Protect your photos, tell the story, write it down
to preserve your memories, save them to a free site such as familysearch.org
How should I manage my photographs?
Just heard about an upcoming celebration of life, and that there is a box of family history memorabilia that the family is passing along to me. I will, of course, be passing it along to other family members when I am done copying and photographing documents and photos. My advice? The future of family history research is digital, though, and scanning or photographing images as jpg or png are essential.
My first hope is that those who took the photos wrote on the back or in the scrapbook the names, places, and dates and, better yet, stories that go along with them. In journalism we call it the Who, What, When, Where, Why, and How.
Several relatives have sent me boxes of old photographs and scrapbooks. I attended a funeral recently and discovered some scrapbooks I had never seen, so I took out my iPhone 12 and started shooting pictures. Sure, they are not studio grade, but it’s better to get an okay shot rather than losing it altogether!
My two favorite shots from the scrapbook I had never seen before of my mom and dad are below. Dad had just returned from the war, was a student at University of California Berkeley, and they were visiting his parents in Coronado, California, where he grew up. They were probably engaged. They were probably married in the second photograph, and having way more fun than the woman on the left!
My second hope is that the family will tell the stories about each of the photos and the people who are in them. That’s usually why people save photos, and it’s important to finally write down the names and stories and dates they represent. After you have been doing this for a while, it gets easier. (See above)
Protect photos, and write everything down!
Rather than simply hoping for the best, though, you should take a look at how to preserve physical photos for family history research. Early photographs fade when exposed to light, or the surface of a tintype can be easily damaged and requires appropriate care. Did you notice that pictures of that era are usually inside a metal case with red felt lining? Now we place them in an acid-free black photo envelope with a tie to keep it closed will prevent further damage to the image.
Then gather what people remember about the people, places, dates, stories, and events in the photographs—the 5W’s and H—and WRITE IT DOWN!
I will be using my Reporter’s Notebook to write down the information. I like the wide-rule Pitman 1/2” line spacing because I can’t always look down when I am taking notes. Also, you can hold it in one hand and write with the other. I flip the pages and keep writing, and turn the book and go the other direction when I’ve filled up the last page. There is a place on the cover to write the date and subjects included for easy retrieval. If you already have a notetaking system that works for you, that’s okay, too.
It is important to back up your family photo collection for future family historians using familysearch.org because it will always be free and accessible online. FamilySearch sponsors the international annual RootsTech convention every year at the Salt Palace in Salt Lake City, Utah. It is a global nonprofit organization sponsored by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
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Have these techniques worked well for you? What other techniques do you use? Questions?
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