Nick Peers looks at the latest online tools to help you preserve, organise, share and tell stories about your family photographs
We all know the importance of photos in our family history – both old and new. These days, most of our photographs are digital – including the old ones we’ve scanned or captured using tools like PhotoScan from last month’s ‘Tech Tips’. But how secure are those photos? Have you had time to organise them properly? How easy are they to distribute to your family? And how do you document (and share) the stories behind those photos? If you’re looking for the answer to any (or all) of these questions, then you’ll find potential solutions online.
We’ve tracked down four services that between them cover all of these key areas: safekeeping, organising, storytelling and sharing. Each of them is aimed at family historians, and while none of them is completely free to use, they do offer free trials or cut-down tiers to allow you to test them thoroughly for yourself.
To help you on your journey, we’ve trialled all four services to see what they offer. We’ve signed up and installed any apps (either desktop or mobile) to see how they work, and road-tested all their key features.
What we’ve discovered is that there’s no one perfect solution to the four areas we’re interested in – some cover all bases, but none of them excels in all four areas. Instead, you’ll need to work out what your priorities are. Do you want an online backup that will outlast you (look at Forever), or are you more focused on storytelling (choose Storied)? Perhaps your photos are in a mess and you’d like them organised as well as backed up (Mylio, pictured). Or maybe you’re looking for a service that excels in capturing old photographs while offering additional tools that cover all four bases to greater or lesser degrees (try Photomyne).
Whatever you’re looking for from your family photographs, one or more of these services can help. Read on to see how they operate, and discover which of them will meet your needs.
PHOTOMYNE
photomyne.com
PRICING DETAILS Free, £14.99/month, £39.99/year, £199.99 lifetime
PHOTO STORAGE Unlimited
MOBILE APP Yes
BEST FOR Acquiring images on the move
PROS Photomyne covers the broadest set of features of the services on test here. It also boasts a good range of acquisition and sharing tools, plus can sharpen and colourise photos using AI technology.
CONS You’ll need to spend some time setting up your initial shots to deliver acceptable scans of your photographs. Plus, while it covers all bases, Photomyne doesn�
