Save Your Photos: Create A Family Timeline

Preparing a family timeline aids in the sorting process as you begin to tackle your photo and video collection. Begin by plotting important milestones like marriage and birth dates.

Most of our lives can be mapped into important milestones on a timeline, even though we may not know specific dates.  Once a timeline is created, you will use this as a roadmap for indexing your photos during the sorting process.  Trust us; you’ll be glad you took the time to complete this step.

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Map Your Family Timeline

As you look at the entire collection of photos/videos that you are working with, determine the oldest photo and the most recent photo. This is the time span that you will plot on your map.

Once you have these major markers in place, you can begin to jot other moments or milestones in between until you are satisfied with your timeline. Plot your timeline on a spreadsheet or in a notebook, for easy reference. You will refer to this often as you start sorting, and details may change based on some of your photo discoveries.

Now is a good time to ask your relatives about key dates and events for accuracy, especially if you are working with heritage photos!

Events/Dates to Add to Your Family Timeline

Here are a few event and date ideas to get your family timeline started.

• Birth
• Marriage/Divorce
• Death
• Adoption
• Immigration/Naturalization
• Move to new home/city
• Graduations
• Baptism/Christening
• Military Service
• Retirement

Are you ready to start your timeline?

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We also invite you to visit our sister blog The Photo Organizers for more tips and in-depth knowledge from some of the top photo organizing industry professionals. To find a photo organizer near you, visit the Association of Personal Photo Organizers.