What I Love About My Job as a Photo Organizer

It’s no secret: I love my job!

As part of my work as a photo organizer, I help people manage their photo collections, create beautiful albums, safeguard their photos, and enjoy their memories in a format that works for them.

I’ve always been interested in life stories, and I believe our past shapes who we are – so one of our goals at Picture This Organized is to help you preserve your family legacy by taking the guesswork out of displaying and caring for your photos.

Here are 6 reasons why I love my job as a photo organizer:

1. I get to use my natural affinity for order and efficiency.

When it comes to working with photos, it’s all in the details – and I’m proud to say I’m great with details! I’m a naturally organized and efficient person, so I get to use my strengths every day in my work. That feels great for me, and works well for my clients, too.

Here are a few of the details I help my clients keep track of, when we’re creating albums and managing photo collections:

• Making note of family timelines, so we can keep track of important information such as birthdates, anniversaries, school years, where they lived, when they moved, and so on. These family timelines and details help us tell a coherent story in the photos.
• Using reference photos of individuals as we go through the organizing process, so we can accurately identify family members as they age.
• When we’re working with photo image files, capturing the date the photo was taken and the event happening in the photos, so we group images in a logical order. This makes them easy to find and share later.
• Researching locations and finding accurate spellings for travel albums, so photos are accurately identified.
• Using word-for-word writing when using we use journals for storytelling, or using the client’s voice to keep things personal.

2. I’m good at providing an objective opinion.

We all take lots of photos, and we often feel overwhelmed when it comes to managing and organizing them. This was definitely true back when we all took print photos, but it’s even MORE true now that many of us have switched over to taking digital photos.

Instead of having photo boxes of prints in our closets, now we’ve got digital files hanging out in multiple folders on every device we own. Phew! It takes a lot to keep everything organized, backed up, and easily findable.

And here’s a little secret: It is much easier to organize someone else’s photo collections than it is to organize your own! I get personally connected to my own photos, and I struggle with selecting the best ones. When I’m working with my own family photo collection, it’s easy to get distracted by memories.

I think about how cute my children looked at each age, and the moments come flooding back to me. As wonderful as those memories are, they make it hard to move through the organizing process quickly and efficiently.

When I’m looking at a photo for client, I can make an objective assessment. I’m examining an image to decide whether people in the photo are well captured, and whether we have the best version of a shot.

And while I do look for photos that convey emotion, I don’t have the same emotional attachment to the event as my clients do, so I can make decisions more quickly.

Here’s another secret: I know my own limitations, and recently hired a colleague to help me (finally) with my own photo collection!

3. I enjoy teaching people how to use technology to improve their lives.

In the past, I’ve worked in service roles where I’ve assisted customers with sorting through software problems. I’ve also helped write training manuals, and trained people on how to use various tech products.

All of this comes without a degree in technology, software or anything close to it!

I’m good at understanding how technology can help people, and how it can makes their lives better – so when I help my clients understand how to get photos from their cameras, or find images on their computers, I can break things down into small chunks so it’s easier for them to learn.

I know that for most of my clients, working with these tools isn’t naturally intuitive. Because I don’t have a technical background myself, it’s easier for me to put myself in the shoes of the person I’m teaching — which means I never talk down to people or make them feel stupid when we’re working together.

I try to ease their minds and reassure them that if I can understand it, they can, too!

4. There are always new technological tools and techniques to learn, and I enjoy that.

Even though I’ve been in my field for several years, there’s always more to learn. As new tools, gadgets, and systems become available, I enjoy staying current on changing technologies, so I can be sure to find the right solutions for my clients.

Being part of an association of like-minded colleagues through The Photo Managers has helped me stay current with the latest tech trends.

I’m also lucky to have access to professionals who are experts in areas where I’m still learning. I also have someone to ask, if I’m stuck on a particular question.

Being able to learn consistently and stay on top of new developments is great for my business, and my clients reap huge benefits from that, too.

5. Collaboration is good for everyone

When I work with my clients to help them enjoy their photos, I often get to collaborate with other local vendors and service providers. For example, when I’m working on a framed wall collage for a client, I work with several other vendors to complete the final product.

I select the images to use, then get the frames from a frame shop or retailer. I use a local printer to print the images, then I assemble it all and deliver it to the client.

It’s very fulfilling to collaborate with like-minded colleagues as we work together to provide excellent service to our clients.

6. I get to pay it forward.

I appreciate all the support and training I received from other organizers when I first started my business. Now that I’m an established photo organizer, I feel it’s important to pay it forward by helping new photo organizers establish sound foundations in their own businesses.

I enjoy participating in the annual Photo Managers conference, where I get to provide advice, training, and mentoring for new photo organizers.

With all the pictures we take, and the massive overwhelm people feel when they try to their tackle their massive photo collections, there is huge need for people with the expertise I have – so I never feel like I am “training my competition” when I help out new organizers.

There’s plenty of room for all of us in this business, and more photo organizers means more people get help with displaying and managing their photos. That is ALWAYS a good thing!

Keep Your Eye Out for Part Two

I’m so passionate about my job, I wanted to write TWO blog posts about it! Stay tuned for Part Two of this “What I Love” series, where I’ll tell you all about why I love my photo organizing clients!