Many of our memories are best preserved in our collection of pictures. Those of us who are older remember the admonition to keep the negatives so other pictures could be printed. The younger generation doesn’t even know what a negative is! So what is the best way to preserve those digital memories?

First, with digital capabilities, don’t hesitate to take plenty of pictures. With the ability to take large numbers of pictures at no cost today, you can get several shots of every scene, just to be sure. I purchased a large memory card for my digital camera in preparation for a special trip last summer. When I got home, I still had room to take more than 10,000 shots!

Once you have collected a good number of pictures, don’t be afraid to delete the ones that aren’t up to standard, or that are duplicates of others. Don’t feel you have to keep every picture. On the other hand, don’t be shy about keeping one that is special, though it isn’t your best shot. After all, it doesn’t cost anything to keep it except memory.

Photo albums can be set up with computer programs cataloging them by event, date, subject, or any way you want. Take the time to write captions for even the most familiar scenes. My basement shelf contains a box of slides from my deceased parents but I don’t know the subjects. If they had labeled them clearly, they would be much more useful.

You may feel you are finished with your project. Yet, consider how fragile your preserved memories are. One crash of your hard drive and you may lose everything! If they are on floppy disks, you might not even have the media to read them any more! Also, floppies are vulnerable to magnetic fields.

Formerly we thought CDs were more secure. Since nothing needed to touch the surface, nothing wore out. However, scratches, breaks, heat damage could all destroy your memories.

Start with this suggestion: store all your pictures additionally in another place and on copies in other parts of your home. That is, if you put them on a CD, make copies and store at least one copy in another home, at work, in a safety deposit box. Back up hard drives and, if possible, do so on a network that guarantees they are in several locations around the country or world. As media changes, backup your memories on the new media. Imagine what you would now have if all your past pictures were stored on 5 ¼ floppy disks!

Today we have the ability to take massive numbers of pictures and to share them around the world without once printing them. But with this decrease in expense, don’t forget the fact that no amount of money can bring them back if they are permanently deleted.

Following these tips should benefit you. But if you’re more interested in a professional handling your photography, consider the services of Expressions Photography, who are skilled in Virginia Beach Photographer. See their website portfolio for results.

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