Am I the only person who currently has 1,600 pictures on their iPhone?? In an effort to organize my life and minimize the clutter, my iPhone is definitely on my to-do list.
Printing out the pictures may seem like a no-brainer, but I tend to snap several pics in an effort to get the best shot, or screen shot silly things on my phone to send to friends, so I definitely don’t want to print everything on my camera roll.
Organizing
The first solution I have come up with is setting aside time weekly to organize and cull my photos. It has taken me over an hour to go through 1,600, and thats not en experience I care to repeat! I set a reminder to sort through my photos once a week.
After they are backed up, I delete them. There are a few favorites I leave on my phone, but for the most part I can just pull up the social media site I posted them on or my back up if I want the photo.
Categories
Another step I am taking to organize my photos is sorting them into categories.
I often save pictures of haircuts I like, or colors I want a specific client to try, so it isn’t really practical to sort through 1,600 photos at the salon.
Back Up
I am currently on my 8th iPhone, and in between operator error and lack of a back up, I have lost really special pictures over the years. I currently pay for additional iCloud storage, but it seems like I am always running out. And syncing to my computer is far from fail-proof. Imagine my shock to discover an app that I was already using had been backing up my photos for free, and a lot of them!
The Google + app will back up 15 GB of photos, and it wont cost you a penny! That is a LOT of storage. The app stores them in categories, which makes them easy to access. The only downside is when it backs up photos that you didn’t want to save, and you have to individually delete them from the app. An extremely small con considering that the service is free.
Printing
There are a gazillion apps out there to print photos from your iPhone; here are a few I have tried.
Snapfish – When you download the Snapfish app you automatically get 100 free prints per month, all you pay is shipping. Whats nice about this app is that you can also directly print from Facebook, Instagram, or Flickr, or upload photos from your phone. Now, Snapfish does not have professional-level print quality by any stretch, so if you are planning to farm and hang anything I would recommend a service like Mpix, who also has a mobile app. Their shipping is also $8.99, so unless you are ordering a LOT of prints, its still not that great of a deal.
Groovebook – If you have 40+ photos to print monthly, Groovebook is a neat option. For $2.99 a month (or per book if you order more) they will send you a 4.5″ x 6.5″ photo book that is perforated for easy removal of photos. You can also send pictures books to friends and family for the same price. This is absolutely my go-to for printing my iPhone photos because the price simply cannot be beat. Want to try a free book? Use coupon code HAAG70.
Walgreens – I am not at ALL a fan of Walgreen’s print quality, but this is by FAR the most convenient way to print photos. You can upload pics onto their mobile app, and pick up the prints in an hour from your local store. Their prices run about the same as any other printing option, but if you watch their web site regularly, they often run specials up to 50% off. I would not use this option for prints you want to frame or display, but I do find myself using Walgreens frequently when I just want something printed fast.
I hope these tips helps you get your iPhone photos organized. They have revolutionized how I manage mine, and have helped me actually enjoy the pictures I take instead of just stockpiling them.
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