Organize Your Memories: Practical Tips for Managing and Using Your Mobile Phone Photos

Technology has changed the way we take photos. Unlike cameras, our smartphones are always with us, so we often snap away. And if you’re like many, few photos leave your phone and are rarely viewed again. Then, when asked by family or friends to share a memory of an event, the search is on. Here are practical tips you can use to manage your photos and why you should consider printing them in some way.

Managing Your Photo Library

Because you may have numerous photos of the same event, you wouldn’t want to save them all. So where do you start if you haven’t organized them through the years, and the bad photos coexist with the great ones, and screenshots and videos may be mixed in as well? A great place to start is to hop on the internet to find out how.

If you own an iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch, Apple Support will provide you with links, advice and instructions. If you own an Android, Android Help will show you how to set up galleries and what options you have. These support websites will give you ideas on ways you can organize your photo library using dates, people, places and categories and how to apply filters and create albums.

The Power of a Memory

Now that you’ve done the preliminary work of organizing your photo collection, it’s time to decide what to do with your photos. Again, the internet is your friend. Following are some ideas:

• Prints: Many merchants and online sites offer printing services where you can order a single set or multiple sets of prints. It’s a nice way to share memories with family and friends. You can pick the best photos from your collection and print only those. You can send printed memories in a thank-you or birthday card, give them to family and friends, or display them on a wall or in an album. With a print, you can write the details of who, what, when, where and why on the back for future generations to see.


• Printed Scrapbooks: When you think of scrapbooks, you probably think of the leather-bound, three-ring binder popular with your parents’ generation. Printed scrapbooks are a convenient way to preserve family history or special events. Simply gather your photos and the order in which you want them in a book and transfer them online to a vendor to print. You could group them by event, person or a particular time frame. The New York Times has researched vendors and has recommendations. Some vendors offer free design services if you’re stumped for ideas. If you prefer to apply your own creativity, the following can kick-start the process:
  • Lifeprint
  • Martha Stewart
  • Scrapbooking Coach
  • Pinterest
  • Sixty and Me


• DVD Slideshow: Bring on the entertainment at your next family gathering with a slideshow created on DVD. Add some music or text to the photos. YouTube offers an easy-to-follow video for instructions on how to create your slideshow in Windows. For a nice gift, you also can share your photos by transferring them to a DVD, allowing others to choose which ones to print.


• Keepsake Object: Today’s technology allows you to print photos on myriad objects, from pillows to pickleball paddles. For dog and cat lovers, socks with photos of their pets will bring a smile each time they are worn. Select a photo of you and your lifelong friend and present them with a coffee mug. The possibilities are endless. Visit Zazzle for other fun ideas.

Just Use Them!

Photos capture the moments and places of our lives. When they live on our phones, they don’t remind us of the best times of our lives. That’s why we snap away. Make the most of your photos. Get them off your phone and choose the means for enjoying and sharing the memories.

About Right at Home

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