ABOVE: A pillar in this False Creek condo is the perfect spot for a vertical display of black and white photos in similar black wood frames, each reserved for one family member. When the owner is presented with more recent pictures from family – who all know she likes black-and-whites – she simply replaces the images and files the old ones in a photo box. I've been meaning to grapple with the issue of what to do with all those photos we have, love, but can’t find a home for. Judging by the some 20 ancient photo albums crammed under my bed, I’m more willing to grapple with the subject than the actual things themselves.
(For those born in the ’90s, a “photograph” is a hard copy of a non-digital image created using something called “film” that produces “negatives.”)
We older folk are dearly attached to our ancient, non-archival quality albums of memories. They’re bulky and ugly, but we would grab them along with any kids and pets if disaster struck.
I’ve read many ideas for reducing the clutter of photos and albums, but most suggestions involve deconstructing the albums and filing the pictures in photo boxes – basically transferring a problem from book to box while destroying what have become artifacts themselves.
I once devoted my foyer as a family/friends wall of fame until it grew so unwieldy (due in no small part to the fact that many “helped” me collect more) that one day I tore down all the visual clutter of frames, filling several boxes.
Then my aunt, another album-building nut, decided no one would love inheriting her load of volumes displaying her many and various vacations and occasions, so she quit the habit, and ultimately, so did I. But it took a few internal battles before I wrestled my existing photo clutter into order.
I started by divesting myself of old photos by gifting pictures of friends and family, like the card featuring my sister as a toddler, for her 30th birthday. Now I do it regularly, retaining an ever-smaller (relatively speaking) selection for myself. I still love building albums, but I create them by subject that spans the eras, like “Grandma Flo” or “Camping” and deep-six the remainders. Yes, it hurts to throw out any photo, but am consoled knowing I still have the negatives filed by date in one large three-ring binder.
As for the gifts of framed photos of friends and family we all accumulate, well, just because I don’t display every photo doesn’t mean I love them less.
The final step happened when I joined the rest of the world in going digital. Now I back up all images on an an external hard drive every month, where they're in virtual files according to general dates and major subjects. I rejoice in no longer having to contend with more bundles of prints and negatives.
(Updated version of column originally published in 2006)
