If you are working with old prints, it’s a good idea to wear powder-free gloves as you handle the photographs to ensure that no oils from your fingers rub off on them. You can get them at most drugstores or medical supply stores.
The cover material of the album won’t affect the pictures, but it’s a good idea to get a sturdy leather or hard-bound album if you think you will handle it a lot over the years. To attach pictures in the album, either choose an album with sleeves that you just drop the photos in or attach the pictures to the pages using sticky photo corners. Do not glue the photos themselves to the album pages because the glue can ruin your photos over time.
Choose boxes that are big enough that you do not have to bend the photos, but small enough that the photos don’t shift around too much inside the box. For added protection, put dividers or sheets of acid-free paper in between photos to ensure they do not stick together. You can buy specialty photo supplies like acid-free boxes and paper from craft stores or framing shops. Or, you can find them online.
If you have very valuable family heirloom photos, consider housing them in a climate-controlled storage facility. This way, you can have peace of mind knowing that temperature, light, and humidity are regulated. Too little humidity can cause the photographs to become brittle and fall apart. To avoid humidity-related problems with your photographs, aim to store them in a location that stays in a 20-60% relative humidity range.
Also, try to keep your framed photographs away from prolonged exposure to direct sunlight to avoid fading.
You do not always have to use the service that comes linked to your device. For example, if you have an Apple product, using iCloud is the easiest because it’s integrated into your OS. However, Google Photos and DropBox can be downloaded from the Apple App Store and easily installed on your Apple Products. On the other side, you can link your iCloud account with non-Apple devices, but it’s more difficult and requires the help of someone experienced with the technology. Most cloud storage accounts offer free and paid options. The free options usually offer a limited amount of cloud space, while the paid options vary in price depending on how much storage space you purchase.
If you’re using a digital camera, connect the camera to the computer using a USB cord. The computer will give you prompts on how to upload and sync your photos. The downside of this is that every picture you take will be uploaded to the cloud, instead of ones that you choose. This can result in more work later when you want to organize your photos and those quick snapshots of grocery lists or a cute dog you saw became mixed in with your mementos. To avoid a big project later, make time to delete unnecessary photos regularly.
The downside to manual uploads is that if anything happens to your device before you have a chance to upload the files, you may lose the images forever. To avoid this problem, aim to set aside dedicated times just for uploading photos.
If your pictures are on your phone, you can likely sync them automatically. If you’re using a digital camera, connect the camera to the computer using a USB cord.
Don’t use thumb drives or SD cards for storing pictures long-term. They decay over time and should not be relied on as storage solutions. Optical discs and hard drives allow you to access your pictures easily while you are away from your home computer without worrying about internet connectivity or slow upload/download times. This is great for transporting digital pictures to other countries or rural regions where you are unsure how connected you will be.
When new file types or storage methods become available, tech companies usually release a way to convert and move files in bulk, rather than forcing their customers to work on one file at a time. When you see a new technology has been released, research how to efficiently and safely convert files or seek advice from a tech-savvy friend. You can also hire a professional to do this for you.
