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Managing Your Print Photo Collection: Step 1 – Organize

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PAPER REFINEMENT SERIES

Did you know that Paper Management is the number one reason that people hire a professional organizer?  Despite our society’s best efforts to “go paperless”, excess paper clutter is a universal challenge in the homes in which I work.  This post is the second in a series of blog posts that will focus on paper management.

If you ask people what possessions they are most likely to salvage from their home if it was on fire, they are likely to say their photo collection.  Ironically, managing our photo collections is typically a very low priority on our “To Do” list.  Dealing with those shoeboxes full of print photos is one of those tasks that most people plan to tackle “someday”.   A disaster is not the only way photos can be destroyed.  If your photos are improperly stored, you run the risk of losing your precious memories to damage caused by acidic papers, inks, and glues, as well as mold and mildew.  By setting aside time to properly organize and safeguard your old print photos, you will be better able to enjoy them and share them with others for many generations to come.  In today’s post, I’ll provide some basic tips for tackling the organizing process.

ORGANIZING YOUR PRINT PHOTOS

  • If your photos are scattered throughout your home, the first step is to gather all of your photos (including loose photos and photo albums) in one central location.  This location should contain a large, flat work surface.  A dining room table works great for this purpose.

  • Before you begin sorting photos, make sure you have the necessary tools available.  Your photo organizing “tool box” should include:
    • Cotton gloves (to protect photos from skin oils)
    • Post-It notes/pen (for labeling your categories)
    • Photo safe pencils (for writing notes on the back of photos)
    • Dental floss/hair dryer (for removing stubborn photos from any “peel and stick albums”).
  • Complete an initial “rough sort” by sorting your photos by decade, using shoe boxes to contain each decade.
  • Next, go through each “decade box” and fine-tune your sort.   I recommend sorting photos by theme.  Some common themes include:  Holidays, Travel/Vacations, Sporting Events, School Days, Celebrations, etc.  Sorting categories are based on both your personal preference and the content of your particular collection.

 

  • As you complete the fine-tuned sort, implement the “ABC’S Method” (developed by the Association of Personal Photo Organizers) to determine which photos to throw away, pass along to others, archive in boxes, and set aside for display/sharing:
    • A Photos:  A stands for Album.  These are your most important and cherished photos; to be displayed in an album, frame, and/or shared online with others;
    • B Photos:  B Stands for Box.  These photos are important enough to keep, but not worthy of displaying necessarily; to be stored in archival quality boxes;
    • C Photos:  C Stands for Can (as in Trash Can!). These photos are not worthy of keeping; to be thrown away (blurry, unflattering) or given to others (duplicates);
    • S Photos:  S Stands for Story.  These photos that might seem unimportant at first (for example, an older photo of a random house), but actually tell an important family story (the photo is the house in which your grandfather grew up).
  • Try to move as quickly as possible during the sorting process and avoid reminiscing.  There will be plenty of time for that once your project is complete!

In my next post, we’ll discuss the ways in which you can safeguard your print photo collection once the organization process is complete.

Want to learn more about Natalie Gallagher and Refined Rooms?  Visit www.RefinedRoomsLLC.com. 

Refined Rooms LLC is a proud member of the Association of Personal Photo Organizers!