Everyone gets a bit snap-happy now and again, and more than a few of us have digital folders stuffed with photos we love but have no real way of really appreciating, or even just navigating properly. There are several ways to make sure you’re storing your digital photos in the most efficient way, including:

• Not storing duplicates: Chances are your device has created a duplicate of an image without you knowing, so make sure you get rid of them.
• Not storing unnecessary images: If you’ve just bulk-imported your latest travel photography shoot from your camera to your PC, chances are not every one of them is a prize. If you don’t need it, delete it.
• Getting the crucial ones printed: Those key photos that fill you with happy memories are the ones that you really ought to print. If your photos are precious, we’ll give you the perfect way to treasure them.

Managing your photos on a Mac

The Apple MacBook is the top choice for designers and photographers for a reason: it has great display and organisation solutions for all your creative files. Your Apple devices will sort your photos in the following ways:

• Moments: Photos with similar time stamps and locations that were taken closely together
• Collections: Moments taken at precisely the same place
• Years: A mosaic of photos per year
• Memories: This is Mac’s way of letting you re-experience your memories, as captured in photos, with people, places and the shots you took all documented to create a digital keepsake
• Shared: Photos in your iCloud storage, for sharing and commenting with friends and family
• Albums: Your Apple device will store your photo albums, letting your store by date and title, or even view them based on where they were taken in the world
• Search for photos: Easily find your photos by searching for the person in them (so long as you’ve added their photo and name to your People album), the place they were taken, or even the specific things you’ve captured in them

Managing your photos on a PC

PCs remain the most popular choice of computer for good reason. Here are a few ways to keep your photos neatly organised:

• Name folders in a way that makes sense: Your photo collection probably spans years, which makes folders named by date the most effective for organisation. Have main folders for each year e.g., “2017” and then subfolders for each month, “01-2017”.
• Download a photo-organising tool: From software that deletes duplicates to one which removes photo meta-descriptions, the PC wins when it comes to accessing handy programmes
• Host your images online: Cloud storage serves as excellent backup for photos and keeps your photo folder from becoming stuffed up.
• Invest in an external hard drive: PC external hard drives can be very affordable and offer huge amounts of storage so you can easily and quickly access your photos, and if you need to take them elsewhere, just unplug it and away you go!

Managing your photos with apps

Your mobile devices can manage your photos from a dedicated app. With a photo printing app, you can import photos from your social media accounts and print from your iPad, iPhone or Android device. It’s an easier way of organising your photos.

Physical photos

So you have your prints, now what? Photos don’t need anything extra to be a gorgeous addition to any room, sometimes all you need is a bit of string or just a handful of pins for a retro wall collage unlike anyone else’s. Get some retro prints and start outfitting your room, exactly the way you want!

Now is the time to stop worrying about leaving those precious photos sad and forgotten in your digital folders – get organised and make the most of them!