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Experts will tell you that inserting any foreign data storage or transfer medium into your computer without checking for viruses first is not a wise move. Yet, most of us are quite happy to take a memory card out of our digital camera and insert it straight into our computer, or a do-it-yourself print machine in a supermarket, chemist or photo shop, in order to print off our pictures.

But a memory card is a medium upon which instructions can be written to by a computer. A digital camera is merely a sophisticated, modified computer and the cards used in it can also be inserted directly into some computers. Therefore, it is theoretically possible for someone to infect a photo memory card in their computer then insert it into a printing machine passing on the virus to all subsequent memory cards that use that machine.

Thankfully, however, even through most experts acknowledge that in theory it is perfectly feasible to infect memory cards in this way, they insist that the risk is minimal. They are keen to point out that the perpetrators will gain nothing financially from such an action making it extremely unlikely to occur. In fact most commentators put the chances of your memory disc being infected in this way at around 1 in 10,000.

But even if that miniscule risk is too much for you to contemplate there are alternatives to printing off photos at public booths. You can print at home, either on your regular printer or by using a dedicated machine that produces standard 6 x 4 prints. Currently, this is probably the most expensive way of printing digital photos. It is undoubtedly convenient, but the unit cost with a home printer can be as much as 50 pence per print. Compare that to the cost of printing photos at do-it-yourself booths, and it can be up to ten times more expensive! Uploading photos via the web to secure storage sites is also a way to get cheaper photo prints. Plus an added benefit of using that method is that it is also a convenient way to share your photos with others. By choosing to place your prints in public folders, you simply send the link to the pictures to your friends, rather than cluttering up yours and their inbox with space-hogging photographs.

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Next you will want to sort your pictures out chronologically and by subject or person. You might want to work from the present and go back, since recent events are much easier to remember.

If you want to scrap them, start from the present also and use archivally safe materials. All materials should be acid-free with a ph level of 7 or above. Acids might cause discoloring of paper, become inflexible, and eventually become brittle as time passes. It can also destroy photographs or other memorabilia it comes into contact with. Your memories are precious to you and you’ll want preserve them properly to pass them on from generation to generation.

If you’re just starting out with scrapbooking, you will also need an acid-free adhesive, a paper cutter, acid-free pen, and of course acid-free cardstock and patterned paper.

Journaling is very important in a scrapbook. It tells the “story” of the photos. Remember that your journaling should include the who, what, when, where and why or else it is really of no interest to the generations that follow if they don’t know who the person is or the story behind it.

The photos that you have not scrapped yet should be placed in an acid free photo box and properly labeled. If you have as many photos as I do, then you will know why this is very important to sort and label everything. It saves a lot of time, confusion and chaos.

Make sure you only put your favorite or best photos in a scrapbook. If they are blurry or too dark or light, it’s not likely to look any better in a scrapbook. Although you can crop or cut your own photos improving them to a certain extent. The person or object may appear larger or you might want to just cut off objects or people that do not belong in the picture.

When using cardstock or patterned paper, make sure that you color coordinate the paper with the picture and mat the photo. Matting a photo means adhering the photo to a piece of cardstock slightly larger than the photo creating a small frame around it. This emphasizes the photo and makes it stand out.

There are various embellishments you can use to give your layout an added touch, such as, eyelets, buttons, ribbons, metal letters or other objects, clips, brads, snaps, hinges, stickers, diecuts, embossing, vellum, etc. This list is very long! Have fun getting started!

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Unfortunately, many things that are made for use with pictures are the very things that hasten their disintegration. Many picture boards, cardboards, and most glue contain an acid that slowly eats away at the pictures. Even the chemicals that are used to develop the film from negatives are to blame for the eventual demise of these photographs.

Photo Preservation: Safe Handling

The most common problem that causes photographs to be lost is one that is simple to remedy: Lack of Identification. Who in the next generation would keep pictures around full of people and places they know nothing about? The first tip for preserving pictures is when you do write identifiers on them, use India ink or a carbon ink pen. Many other regular pens contain chemicals that will eventually ruin the photo. Dont use oily erasers, and never write on the front of the picture, with the exception of special paints designed to do so. Most people are commonly aware that sunlight will ruin photographs, so be careful where you place your pictures in their frames.

Never use rubber cement to adhere photographs to anything. The acids in rubber cement will ruin the picture quickly, cracking the emulsion and paper backing. Rubber cement contains sulfur, which reacts with the silver that sentences pictures to certain death! Do not use the photo albums that have the self-adhesive pages covered by clear plastic film. The glue, again here too, is acidic. Never display your pictures in vinyl sleeves. The sleeves are made out of a certain type of plastic that will cause both color and black and white photos to fade.

Photo Preservation: Safe Storage:

Art supply stores and photo shops are excellent places to find photo-friendly supplies for your pictures. Many times, pictures that you want to keep in storage are done so by putting them in any old bag or a box. There are boxes specifically designed for storage, but be careful; to keep photographs safe for many years, look for containers that are labeled as safe for archival storage.

Also, keeping them in metal filing cabinets is ok too, or at least better than in a cardboard or wooden box. Once you have specifically-designed boxes for the pictures, be sure to keep them in a cool, relatively dry place. Finally, never keep your photos, no matter what kind of storage box they are in, on floors or in damp basements.

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