In today’s digital age, sharing memories with friends, family and even strangers has become second nature. Our phones serve as virtual family albums, holding hundreds of cherished photos. Yes there’s unmatched value in the experience of tangible prints.
Turning digital files into prints isn’t as simple as wishing it so. It takes time to sort through photos, choose what to print, decide on sizes, and pick how to display them—framed, matted, on canvas, or in albums. While it can feel daunting, the effort is well worth it.
The PRACTICAL Importance of Printing Family Photos.
JPEGs degrade over time.
You may be surprised to learn that every time you open, edit or save your JPEG (.jpg) digital files, which is one of the more common formats, you are losing bits of information which results in slowly degrading the quality of the images.
You can see the loss of quality of a JPEG here where a photographer opened and saved a photo 99 times in order to demonstrate the level of degradation that occurs.
By printing your favourite photos, you will ensure they do not become pixelated allowing you to share high quality images with your loved ones over and over again.
Technology isn’t always reliable.
These days, younger generations are having their childhood photographed much more than any other previous generation. We are trusting our digital technology (e.g. phones, computers, cloud storage, etc…) to be our memory keeper and preserve these moments for us and for our children.
But technology can fail or get stolen. I don’t want to be melodramatic but often our visual keepsakes of childhood are lost forever.
Having prints can give you peace of mind knowing that when your technology fails, because someday it inevitably will, your visual keepsakes are safe and sound in print form.
Prints are more accessible.
Kids often love to grab parent’s phones to scroll through to find photos of themselves. But you are busy and your phone isn’t always at your child’s beck and call.
By having prints or albums, you have images that are always accessible if the young ones want to see photos of themselves. Plus you have the added bonus of not having to worry about the images being accidentally deleted! (Fun fact: The prints I offer are all fingerprint resistant so you don’t have to worry about those grubby fingers getting the prints messy).
Your photos (and you) deserve better.
You’ve invested time, energy and, if you booked a professional family photographer, money into getting photos of your family taken. When I work with families, the intention is not for the images to only live in the digital world but also that your favourite photos are displayed proudly in your physical world.
This is so important not only because having prints displayed around our homes are beautiful to look at, but by seeing images of our family members and different memories we have created, they can actually change us in small but meaningful ways.
The EMOTIONAL Importance of Printing Family Photos.
How many photos that are stored on your phone could you describe in detail? What people are wearing, what emotions they are showing, how people are interacting.
Now think about your home.
How many displayed photos around your home could you describe? Are you able to describe more of them in more detail compared to the ones on your phone?
These are the images you see every day, and they not only are a great addition to your walls and spaces but also create lasting memories, offering a positive boost to you and your children’s mental well-being.
It is good for children’s self-esteem.
Displaying family photos at home has a powerful, positive impact on children. Cathy Lander-Goldberg, a licensed clinical social worker, notes that prominently featured photos show children that their family and shared memories are valued. Similarly, David Krauss, co-author of Photo Therapy and Mental Health, emphasizes the importance of both being photographed with love and success and seeing those images regularly.
These visual reminders boost self-esteem, create a sense of belonging, and connect children to their family story. Printed images transform your home into a personalized space, celebrating the moments and people who matter most, while reassuring kids they are loved and supported.
Prints create a deeper connection.
Bringing a photo into the physical world changes how you engage with it. Instead of scrolling past them in a blur, you get a chance to pause and linger, holding an image touched by family and friends—perhaps even revisited years later. It’s a humbling and beautiful experience.
While digital images have their value and place in our daily lives, I believe that prints have a unique and important value that digital files cannot be replicated. By bringing prints into the home, we add a level of connection, emotion and better sense of well-being within our families.