Big impact from little portraits

The photos above are of my two sons taken in our back yard and of my youngest son's feet. To make sure we would enjoy the images, we put them on the windowsill over the kitchen sink. It's hard not to smile when we see them. Below is a double-frame holding two photos of my sons at my office (which is sparse but getting there). These are examples of how small photos can provide a huge impact on their own and shows you don't need a 16x20 print to stun. The frames on the windowsill are 5x5.


If you are the parent of awesome, beautiful children, you are faced with a dilemma, which is: "How come they are so much better-looking than I am?" If you photograph them regularly, your challenge becomes, "What on earth do I do with all these photos of my awesome, adorable kids?"

In the digital age, what often happens is they are downloaded from a camera onto a computer. That's where they stay. The industrious among us might burn them to a bunch of CDs. We might print out a few of our favorites, but by golly good luck finding them in the great Pile Of Stuff on the end of the kitchen counter.

Before digital photography, we'd have our film developed and printed and either stick the envelopes full of photos into an old shoebox or put them in an album. Ones we were most proud of might make the refrigerator, maybe a frame, maybe get mailed to grandma.

There's a happy medium between the two. If the photos are important, they should not be kept on a computer hard drive or on CDs (or DVDs), because technology is prone to fail and discs are bound to get scratched. Quality prints framed and kept in a cool, dry and place where the sun doesn't shine can last a lifetime or longer.

This takes some time (but isn't it worth it?), but I suggest this approach:

• After taking photos, especially of a trip or special event, download the photos after a few days. Look at each image and delete the ones that aren't spectacular or don't mean anything to you. With what you have left, determine your course: create a photo book using a retail store or online site that will become a sharable, printed keepsake.

• Alternately, print the individual photos and put them together in a small album (scrapbookers can go crazy here if they like).

• If you have a handful of photos you like, pick the best two or three and have them printed and framed. Put them in a spot where you see them. Smile often! We often opt for frames of the same style or different styles of the same color to add some impact. Our favorite color is matte black because it sets itself apart from all rainbow of colors we have in every room of our house.

• Back up your photos on a disc or two. Never trust discs to keep your photos forever, plus you'll never see them again. If a disc is lost, scratched or broken, your photos are gone forever.

The temporary nature of digital files on CD and DVD are why I try to discourage my clients from relying on them to keep their images. Even with the gold-plated discs, should the disc stand the test of time future technology may render it unreadable. Instead, I offer a disc of low-resolution images that provides an easy way for them to e-mail images to friends or post on their personal Web sites. Full-resolution digital files are also available for an extra charge.