Do you have old photographs and memorabilia you'd like to organize for your genealogy research? Read on to discover the best ways to start organizing and discovering more of your family's rich history.
Photographs bring history to life and are a very important part of genealogists' research. Being able to match faces to names on a family tree can help us fully embrace the reality of our ancestors. While we can't always find photographs from the past to add to a family tree, we can make an effort to carefully document our current photo libraries so that future generations will come to know their ancestors more intimately.
We recently had the opportunity to sit down with an expert in the photo organization space, Cathi Nelson, founder of The Photo Managers. Cathi has a long history of photo organization, starting with paper scrapbooking many decades ago and leading the industry today in digital photo management at The Photo Managers. This international business supports professional photo organizer members who work one-on-one with clients to organize and document their photos and history.
Why You Need to Organize Old Photographs and Memorabilia
Many of us have totes and boxes of old photographs, documents, and memorabilia. It can be easy to get overwhelmed by the sheer volume of photos to organize. Still, by following a systematic process, these photos can significantly improve your genealogy efforts and help the next generation embrace their ancestors through the stories and legacy that come to life through photos.
Cathi shared the importance of photo organization:
I believe that as humans, we're wired for connection, to tell stories, to reminisce, and to remember. Photos and videos document our visual heritage. Thus, photo organization is about leaving behind a meaningful, curated story of your family's history and traditions, the things you cared about. Why you laughed and why you cried, and all those things.
Rather than viewing photo organization as a task that must be endured, the focus can rest on the stories and the true meaning behind our personal history.
Cathi then shared a great way to view the process of photo organization. “Think of photo organizing like telling a story. You need a beginning, middle, and end. As you go through and digitize photographs, look for the story lines”
While this may be second nature to a professional like Cathi, we often face obstacles during photo organization. Cathi shared her perspective from her years of experience:
First of all, when you open the box of photos, you're usually overwhelmed by nostalgia. There's going to be a lot of emotions when you look at old photos. Also, there is a lot of concern because people think photos must be organized chronologically. And if they threw them into boxes or somebody dropped them , it's a mess. Suddenly you think, I can never put all that back together, but you can! I love to tell people; there are no rules. You don't have to do this in a specific way.
Organizing Old Photographs and Memorabilia by Theme
Cathi recommends that we focus on organizing photos by themes instead of focusing only on chronology. Our brains enjoy looking for patters or themes such as holidays, vacations, birthdays, travel, sports etc. Themes can make this process less overwhelming and you can showcase your family values by sharing your most treasured memories.
Because starting can be difficult, The Photo Managers has certified and trained hundreds of business owners who can work with clients to get them started or complete the organization projects for them.
Cathi shared a few ways The Photo Managers work with clients:
Working with a professional photo manager can be incredibly beneficial, and there are several ways to do so. Many professionals begin by offering an initial call to help you get started, guiding you through the necessary steps and processes. They often provide virtual workshops or in-person classes, ensuring you have the resources to learn and succeed. Another great option is to hire a professional to collaborate with you on your project, akin to having your own personal coach. This approach allows for a more hands-on experience, with the professional guiding you through each step.
Finally, once trust is established, many clients prefer to turn their projects over to the professionals entirely. These experts, trained in best practices, manage the project for you, often resulting in significant progress and results. Initially, many people believe they can handle the task themselves, but as they become overwhelmed, they realize the value of professional help.
Understanding the photo organization process can make the experience much more meaningful and enjoyable, whether you are a DIY photo organizer or choose to hire a professional.
5 Steps For Photo Management
At The Photo Managers, they teach five steps to photo management that can keep you aligned and moving forward.
- The first step is setting a goal and knowing what you want to accomplish. For example, do you have a life event like a graduation or wedding coming up that you want to make an album for? Are you ready to downsize and share the best photo with future generations? Get clear on your goal.
- The next step is to take an inventory. We call it the hunt and gather stage. Grab a notepad and start writing down, what you have in your collection. For example, I have four boxes of old photos under the bed and 6 magnetic albums on bookshelves. In my desk drawer I have two old iPhones, and a baggy of memory cards. Don’t forget to look for old home movies, letters and newspaper articles. The more you look the more you’ll find, and the goal is to write it all down.
- Step three is the curation. I created the ABCs of photo organizing to help people think through the process.
- A: First, ask yourself: Is this archival worthy? Is it album-worthy? You want about 10% in the A category.
- B: If the photo is not an A photo, then ask yourself if it is a B photo, one you want to keep but it’s not album worthy. Those go into a photo safe box. You will probably end up with 50% going back in the box.
- C: Many people resist throwing away photos, but we say C is yes you CAN throw photos away into the CAN. To make it easier, start with blurry, doubles, scenery shots, and many travel shots that don't have a story behind them. Throw away as many as you possibly can. We don't need to keep them unless they belong in the A or B pile. Be ruthless, no one wants boxes or files of photos unless they are a…S Photo.
- S: is Story. You are looking for the story behind the photo. Does it tell a story? If there is a story that is worth remembering, then put it in the A file.
- Step four is to scan your photos and we recommend you organize before you scan. This will save you a lot of time, money and frustration. Now is the time to also back up your photos onto an external hard drive and the cloud.
- Last of all, Step five is the best part, once your photos are organized, you can celebrate and share by making photobooks, on-line photo galleries and share via digital photo frames and more. The ideas are endless!
When digital photography came on the scene, there was a natural decline in printing physical photos. However, as Cathi has noticed, this trend is reversing.
Printing is having a renaissance. It's fascinating. Film is returning in a huge way, especially with the younger generation. They buy film cameras, take photos on film, then scan them using an old-fashioned scanner so that the photos can be shared on Instagram, and it's really fascinating.
The Stories Behind Old Photographs and Memorabilia
The story behind photos can be very helpful in genealogy research. When an old photo is found with names and dates noted, it can be a true treasure. At The Photo Managers, clients often want to learn more about their family history as they go through old photographs.
“Clients have started asking these questions because maybe the client has started doing genealogy on their own, and then when they discover those really old photos, they want to put those pieces together.”
Because The Photo Managers does not specialize in genealogy, its partnership with Legacy Tree Genealogists can be very useful in helping these clients continue their genealogy research.
Similar to the many online platforms useful for genealogy, there are many online resources for managing photo organization. Cathi shared a few of her favorites with us.
If you are proficient on your own PC or Mac, you can start within the folder structure on your computer. Date the folders and move photos into folders. That's as basic as you can get. When you are ready for a more robust software program, Mylio is a digital software program we recommend. For on-line sites, we recommend Permanent , PC Cloud and Forever.
When organizing photos, Cathi outlined several options to help you think outside the box.
The next generation does not think in terms of the folder structure. They think in terms of search. Search engines have trained their brains to think according to themes. Those of us at a certain age still organize by folders. As we move along, thematically is fine because the search is already available on all your digital photos, including the date and times. They're already timestamped and geotagged, and all of that will be there. You can get your arms around it more thematically. If you take the time to think about the themes of your life, it can be overwhelming. So, just choose a few to start with. And there is no right way to do this; it's all very personal.
If you have been inspired to roll up your sleeves and start organizing your shoeboxes full of photos, random memory cards, and old phones full of images, you can learn about all the options for you at https://thephotomanagers.com/. They offer weekly classes, a year-long training program for people who want to organize their own photos, as well as certification and educational conferences for professional members. You can also visit The Photo Managers YouTube channel for live-events, classes, tips and information.
As you organize your photos and discover the stories behind your ancestors, Legacy Tree Genealogists is here to assist you in extending your family tree and finding those meaningful family connections. Contact us for a free quote today.
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