InfoTrend estimates that 1.3 TRILLION photos will be taken in 2017. Now that our photos are almost exclusively taken on our phones, it’s easy to produce images with very little thought (remember when we used to develop a roll of film, hold on to the keepers and throw the rest away?).
A quick scroll through your phone’s Camera Roll will reveal the digital clutter created by having our cameras so accessible. We snap. We share. Our Camera Roll fills with nearly identical images shot on burst-mode and the digital clutter quickly becomes overwhelming.
I became a Professional Photo Organizer because I want to help people conquer their photo overwhelm. If you’re feeling like your digital photos are OUT OF CONTROL, try these 3 tips to make your photos less overwhelming!
3 things you can do to make your photos less overwhelming
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Delete daily.
Out of sight, out of mind, but that doesn’t mean OUT of your CAMERA ROLL, right? Every evening I spend a couple minutes (really, like 2-3 minutes) cleaning up my Camera Roll. Anything not worth saving gets deleted- things like screen shots, random images I texted to a friend, blurry photos, selfies taken by a toddler, etc. I also go through photos taken at a certain event and narrow it down to JUST the keepers. I delete similar photos with slightly different expressions and keep ONLY my favorites. Make the decisions RIGHT NOW because if you put it off, it’ll never happen. Deleting daily will really help you manage the digital clutter.
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Download memory cards immediately.
These days most people take photos exclusively on their phones, but if you (like me) still rely on a digital camera to document the special occasions, try downloading the photos from the memory card RIGHT AFTER THE EVENT. If I’m using my DSLR, I download the photos from the memory card on the same day I shoot them. This goes a long way in preventing photo overwhelm because your images are accounted for so you’ll never uncover an old memory card and wonder ‘hmmm… what’s on here?’ Once you’ve gotten the images off the memory card, narrow it down to the keepers and delete the junk (like we did in step 1).
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Centralize your digital photos.
Establish one digital hub where you’ll store your photos. Most of the overwhelm comes from having our photos scattered- on our phones, Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat, computers, memory cards, old CDs, external hard drives- seriously, no wonder we are so overwhelmed! Designate ONE PRIMARY space where you’ll catalog your photos. KEEP IT SIMPLE. I have one folder on my computer called ‘Photo Library’ with subfolders by year (I don’t even use Apple’s Photos program because it complicates things). Download everything to this hub. If you’re not sure how to get photos OFF your phone, I recommend Dropbox. I have their free app that syncs with my camera roll, then from my computer I can copy/paste this folder. You can also use software like iMazing.
Friends, you can do this. And if you’re honestly too overwhelmed to start, remember I can also DO THIS FOR YOU. As a Professional Photo Organizer, I offer digital organization services and I can help clients anywhere in the world (I can access your computer remotely and DO THE WORK FOR YOU)! If you’re interested in these services, send me a note!
