I’m just going to say it simply:

Prints are important!

My dad recently asked me if I could retouch a few or his family photos.  I’ve never actually done this before, but I’m proficient enough in photoshop to give it a try.  These photos had been damaged by water, sun, time, and probably a few other things.  But they are still there.  They just need a little “jooshing.”

The safest way to preserve your photographs is to print them.  Technology is always evolving.  Remember the floppy disk? As long as you have a physical image, there will be a way to get a digital version.  But what if there was a family photo that you needed and it was on that floppy disk?  Then what?  Damage to prints can be fixed digital, but damage to digital images cannot be fixed so easily.

One of my favorite places to print my personal photos is Parabo Press.  You can  ALWAYS get a set of 25 prints for free (just $8 for shipping). And when I say always, I mean it…literally.   They don’t make you put in a coupon code or pay for a membership.  They just ask that you love your prints enough to buy some of their other products.

Do yourself a favor, get some free prints.

And in the meantime, check out what the magic of photoshop can do to images that might be damaged.  I know they aren’t perfect, but at least we still have these great memories.