Relive moments trapped on your phone
Here are a few ways your camera roll can fuel your creative streak
In recent weeks, social media feeds have been full of throwback photos with people reminiscing about life before COVID-19. Photo challenges encouraging us to share snapshots of more carefree days using hashtags such as #LifeIsGood and #MeAt20 have been trending on social media, and whether you have jumped on the bandwagon or have just been scrolling, one thing is certain — looking through photos makes us feel good.
“Right now, my favourite thing to do with my old photos is to randomly sift through them,” says Jill Finney, who lives in Toronto. “Photos are always important, and during this unprecedented time, they have become even more meaningful. It reminds us of what’s most important — and nothing brings memories into focus quite like an old photograph.”
Finney is not alone. Pikto, a company that prints photo books, cards and decor, says they have seen an uptick in interest in photo-related projects. People have more time and are taking stock of their lives and the things they have enjoyed in the past — like travelling or just being with their family, says Andre Souroujon, the CEO and founder. “Lots of families are making family albums, travel books and photo books of kids, and we are even seeing grandparents making picture books for their grandchildren … It’s a very reflective type of exercise to go through your images, organize them and make a book — it’s exciting and lets you relive those moments.”
Pikto has an app and website with software that makes printing photos easy, helping customers choose the best print size for their project. “Our software tells you when the resolution is too low, and will warn you to say the image shouldn’t really be that big, so you can make it smaller,” says Souroujon, who recommends using the original photo as opposed to a cropped or modified photo. “Once you start cropping you can diminish the quality, or pixels of a photo. Just make sure that the images are not blurry and are shot with good lighting so they’re not too dark, then they should print well.”
Here are four ideas to get those photos off your smartphone and into our homes as gifts, decor or art projects — using online services that do all the hard work for you.
Make a photo book A great way to relive great moments and keep them organized is to make a photobook. Whether it’s filled with special family photos or shots from your last family vacation, a photobook can help you organize your photos chronologically and gets them off your phone and onto your coffee table or bookcase. A family photo book for grandparents with meaningful snapshots from a special time also makes a great gift.
Choose from a variety of beautiful photobook styles, including softcover and hardcover photo books and albums with built-in layouts at Pikto including elegant linen covers and eco matte paper (from $50) that are customizable and designed and manufactured in Toronto.
They say good things come in small packages — have fun making a Tiny Book at Social Print Studio which measure1.7” x 1.5” and come in sets of three. Each book holds 24 photos.
Decorate Personal photos can also be turned into wall art, wallpaper and even fabric that can be stretched onto canvas or made into throw pillows, says Finney, an interior stylist in Toronto.
“We always love a gallery wall — such as all black and white photos in a random collection of vintage frames, or a variety of photo styles all in brass frames.” Print photos onto acrylic, metal, wood, canvas or paper at Posterjack, who also offers acrylic prints from $54.99. Experiment with shapes — a hexagon shaped print on canvas, from $58, or try a contemporary oval or round print mounted on Plexiglas to hang on the wall from $105 at Pikto. Try your hand at designing your own fabric or wallpaper using your own art, photography or even your kid’s artwork at Spoonflower, a marketplace that offers on-demand digital printing. Upload a design and choose how you want it printed — fabric for crafts like quilting, apparel and upholstery, or wallpaper. Fabric from $17.50/yard and wallpaper from $18/roll.
Turn photos into gifts Have fun making novelty photo art gifts for friends and family. Toronto-based Posterjack has seen an increase in people creating photo art gifts for friends and family. “They’re uploading their photos to our website, choosing the gift they want their photo(s) printed on, and then having us ship directly to the gift recipient for birthdays, births, Father’s Day, or just to reach out to someone you can’t visit in person,” says Posterjack president Tim Faught. Put your photos on just about anything, from mugs, T-shirts and BBQ aprons, to photo puzzles which have become popular as we stay home — starting at $9.99 at Blacks.ca. Etsy shop owner Maegan Klassen says her custom photo pillows have been in demand. You can even create your own pair of custom socks with your pet’s face from $24.95 (U.S.) at gopupsocks.com.
Use technology If you prefer to keep things digital, use technology to display photos in your home that would otherwise be hidden away on your devices. Set photos to randomly display on a digital photo frame, your Smart TV or computer screen when not in use. Use a smart display such as the Google Nest Hub Max, $299, to display photos, view photos on demand using Google Assistant and share albums with friends and family — a great way to make everyone feel connected.