Print Those Pictures

Ashley Newman Photography

I’m pretty sure I’ve shared that one of my goals for 2018 was to print more family photos. I got pretty caught up on my family photo albums (hello 7 years of procrastinating), but I still have some to print.

So 2019 has continued to carry the torch so to speak of my goal. I’m glad for it. I want to be able to share my family with others, not just on social media (which I find myself shying away from more and more these days) but with the people I love enough to unite into my home. There is something so rewarding about holding a physical picture in your hand or gazing upon your family every day on the walls. I just find it so satisfying and it warms my heart and home.

Anyway, I guess my point is- PRINT THOSE PICTURES! For real! I have to put this in all caps because I need it to be seen and heard. You have put so much into planning your family pictures, don’t let them just hangout on Facebook.
I have a few examples of albums and canvas below. I love these albums because they are archival quality. The pages are thick, durable (so they hold up to even my kiddos), and they just plain look nice. There are so many options, but I try to keep in simple.

And then of course canvas- I am obsessed with canvas. I love it so much and I think it looks incredible on walls. The picture below is of my own wall. I think the largest one is 24×36, and I am of the opinion that bigger is better lol.

So Why Print?

• Prints never crash. Unlike your hard drive, photo prints won’t be suddenly erased without warning. And while a hard drive crash is inevitable, it usually takes an act of nature to permanently destroy a person’s photo prints.

• Prints are never obsolete. The image files of today- the JPEGs and TIFs, etc.- will likely be unreadable by the devices of the future.

• Prints are long lasting. In addition to being forever readable, prints can actually last for generations. If you want to pass on photos to your great grandkid’s great grandkid, only a print will do.

• People like them. Many people, not just older generations, like to hold and handle a photo print, or would prefer to see them physically, in an album, instead of on a monitor.

• Prints don’t go out of business. Storing your photos in the cloud is a good idea, but it’s hard to predict just how long a given cloud storage service will stay in business.

• The bottom line: if you want an image to last for generations, your best bet is to print it out and store it safely (while keeping copies in the cloud and on an external drive, too). It’s not economically feasible or logistically desirable to print every photo you take, but the keepers? Absolutely.