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We’ve talked before about digital clutter, but it’s a never-ending issue that will only continue to grow with time. As it is, we all have the old laptops or computers that are basically “albums” of digital photos we haven’t seen in years—it’s such a shame! Our digital photos should be ready at our fingertips to use for the next #tbt or Facebook post opportunity.
So if you’re ready to tidy up your digital clutter, let’s start with what we know the best: digital photos and pictures.
The following steps will take you through how to organize, catalog, and maintain your digital images. It may take a bit of effort at first, but once you put a system into place, the upkeep will be a breeze.
Have you ever had a photograph in a frame for so long that it has become stuck to the glass and can’t figure out how to get it off?
I recently ran into this problem after my family had some new family portraits done. My wife decided it was time to update some of the picture frames around the house and found one photo, despite being only in the frame for a year, had become stuck to the glass.
I’ve collected the three most common DIY tips from around the web that I found while I searched for my own solution to this problem. Just like most everything in life, everyone has an opinion and what worked for me, may not work for you and only do what you are comfortable doing with your photos. These may or may not work for you so proceed with caution.
First and foremost, before you do ANYTHING, make a digital backup of the image. If something goes wrong while you are trying to peel the photo off, the picture could be ruined. You will either need to locate the negative to make a new one or, even worse, if there is no negative, the picture will be lost forever.
There are two methods to create a digital backup. The first is to use a flatbed scanner and scan the image a high resolution (at minimum 600dpi). While this is the easier of the two options, depending on the scanner, it may not scan as sharp since the photo is not directly on the scanner glass, instead, it has a second piece of glass between the scanner and the photo. This results in the photo not being on the exact focal point for the scanner and can lead to a soft image instead of a nice crisp image.
The second method is to use an SLR camera to take a picture of the image. This is a bit more difficult since it is nearly impossible to take a photo exactly perpendicular to the picture so the slight angle will create a small bit of distortion. If you have Photoshop, this is an easy fix, however. The second challenge is making sure there is nothing reflecting off the glass while maintaining enough light to get a good picture. I did this outside, in the afternoon with the sun to my left. With me looking straight down, the sun reflected at an angle onto the glass with an exit reflection to the side. This is definitely more work to use this method, but if you have thick glass, the camera can focus on the print instead of the glass, unlike the scanner.
Of course, there is a third option. Take the photo to your local scanning company and have them scan the photo for you. We have seen this in the past and had success creating a suitable digital backup of the photo before the customer tries to remove the photo. You may not be local to ScanMyPhotos but we are international and digitize as much as 300,000 photos each day.
Lastly, before you start trying to remove the photo from the glass, review the digital file and make sure that it is to your liking. Don’t assume that it came out or rely on looking at the thumbnail image. Zoom in 100% and review the entire image to look for flaws or issues such as reflections and clarity of the image.
There are a number of suggestions out there but I will first dive into what worked for us. HEAT – Using the low heat setting, take a hair dryer and blow warm air about 4-5 inches away from the back of the print. This heats up the area between the photo and glass and loosened the hold on the photo. We were able to pull back a small corner and then slowly continue the process until the whole photo was removed unharmed but a little curled (nothing putting it under a heavy book for a while won’t cure).
These are unconfirmed methods but are the two other main methods I found online for removing that photo stuck to the glass.
WATER – Soak the photo and glass in water, preferably warm water for a color photo. Mike, a Senior Member of the RetouchPro.com forum writes,
“Done a bunch of this!I have found that just plain water is a good place to start with any photograph that says 1930 or newer. Depending on what the customer says and what I see, we usually make a copy of the photo before we start the process, just in case we run into something bad. Soaking in plain water will work pretty well if the print has not been on the glass for a long time. Sometimes we get photos in where they have been on the glass for what appears to be decades or something and those can be a real problem. For those, I add PhotoFlo to the water. Photoflo is a thick liquid you add to the final rinse when developing film. It breaks the waters surface tension on the film and seems to help the water penetrate into the paper emulsion that is stuck to the glass. One would not want to use a hair dryer on one of these. It seems that getting a print wet, then having it stick to the glass and then dry is about the worst thing that can happen. These are much easier to do if the prints are still damp when you get them. Very often I let the print soak for hours and sometimes days. However, you really have to watch them so they just don’t dissolve on you (remember the copy made before you started?)”
COLD – Freeze the photo and glass. Take photo and glass out of the frame and wrap in some newspaper to protect it from damage. Place it in Freezer for an hour, wearing rubber gloves to protect hands in event glass breaks, remove photo and glass from the freezer, and open the paper, gently pull up on the corner of the photo, it should come away from the glass. If it still doesn’t, use a credit card and insert card between glass and photo and pry, gently, very gently, to separate the two. Moisture got between glass and photo that’s why they are stuck together so freezing it makes is no longer sticky.
One thing to note is that every situation is different and what works for one person on one photo may not work for another. Personally, I would be comfortable using the hair dryer or the freezer method for amateurs and leave the wet process for the professionals that have experience in a dark room.
PREVENT FUTURE OCCURRENCES
One last tip to prevent future occurrences, make sure valued photographs are placed in frames with an archival quality photo-safe mat. This adds necessary space between the glass and the object, and a buffer for humidity, which caused it to stick to the glass in the first place. This article from the American Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works is a great reference on how frame documents and other works of art.
Did you know? More than 40 billion photos and videos have been shared on the Instagram platform since it was launched in 2010!
Whether you’re already a fan of the photo-sharing platform or want to get started, here are some ideas for how to take a GREAT photo for Instagram and make your account really stand out.
Plan your picture! Just like taking any other photograph, getting a good picture for Instagram requires planning. Of course, there are happy accidents, but you should put yourself in a position to get a good photo. Scout your location, try different angles and plan around the light.
Take LOTS of photos. Getting that perfect photo for Instagram doesn’t take just one shot. It may take 10 to 20 photographs of a single subject before you are able to get the right one.
How to take pictures for uploading to Instagram from ScanMYPhotos
Shoot your photos outside of the app. Use the native camera app on your iPhone or Android, rather than the Instagram camera, when shooting photos for the social network. Not only will it help you follow our previous tip of taking multiple shots of the same scene, but it offers more control than the Instagram camera.
Take your time with your edits. Instagram has a lot of sophisticated editing tools included in the app. There are lots of ways to tweak your picture and make it worthy of internet viewing! You can rotate your photo, zoom in and out, straighten, and adjust the horizontal and vertical perspective. There’s a tool to adjust the contrast and saturation of your photos to make images more vibrant, and another to change the warmth. And, of course, there are lots of filters. This barely scrapes the surface of Instagram’s editing abilities — you can read more here!
Don’t forget the #hashtags. Once you’ve uploaded your photo, you’ll want to use hashtags to make sure they get seen across the internet. Hashtags can be incredibly effective, but only when they are used correctly. It’s important to be specific and creative, and please don’t use a half dozen broad, random hashtags (#blessed, #love, #photo, #togs, #bestagram, #instamasters, #instagood). As one photographer says:
“Hashtags are part of what makes Instagram such a creative and fun place to be. But if your strategy is to get people to see your photo and like it, then you are doing it wrong. If you are going to use a hashtag use one, and use the right one. Find a cool one or start your own.”
Have you been putting off your spring cleaning? Here are some tips.
The best way to tackle spring cleaning is to start on a project that you know will be fun – what kind of organizing or “cleaning” is more fun than re-living all your photo memories by digitizing, organizing and sharing your photos?
Picture it: all your photo memories easily accessible, available anywhere you are, and effortlessly shareable. Yes, it’s possible — plus it’s easier and more affordable than you might think. The first step is to pull out those old photos, slides, and negatives and digitize them. Once converted, copy them to your computer, store the DVDs in a fireproof safe and use Facebook to upload the photos as “off-site” storage. ScanMyPhotos expertly converts that old media to a digital format saving your countless hours of sitting in front of a scanner freeing you up to work on other pressing spring cleaning projects.
If you or someone you know may need assistance with managing digital clutter, consider hiring a professional associated with the National Association of Professional Organizers (NAPO). If you or someone you know may need help with digital hoarding, check out tips for “Managing Digital Clutter“.
With Mother’s Day right around the corner, Mom would surely be happy to get help organizing her photos so give her the gift that lasts a lifetime. Most importantly, have fun with this year’s spring cleaning!
If you’re a pet owner, chances are that you take lots and lots of photos of your furry family member.
But, as all pet owners know, these creatures are unpredictable, which can make it hard to get the best picture. So here are some suggestions to help you get the best possible photo of your pet!
Go where the light is best. Try not to take photos of your pet in dark rooms or when it’s very overcast outside. Bright, diffused, light is the best for a flattering pet portrait. So before you take out your camera, look at your subject’s environment and figure out where the best light is — then move to that spot.
Try to get their personality. Ask yourself what is unique about your pet and try to capture their one-of-a-kind character on camera. Take pictures of your pet when they are in their preferred spot, or when they’re enjoying a much-loved pastime — whether that’s snoozing on the couch or catching a ball.
Keep things quiet. There is no quicker way to confuse a dog or startle a cat than to repeat loud commands at them. Try communicating with animals nonverbally: Use hand signals, or point to invite them where you’d like them to sit. If you do need to say ’sit’, say it quietly and calmly, and only once or twice.
We’ve talked before about digital clutter, but it’s a never-ending issue that will only continue to grow with time. As it is, we all have the old laptops or computers that are basically “albums” of digital photos we haven’t seen in years—it’s such a shame! Our digital photos should be ready at our fingertips to use for the next #tbt or Facebook post opportunity.
I recently ran into this problem after my family had some new family portraits done. My wife decided it was time to update some of the picture frames around the house and found one photo, despite being only in the frame for a year, had become stuck to the glass.
Lastly, before you start trying to remove the photo from the glass, review the digital file and make sure that it is to your liking. Don’t assume that it came out or rely on looking at the thumbnail image. Zoom in 100% and review the entire image to look for flaws or issues such as reflections and clarity of the image.
These are unconfirmed methods but are the two other main methods I found online for removing that photo stuck to the glass.
The best way to tackle spring cleaning is to start on a project that you know will be fun – what kind of organizing or “cleaning” is more fun than re-living all your photo memories by digitizing, organizing and sharing your photos?
furry family member.
Go where the light is best. 
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