Photograph Album Phobia?  It Need Not Be That Way

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    Things are changing fast in the photography world right now, but many families still have plenty of photo prints which need organizing.  For those that do have this need, there are three fundamental principles to understand about putting together a good photo album.

    First, it takes lots and lots of time to get the photos labeled and in a semblance of order, and even more time to get them in the appropriate photograph albums.  Attempting this sort of a project in one sitting is just not possible.  Instead, take this massive project (which you have probably been putting off for some time) and divide it into several 30-minute steps.  After all, you have to label the photos, organize them, decide which albums will get which photos, purchase your supplies, and then get the pictures in the photo albums.  (And when this is done, you just might want to try your hand at scrapbooking with some of the best photos.  But that is a topic for another time and place.)

    If you are like many people, you might have your photos located in some drawer, or maybe several boxes.  No matter the location of your stash, start by GETTING THE PHOTOS LABELED.  Of course, this is best done as soon as the pictures are taken, but if you have lots of them waiting for attention, it might be best to pull out a few at a time and leave them near your phone.  This is a great "multi-tasking" project when you are having a casual phone conversation.

    Second, each photo needs three pieces of information:  The people in the photo, the location of the photo (and the occasion, if appropriate), and the date.  It is best to systemize how you list people and use consistent abbreviations.  For instance, you might choose to list names left to right, back to front.  On each photo simple abbreviations can be used to clarify who is in the picture:  (back, l to r) ...... (front, l to r) ....  These are usually sufficient directions for anyone looking at the photo later and trying to figure out who is who.

    Third, once your photos are labeled, decide how many different albums you are going to set up.  Will you have one for you and your spouse for those pre-marital years?  Then, will you have a photo album of your family depicting your marriage, the arrival of the children, and family activities?  Will there be an album for each of your children?   Will you create a separate photo album of your trips?  Will you make up a photo album of your grandchildren?  Will there be an album for each wedding in your house or just one large one for all the marriages?  Will you have separate "permanent" photo albums which will have a copy of all the photos you have ever taken and which will stay at your home for all to enjoy? 

    Once you have decided upon the number and kind of photo albums, begin sorting through the photos.  Label expandable file folders (which have sealed sides) with individual's names, family name, or topic, one folder for each photo album you will have.  Photos which are of a single person will more likely go in that person's personal photo album.  Photos of family groups will most likely go in the family photo album.  Pictures of relatives might even go in an extended family photo album (if you ever get to that project).   At this point, don't worry about putting the photos in the folders chronologically.  That will come later.

    How do you deal with duplicate photos?  After you have put the first copy of each photo in its appropriate folder, put the duplicates in folders which you have labeled "My Brothers and Sisters", "My Parents", "My Grandparents ", "My Cousins ", and "My Friends" (from the perspective of your children).  Then as you set up the individual photo albums, you can retrieve photos from these folders for filling out the photo albums.  Label sections in each individual photo album with "My Brothers and Sisters", "My Parents", "My Grandparents ", "My Cousins ", and "My Friends" and put the duplicate photos of these various people here.  Not everyone's photo album will have the same pictures, but if you divide carefully almost everyone's photo album will have a representation of these different important people.

    So now you have taken the original photos, labeled them, sorted them into different folders, and are ready for the last and most important steps:  getting the photos arranged and into the photo albums.  There are many and varied photo album supplies.  Remember, however, that this photo album is likely to last a long time.  Make sure that all products used to compile it are archival in nature.  I have ruined more than one photo putting it in a easy-to-mount pre-glued photo album.  With the time the glue seeped through the photo and ruined it.  In other cases, I have worked with my parent's photo albums and the inexpensive paper of the pages is literally falling apart because of age.  Purchase with wisdom and care!

    This part of the project takes the most time and space.  Take each folder and sort  through the photos, stacking them by year.  When that is done, take each "yearly" stack and lay the pictures out by month.  Restack these photos and go to the next year's, lay them out in order, and restack them.  Labeling each stack with a simple "2002, 2003, 2004" etc. helps keep oriented as you stack the years together.  When this is done, you are ready to put the photos in the photo album.  If possible, make arrangements to have an extra space here or there.  It always seems another photo or two is found after the album is completed.

    As you can see, photo albums are a long, howbeit important project.  If you have done nothing but collect photo prints, start now to make some sense of the mess.  Keep working through your collection of photos, labeling, sorting, and mounting.  Eventually you will have a nice collection of photo albums to share with family and friends.  And, you will have one more item in your life somewhat under control!

    Find more helpful ideas in the "House of Order" Handbook.  Return to Paperwork...