This past weekend I was at my in-laws house. They are getting ready to move and my mother-in-law pulled out a box of old pictures she found. It was so cool to go through them. We passed them around and showed them to our kids. My kids got to see Daddy when he was little, and photos of their grandparents and other family members when they were kids. I got to see childhood pictures of so many people. I was so thankful that she had saved so many pictures, because without them we would never have seen those memories or gotten to share them with our own kids.
We live in a digital world- and it’s great. We have our Facebooks, Instagrams, and phones full of memories to scroll back through. It’s pretty
amazing.
But what about actual photos? What are your kids going to go through in 20 years?
When they are sitting around your house later in life, is someone going to pull out a box of old photos to go through? Will there be one?
I’m sure you know the feeling, of finding an old photo from when you were young. It brings back a flood of memories. And it’s not just looking at the pictures. It’s holding them. Reading what’s on the back, the shape, the coloring- it all tells a story.
Are we going to have something tangible to pass down to our kids…something for them to laugh at with their spouse, siblings, friends or parents?
I know I love going through an old box of photos. I love to see the really old prints, color fading, a little bit crumpled…
When you think back to your parents, I’m sure you can remember seeing and holding an old photo of them. It’s a memory.
How are your future generations going to see our pictures? Will they have to find your old cell phone and try to turn it on, to scroll through old pics? Or will they have to find a CD you have burned them on and try to play them on the newest technology (CDs will probably be old news by then!) Or
maybe they will have to try to log in to your old Facebook account? (Remember Myspace?!)
As a photographer, I sell tons of digital files. I totally understand it, too. I love to have digitals…you can save them, post them, share them…but I always encourage my clients to order prints. 
Printed photos are important! And I can’t tell you the number of times my clients tell me they never got around to printing any…
They help make a house a home.
So don’t forget to print your photos, too! Order them from your photographer or even print them yourself! I promise, your kids will thank you
