‘I have the box of old photos and videos somewhere…’

Have you ever said that? Do you ever say that some day you really have to go through your old photos? Do you have old movies and don’t even know what’s recorded on them?

If you are a baby boomer, the answer is probably ‘yes.’ You might even have old scrapbooks, newspaper clippings and other memories that are fading every year.

Are you the only person that has some of the family photos and want to share them?

You probably want to ‘organize’ everything, but where to you start? Do you just scan everything?

The best advice I can give is to think about how you’d like to preserve your priceless photos and videos and who you’d like to share them with.

Would you like a digital photo book?
There are many options for the design and print quality, but photo books are a great way to preserve and share a copy with each member of your family. Newer digital photos can be included as well.

Would you like to create a video life story?
Photos, music, captions and old movies and even new videos can be woven into a feature film type of video. If you’ve ever seen a Ken Burns documentary, that style can be used for your story. What greater legacy is there than the story of your family’s journey?

Would you like to honor a family member to celebrate a special moment in their lives?
70th birthday? 50th anniversary? High School Graduation? About-to-be-married? Bar/Bat Mitzvah?

-How do you get started?
-Start one project at a time. For example, a milestone birthday celebration is a great time to create a video tribute or a life photo book. These are truly the gifts of a lifetime.
-Sometimes when you become empty-nesters is the best time to look back and savor the best moments.
-For others, having an aging parent brings to focus the right time to look back and find, preserve and share memories about the important people and moments in your and their lives.

Tips: Interviews are a wonderful way to make all of your memories come to life.

-Think about recording an interview with the aging parent with open ended questions, such as

-Tell me about….
-What do you remember about….

-Enlist a grandchild to make up the questions and even conduct the interview.

I think that creating books or videos for special milestones, or about special occasions is a great way to start saving, preserving and sharing priceless memories. I hope you enjoy savoring every moment – and enjoy creating the times of your lives.

Located at 1515 Hope Street in Stamford, CT, we specialize in creating customized video tributes and photo montage slideshows, video biographies and photo books locally, throughout Fairfield County, CT and the US.

Arline Melzer is a film producer with a passion to help ​professionals tell their story, and to help generations preserve and celebrate the times of their lives.