What are you doing about pics?

I don't know about you but I'm drowning in old photographs. Mostly my family & nurse Gillian family. Our forebears took a colossal number . I have pondered over them for years.
I have tried all sorts of ways to display them, put them in albums. Catalogued them.
I have scanned them, but am too nervous of discarding the originals.
My grown up children don't seem interested so I can't rely on them to be stewards of the family archive.

After I've passed, they'll probably get skipped, does it matter?

Re: What are you doing about pics?

No Robert don't do that please
You may not realise this but they are a valuable archive , one day your children may be interested. I wasn't with my family photographs years ago but I am now and some have actually been published in book detailing the history of our family village .

I would suggest you carefully store your photographs in a big box tied up with ribbon and put a note on the lid of the content.
Some day they may bring joy to a passing viewer .

Re: What are you doing about pics?

Scan them and store as a digital image online.

Re: What are you doing about pics?

all through a relatives life on my husbands side he was a amateur Photographer and took loads of photos of Cycle races and Time Trials ,he died in his 90s so had suit cases full .
They were passed on to the local CC who hopefully found some use of them .
if you have any that are of a certain subject then think of donating them .
They are History of past ,ive seen albums sold in auctions ,because they are showing fashions of that era ,

I myself have hundreds of photos , but my daughter wants them when ive gone , some are in Albums others are still in the Envelopes i got them in from the Developers ,
Since ive had a digital camera , they are now kept in USB pens and on Youtube ..
I wont be too distressed if no one wants them ,they have served their purpose for me to look at while im around .

Re: What are you doing about pics?

I love them, I just like to hold them and look at them, especially the really old sepia and black and white ones. It must have been so exciting having those photos taken.
My paternal grandmother's wedding portrait was taken by Friese Green, I can hold it and look at the historic name on the back, magic.
I keep mine in a wooden box, I hope in another hundred years someone else will take them out and look at them.
The more recent one's when they became everyday happenings, I would store elsewhere.
One day when the Internet vanishes due to a cyber war, I'd like to think I'd left a few special ones in that box though.

Re: What are you doing about pics?

Oh this thread has chocked me up. I still have bags and bags of photo's from both my parents. I just cannot sort them as it is too soon for me. Skip them!!! Never, it is my parents lives, and mine as a child.

Re: What are you doing about pics?

I have a lot of old B&W photo's too. Some I have scanned into the PC, but others are in a box. There was, I think, a thread for old photo's here. Why not start another, as I can't find it & post them on the forum?

Re: What are you doing about pics?

It's now that I'm older when I look at the old photos my sister has I wish I'd taken more interest in who these people were . Many have no names on the back. Some pics we think may be our grandmothers and great grandparents yet we just don't know . It's interesting to wonder what their life's were like .

Re: What are you doing about pics?

Best to scan and store the originals. Chances are one day your grownup kids might well get interested.
I've no kids but my nephew and nieces might want to know their roots one day.

Don't forget to scan the backs of the photos too ... mine have loads of old scribbling on them ... names, sometimes dates and at the very least, if nothing else, it's a record of some dear departed ancestors handwriting.

Re: What are you doing about pics?

Thank you for all your helpful comments.

I will definitely keep them and follow some of your ideas.