In this tutorial I cover two topics on dealing with traditional (paper-based) family photo albums:
- Digitizing the photographs
- Interpreting or understanding them.
I have a collection of family photo albums from both sets of grandparents, my parents and then for my wife and I. We are now collecting photographs of our grandchildren.
To this point I have scanned some 1628 photographs dating from about 1900 to the 1990s. There are more to go. Most are from my grandparents’ and parent’s albums. The photographs were mounted in albums or simply stored in boxes or envelops. One might think they would be in some order, especially those in albums, but that is not always the case. Proximity is a clue, but not a guarantee.
Digitizing the Photographs
Purpose
In my mind there are three reasons to scan the photographs. The first is preservation of the originals, the second is to facilitate analysis of the content. The last is to recover the original image quality.
Preservation is achieved by reducing the amount of physical contact with (often) delicate paper, and allowing them to be put into archival storage, protecting them from the elements, light etc.
Once digitized photographs can be indexed with keywords, place names, peoples’ names, etc. This makes it easier to organize the photographs and subsequently analyze them. I have stored the photographs in a Lightroom database allowing me to apply a wide range of meta data and offers multiple search capabilities.
Some photographs are in poor condition, so once digitized, tools become available to recover the quality of the image, with luck, to its original state. An important point is this is non-destructive; that is the original image remains untouched.
Scanning
Organize “batches” of photographs
- Batch = Photo Album — start with photo albums, then other “packages” (e.g. envelopes or mini-albums)
- Batch = “logical cluster” — group pictures in “shoeboxes” by decade, then by “family” (father’s parents, mother’s parents, my parents, my wife and I)
Scan batches
- Photo Albums: scan full pages from photo albums to keep the order of the album and context of a page
- “Cluster”: group if possible, put a many on flatbed as possible; scan both sides if writing on back of picture
- each “scan page” is numbered sequentially from 1
Import batches into Lightroom
- reformat filename from Page-xxx to YYYYMMDD-BB-\<filename>
where filename is in the format Page-NNN (e.g., Page-001)
BB is the batch number (e.g., 01)
Separate Batches
- make one virtual copy per picture on each “scan page”
- crop out an individual photograph from each virtual copy
Index individual photographs
- Tag each photograph with peoples’ names; decade photo taken; Associated Family-Generation (grandparent, parent … )
- To each photograph add date if known, and any other known information
Storage
Photographs that were in photo albums remain in the same albums. The albums will be stored in archival containers to protect them from dust etc. Photographs. that we in boxes or envelopes have been inserted into clear archival plastic sleeves and put into binders for storage.
The digital images are stored on an external RAID 5 Disk drive, with off-site backup. They are stored in an Adobe Lightroom Classic Repository that provides various forms of indexing and retrieval.
Order
There are several ways of ordering pictures, including by date, person, place or any number of other options. None is a straightforward process as rarely is there sufficient information. It is therefore necessary to iterate and estimate using whatever information is available, whether it be written on the page of the album or the back of the photograph.
Order by date
- Order Images by Year across all batches
- group images by decade
- refine to try and determine year
- order within year based on seasonal clue; bring together duplicate images
- Determining Date
- Order pictures with known dates:
- Look for dates written on / near photograph
- Look for dates coded on photograph by the developer
- Memory: associate photograph with an event, then associate date of event
- Association: use content of picture (e.g., people, location, cars, license plates, clothes …) to associate it with another photograph that has a date
- Estimation: look at people and try to determine their age; try to determine if their age is older, younger or the same as a photograph with a known date.
- Order pictures with known dates:
Order by “Project”
- A project by person (e.g., their entire life from first to last image)
- A project by siblings (e.g., brothers, siblings, …)
- A project by place
- Locations
- Look for places written on / near photograph
- Look for place of the photographer / developer
- Look at content of photograph for recognizable things or
- Use date to associate place
- People
- Look for names written on / near photograph
Notes and Observations
- It’s a reliving of all the happy moments of lives, of the different generations; rarely are the traumatic ones covered
- Vacations
- special events (Christmas, New Years, Birthdays, etc.)
- when you see only the happy times, it leads to a distorted view of things — events / past lives
- This process has forced one to look closely at every single page and every single image; where was it taken, when, who is in it, the image quality (and what does that say; the variations are interesting in themselves)
- Can use ChatGPT to get some context; to examine a picture
- How many pictures does it take to capture a life?
Interpretation
The process of digitizing the photographs, as described above, forces one to look closely at every single page and every single image; where it was taken, when, who is in it, the image quality (and what does that say; the variations are interesting in themselves). It is a reliving of all the happy moments of lives, of the different generations; rarely are the traumatic ones covered, rather it is a story of vacations and special events (Christmas, New Years, Birthdays, etc.)
When you see only the happy times, it leads to a distorted view of things.
Interpretation is the process of making sense, drawing some understanding or insight about your family. We can contrast what is presented in the images against the backdrop of history and stories we remember. We can use ChatGPT to get some context; to examine a picture; to help us get more background and insight.
Roland Barthes’ essay on “The Winter Garden Photograph” talks about a picture of his mother and her brother that, for him, captured a moment in time, a time “that has been”, its historical context and a personal element, which for Barthes was the story of his mother.
In analyzing a photograph Barthes distinguished between its content and what was personally striking which he refers to as Studium and Punctum — fact and emotion — respectively 1. I will follow a similar approach to interpret my collection.
To identify the studium begin by examining each photograph as if you were an outside observer. Notice the era (based on clothing, cars, furniture), geographical details (landmarks, signs), and social context (gatherings, festivities, formal portraits). This helps situate each image historically and culturally.
Follow the first step by seeking out the punctum by asking yourself what in the image “calls out” to you personally. It could be a facial expression of someone you knew well, a family heirloom in the background, or even the play of light that evokes a memory of place. The punctum often eludes explanation but resonates deeply.
Questions to Consider
- What cultural or historical details can I identify (clothes, automobiles, buildings)?
- Which part of the photo most strongly captures my attention or emotion? Why might it do so?
- Does this image stir any immediate memories, stories, or sensations?
There is another quality of a photograph that Barthes described and that is the quality of something “that-has-been”. That is every photograph testifies to a real moment in time. Unlike paintings or written descriptions, photographs anchor us to something that once existed, preserving a tangible link to the past.2
Questions to Consider
- What do I know about the real situation in which this photo was taken?
- How does knowing that these people and settings genuinely existed affect the way I feel about the image now?
- Are there discrepancies between the story the photo suggests and the family lore or my own memories?
If one is considering presenting these photographs in public, then it is important to balance private meaning with public meaning. For Barthes, some photographs (like the “Winter Garden Photograph” of his mother) have immense private resonance that may not translate to others. While an image can hold universal interest (studium), its deepest affective power might be uniquely personal (punctum).3
Questions to Consider
- Which images do I feel compelled to keep private, and why?
- Do I want to add captions or written contexts to help others see what I see in these photos?
- Is there a difference between how I respond to the image and how I imagine others might respond?
Look for the emotional “sting”. Barthes’s notion of punctum is central to experiencing a photograph in a deeply emotional way. This “sting” or “wound” is often unexpected and cannot be willed.4
Questions to Consider
- Is there a detail that unexpectedly draws me in, perhaps more than the supposed main subject?
- Does this detail carry meaning for me, or does it point to something unsaid or unremembered?
- How does focusing on this small element change the story I tell about the photograph?
Trace the passage of time: photographs freeze moments, but by looking at them in series—like in an album—you can see changes over time, both in people and places. This underscores Barthes’s “that-has-been” in a temporal arc.5
Questions to Consider
- How do the same people appear in different images—do expressions, body language, or styles change noticeably?
- Does the setting (house, city, or landscape) show signs of transformation across the photos?
- Are there recurring ‘punctum’-like details that resonate with me from one photograph to another?
Accept the limits of explanation: Barthes suggests that part of photography’s power lies in what cannot be fully articulated. The affective dimension may resist neat summarisation.6
Questions to Consider
- Which elements in my photo albums feel impossible to put into words, and why?
- Is there a value in keeping some of these images or details enigmatic, reserved only for my private reflection?
- Barthes refers to these two concepts as Stadium and Punctum:
Studium involves the broader cultural, historical, or compositional aspects of a photograph. It’s how we can analyse images in a general sense—looking at the setting, the fashion of the time, the social context, or the historical moment.
Punctum is the personally striking detail or element in a photograph that “pierces” your emotional register. This might be something small—an expression, a hand gesture, or a tiny object in the background—that triggers a powerful memory or feeling.
↩︎ - When looking at an older family photograph, try to imagine the specific circumstances of that day: the people, the weather, the mood. The photograph is proof that these individuals and settings truly existed in that instant.
Consider how the image might preserve or distort memory. Even though the photograph shows “what was,” your own recollection—or your family’s stories—may overlay new layers of meaning.
↩︎ - Accept that some of your photographs will remain intensely meaningful to you—perhaps because of the relationships they depict—while others might be of general interest for their historical or aesthetic qualities.
If you plan to share these photos publicly or with friends, consider how much context they need to understand what they’re seeing. Some images might need a story or caption to convey why they matter.
↩︎ - Set aside time to revisit each photograph slowly. Sometimes it takes multiple viewings for a specific detail to catch your eye or evoke a memory.
Allow yourself to be surprised. The most meaningful detail might not be the obvious subject (like the person posing), but rather something in the margins: a dog waiting by the door, the edge of the garden, a tear in someone’s sleeve.
↩︎ - Arrange your photographs chronologically if possible. Observe how individuals grow older, fashions shift, or local landmarks evolve.
Notice if any recurring themes, objects, or poses appear across different decades. These patterns might reveal family traditions or personal habits that accumulate meaning over time.
↩︎ - When interpreting your photos, allow room for ambiguity. Not every emotional reaction needs a perfect explanation.
Accept that some aspects of a photograph’s significance may remain deeply personal, defying objective or final interpretation.
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