It’s 10 minutes before your child has to leave for school. She rushes into the kitchen and says, “Mom, I need a picture of me and grandma and grandpa for my family tree at school.” You ask, “When do you need it, honey?” She says, “Today.” You know which picture she means, the one of the three of them taken Mother’s Day weekend. Can you find it easily, in time for her to take it to school? Do you even know where it is? Depending on the age of your child and how many Mother’s Days ago it was taken – it’s in one of those envelopes in one of those boxes in the closet or somewhere on the computer, but where?
I use two great organizing systems that allow me to find photos in a breeze. The first organizes my printed photos. I had 30 years of photos when I started sorting and was able to get through all those thousands (yes, thousands!) of photos. It has interchangeable compartments and dividers with tabs that I can write on with a #2 pencil. When those pictures get into a photo album, I can erase what’s on the tab and reuse it. I love that!
For my digital photos I use a program that allows me to rate my photos so I can pick out the best and delete the rest. Then I put them in multiple folders. For example, that photo mentioned above would be in daughter’s folder, in grandma & grandpa’s folder and in the folder for Mother’s Day. It’s in 3 folders but only on my computer once so it’s not taking up any additional memory; it’s merely tagged in each folder. In those few minutes before she leaves for school, I cross-reference all 3 folders and there it is. It took me about 15 seconds. I print it and send her off to school. In addition, the program has great, easy to use editing features and automatically backs-up my photos to an external hard drive. My pictures are protected and I don’t even have to think about it!
What would it mean to you to have your photos organized? What gets in your way?
Susan Berland is a Personal Photo Organizer. She organizes print and digital photos and memorabilia, and creates keepsake albums, displays and gifts. Her passion is helping people get organized and create a legacy for their families.
