If I had never organized a single photo, here are the things I would get to make that job as easy as possible.
1. A computer.
It is possible to stay photo organized without a computer, but if you want to make it an easier task, you really do need a computer.
I’m going to be watching for Black Friday sales. I’ll definitely share what I find for great computer deals, but if you want to grab one today here are good options:
2. An external hard drive.
The next thing I would get is an external hard drive. I never suggest keeping all of your digital photos on your computer itself. An external hard dive allows you to keep your photos (both your phone pictures and scanned photos) all in one place without filling up your actual computer.
3. A cloud back up.
You want to make sure that all of your pictures are saved in more than one place. That external hard drive is a great first option, but you will also want them to all be saved in a cloud. I use Amazon Photos. It is set to automatically back up my phone pictures, but then I can also add all of my scanned digital pictures from my computer.
4. A scanner.
If you have any old print photos, you will also want to have a scanner so that you can turn all of those photos into digital files. I always recommend the Epson FastFoto. This scanner makes the work easy and actually fun! It will scan dozens of photos in minutes. It is the best solution for most situations, however if you have photos that are printed on board or glued into an album, you will need a flatbed scanner. I’ll include a link to both the Epson FastFoto and the flatbed scanner that I use.
I love this scanner because it has a photo feeder. It allows you to scan stacks of photographs at one a time. I have found it to be the quickest and easiest way to get digital copies of old photographs and to get photo organized!
And for slides, I suggest this one:
6. Print photo storage.
To keep those old print photos neat, I suggest a photo album OR once those pictures are scanned keeping them in a box system is also a good option.
Start a running photo album that you add prints to every month!
Be sure and check out my Amazon Storefront for all of my favorite products, from pictures frames to personalized photo gifts (and a few other things I just love!) I’ve listed and reviewed many things that you might just find helpful too!!