Before I jump into sharing my experience with organizing and printing our family photos, I have to admit something to you. There was a certain post circulating on Substack a week or so ago that I’m not going to link to. If you’ve seen it, you probably know how divisive it was. Unfortunately, it got into my head a little bit and made me question if I should publish a listicle. I’ve always had a bit of imposter syndrome when it comes to labeling myself on the Internet as a blogger or writer or content creator or micro-influencer. I’ve had this newsletter sitting in my drafts because I’m struggling with not feeling like it’s “serious” enough. I’m just a working mom trying her best to share tips and tricks that make my days flow seamlessly because I hope in turn they’ll make your life a little easier too.
Okay, friend, it’s time we had a little chat about the 13,299 photos sitting on your phone. Because I know I’m not alone in this problem. Printing out your family pics is way more fun than staring at a screen… especially for young kids who love to reminisce.
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If you’re prone to procrastination like myself, here's how to finally get started on the task you’ve been putting off:
Get organized: Before you even think about hitting print, sort your photos into folders. It'll save you time later. I use iCloud smart albums and Google Photo albums. I’m also in the habit of searching the date in my iPhone photos and deleting screenshots or duplicates each day as a way to keep digital clutter to a minimum. Add a reminder to your phone daily or weekly to do this! It takes some practice to remember to sort your photos into albums after big events, but it’s worth the effort.
Here are some quick ideas for categorizing your family photo albums:By Time
Yearbooks: One album per year
Decades: A nostalgic look back at each decade
Baby Books: Capture your little one's first year (or first few years)
By Theme
Vacations: Create an album for each family trip
Holidays: Celebrate Christmas, Thanksgiving, Easter, and other special dates
Events: Weddings, graduations, baby showers, birthdays, and family reunions
Hobbies: Showcase family interests like sports, music, or art. In my case, I have a folder called “books”.
By Person
Family Members: Dedicate an album to each family member or one for just your kids together. Another idea is a dedicated album with your kids and their grandparents.
Couples: Highlight your anniversary with a couples album
Pets: Celebrate your furry family members (gotta keep those photos handy for the pet Instagram account)
Pick your faves: Don't try to print everything! Just choose photos that make you smile or bring up happy memories. They don’t have to be the most aesthetic photos.
Choose your style: Think about how you want to show off your pics. Photo albums, wall displays, or DIY projects like ornaments are all options. I’ve used Chatbooks for printing monthly(ish) Instagram photos, print to hang up in my office, PixxiBook Blog to Book to memorialize my old lifestyle blog, and Walgreens Photo Books to create a yearbook of school memories. There are plenty of more expensive services out there too but I think it boils down to what you prioritize. Do you want something to be museum quality or do you just want to hang a 3x5 print on your corkboard at work?
Make it fun: Get the whole family involved in picking photos and designing your albums. An easy way to do this is to add family members to an iCloud group album! We’ve done this at the beach and at Disney to collect each other’s photos.
Preserve those memories: Printed photos are like mini time capsules. Share them with loved ones (photo books make great gifts for grandparents) and make sure to back up your digital copies too. My daughter loves to flip through our monthly Chatbooks and she’s my main inspiration for printing photos. She reminds me so much of myself flipping through my Nana’s photo albums in her sitting room during our summers together.
I’ve never been good at scrapbooking but I love the idea of it, especially taking some of those photos you print and journaling with them. I’ll recommend a few more resources about memory keeping if you want to explore further:
The Art of Memory Collecting: 15 Scrapbook, Collage, Trinket and Zine Projects for Crafting Treasured Moments by
’s Keepsake’s Guide to Digital CollageThe Art of the Travel Journal: Chronicle Your Life with Drawing, Painting, Lettering, and Mixed Media - Document Your Adventures, Wherever They Take by Abbey Sy
The Art of Making Memories: How to Create and Remember Happy Moments by Meik Wiking
Tell me what you’re printing first!
Elsewhere on the Internet: Goodreads / Storygraph / Pinterest
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I have so many photos on my phone that I haven't printed, thank you for all of these suggestions to organise and print. Chatbooks looks great, love the idea of monthly books too.