In many homes, old family photos are scattered across various places.
If you are a millennial or baby boomer parent, you know what we are talking about- some photos are in that shoe box hidden somewhere gathering dust. Others in a photo album in your family home, most likely in a different zip code location, not to mention teenage photos lying somewhere in an unfinished scrapbook.
If all these sound familiar, it is time to bring these memories to the digital age.
The only way to salvage these memories from being wiped out is to digitise them.
We’ll show you easy steps, tools, and tips to turn old photos into digital memories. Let’s first consider the why.
Why Digitise Your Photos – Why Digital Memories are Important
We all treasure the memories and emotions captured in our old family photos. However, with time, these old photos become damaged, lost, or faded. As much as you love the old physical prints, you cannot avoid the effects of ageing. That’s why digitising your photos is crucial.
Imagine having a digital archive of your family’s history or easily sharing cherished memories with loved ones far away. There are many reasons to digitise old photos, even if you are not interested in historical archiving, such as:
- To preserve memories
- To build a legacy
- To share the same memories with more people
- To create a back-up
- To save space
- To declutter physical space
- To enhance photos
Tools and software to use for digitising photos
You will require a scanner, photo editing software, and storage space. The good news is that many free tools and software are available online to help you bring your photos to life.
You don’t have to use all these tools though- with a smartphone and a digital memories app like Autumn Whispers, you are good to go. We’ll show you how.
Collect Your Photos
The first step to digitise your old photos is to gather them all in one place. You may need to search through albums, boxes, and even frames to find all your old photos. Next, sort them by year or event to make it easier to organise them later. Family members can also help in identifying dates and stories behind photos. Having all your memories in one place will make the next steps much smoother.
Use the Right App
Choosing the right app to digitise old photos can make all the difference. We recommend using Google’s PhotoScan app, which is available for iOS and Android devices. PhotoScan helps you create digital copies of your photos by stitching together several images of each photo to create a high-quality, glare-free copy that is nearly as good as a professional scan.
Edit Your Photos
Once you’ve digitised your photos, upload them to make the Autumn Whispers app for customization to look even better. It is an all-in-one video, voice, and photo storage, sharing, and editing app that lets you crop, adjust colour, add dates, and apply filters to your photos.
It’s available for iOS and Android devices and can also be accessed on your computer.
Tips on organising and protecting digital memories
Organise your digital photos in a specific album with a clear and explicit name, dates, and captions for reference. You can create subfolders or albums within the main one to keep your photos organised.
Sharing Digital Memories with Friends and Family
The real aim of digitising and preserving old photos is to share those memories with family and loved ones. One of the perks of digital memories is their quick and easy shareability. Use social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram to share old memories with friends and family.
But, for special family treasures and keepsakes, create a private online album and share it with specific people. This way, you can give different people different access and control over the pictures.
Bonus tip:
Use the Autumn Whispers app to turn photos into digital stories with memories behind them; record or ask family members to record voice-overs and narrations about photos.
