I’ve been thinking lately about what to do with my photos. I have a huge number of photos that I’ve never shown to anyone or posted anywhere, they’re just sitting there in forgotten files on flickr or on my phone.
Speaking of posting – it’s not that I necessarily need to post photos for likes and clicks, but in any case there are hardly any places left to do so that I like. Facebook is mostly not a photo-sharing site for me, but a place I use for other things. Instagram started to decline with the ads and the algorithm thinking it knows what I want to see rather than showing the feed chronologically, and the final nail in the coffin for me was the recent update where they added shops to their main menu. So I’m rather off Instagram other than for posts about books I read. I mentioned in a previous post that I’ve been dipping my toe into flickr again. I’m not wildly enthusiastic. In particular, the groups are much the same as they used to be when I stopped posting last time (with a few notable exceptions) – post one, comment on one, or a gazillion, or just dump your photos in the pool and ignore the others.
Am I bitter and grumpy and a bit off social media in general? Probably. Maybe I should get my own website, but that seems like so much work.
And then I also have the desire to make something physical out of my photos. I’ve printed and framed some, but would love to get a few enlarged and framed professionally, only that seems both terrifying and terribly pretentious – how do I know which of my own photos is good enough to spend that much money on? I have a lot of Polaroids in boxes, some of which ought to be displayed, but how, when I’m not crafty?
I suppose I’ll have to keep thinking about this, and any tips you have would be more than welcome. In the meantime I’ll be treasuring all these photos as personal memories – the value of which should not be discounted. Lately I’ve been browsing photos from past summers, and I’ll leave a few of them here in case you too long for sunlight and warmth.
All the best, Jenny G.
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Hi Jenny, This idea isn’t especially novel, but it’s easy and affordable. For years I sewed, making quilts, and I had a wooden ruler rack to hold the various clear plastic rulers I used to measure and cut fabric. I’ve long since given up quilting, but I discovered that the ruler rack is perfect for displaying polaroid photos! I can change them out easily and the rack has a very clean and minimalist vibe. Here’s the link –
https://www.amazon.com/Omnigrid-WRR-Wooden-Ruler-Rack/dp/B001IKGEWY
Ooo, that’s brilliant actually – looks perfect for Polaroids. Thanks!
Hi Jenny, I’ve encountered the same problem – for years I’ve just posted my favourite pics on my photo blog, then I decided to have some printed for my walls. Then I decided to just print small ones myself and display them on a picture ledge – https://www.ikea.com/gb/en/cat/picture-ledges-16305/
Only last month – after procrastinating for 2 years – have I had a larger photo printed for my wall. It took so long because I, too, was suddenly thinking whether any of them were really good enough to print.
I had a 50 x 70 cm one printed at Saal Digital (saal-digital.com), my favourite for photo book printing, the prices are really good as is the quality. Also they have nice discounts. Add an Ikea frame… all set. Photo books are another great option, they don’t take up much space and it’s fun to create them.
I love the idea of using a picture ledge! Makes it a much smaller commitment to display small ones that can be changed out from time to time 🙂
Jenny, Have you thought of making some accordian books? They are nice keepsakes and another way of displaying your photos on a table or shelf. I think they are easy to make through some photo labs, you just drag and drop your photos into a template. You could also scan and add your Polaroids. One lab that does this sort of thing is MPIX https://www.mpix.com/. I’m sure there are many others. Or, if you happen to be crafty, there are many online tutorials for making your own. Just a thought!
Thank you, those look lovely! Will have to look into how pricey it will be to ship to Norway 🙂
I hear you!
And thank you other commenters for your suggestions!
Yesss, such a lovely community we have here <3
I’m right there with you about Instagram. I dropped out of Facebook and Flickr. I want to see the people I follow, not the ones they think I should see. And what is with all the ads?
Have you seen the photo books you can order from printing companies? They would make a great gift or just for yourself. I don’t think they are terribly expensive
Exactly – I do so wish they could quit with the algorithms 🙂