Don’t Make This Scanning Mistake

[@MadelonWilson]

With the prevalence of cloud storage, even CDs and DVDs are becoming obsolete. The photobook idea is perfect! When my 33-year-old son passed away, a dear friend traveled from Canada to my home in Florida to scan photos for individualized photobooks for his wife, his son, his sister and for me and my husband. That book occupies pride of place in the living room. I see his smiling face every single day.

[@lindasattgast]

Thank you for sharing, Madelon. What a gift for your friend to give a bereaved family. Wow. I love that you have a book that reminds you of your amazing son every day.

[@ThereseArsenault]

My father was the crazy photographer in our family. Back in the 60's all the family photos were on slides. I purchased a scanner many years ago that will scan slides, negatives and just about anything else. Right from the beginning I created files on my computer to save these precious memories by date and by subject. We have a very large family of aunts, uncles and cousins. Most of our family did not have cameras back then. There are tons of awesome photos that no one other than our immediate family have even seen. To share all these priceless moments in time, I have created a private family facebook group, and every cousin, aunt, uncle, and their offspring have been invited to be in this group. I post all these photos in albums on this Facebook group. Now every member of my huge family all over the world have access to these photos.

[@lindasattgast]

You are a definitely a Photo Hero, Therese! It's a labor of love to do what you've done, but also very rewarding for you, I'm sure, and for your extended family now and far into the future. One thing to note is that Facebook compresses the photos quite a bit, so another free option is to put the folders of photos on Google Photos. The free version (for those who have a Gmail account) compresses the photos very slightly but not enough to make a difference for creating photo books. Shutterfly and Amazon Photos also have photo storage with no compression. So those are just some possible options for you that family all over the world can access once you give them permission. I agree, though, FB is great for sharing comments and getting even more information about a photo from other family members!

[@sharonblais1111]

What a great idea! I hadn't thought of that.

[@shellywasserman6847]

Great Idea! I already made a photo book for my father’s 80th Birthday. I started with my father in his youth and continued through my father and mother’s marriage and each of their three children from marriage, children and grandchildren. He said it was the best gift he ever received. That book was a constant joy to him until his death at 91.

[@lindasattgast]

Thank you, Shelly, for sharing the impact of your book on your father. A book of someone's life is just about the greatest gift you can give them. It honors their life and gives them such pleasure seeing the people they love and savoring the memories.

[@nellcovington4001]

Linda, you have been my mentor for a lot of years, even though you don't know me. It is because of you that I can use Photoshop to scrapbook and work with my photos. Thanks for all you do. You have blessed many people through your hard work and generosity.

[@lindasattgast]

Thank you, Nell! I'm so pleased I've been able to help you along the way. 😍

[@jenniferkendrick]

This is wonderful! I have really been working on my genealogy and realize that most family members don't care to see the final data. But by putting it all into a photo book with stories, they will be more likely to cherish it! Thank you, Linda, for always staying on top of what we want!

[@lindasattgast]

So glad it's helpful to you, Jennifer! What you're doing is wonderful and WILL be appreciated by your family!

[@lindamcgue3173]

I have actually scanned all the photos I thought I had at the time (some keep popping up unexpectedly that I still need to scan). I did use a structure similar to yours. I broke it down into decades and then inside that folder into individual years (sometimes into events). Most of the individual photos have a date or approximate date on them with names and location when I knew them. You are right that the biggest challenge is organizing the photos. I had photos from my mother, grandmother and later. Most with no date or info on them. When I retired that was my first project. I tried to group them by clothing, marks on the back (sometimes the photo processor had put a date), and anything I could think of that would make groups. Took a long time, but was worth it in the long run. About four years ago I made DVDs for my brother and his 3 daughters. I have discovered recently that they still have the DVDs but had forgotten all about them. One niece was making a photo book for her Dad this Christmas and was asking me for photos. When I explained she should have the DVD with all my photos, she didn't remember that I have given her one or where it was...sigh! So I agree with you that wasn't enough. I have started writing more and some of my stories are about my family, so this is my opportunity to include photos in the story. I'm excited about your new passion. I want to share it with my genealogy and writer's group, too. I am assuming that since the videos are on youtube it is all right to share with all.

[@lindasattgast]

Great job with your photos, Linda! I applaud you! Thanks for sharing about your experience with DVDs and your family. I know your family values them but I personally know how a DVD is easy to ignore or lose, so pairing the DVD with a book would be awesome. Don't you love it when the next generation begins to think about making a family photo book?! Regarding sharing the video-feel free to share it with anyone who might benefit, and I'd love to hear what your genealogy and writers group is doing to tell their family stories!

[@pimfan100]

DearLinda, How wonderful it is to follow you and Charlie to the next phase in your life. You are so important to me. I hope to spend many more years listening to your wonderful teaching.Adriana Fantes.

[@lindasattgast]

Thank you, Adriana. I'm so happy you're coming along with us on our new adventure!

[@lsvanek]

I used to make a physical scrapbook for my church history and I always put a DVD of the book photos on the inside cover in case any members wanted a photo. Great idea.

[@lindasattgast]

I love the idea of making a physical scrapbook of church history with a DVD! Very cool!

[@rupis409]

Great advice. I'm planning to do a video from scanned photos. I'm enchasing it's quality and colorize them with the app. Also adding face motions (blinking, smiling) for some - it gives life to them. And thinking about the text to voice converters for the stories.

[@lindasattgast4585]

All the best on your video project! I think more and more family historians will include video in the future.

[@rupis409]

@@lindasattgast4585 thank you 😊

[@m.legato3698]

Hello, Love your video. What I did, and still do, is take my photos and use an editing tool (I have Filmora) to make a moving picture history. You can add text as you go and more important, add music to make it interesting. Special affects don't hurt either!

[@FamilyHistoryHero]

That's wonderful! Movies are a great way to make photos and stories come alive. Thanks for sharing!

[@dmr5658]

Great video! Look forward to learning more.

[@susieroberts1]

This is so fabulous! I've just started on our early photos from the 70's, 80's and 90's! Linda's tips coudn't have come at a better time.

[@FamilyHistoryHero]

Thank you Susie-would love to see your finished book! What a great gift for your children.

[@pamlindahl2874]

Linda - I have spent some time scanning family photos and slides, your suggestions are spot on about creating the folders. In addition to what you mentioned, I also made some extra folders with specific people in mind, so if they only wanted pictures of the "one specific family member" in them they could go to that specific folder. This does create some duplicate photos, but will save time later if you are sharing with multiple siblings. I scanned both the front and back of the photo so that I preserved the handwriting that was on them (labeling them the same, but with a (1) behind the original name. I then made a DVD copy for each family and gave it to the most computer literate person in the family. I do agree I don't think they know what they got. I also wanted to get my grandmother and my kids grandparents stories in their voice before they were no longer with us, so I sat down with my video camera and I would show them the photo (both front and back) and then ask them to tell me about the photo. I have this now captured on video. I have not gone back and transcribed the stories but it is in my future plans.

[@lindasattgast]

You're spot on, Pam. Sounds like you're doing a terrific job! If you need help transcribing the videos try Temi.com. It costs 10¢ a minute to have a transcription. You'll need to edit it, but it will be much easier than doing the whole thing yourself!

[@delorisblue7606]

Good idea. I started scanning family photos back in 2005 and collecting family stories (napkins, scrap paper and memory) to go with them. My method was to set up electronic folders using my immediate family member's name. Then everything that related to that person is added to their folder - marriage , children, in-laws, and any certificates or licenses, etc. My 2019 project is to complete a Family History Book - photos, stories, and anecdotes for distribution to my children, siblings and cousins. I am looking forward to your videos for more ideas. Thanks for sharing.

[@lindasattgast]

That's terrific, Deloris! Scanning AND collecting family stories both take time, so doing it bit by bit as you have time and opportunity is a great way to eventually reach your goal of a Family History Book. I love your idea of collecting anecdotes. They add the spice and personality to a family history!

[@habigscrapbooks]

Thanks for the suggestion to sort pictures before scanning. I've done a lot of scanning but not necessarily in groups or in order so they are somewhat of a mess on my computer and then I tend to rescan things which is discouraging and time-consuming!

[@lindasattgast]

I've been there, done that-with LOTS of photos-and it resulted in a mess that I'm still not completely done fixing. You just have to do a bit or reorganizing at a time and know you'll eventually get there! 🤪

[@toniweeks9809]

I have scanned and made some photo books.

[@lindasattgast]

Yay!-you're a Photo Hero!

[@rmkrn67]

I am currently taking my husband's 19 trays of slides from his late middle school to just before we were married and making books for him as the slides were beginning to degrade as some of them are about 45 years old. It took me a couple of years to scan all the slides and touch up. I just completed the first vol. of 100 pages and holds at least 5 slide trays worth (140 pictures a tray). The book isn't printed yet but it ready to go. I am working on Vol. 2. I also inherited all my Grandma's photos and she has dementia and no longer talks so I will be doing that as my next project. I don't have any stories to go with them. Just tidbits of info on the back of some photos and important documents like school reports, newspaper clippings etc... picking out the most important pictures will be a challenge, but I do see where I get the bug to photograph flowers and gardens from as she has so many of her gardens.

[@lindasattgast]

Wow! What a GREAT gift for your husband and family! Sounds like you've poured your energy and love into this project. And scanning and fixing all those slides-whew! Regarding your grandmother's photos, it's always hard when you can't get the info you need, but just using what you have and making it accessible to the family is a big plus. Are there any living relatives who might have some clues? I love that you're seeing some of yourself in your Grandma's photos. 🙂

[@teck6492]

Great video, thanks!

[@Judymac01]

I started this with my family history project with pictures of my grandparents etc. Did not think it through completely so I have a "hot Mess" of unorganized photos. Have them by approximate date etc. You have added a great structure for me to follow. Guess I will start with the ones I scanned already then add to that, in an orderly manner!! Looking forward to you next video for more ideas!

[@lindasattgast]

I didn't originally scan in an organized way and am now paying the price for that, but I figure things can only get better from here!😉

[@TheNativetexangirl]

Great ideas!

[@denisbergeron8154]

With minicat catalogue builder software you can add 36,000 photos add a comment or video to each photos , you can search and make diaporama even if is and ord software i still use it for my family album in 2023

[@FamilyHistoryHero]

Looks like it might not be the best choice for less techy folks or Mac users, but I'm glad you found a solution that works for you.

[@erdolfin]

My daughter taught me how to arrange our photos. I had them from the 1800's. I made folders for each decade and dated the photos 1948-10-06 John, Linda, Tom. Left to right. I spent 1 1/2 years scanning, dating, and naming the people in them. So many I sent by email to people who would know the date by the homes in the background or who was in them, because many of them were before my time. If I had a general idea of the date I would say 1951-00-00 Jerry, Esther, ....(for unknown person), est. date. As the photos came together I would see someone in the same shirt or hairstyle and know it was close to the same date. Sometimes I would study the glasses I was wearing and date them that way. I also had a photo program where I could fix the creases and spots, so the photos were as perfect as they could be. Now whenever someone wants to see a particular photo I can do a search for Cathy and all of hers come up and I know about the year I want and look at them, or I can look by year. I have made photo books of my Mom and each of my nephews and gave copies to the boys and their mothers. All the pictures were dated and in order. I also made books of my brother and myself. I had pictures in order by age, like all our school pics and then afterwards. Then I had them grouped by pics with parents, grandparents, and such. I have a book from 1800's to 1939 of the family and plan on making one of the 1940-50's. Of course, each decade has more photos. In the '60's the family got married and had children and I don't have the energy to do everybody's. Of course, I found more photos I have to work on.

[@erdolfin]

Also, the older book I made had stories of the individuals. My generation wouldn't recognize them but I got the stories from my mom and gave each person a page or two with stories and pics.

[@FamilyHistoryHero]

Wow! You are crushing it! I wish everyone was as diligent as you! I'm proud of you.

[@sallyrinker4019]

You ideas are great. I am motivated to try this.

[@RuthE316]

I started the process of sorting photos last year but still have a long way to go and I'm planning to get back to sorting this month. After that, I will need to scan. It's going to be a long process but I want to be held accountable so I get this done.

[@lindasattgast]

Some of us have A LOT of boxes! lol! Keep up the good work. I'm not finished with my boxes yet so shall we encourage each other to keep at it?

[@livelifelbw]

Another Great Idea love attaching the DVD in the back of the books. I have tried twice to sign up for the newsletterm but does not respond when I hit the Subscribe button fyi. LeLe fr: Cali.

[@janieg8323]

I made books for my 4 daughters using photoshop elements to add info on the photos as well as printed with yours and Jen White's help some years ago. I put them in a Creative Memories scrapbook so that I can add more information as I come across it. It goes from time before they married back to William Bradford and the Mayflower (to whom we are related). I have added pages for them since but wonder how permanent they will be in years to come. Perhaps publishing a book is a great idea, but then there is no way to add information when it becomes available. Perhaps going from their childhood forward with stores in a published book would be a good idea. I am grateful to have your guidance over the years.

[@lindasattgast]

I think your idea of publishing books about the more current history, of your family and your children, is good because you're not likely to change anything, and a printed book has a nice presentation and is so much slimmer than a photo album. For the older history that you're discovering as you research you can create PDFs instead. That way family members can have a copy now and if you update something you can give everyone an updated version. You can save PDFs at a high quality so they could even be printed at some point. By the way, it's cool that you're related to William Bradford!

[@JV-vd7cz]

Hi Linda! Would you still recommend scanning the photos to a DVD? Technology has changed so much that many do not own DVD players. How about sharing digital photos or digital books with others instead?

[@FamilyHistoryHero]

Yes-technology is changing...yet again...and as family historians we have to keep up with it! I see you already watched my more recent video called My 5 Favorite Ways To Back Up Photos which has more updated ways to share digital photos, but those aren't the only ways. Funny you should make this comment right now about digital books because I'm in the process-this very day!-of turning a book I had printed by Shutterfly a few years ago into a PDF I can share with family and upload to a genealogy site for safekeeping. I still have the digital pages I uploaded to Shutterfly so it's a quick and easy step to turn them into an easy-to-share PDF.

[@ShanaRenee1]

Good place to start!

[@nancybriechle2122]

Great idea. I didn't see the bell though but I did subscribe before. What about making digital scrapbook pages with the story as part of the page then sharing either on a Shutterfly site as an album or making a DVD of the pages rather than a physical book.

[@nellcovington4001]

When you click on the subscribe button, the bell should show up next to it. You might try clicking on it again, which might unsubscribe you, then you can subscribe again and watch for the bell, then click it. I think this might work.

[@lindasattgast]

Hi Nancy-the bell is to the right of the Subscribe button-just a little icon. Sometimes KZbin puts up other options for subscribing as soon as you subscribe and it hides the bell! Yes-digital pages shared online or on a DVD are great! Even if you make a physical book I would share the digital pages online as well, so go for it!

[@rjaquaponics9266]

DVD's are obsolete and the drives of almost obsolete so whether a fire or flood occurs... it is the same results i.e.. lost old photos are gone. And, I have thousands of old albums of misc. pictures in poor condition. And I have had a stroke so I am limited how to store/save and share these old photos! You have suggested many ideas but most cost money, buy something or pay someone etc... I can barely enter a password Twice and Google AI is helping me write right now and all available moneys goes to pay my medical bills. I used to be an field service entrepreneur and I understand a scanned photo requires a photo scanner to reproduce on printer or LCD respectfully. I have time now that my blood pressure is under control, but I don't have patients or money to invest. I'm Looking for a descent method to capture and old photos in Picasa unlicensed version, or un-pay per view as if I gave albums to give my son and his newborn. Many of your ideas are great but cost $$. I have to find the good enough method in order to pass on the old photographs to future generations.

[@FamilyHistoryHero]

My dad did something that was easy, didn't cost him any additional money, and saved old family photos from his growing up years that I enjoy to this day. He took photos (back then with a camera) of old family photos owned by other members of his large family. Today you can use a cellphone. They take surprisingly good photos of paper photos if you can hold your hand steady. If you can't ask someone else to help you. There's always a way.

[@dianemorrall2687]

I have started to sort my photos using Linda’s class, “Photo Rescue Blueprint”. I am well on the way, scanning is the next big job. I have made photo books and will continue to make them as they are a great way to highlight the photos and include the stories that go with them. My only worry is putting them on DVD. With the way technology is changing, how long will DVD’s last? I am starting to share mine in Google Photos.

[@lindasattgast]

Great to hear of your progress, Diane-Woot! It's definitely a good question about how long DVDs will last. They aren't the "best" medium for storing photos, but they work nicely for adding photos to the back inside cover of a photo book or scrapbook. You can include the individual photos from the book on the DVD as well as photos on the same topic that didn't get included. However, there are other ways to make those photos available to others and still reference them in the book. I plan to do an episode on that at some point! You also mentioned Google Photos and that's a great option, too!

[@dianemorrall2687]

Linda Sattgast I look forward to hearing what you suggest. I have done your Photo Rescue class...is this site going to be building on this? My computer now doesn’t even have a disc drive anymore so I can’t even get the photos on to a DVD.

[@lindasattgast]

@@dianemorrall2687 Yes, right now the Photo Rescue Blueprint class will be the main focus, but I plan to add more learning opportunities as I have time. Regarding DVDs, my computer doesn't have a drive either so I've had to use an external drive I can hook up to my computer.

[@diane3747]

@@lindasattgast Oh I didn't think of doing that! Thank-you.

[@reneed9374]

I am so excited to follow you on this journey. My photos are 'somewhat' organized but I am sure you have many tips and tricks that will make this process easier and help me focus on getting it done. One question: you always mention saving to DVD. Do you think that is better than Scan disks or Pin drives in terms of devices being compatible in the future?

[@lindasattgast]

Thanks, Renee-I look forward to having you with me on the journey! There are several ways to save photos and DVDs aren't the "best" in my opinion because they aren't as long lasting, but I do think they work great with something else-like keeping the original photos with a book about the same photos. Other methods I use are external hard drives (I try to keep a copy in two places) and online in the "cloud."

[@jessietrotter6156]

Linda, I really like the idea of the photobook and then putting the CD taped to the inside...BRILLIANT! BTW, from the title of this video I thought you might mention resolution. Could you put a bit of advice here so others can benefit too? I usually use 300 dpi unless the photo is very small. If it's small I scan it at a much higher resolution so I can blow it up a bit in PSE. Is that okay? Thanks in advance for your advice! Jessie (Trotter)

[@lindasattgast]

Hi Jessie-yes, resolution is a BIG issue, but it often takes more explaining-might do that on a separate video. 😃 300 ppi is great if you want to keep the photo at the same size it is now. My personal preference is that I scan average sized photos (like 3x5 and 4x6) at 600 ppi to give me wiggle room to enlarge or crop them. Smaller photos get a higher ppi depending on how small they are, and I scan larger photos at 300 ppi. But 300 ppi will serve you well for most photos for sure!

[@jessietrotter6156]

@@lindasattgast Thank you!

[@cynthiadennis6897]

This is a much needed class. But, what do you do and is it worth it to try and go back to all the photos already downloaded to the computer without any organizational thought like you show in this video. I think I can do this on the most recent photos within the last year or so because the events will still be memorable. I'm looking forward to learning. Thanks Linda

[@lindasattgast]

Hi Cynthia-each person will take the route that works best for them. If you do better starting with today's photos and working backwards, that's also important! Right now my strategy is to utilize family members still living who remember past events while they're still with us, and when I'm done gathering family information there I'll go on to something else of interest to me. The key is to do something! Anything you can do to put the stories with the photos makes you a Photo Hero!!!

[@kathiebrzoska377]

Hi Linda, do you know the difference between the Plustek OpticPro A320E vs the A320L? I see that the E has an optical resolution of 800 dpi and the L has a 1600 dpi. If my objective is just to scan the 12x12 pages to put together into a 12x12 book do you think the cheaper A320E is adequate? Its $549 vs $999 which is a big difference.

[@CharlieSattgast]

Hi Kathie, these are both OpticPro models, and 800 vs. 1600 DPI is the distinction between the two models. If you are mainly using it for 12 x 12 pages the 800 resolution should be fine and you can enjoy the $400 savings.

[@tshockley67]

Linda, do you have any suggestions on how to remove photos from those sticky photo albums. Some of my photos are stuck tight, and if I try to pull them they want to tear :(

[@FamilyHistoryHero]

@Tammy Shockley I hear you-it can be hard to get photos out of those old sticky photo albums, but it's important to do so because those pages will cause the photos to deteriorate. I would scan the photos first for sure. You might want to watch my video on scanning photos in the photo album here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/nYfPiaGLiax5q9U Once you have them safely scanned remove the easiest photos first and then remove the tough ones. I use a small to medium knife with a sharp edge to carefully pry up a single corner or small edge. Then try using a butter knife with a blunter edge to slowly and carefully pry the photo away from the background keeping the angle of the knife slightly down as you work on the photo. If the image is too brittle you may have to cut out the photo with the page still attached if there's nothing on the other side. If it looks like the photo will just get damaged if you try to remove it get the photos scanned and then you may have to save the entire page. If you have a good scan and the photos aren't super meaningful or special to you, the page can be thrown away. I don't personally keep every photo I scan but that is your call. Hope that helps!

[@negocios0rsk]

@@FamilyHistoryHero For photos stuck on “magnetic” pages... I gently use a hair dryer to warm the picture and underlying tack. I tried this first on lower importance pictures while monitoring temperature with a inexpensive infrared thermometer. I learned that 90 DegF was plenty warm to loosen the picture. I did not detect any photo deterioration. Heck, 90 degrees is ambient in many parts of the US. After a few pages, I just got a “feel” and stopped monitoring temperature. Some of my parents’ album had a tough thick glue that seemed like hobby glue stick melt! For those, I scanned the whole page. Eventually, I’ll use one of many available technologies to separate each photo... like Photoshop. My priority is to scan everything, first. Then, go back and refine as necessary. Love your channel! [heart icon here]

[@FamilyHistoryHero]

@@negocios0rsk Thanks for sharing your method, George! That sounds like a good option to try-starting out, as you said, on a less important photo. If I needed to do this I would quickly scan the entire page (would take seconds) and then work on removing the photos. That way you're covered either way! Thankfully, my photos came off pretty easily with some gentle encouragement of a thin knife behind the back. I've heard others have use dental floss. But when those methods don't work I would definitely try the hair dryer next. Who thought, back in the day, that those "easy magnetic albums" would be so lethal?!

[@elizabethpatterson7465]

@@FamilyHistoryHero Have you ever tried using Un-Du? It works GREAT for removing even antique photos from those old magnetic albums! And it does not harm them (I am speaking from experience). Just found your channel tonight and have started watching your videos in order (I like to read the comments, too). 🙂

[@krishbalajii1501]

Wow

[@krisburrill1176]

How do I go back and find a reply to one of my comments? Not all of your videos come up when I enter You Tube....June 17, 2019

[@FamilyHistoryHero]

@ Kris Burrill This may not be the best way but it's what I would do. If you click on the imaphotohero round image under the left lower corner of the video just under the view count, it'll take you to my channel and then if you remember which video it was you can check to see if there's an answer. I'm also going to put @Kris Burrill at the beginning of this comment and see if KZbin notifies you that I've answered you. Let me know what happens!

[@krisburrill1176]

@@FamilyHistoryHero almost a month, and I finally found this, in my google account, yes U-tube did notify my google account, but that is one account I rarely look at, my bad, my fault. I need to do that more, but thank you for your replies - I will be taking your class some day soon....

[@FamilyHistoryHero]

@@krisburrill1176 Ahhh, yes! Google tends to decide for you where things should go. Thanks for letting me know!

[@sharrondubose654]

Do you scan the photos yourself or use a service to do it for you?

[@lindasattgast]

Hi Sharron-I do both! I've had a scanning service scan many of my photos and most of my slides, but that was before I realized it was important to organize really well before scanning. Now I do most of my scanning myself but haven't ruled out the use of a service. (They actually do a terrific job on most photos!) I would just make sure to organize better before having them scanned. 😬

[@kc123photo123]

Who has a DVD drive anymore? I try share them online instead.

[@FamilyHistoryHero]

Yes, DVDs are less common these days, but I still run into people intent on passing a huge collection of photos on DVDs, or a thumb drive, or even in the cloud, but have neglected telling the stories that give the photos meaning.