Tangibility In A Digital World

Let's start with a confession.  My name is Stephen, and I still print all of my personal photos.

Call me crazy, but the predominant reason for this can be summed up in one word--tangibility.  We, as humans, have an affinity for tangible things.  That tangibility is often forgotten in this digital world we live in.  More often than not we settle on good enough or the ease and simplicity of seeing our photos on our iPads, smartphones and computers.  I don't know about you, but in some ways I miss film.

There is a hard truth to this ease and simplicity, though...

That hard drive in your computer will die!  That smartphone or iPad will stop working at some point!  It's not a matter of if, but when.  If that was the sole medium where your photos existed, then they are lost.  Now this post is not to suggest you make a digital back-up, as there are plenty of articles on why to do that.  While digital back-ups are important, if that was all we did, we still wouldn't have a tangible element in photography.

So, my simple suggestion to you is print your photos--ALL OF THEM!  Make that your back-up, and in doing so, you just added a tangible element back to your otherwise redundant digital world.

That printed photo will then, in theory, last your lifetime and hopefully long enough for your grandchildren and great grandchildren to see it.  After all, isn't that the whole point?  I mean, why take pictures if not for their lasting ability that can only be preserved and passed down in print.