Do you have an old photo album with older family photos in it? If so, continue to keep the individual photographs in the old photo album. That in itself tells a story that a relative once took the time to create a memory for later times. Perhaps the relative was directly or indirectly thinking of you when the old photo album was put together?
Regardless of how much thought went into the album when it was made, it helps to enrich the experience of the old photos.
Long-term storage of photographs
If, on the other hand, you have a photograph that is starting to have brownish spots or a border, the warning lights should come on. There may be acid in the photograph’s frame or pasteboard.
If something is to be stored for a long time, it must be acid-free, free of staples, paper clips, tape, post-it notes, etc. But by all means, don't dismantle the old family album. If the album has started to disintegrate, it may be a good idea to take it to someone who can repair That way, future generations will also be able to enjoy it.
Ideally, the photo album should be placed in a safe deposit box to protect it from fire, water damage, or theft, but you won't get much use out of it there. Slekt1's tip is therefore to digitize the entire photo album (page by page or photo by photo) before placing it in a safe place. You can do this either by scanning or photographing the entire album. It’s a time-consuming job, but future generations will thank you.
Easier and easier to digitize old photos
Fortunately, digitizing old photos has become much easier in recent years. If you have a smartphone or tablet, there are several good apps that scan multiple photos in one go. For example, «Photoscanner - scanner from Google» may be worth a closer look. Here you can read Dinside.no’s review of Google’s photo scanner app.
Make sure you get the names of as many of the people pictured as possible – you may recognize them, but will your descendants? Without famous people, a family album quickly becomes almost worthless and can be sold or at worst thrown away.
