, having themes will make it easier to determine keywords or tags when you move them into your digital photo hub.
4. Take good notes
Once you have a structure in place, set up some index cards in sorting boxes or on a table, and use these to group your photos as you sort. You can also include these index cards with your printed photos for future reference.
Once you have a structure in place, set up some index cards in sorting boxes or on a table, and use these to group your photos as you sort. You can also include these index cards with your printed photos for future reference.
5. Digitise and back up
Your printed photos, home movies, treasures and memorabilia are just as vulnerable as your digital images that haven’t been backed up. Until you digitise your physical collection, these memories could be lost through fire, flood, natural disasters, human carelessness, natural decay or an unexpected tragedy.
This is why once your sorting is done, the next step is to scan all the photos – and your index cards if you want – and put the digital images in cloud storage. This is the safest place for your family’s photos, as discs and flash drives can get just as lost as the physical copies.
DIY driftwood photo wall-hanging
Your printed photos, home movies, treasures and memorabilia are just as vulnerable as your digital images that haven’t been backed up. Until you digitise your physical collection, these memories could be lost through fire, flood, natural disasters, human carelessness, natural decay or an unexpected tragedy.
This is why once your sorting is done, the next step is to scan all the photos – and your index cards if you want – and put the digital images in cloud storage. This is the safest place for your family’s photos, as discs and flash drives can get just as lost as the physical copies.
DIY driftwood photo wall-hanging
6. Enjoy your photos
The most important takeaway is now that your photos aren’t trapped in a box, they can be shared with friends and family. Your children, your children’s children and many more generations to come will be able to piece together the history of your family because you dedicated the time and energy to creating a meaningful storyline.
Now get out there and dig up those boxes and boxes of photos. Happy organising!
Tell us
How have you organised your family photos? Share your ideas and tips with us in the Comments.
More
Read more organisation stories
The most important takeaway is now that your photos aren’t trapped in a box, they can be shared with friends and family. Your children, your children’s children and many more generations to come will be able to piece together the history of your family because you dedicated the time and energy to creating a meaningful storyline.
Now get out there and dig up those boxes and boxes of photos. Happy organising!
Tell us
How have you organised your family photos? Share your ideas and tips with us in the Comments.
More
Read more organisation stories
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Does anyone know of a scanning service that will allow me to add names and places once they are digitized? I’m thinking it shouldn’t be too hard to add names places, & comments to scanned photos, but I’m not a “techie”...
We have a great Facebook community that answers these questions. https://www.facebook.com/groups/thephotoorganizers/?ref=bookmarks
THANK YOU! I just requested to join that FB group!