When your photos, slides and videos have been converted to digital files, your next task is to organize and store them so they’re backed up and safe from hackers, a virus or a technical mishap. This is also a good time to corral the digital photos scattered among various computers, phones and e-mail accounts.
Organize. Start by collecting the digital images in a photo-organization program, such as Picasa or iPhoto, that will allow you to organize, label and edit your images. Both Picasa and iPhoto are nondestructive programs, meaning they don’t compress the files and lose data each time an item is saved. Name each file to help you find it later. The Association of Personal Photo Organizers recommends a year-month-day-event format to make searching easier. You can also add the names of people, where the photo was taken or other keywords by using the “info” feature in iPhoto or adding captions and tags in Picasa.
Back up. To protect your collection for posterity, redundancy is key. You can keep files on your computer for easy access, but to prevent losing them to natural and technological disasters, back them up both offline and in the cloud. You can back up files on an external hard drive (disconnect it from your computer after each backup) or burn the files to archival-quality, “gold” CDs or DVDs. These discs resist oxidation, corrosion and scratches and last longer than traditional discs. A cloud service such as Dropbox ($10 a month for 1 terabyte of storage) adds another layer of safety.
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Store. You may want to keep the original photos, or at least some of them. In addition to the emotional reasons for not tossing the originals, some people keep them indefinitely in case new technology improves scanning abilities, says Curtis Bisel, founder of Scanyourentirelife.com. Keep the originals in acid- and lignin-free boxes or envelopes. You can find protective storage options at Gaylord Archival, Hollinger and University Products.
