How to Organize Digital Photos

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Last updated on September 1st, 2023 at 07:07 pm

Let’s talk about how to organize digital photos and videos. This can be a large undertaking for the average parent photographer with 10 billion unorganized photos but, trust me, you will be glad you did.

Can we stop for a moment and talk about why you want to organize your photos?  Not just organize them, but back them up? My motivation comes from a frightening experience a few months ago…

Windows (stupid Windows) did an update and we got completely locked out of our computer. I was beyond distraught thinking that we had lost those first few months of my daughter’s life in pictures and videos. Fortunately, my amazing husband worked a couple of IT jobs and he was able to recover our computer and all our precious memories. (Did I mention he’s my hero?)

Here’s a 6-step process to organize your digital photos and back them up:

Step 1: Backup to a Cloud Service

The first step you should take is to download a couple of apps for online photo storage. Having your photos backed up to more than one external storage space will give you peace of mind.

The storage services I use are Google Photos and Shutterfly. Both services feature automatic desktop uploaders, apps for your iPhone and tablet, and free unlimited photo storage.

I’ve been using Shutterfly for years. Combining unlimited photo storage with the ability to create beautiful photo books, cards, and gifts directly from the storage site makes it difficult for me to change services.

Photo storage is unlimited but video storage is paid. There are three different pricing levels. The pricing isn’t bad when you look at it per month, but I know what it’s like to be on a budget.

For that reason, I use Google Photos as a second backup for photos and so far the only cloud backup for my videos. It is also the app I use to automatically back up the photos on my iPhone. In order to get unlimited storage, however, your photo and video files are reduced in size. You can choose to back up the original file size, but you’re limited to 15 GB.

Need another reason to use Google Photos? You can connect your Google account to Shutterfly so there’s no need to upload your photos again unless you want more backup.

Dropbox is another option for photo and video backup, however, they do not offer free unlimited storage. I found I ran out of free space just from uploading videos.

Step 2: Set a date for a monthly photo download

Set a monthly appointment to download all your photos to your computer. Put it on your calendar to recur each month.

Step 3: Decide on the main location for all your photos

Collect every photo into one centralized place so you aren’t searching around for everything. Think of it as the digital photo equivalent of the first part of the KonMari Method to “take everything out.”

Read this in-depth post on setting up a photo hub.

Step 4: Sort Photos on Your Storage Drive

The beauty of cloud services is that they automatically sort your photos for you by date. I’m guessing that may not be happening on your local drive. You will need to sort your photos by date. This is a long process, which could take several days to complete, but the relief you will feel once it’s organized will make it all worth it. (Just remember not to stare at the computer screen too long without taking a break!)

Here’s what you need to do:

1. Create a folder for each year, simply titled “2016” or “2017.”

2. Within each of these folders, create a folder for each month, titled “01 – JAN,” 02 – FEB,” 03 – MAR,” and so on. Once you do one year you can copy the folders into all the remaining years.

3. Wherever your photos are currently stored, right-click to sort them by date.

4. Start adding photos to their respective dated folders. If you don’t know the date check the photo “properties.” Hopefully, the dates will be correct.
5. Once you have your photos sorted you can sort by events (birthdays, vacations, holidays, etc.).

Read an in-depth post about organizing your digital photos here.

Step 4: Declutter

Now that your photos are organized, go through each folder to delete any dark, blurry, duplicate, or all-around bad photos. You don’t need to clutter up space on your hard drive or wonder why you have that unflattering picture of yourself. (That’s always a fun surprise when scrolling through your photos. Yikes!)

Step 5: Rename your photos (optional)

Professional photo organizers will tell you to rename your photos rather than use the general “IMG_1012.” It’s a great idea, and good on you if you do it.

Here’s what I recommend:

Do a little bit at a time. During your monthly download appointment, rename the most current photos. Once you’ve done that, go back to one previous year/month and rename those photos. You won’t get overwhelmed if you take it bit by bit, and I don’t want you to be overwhelmed. There’s enough of that in life already.

As far as naming conventions, I would use a date (i.e. 01.01.2012) with the names of the people in the photo and/or the event.

Step 6: Create a file to record your memories each month

Keep a record of what happens each month. Create a note in Evernote or start a doc in Google Drive so you can access it on the go. This will help you in creating your family yearbook.

Record:

• Milestones
• Events/activities
• Quotes
• Holidays/celebrations

So there you have it: your six-step process to organize digital photos! Here’s what to do now …

Get an in-depth, step-by-step guide to organizing your photos by joining the 4-week photo organizing challenge below.