My brother and I are five and four in this professional photo that was taken 40+ years ago. I love our smiles and the joy that radiates throughout the photo. I am not sure what the photographer might have said to get us to look this way, or if my mom bribed us – but whatever it was the outcome was genius. I think it would be fun to try this with my kids, but at 12 & 14 I am not sure it is joy that I would see – instead I imagine looks of sarcasm and annoyance! Regardless, I might give it a shot!
The quality and condition of this photo is perfect and according to blog.1000memories B & W photos (properly stored) will last 100+ years. Today I want to share the importance of preserving your printed photos. Here are five tips to keep in mind:
- Store your photos at controlled temperature – cooler is more ideal, but the key thing to remember is consistency of temperature – basements, attics, garages are all places not to store your photos or slides.
- Pull your photos out of the old albums that have glues, papers and plastics that contain acids and other substances that are harmful to photographs. Any of the “peel and stick” or “magnetic” pages and sleeves fall into this destructive category.
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Store all your printed photos in acid free boxes to protect the photo and ensure that it retains it original color and condition.
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Scan your photos and save on an external hard drive so that you have a digital backup in case of theft, fire or flood.
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Keep a backup of your external hard drive in a safety deposit box AND use on-line cloud storage service.
Enjoy and share your photos – get your kids involved – and make a summer family project to preserve your printed photos. Your kids will love looking at your dated hairstyles and funky outfits, and you will have an opportunity to share stories and create new memories as you work to preserve your old ones!
rita norton
I am the momma to two children and was an Oregonian for the past 25+ years. A job transfer for my husband (in the summer of 2016) resulted in a cross country move and now I am a Massachusettsan. I confess, I had to look up the demonym! The birth of my son 20+ years ago was also the start of my entrepreneurial adventure. Photos have always been at the core of my businesses and continue to inspire and drive my passion to create beautiful keepsake photo collections for my clients.
LOVE the picture of you and your brother. I have very few photos of my early years and the b & w photos are so fun to look at. The photographer really captured a sweet moment. Your tips are great and sometimes it’s a real gift if our old photos are in boxes and not albums that might have damaged them more than they preserved them.