There are 4 simple things you can do to preserve your photos.
1. Wear gloves when handling them.
Purchase a box of disposable non-latex examination gloves at your local pharmacy. Once you’ve worn them, throw them out. Cotton gloves are fine, but they can cause pictures to slip out of your hands. The examination gloves help you hold on to photographic images. Remember to only hold pictures by the edges.
2. Find a proper place to store them.
Basements, garages and attics are inappropriate for long-term storage due to fluctuating temperature and humidity. Plus they are also home to critters that love paper. The best place is a windowless interior closet away from water pipes and heat sources. Use acid and lignin free boxes and inert polyester sleeves for storage.
3. Label your pictures.
Unidentified pictures end up being sold in estate sales or throw out. Don’t let that happen to your precious images. Use a soft lead pencil to write a caption on the back–name, approximate date, occasion, as well as your name and the date you labeled the picture.
4. Scan them.
A one-time scan at a high resolution (at least 600 dpi) color scan of the front and back of your picture will help save it. You’ll be able to put the original in storage and make copies for display. The digital file is your back-up just in case something happens to the originals.
For more preservation tips, see Preserving Your Family Photographs. It covers everything from daguerreotypes to digital imaging.
Ask Maureen to Analyze Your Family Photos
Don’t let heaps of unidentified, damaged, or disorganized family photos get you down. The Photo Detective can help!
If you would like to have Maureen, the Photo Detective, analyze your own family photographs, here’s how the process works. And now you can receive an audio file of your consultation with Maureen!
- Simply supply me with a photo or photos that you would like to know more about. You can do this online at my website.
- Tell me as much as you already know about the photo and upload your photo(s). I’ll email you back with an estimate for costs and you’re good to go. My new per picture rates won’t bust your budget either! I will combine the skills of a private detective with those of a historian/genealogist and look at identifying characteristics in the photo such as background, hair styles, clothing styles, jewelry, uniforms, quilt patterns, make of automobiles, etc. and even facial resemblance if necessary, to begin solving the mystery of when and where the photo was taken and who is pictured. Ill compare findings against any known family history or if additional genealogical research is necessary that can be discussed.
I’ll give you my findings in a telephone conversation which will be recorded; after the call, I’ll send you a copy of an mp3 file so that you have the recording for yourself to listen to over and over again.
On February 12th of 2010, The International Data Corporation (IDC) published the 2009 U.S. Consumer Photo Scanning Survey, which focuses on the use of key consumer imaging applications. This top-level study of digital camera, camera phone, and scanner owners contains the results of a nationwide survey that allowed IDC analysts to quantify how many images and video clips American users tend to capture, delete, print, and archive. According to the 14-page document, photo scanning is on the rise.
Perhaps more than any other sporting event, the Olympic Games are steeped in tradition, as each set of games has its shining moments and its tragedies, which live on in history. The 2010 Games have already seen a share of both. One memorable victory came to Canadian native Maelle Ricker, won the gold medal in snowboard cross racing on February 17th. She was the first Canadian woman to win a gold medal at the Winter Games in Vancouver, and received her prize in front of an adorning, cheering crowd in B.C. Place Stadium. But as much as the Olympics are all about being in the moment, there is also an element of nostalgia, and of history, as athletes compete both against one another and against the all-time greats. Records are broken, legends are remembered, and the Games of years past are celebrated.
Before the days of photo scanning, digital cameras, and personal computers, it was all too easy for memories to be lost forever if photographs were damaged, misplaced, or destroyed. And that’s exactly what almost happened to a phenomenal collection of nearly 70,000 United Press International photos taken between the 1930s and the 1970s. These remarkable photos were rescued by United Press International photographer Henry A. Scheafer, who worked at UPI for 54 years before the company closed its doors in the 1970s.
Our monthly Affiliate Spotlight will not only introduce you to an affiliate that stood out over the course of the month, but will hopefully inspire you to implement the ways they are making this program work for them. This month, we’d like to highlight one very special affiliate, drum roll please….
Christina Tynan-Wood is an established technology writer and author of 
One of the largest and most famous Spring Festivals anywhere in the United States, the San Francisco Chinese New Year celebration is a month-long affair, with pageants, parades, street fairs, and performances by Lion and dragon dancers. Each year, a new Miss Chinatown is crowned at the annual Pageant and Coronation Ball, and the Chinese New Year Run raises funds for the YMCA’s youth and teen programs. But for many San Franciscans, the biggest and most spectacular event is the well-known Chinese New Year Parade, which is one of the few remaining illuminated parades, and is always held at night.
Last month, the International Consumer Electronics Show (CES) completely took over the city of Las Vegas. The whole city feels the transformation, and while it can hardly be said that the city’s ordinary dazzle goes out, it definitely pales in comparison to the bustle of CES. Each year, the show draws over a hundred thousand industry insiders to Sin City, for a massive show-and-tell of their newest creations. During CES, it feels like there are more Samsung reps than chorus girls crowding the casino floors.
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Meggin founded Emphasis on Excellence, Inc., a company that changes what people know, feel, dream, and do through workshops, consulting, and publications. She is the productivity queen, who shares her knowledge on how best to become peacefully productive. If you want to become more strategic, optimize your productivity, and just generally create a fabulous life, then Meggin’s website is a place you can find solutions and options worth exploring. You can also sign up for her 
For most of us, Presidents’ Day (or George Washington’s Birthday, as it is officially known) isn’t a huge holiday. Sure, it’s a great time for bargain-hunters to find 50%-off sales and reduced prices on everything from TV’s to cars, but George Washington’s Birthday usually doesn’t stir up the kind of large-scale family trips and grand celebrations that are common on holidays like Memorial Day, Labor Day, and even Veterans’ Day. Still, many Americans, especially history buffs and die-hard patriots, consider Presidents’ Day to be a holiday worthy of full-scale celebration.
