Why Physical Prints are Preferable to Digital
In 2015, a nationwide
study by the Professional Photographers of America (PPA) revealed that
67% of consumers keep their photos strictly online or on their cell phone. So,
while the prevalence of cell phones may be allowing us to take more pictures
than ever before, those very images are at risk of being lost forever the next
time our cell phone breaks or you forget to back up to the cloud. Think for a
moment about your parents or grandparents. Much of what you know about them was
likely learned through photographs displayed on walls or in albums, right? Now
think of our future generations. If the current trend continues, it’s likely
that they will know much less about us because they won’t have access to photos
of us. Ironically, as the most photographed generation ever, we are unlikely to
have physical photos to share with our children and grandchildren!
With technology changing at a breakneck pace, our current
methods of storing and cataloging photos are likely to be obsolete sooner
rather than later. Memories that you’re capturing today probably will be gone
within just a few years. Social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram
continuously change their business model and aren’t even guaranteed to be
around 5 or 10 years down the road (remember MySpace?), so we are foolish to count
on them as long-term free storage for our memories. Most of us have old phones
that no longer work, unlabeled (and maybe unusable) floppy discs or CD’s, or SD
cards sitting in a desk drawer someplace, but have no idea when we’ll have the
time or inclination to organize and create physical prints.
At a 2015 conference in San Jose, CA, Google’s Vice President Vint Cerf warned that it is time to
start preserving our digital memories if we want them to last. Mr. Cerf stated
that our current generation will be much like the Dark Ages, with little known
about us, remarking that “if we don’t find a solution, our 21st Century will be
an information black hole. Future generations will wonder about us, but they
will have very great difficulty knowing about us”. Mr. Cerf further warned that
internet users would be wise to print out important photographs and documents
to ensure that they’ll be accessible in the future.
To preserve your precious memories, PPA makes the following
recommendations:
1 - Make sure to get professional, quality prints of
important photos, like weddings, graduations, and other special
occasions.
2- Hire a professional photographer and let them print
archival quality photos for you to display on walls, desks, and shelves.
3 - Take your digital camera on vacation and to important
events and purchase albums and frames to showcase your work.
Visit Songs of Life Photography online and
let us help you preserve the beautiful moments of your life!
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